In Japanese advertising parlance, a “jacking” occurs when an advertiser purchases a substantial portion of all of the ad space available in a particular medium or within a geographic area (the term “jacking” is derived from the English word “hijack”). Most commonly it’s seen on trains, when advertisers buy out the entirety of ad slots inside the cars, and often have tailor-made graphics or billboard-like posters placed on the exteriors too.

Merger and acquisition activity in Japan hit an all time high of 2,775 deals last year, compared with just 260 in 1985. Now, from board rooms to living rooms, “Emu-ando-Eh,” as M&A is known, has entered common parlance and is upending business as usual.

The Tobacco Institute of Japan and other organizations have announced plans to introduce ID cards for cigarette vending machines in 2008 in a bid to bar underage purchases. Under the system, ID cards embedded with integrated circuits will be issued, and customers will not be able to use the vending machines without the cards. The cards are dubbed “taspo,” from the words “tobacco passport.” They will feature a photograph of the user and a serial number, and will be valid for 10 years.

The proliferation of online dating sites has led to a rise in enjo-kosai (“compensated dating”), a euphemism for teen prostitution, in which girls sleep with men they meet in chatrooms in exchange for cash or gifts.

Eroggers, the name given to the mostly female participants who post saucy pictures onto their erogs, are the hottest current new trend on the (Japanese) Internet. While a lot of them may simply want somebody else to look at them in an erotic situation, in my humble opinion, I’d say there are a lot of eroggers who want people to look at them as “real women.”