Japan's top telecommunications company is getting 7.3 billion yen in taxpayer money to design mobile tracking software to curb the spread of coronavirus infections during the Tokyo Olympics. (nzherald.co.nz)

Japan's messaging app Line has stopped its Chinese affiliates and contractors from accessing the personal information of Japanese users, the company said Tuesday, in response to growing scrutiny over its data management practices. (Nikkei)

The Olympic torch started its journey across Japan on Thursday morning after a yearlong delay. That's because the Tokyo 2020 Games were postponed due to the global pandemic. (NHK)

Tokyo and nearby prefectures decided Wednesday to extend their requests for businesses to shorten operating hours until next month as part of efforts to curb the risk of a rebound of the novel coronavirus in the metropolitan area. (Kyodo)

Tokyo’s Cherry Blossoms are early this year. 12 days early! (ONLY in JAPAN)

The Japan Meteorological Agency announced on Monday that cherry blossoms in Tokyo are now in full bloom. (NHK)

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a former star on YouTube who is suspected of soliciting nude photographs from girls, reports NHK (March 17). (tokyoreporter.com)

For the first time in ten weeks, no part of Japan is under a coronavirus state of emergency. But it's far from business as usual with officials and some companies introducing measures to guard against a new surge. (NHK)

Without overseas spectators, this summer's Olympics and Paralympics will likely place an additional financial burden on the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. (NHK)

The average price of land in Japan fell for the first time in six years due to declining demand for urban commercial land spurred by the novel coronavirus pandemic, the government said Tuesday. (Kyodo)

A Tokyo-based restaurant chain operator filed a damages suit on Monday against the Tokyo metropolitan government for ordering that business hours be reduced as a public safety measure during the coronavirus pandemic. (Japan Today)

Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea theme parks will extend the hours they open daily from April 1, their operator, Oriental Land Co., said Monday. (Japan Times)

Tokyo metropolitan government officials plan to ask bars and restaurants to continue operating for shorter hours in April. (NHK)

Japan will emerge from 10 weeks of coronavirus restrictions on Sunday, just in time for the peak of the annual cherry blossom viewing season. (theguardian.com)

Cults and other dubious groups are approaching university students who feel lonely and isolated by the ongoing closure of classrooms as the COVID-19 pandemic stretches into a second year. (Nikkei)

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) is set to begin experimenting with its central bank digital currency later this year. BOJ said in the past that it doesn’t intend to issue a digital yen, claiming that Japan’s digital payments are sufficient currently. (coingeek.com)

Tokyo and the IOC won’t allow oversea spectators to attend the summer games. What does this mean for tourism before and after? (ONLY in JAPAN)

In Japan, the state of emergency for Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures expired at the end of the day on Sunday. (NHK)

Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide says he will work to further strengthen Japan's alliance with the United States when he visits the country early next month. (NHK)

Surveillance camera footage submitted to a US court indicates that one of the two men who were arrested on suspicion of helping former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn escape from Japan met with his daughter at a Tokyo hotel on the day of the escape. (NHK)

A decision has been made to bar overseas spectators from the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer due partly to the unpredictability of coronavirus variants. (NHK)

Despite the COVID-19 state of emergency for Tokyo and three neighboring prefectures no longer being in effect from Monday, strict entry restrictions at airports and ports will continue to be in place, with no indication of when they will be eased. (Japan Times)

Japan's government is scaling back its use of the popular messaging app Line and investigating how it is employed across municipalities, as the service comes under scrutiny over data security. (Nikkei)

Osaka Prefecture in western Japan plans to check the body temperatures of shinkansen bullet train passengers arriving from the Tokyo metropolitan area for about three weeks starting on Monday. (NHK)

Shizuoka Prefectural Police arrested a 33-year-old man for allegedly kidnapping a middle school girl whose body was found inside a tent in a mountainous area of Hamamatsu City on Wednesday, reports Fuji News Network (tokyoreporter.com)