Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Apple Financial, Apple
Japan loves Apple, sales up there 39%
Fortune's Apple 2.0 blog has the skinny on why Japan is so hot on Apple lately -- apparently Steve Jobs' little company has seen sales rise 39% in the land of the rising sun, even after a drop the last year.Why is this? Apple's own report says iPods, Macs, and MacBooks are the culprits -- sales of Macs specifically are jumping up the charts. At the same time, reports are saying that sales of the iPhone have slowed there after a big burst at debut (while sales here are still through the roof).
Seems like there's an upsurge on American electronics in Japan in general. Any of you armchair analysts want to guess why Apple is doing better there?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Darwin said 6:02PM on 11-10-2008
I suspect that it is due, in no small part, to how easy Apple has made it for users to access Japanese language localization and to switch between Japanese and other languages, particularly English. Japanese language input on the Mac is dead simple to access. It doesn't hurt, also, that the Japanese place high value on good, simple design.
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Ilham Hafizovic said 6:05PM on 11-10-2008
Not sure about this but I agree with everything that Darwin said. I would also add that most Japanese love to be productive and are very time wise about how they use their time. With Apples products it is much easier to do very efficient tasks, and get everything connected together and working seamlessly. Examples of how iTunes can connect the iPod, Mac's and Apple TV together.
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who? said 6:23PM on 11-10-2008
Well, in my professional opinion as a professional, I'd say professionally that a professional person could professionally argue with a fellow professional on this professional manner, but it's professionally apparent to me, a professional, that the professional Japanese are professionally depressed by the professionally dense population of professionally professional professionals.
God, that was fun.
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Asunam said 6:49PM on 11-10-2008
Living in Osaka - I would have to say its really more a matter of the Japanese finally catching up, with the ease of Mac technology and OSX on a broader scale than before. Certainly the iPod and iTunes has played a critical role in "Mac / Apple" product awareness within the country. Part of the delay in arriving at this "39% surge", probably had to do with "the appearance" of a "price point" differential between "Windows PCs" and Macs. It took some time for this to be reconciled, but now that it has - the Japanese understand just how much more benefit can be achieved through the "ease of use" of Mac technology; which saves time and money. These two key factors drive Japanese technological purchases of any kind. Additionally, I agree with the earlier comments of other who have posted, that the "ease of use" in terms of language capability, has also been a key factor. I myself, have helped three Japanese natives switch to Mac's over the past two years, and there are more in the making. Upon their "switch", all have agreed they don't know why they waited so long, and ... "there's no looking back!"
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Randy said 7:06PM on 11-10-2008
Having lived in Tokyo for 5 years, I'd say the halo effect has a lot to do with it. The average train commute is pretty long, and you'll see an array of white earbuds in ever car. With so many iPods, Japanese people probably wonder if other Apple products would be as easy to use.
Traveler said 7:30PM on 11-10-2008
I agree with previous comments, but also believe that the Japanese tendency toward being early adaptors of electronic devices plays a role. The typical Japanese lives in a much smaller home than his American counterpart, is less likely to own an automobile, is less prone to obsoleting clothing because of changes in styling and spends a higher percentage of his income on electronics purchases. I saw many new electronic ideas in Japan (including cell phones, digital watches, high definition TV and picture-in-picture video displays) in Japan before they became common in the U,S, or Europe. It is no surprise that Apple's technical superiority and commitment to innovation would appeal to the tech-smart Japanese consumer.
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balls said 7:30PM on 11-10-2008
Percentages are misleading.
Sales went from 302k to 389k.
Sony still owns Apple in Japan.
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sandbaggerone said 7:45PM on 11-10-2008
iPod halo effect and disappointment with Vista are the big reasons for this increase. However, Sony does still pwn Apple in Japan.
Japanese don't run into language issues if they use their computers domestically. It is the foreign population that switches to Mac over language issues in my experience.
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Duncan said 8:25PM on 11-10-2008
I'm skeptical of the factors above: my inclination would be that it's tied to the exchange rate.
The Yen is much better against the dollar this year than it has been in the past 3-4 years, maybe Apple has finally updated it prices to reflect this?
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Jeff said 8:48PM on 11-10-2008
It certainly has a little to do with how well OS X handles the language compared to Windows... but more than anything, i think it has to do with the weak dollar.
south said 9:33PM on 11-10-2008
I think it has less to do with price and more with marketing. Apple has successfully marketed itself as a cool brand here and from what I see every day around Tokyo, Japanese people love to be fashionable. Especially when that fashion has a brand attached. One of my friends switched this year just for image's sake (and complains that he still uses Windows on it 90% of the time). Sorry to say that my wife, who's also Japanese, still refuses to touch any device that isn't a Sony.
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Maldaen said 10:01PM on 11-10-2008
You should inform your wife that while designed in California, multiple components of an Apple product are made by companies from Japan. Almost ALL of Apple's AirPort cards are made by Buffalo, for instance. Couple this with Sony's battery technology (although given history, that might be a bad thing to cite), Matsushita optical drives, Fujitsu/Hitachi hard drives... Apple is a VERY big supporter of the Japanese electronic manufacturing industry, so if she's buying Sony products strictly based on nationalism, then you really should point these things out to her.
south said 10:36PM on 11-10-2008
doubt it's nationalism, she just really likes Sony gear. and Apple doesn't make laptops in pink.
Maldaen said 1:30AM on 11-11-2008
You'd be surprised how often nationalism factors into the equation, even if they say "I just love the stuff they make". Case in point, weeaboos mostly buy Sony products, too. And weeaboos aren't exactly well-known for their rationality. Most Japanese rally behind Sony for nationalism reasons, and other people touting how great their products are probably rubbed off on your wife. But at least Sony notebooks aren't bad. If I had to buy a Windows machine, it probably would be a Viao or something from Lenovo.
sandbaggerone said 10:56PM on 11-10-2008
Apple's Japanese pricing is about 10-15% higher than the US. Though Apple is percieved as expensive, and the Japanese are often surprised when I show them the prices which have come down in the past year.
Marketing (tv) has been successful as have been the stores in Ginza and Shinsaibashi which have generated awareness and "cool" factor.
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al said 11:35PM on 11-10-2008
Balls is right. The variability is likely to be large if you don't sell many.
The rest of you rely on stereotypes to explain what you don't understand - just like Jesse Helms, George Wallace, etc.
bobert said 11:31PM on 11-10-2008
Here's the saga of a buddy of mine who tried to flog a Lenovo Tablet running Vista into supporting Japanese input:
http://opensourcetogo.blogspot.com/2008/10/my-hopefully-no-longer-ongoing-vista.html
Expensive, a big waste of time and about as much fun as being strapped into a dentist's chair and having your teeth drilled without novocaine. Especially when it all went pear-shaped after a Windows update and he had to do it all again.
"What? Macs do Japanese right out of the box? You don't have to plunk down 22 thousand yen more to get that? Whoa..."
Actually, Lefty knows that. Why he hasn't gone for a ModBook yet is beyond me.
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gaikokujin said 12:23AM on 11-11-2008
A few elements
* Object fetichism in Japan. Many people bought the iphone but it is not used. Not visible _at all_ in the streets and trains.
* Group effects. It is good to be like others, if there is enough of one product out there it becomes something to buy. It works reverse. Apple had hard time because it was an element of individuality, when products here work better when they are element of group identification.
* In the last few years, Apple opened 2 Apple stores: Ginza and Shibuya.
* About the japanese input method. It is not the best one available here on other products. But people install other input method. Foreigners think that it is a good one.
* Internationalization: … indeed the mac has supports for many fonts and that can help.
* lack of success of the iphone. 1) too big for people used to use only one hand for their keitai. 2) no tactile feedback aka no keyboard, many people do not look at their keyboard when they type. on the iphone you have to look at the screen. 3) lack of japanese emoticons (emojis). should be solved in the next firmware. 4) handsets are being a take-away product. Each vendor has a complete new line every 3 months. They follow the fashion trends or create them. The iphone is one single object which doesn't change. 5) there is no hook on the iphone to put their usual keitai charm.
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sandbaggerone said 9:09AM on 11-11-2008
Japan has 7 retail stores: http://www.apple.com/jp/retail/storelist/
jniiiice said 1:04AM on 11-11-2008
its simple Japan is all about labels and Apple is the Dolce and Gabana of computers and Mp3 players
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