Console games cleared for café use in Japan

TOKYO--This week, Japan’s Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association (CESA) announced a formal agreement to allow console software rentals at Internet cafés, manga kissaten, and so-called “complex cafés.” Manga kissaten are coffee shops that maintain extensive comic book collections. Customers pay based on how long they’re inside. An establishment that offers both comic books and Internet access is called a “complex café.” All three types of establishment frequently make game consoles available on the premises.

This week’s agreement marks the end of a trial period that began in May, 2002. The software developers and publishers that are CESA’s members, and the participating cafés, used this trial period to collect usage data. Apparently, both parties were satisfied, resulting in this week’s permanent arrangement. The eleven game publishers that have approved some or all of their games for rental use are: Asmik, Ace Entertainment, Arika, D3 Publisher, From Software, Hamster, Hudson, Jorudan, Kotobuki System (Kemco's parent company), Spike, Success, and Tecmo.

Game use in cafés will be tightly regulated. Cafés that offer games must apply to CESA for permission. Publishers choose which of their titles will be available for rental use, and receive a usage fee from the café for each rental game. Fees range from 1,000 ($9.20) yen per game for older games to 10,000 yen ($92) for new games like Hudson’s Bomberman Land 2. The potential of lost retail sales revenue is a concern for Japanese game industry executives. They have objected to used game sales on this basis, and take-home game rentals are still not available in Japan. Clearly the rental agreement has been structured with these concerns in mind.

As of this week, almost 100 games have been approved for use in cafés. A look at the titles shows a heavy preference for PS2 and PS games. Only two Xbox games are on the list--Batman: Dark Tomorrow and Bloody Roar Extreme--and while new games are being added all the time, no GameCube titles have made the list yet.