Unlicensed lodgings remain listed on Airbnb after new law takes effect

Jun 22, 2018 | News On Japan

Jun 22, 2018 (Japan Today) - Airbnb Inc said Thursday that it is still removing "thousands" of listings from its website for unlicensed private lodgings in Japan, as required under a new law that took effect last week to cope with a sharp increase in foreign visitors and a consequent shortage of hotel rooms.

The world's leading home-share operator said it has continued to delete unregistered lodgings after the government found illegal properties remain listed on the Airbnb website.

"If (the government) makes us aware of any listings with inaccurate registration details, we will remove them immediately," Airbnb said in a statement. "We are also working hard to remove listings that do not appear to have a legitimate registration number."

Before the new law went into effect last Friday, the company said it had deleted thousands of previously listed lodgings without permission to operate.

According to AirbDatabank, an online service monitoring the Japanese private lodging market, the number of Japanese listings on Airbnb decreased drastically from some 55,000 as of the end of May to 13,000 shortly before the law took effect.

On Thursday, the Japan Tourism Agency said it received a report from the city of Kyoto -- one of the most popular tourist destinations in Japan -- that at least 40 lodgings there listed on Airbnb on Friday had failed to register with the local government as required under the law.

Another nine municipalities have also found apparently unlicensed private lodgings still listed on the U.S. firm's website after the law took effect, prompting the governmental agency to ask the company to look into the matter.

"We can't deny some cases of typing or computer system errors (being responsible for the errant registrations), but it is also possible that some home renters used false registration numbers to apply for (Airbnb) listing," a tourism agency official said.

The new law authorizes private homes to be offered as accommodation to tourists only if the owners submit the necessary paperwork to prefectural governments or to authorities in designated major cities such as Kyoto.

Airbnb has been on alert against properties being improperly registered on its computer system. Home owners receive registration numbers consisting of the letter "M" and a nine-digit figure after their applications are accepted.

Source: ANNnewsCH

Typhoons No. 28 and 29 Bring High Waves to Japan's Pacific Coast

Two typhoons moving across the Pacific southeast of Japan are expected to remain well away from the Japanese mainland, but powerful swells could bring rough seas to a wide stretch of the country's Pacific coastline throughout the three-day holiday weekend, according to forecasts updated at 3 a.m. on October 10.

Cyberattacks Spread Across Japan

A series of cyberattacks has disrupted business operations and exposed millions of customer records across Japan, with a ransomware attack on a cloud service provider affecting 495 companies and local governments nationwide, while convenience store operator Lawson has disclosed a separate breach involving more than 2.15 million personal information records.

Japan's First 360-Degree Projection Mapping Opens in Osaka

Japan's first 360-degree projection mapping show will open at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts on October 10, transforming the historic building into an immersive world of light, music, and seasonal imagery, with organizers hoping the attraction will also help stimulate the city's nighttime economy.

Tokyo University Professor Wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Tokyo University of Science professor emeritus Kenzo Soai has been awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with French chemist Henri B. Kagan for discoveries that transformed scientists' understanding of how chemical reactions can favor one of two mirror-image forms of a molecule.

US Military Halts All Okinawa Operations for 48 Hours

The US military suspended activities by all forces stationed in Okinawa for 48 hours from noon on October 7, an unusual measure following the arrest of a US Marine in connection with a robbery and murder case that has renewed scrutiny of crimes involving American service members.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Society NEWS

Most Sightings of Fugitive Yoichi Hatta Reported in Kanto

Police in Oita Prefecture have revealed that the Kanto region accounts for the largest number of reported sightings of Yoichi Hatta, a fugitive wanted in connection with a fatal hit-and-run incident in Beppu in 2022, with authorities preparing to distribute new wanted posters nationwide from November as the search enters its fifth year.