Nobuto Matsukura from The Mainichi:
...researchers in western Japan's Ehime Prefecture have developed a new type of paper material that's cooler to the touch.
The developers are also considering cutting the paper into fine threads to be processed into towels and other textile products.
This kind of thing is where Japan really does excel: taking the normal materials of life and improving them by small margins over time.
Jess Weatherbed from The Verge:
Following in the footsteps of the European Union, Japan has now passed a law that will restrict Apple and Google from blocking third-party app stores for Japanese users on their platforms. The legislation is expected to come into force by the end of 2025 and aims to reduce app prices and create a more equitable market by forcing the tech giants to compete with smaller challengers.
A positive move following similar legislation coming into force this year in the European Union.
Naoko Furuyashiki from The Mainichi:
Some 70% of the target procedures have been revised. Of 1,034 that originally required floppy disks, the requirement for the use of the format invented in the 1970s has reportedly been abolished in all but one -- where the Ministry of the Environment is in the process of revising an ordinance.
As a first link post here at Nipponica, this seems appropriate and an accurate way of countering the myth of Japan being a hub of future technology. The biggest problem that plagues government and business processes here are rigid to the point of being almost impossible to change. It took a global pandemic to mostly phase out the use of physical hanko personal seals as legal signatures on official documents.
"Digitization has made considerable progress. We would like to proceed with necessary reviews, including the use of faxes."
Ambitious, Konoさん.