Transplanting Italian café culture to Japan is a big challenge, but it’s one that Gen Saito relishes. Saito, director of marketing & planning and new business development for Pronto Corporation, took on the job two years ago and in a market dominated by big chains such as Starbucks, Tully’s and traditional Japanese “kissaten,” he and his team have managed to create a niche for the relatively new brand of espressamente illy.

From Hello Kitty backpacks to girlfriend simulators, it's safe to say that priorities in Japan are slightly different than that of those in America. Obviously, millennia of distinctive cultures, religions, and development will produce two juxtaposed countries with unique tastes and traditions, no matter how connected they presently are via the web and social networks some US companies just seemed doomed to fail.

Japan has decided to abandon its plan to introduce an environment tax in the forthcoming fiscal year starting in April, taking into account strong opposition from the business community and ruling party lawmakers who are preparing for an upper house election next summer, government sources said on Monday.