JETRO Arranges 200 ``BIZMATCH'' Meetings for U.S. Companies at Japan's Biggest ICT Show

Business Wire, Sept 30, 2004

NEW YORK -- Over 200 meetings are being held between U.S. and Japanese companies at the CEATEC Japan 2004 exhibition in Tokyo from October 6 - 8, thanks to a new business partnering program from the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) called BIZMATCH.

The BIZMATCH meetings are taking place at CEATEC, Japan's largest ICT and consumer electronics show, being held at Makuhari Messe, the Nippon Convention Center, just outside Tokyo. BIZMATCH is the first event of its kind at any ICT-related trade show in Japan and is designed to nurture ventures between U.S. ICT and software companies and Japanese firms.

Some 20 U.S. firms are meeting with over 50 leading Japanese companies and subsidiaries such as Sony, NEC, NTT, Seiko/Epson, Toshiba, Hitachi, Fujitsu and Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO). The U.S. participants include companies in network and broadband communications, software, network security, digital rights management and enterprise solutions. JETRO organized the BIZMATCH event through its contacts at major Japanese ICT industry associations.

"This is a one-of-a-kind event," said Hiroki Matsumoto, JETRO New York's Executive Director, "and JETRO is uniquely equipped to orchestrate business-partnering meetings on such a large scale, working with top Japanese industry organizations and trade show executives to introduce American companies to such a wide range of potential Japanese partners."

"The emerging ICT market in Japan is an area which provides major growth opportunities for American businesses," added Mr. Matsumoto, "and the BIZMATCH model is proving to be an excellent channel for facilitating such growth."

JETRO is sponsoring similar events in the upcoming months bringing U.S. and Japanese companies together to explore new ventures. A round of BIZMATCH meetings is planned for the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show, slated for January 6 - 9, 2005 in Las Vegas.

JETRO New York contacts:

For BIZMATCH CEATEC 2004: Oren Bernstein, Oren_Bernstein@jetro.go.jp

For BIZMATCH CES 2005: Daniel Claus, Daniel_Claus@jetro.go.jp

The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) is a Japanese governmental organization promoting mutually beneficial trade and investment between Japan and other nations.