Streaming Music in Japan: Corporate Cultures as Determinants of Listening Practice

Abstract

Although Japan led the world in the adoption of mobile-phone consumer culture (e.g. ringtones) in the 1990s to late 2000s, it now lags behind in the adoption of streaming formats. Why has streaming music been slower to catch on in Japan? Pre-existing conceptions of old media, such as a Japanese tendency to listen to radio less often and radio stations that do not specialise in a particular genre, made Pandora-style, DJ-less online radio a less compelling format; naming an online streaming service ‘radio’ did not familiarize the new media, as it did in the USA. Growth was further inhibited by a lack of statutory licences, so that streaming services had to negotiate rights with record companies, and record companies were reluctant to supply streaming companies with Japanese content, including current chart toppers and back catalogue. Finally, smartphones took a longer time to catch on in Japan, as mid-2000s flip phones were so advanced that the iPhone did not look that groundbreaking at its launch.