Size isn't everything?

[Taro Toporific]

Tokyo Racecourse's display board is going to dwarf the world's largest display board at the Sha Tin racecourse in Hong Kong that measures 26 feet by 231 feet (6,006 sq ft) as shown in the photo below.

Who said size wasn't everything?
Thoroughbred Marketing: February 22, 2005
...News last week that Tokyo racecourse plans to install a video screen that track officials claim will be the largest in the world ...the planned Tokyo in-field screen will be 36 feet high & 197 feet wide (for a surface area of 7,092 square feet). Construction is scheduled for completion in September 2006.

[dimwit]

Another milestone in 'losertenment'. It is always nice to see technology being put to such productive uses. The question is, will any of the zombies even notice the new board?

[Taro Toporific]

[Greji]

Another milestone in 'losertenment'. It is always nice to see technology being put to such productive uses. The question is, will any of the zombies even notice the new board?

Japan has the largest horse racing system (in sales) in the world. If you have ever been to a race meeting in Japan, you would note that the fans are far from zombies When Tokyo Racecourse is operating at its full capacity it averages, rpt, averages 100,000 plus in attendence.

[dimwit]

I have never seen a horserace in Japan, so you comment may be valid. Matsuyama is blessed(?) with a bicycle racing track where the clientele are addicted to looking at there own feet like they have just been caught coming out a Gay S/M club, so I extrapolated.

[Greji]

I have never seen a horserace in Japan, so you comment may be valid. Matsuyama is blessed(?) with a bicycle racing track where the clientele are addicted to looking at there own feet like they have just been caught coming out a Gay S/M club, so I extrapolated.

Bicycle as well as horseracing in Japan are non-profit government entities and the profits by law, must be used for public purposes. Although I know you are being light, the money cleared as profit at those facilities are extra taxes you and I do not have to pay.

[Captain Japan]

Bicycle as well as horseracing in Japan are non-profit government entities and the profits by law, must be used for public purposes. Although I know you are being light, the money cleared as profit at those facilities are extra taxes you and I do not have to pay.

I think Dimwit was trying to say that there is a difference in the types of people attending the horse and bicycle races. I agree. The folks at the boat races are one step from being homeless.

I suppose there is some fraction of the profit from these enterprises getting credited as taxes we don't have to pay. But if you look at Ryoichi Sasakawa and the Nippon Foundation, for example, do you really (honestly) think that a large bit of the boat racing profits might be heading elsewhere (and I don't mean to Africa to eliminate starvation)?

[Greji]

I think Dimwit was trying to say that there is a difference in the types of people attending the horse and bicycle races. I agree. The folks at the boat races are one step from being homeless.

I suppose there is some fraction of the profit from these enterprises getting credited as taxes we don't have to pay. But if you look at Ryoichi Sasakawa and the Nippon Foundation, for example, do you really (honestly) think that a large bit of the boat racing profits might be heading elsewhere (and I don't mean to Africa to eliminate starvation)?

Sasakawa is long dead, but you can still run their audit sheets if you would like. The major backlash caused by the left led by the JCP (and surprisingly, some from the LDP) against Sasakawa after his death, did more damage to the local governments than anyone will ever dare to admit (the local government is who profits primarily from Motorboat, motorcycle, bicyle and Racing by Local Governments) (horse racing other than JRA). Medical equipment donated to local hospitals, donations to local road construction, community improvement funds, aid funds for the elderly, donations to senior homes and hospitals, among other funding, were all cut drastically by what these clowns figured was a way to stop Sasakawa pork barrel politics. It accomplished nothing of the sort. Now, without admitting any mistake, they want to establish taxes to get these funds back, they have already established Lotto soccer pools (which are losing money big time) and would like to change the law to build some nice casinos which they have no experience in running and would have to contract out like the indians do and in doing so, bankrupt the remainder of legalized government gambling and its related social welfare programs.

Sono Ayako is the head of Kyotei now and although she has been trying hard, she has not been able to reclaim hardly any ground that the left took away from all of government gambling at the local level following Sasakawa's death. Strangely, the people blocking her from progressing any further in Kyotei's recovery have no knowledge, nor reason for why they are doing it.

Sasakawa was a convicted war criminal, but then again, so were two of the post war prime ministers. He himself was the subject of much pointed writing and legend, a good portion of which was unfounded. He obviously thought he personally deserved an international award and campaigned hard for the Nobel Prize. But, a lot of people and countries profitted by his vain efforts. I had the opportunity to meet him several times in later years and at the last, he was a senile old man in a wheelchair, yet people were still writing articles about his rightest movements and his yakuza connections and his legend was soaring. He was not much more than a figurehead in his last ten years or so, that wore depends and had no idea where he was at most of the time, but his fame echoed through the foreign correspondence club and likeminded institutions abroad. This was of course, all good and well with them, but it helped lead to the overreaction at his death that seriously injuried local economies right in line with the bubble, but nobody wants to write about that.

[Mulboyne]

What sort of things did the politicians do to obstruct the business of the gambling monoplies? Restrict advertising and opening hours or actually close some facilities down?

[Captain Japan]

My post wasn't so much as to dump on Sasakawa but to point out that I think the original intention of these gambling entities was not to give us tax payers tax breaks.

[Greji]

My post wasn't so much as to dump on Sasakawa but to point out that I think the original intention of these gambling entities was not to give us tax payers tax breaks.

Right and I know where you're coming from. I was just trying to emphasize that both camps, those that write the anti-Sasakawa stuff (the yakuza, rightest war criminal, the political manipulator) or the other side (the kiindly old man who was a philanthropist who helped thousands) are for the most part, playing with a lot of urban legends that had very little correlation with the truth and what was actually happening in the Sasakawa camp (good or bad) in most instances.

Obviously, you are quite correct about the tax break idea; however, by virtue of being government controled and non-profit, this is the way they turned out. Having said that, you might also say there is not much difference with paying money to the tax man or at the betting window, accept at the window you have the chance of getting it back!

I might add also that the government takeout of the handle in Japan is quite high at about 25%, with 10% of that going straight to the government. Since this is considered tax itself, the punter does not have to pay tax on his winnings. This is different from other venues like the USA where IRS is waiting at the payoff window if you make a nice hit at the track or casino and you get a W2 equivalent tax receipt with your winnings.

[Greji]

What sort of things did the politicians do to obstruct the business of the gambling monoplies? Restrict advertising and opening hours or actually close some facilities down?

This was a major battle between the politicians and the bureaucrats. One of the leading points used against Kyoutei was allegations that a Sasakawa Dynasty was being built with his son functioning as a high level executive in motorboat racing and tapped by some as the heir apparant. So they used cries of nepotism and attacked from that angle.

I will try to put together some things on the bureauratic battle which was never made too public. The anti-Sasakawa politicians battle on the other hand, like everything they do, was leaked to anybody that could hold a pencil, or owned a laptop and as such, is available with the touch of the search button.

Give me some time Mulboyne as I know you're interested in this and I will update this with my comments later.

[dimwit]

Bicycle as well as horseracing in Japan are non-profit government entities and the profits by law, must be used for public purposes. Although I know you are being light, the money cleared as profit at those facilities are extra taxes you and I do not have to pay.

A debateable comment. I know in Matsuyama that in recent years bike racing has been running in the red, so much so that when they proposal came up to move it to a new location there was a long a furioous debate about whether or not they should just close it down. Eventually, the construction lobby won out and we now have a brand new bike track in the outskirts. I don't know whether the newness of the faculities have won back any punters, but the remoteness of the new local in combination with the lack of transportation of the regular customers doesn't make it a good bet.

I have heard the same story about the racetrack in Kochi, and the boat racing in Marugame. In Shikoku at least, Government based gambling has been a drain on the local economy rather than a windfall.

[Mulboyne]

Give me some time Mulboyne as I know you're interested in this

It is fascinating to see how different countries are approaching gambling. The UK seems to have adopted it wholesale with the introduction of a national lottery and plans for super casinos. Many of the largest online gaming companies are listed in the UK too. The US, which is famous for Las Vegas, is nevertheless hostile to online gaming and recently arrested the CEO of BetonSports who was ill-advised enough to touch down on US territory when on his way to Costa Rica. The WTO has provisionally ruled that the US is in breach of free trade agreements by not permitting offshore companies to target US customers but I have a lot of sympathy with the US position.

Japan has a large legal gambling industry, a huge quasi-legal industry (pachinko) and a fairly large illegal trade. Even so, this debate seems to involve questions of national identity - does Japan want to be famous for casinos? it is also interesting that some of the social interest groups who are opposed look very similar to the groups who have had significant recent success in clipping the wings of the sarakin consumer lending industry.

[Greji]

In Shikoku at least, Government based gambling has been a drain on the local economy rather than a windfall.

You might want to check what this facility is putting into the local economy before you mention everything is a drain! This is the JRA OTB for Takamatsu!

426-3, Nakagawara, Aza, Tamura-cho, Takamatsu-shi, Kagawa 761-8057
Free shuttle bus is available from the JR Takamatsu Station.

[Mulboyne]

Yomiuri article on public gambling. The link will expire soon so here's the whole thing.

Yomiuri: Racing industry backs change

A fall in revenues from gambling on horse, bicycle, speedboat and motorcycle racing, which used to boost regional economies, has led regional governments and related organizations that organize such racing to explore ways to entice more people to have a flutter. Some local governments and organizations have begun reviewing the bureaucracy related to the operation of public gambling. But others have found more novel ways to promote their activities. The Japan Keirin Association, the main organizer of bicycle races, on which betting is permitted, was surprised when editor Naoko Yamauchi of the Shogakukan Inc. publishing house approached it in December, asking for information on keirin racing. The association was happy to learn the publishing house planned to publish a comic about keirin in a magazine for young people. The association gave Yamauchi, 30, and author of the comic strip Osamu Ishiwata, 47, detailed information on keirin, including the rules of racing and the way the racers live and train. The association hopes the comic will attract younger fans to the track. In March, the Shukan Young Sunday weekly began serializing the comic, titled Odds, which is about a former road racing cyclist who has fallen on hard times and decides to try to become a top keirin racer. The keirin association has a synopsis of each comic strip on its Web site. An association staff member said some people had gone to watch keirin racing after reading the comic.

The Kochi Racing Association, which was burdened with debts totaling about 8.7 billion yen at the end of business year 2002, was able to rake in 120 million yen in profits in 2003 thanks to the popular horse Haru Urara, whose 113 career losses drew crowds of wishful punters who hoped to see it win. The KRA, which fell into the red again in 2004--largely because Haru Urara did not compete--currently is on the brink of bankruptcy. In July, the KRA joined forces with the Softbank group in an attempt to promote horse racing to younger fans--the so-called Net tribe--and fans in remote areas. By selling betting tickets on the Internet, the partnership has managed to increase sales slightly. The KRA also tries to promote horse racing with information on its Web site, including data on Escape Hatch, a horse that has achieved a record-equaling 46 wins in local races and will next run on Saturday. The KRA is hoping to find a new star horse that can attract even more fans. In July, Kishiwada Bicycle Race in Kishiwada, Osaka Prefecture, and Suminoe Kyotei (motorboat race) in Suminoe, in the same prefecture, began transporting fans to their race venues. When the two race courses have events on the same day, fans can opt to be transported by bus from the bicycle racing in Kishiwada to Suminoe for an evening of motorboat racing. About 90 fans usually take advantage of the service.

Bunkyo University Prof. Kosho Yamada, an expert on the leisure industry, said local governments should pass laws to prevent involvement in public gambling by organized crime syndicates. "If private companies were commissioned to run such races, booths selling betting tickets...could be opened at pachinko parlors," he said, suggesting ways to discourage ticket touting. The diversification of the leisure industry and the bursting of the bubble economy, saw gambling profits plunge. After peaking in the 1991 financial year at 5.5 trillion yen, sales nosedived to 2.334 trillion yen in business year 2005. During that period, 11 racing-orientated gambling venues were closed, reducing the number of such venues to 99--22 local horse race tracks, 47 keirin tracks, 24 motorboat courses and six motorcycle racing circuits. The law stipulates that 75 percent of sales be paid to winners. After paying the central organizations for the races and expenses for the operations, the remaining money goes to local government coffers. The total sum transferred to local governments stood at 349.7 billion yen in the financial year 1991, but it dropped to 18.6 billion yen in 2004. Some local governments have even had to cover losses in operational expenses with funds from their current accounts. Tokyo University Prof. Naohiko Jinno, an expert on public finances, said local governments are tasked with providing necessary services, including welfare services, to local residents. "Public gambling businesses should be closed if they require public funding to cover their losses," he said. In 2003, the Omura Kyotei motorboat course in Nagasaki Prefecture compiled a rehabilitation plan. Comparing kyotei with pachinko, it found that kyotei simply cannot hope to compete with pachinko as there are more than 16,000 pachinko parlors in the country, where people can play until late at night, on regularly upgraded machines, and people from all walks of life can play, including an increasing number of women. Omura Kyotei changed its business model, switching from simply operating boat races to a more businesslike approach. It cut personnel costs, increased its advertising and improved it services, and, in 2005 achieved a surplus for the first time in seven years.

[Taro Toporific]

[Mulboyne]

Mainichi: Softbank Players come to the rescue of debt-ridden horseracing organization

OBIHIRO, Hokkaido -- A debt-ridden horseracing organization here will survive with the assistance of an affiliate of Softbank Corp., sources involved in negotiations said. It was once viewed as certain that the Banei horseracing organization, which is run by a group led by the Obihiro Municipal Government, will be disbanded at the end of the current fiscal year because of its accumulated debts. Mayor Toshifumi Sunagawa will officially announce on Thursday that the horse races will continue next fiscal year, and inform the Asahikawa, Kitami and Iwamizawa municipal governments, which are members of the organization, that it will run the horse races on its own. The municipal government and Softbank Players Corp. have agreed that they will set up a new company and commission it to operate the Banei horseracing organization and sell betting tickets. From fiscal 1999 to this year, the Banei horseracing organization will have accumulated 4 billion yen in debts because sales of betting tickets have declined significantly. The Asahikawa, Kitami and Iwamizawa cities declared that they would pull out of the organization that operates the horse races at the end of this fiscal year ending in March 2007. On Dec. 6, Softbank offered to help rehabilitate the horseracing organization.