0:02 Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine is usually a quiet, wooded sanctuary offering respite from the crowds and concrete of Japan's bustling capital.
The shrine honours Japan's war dead. The names, dates and place of death in battle for two and a half (m) million war dead are preserved in record books dating back to the late 19th century. The summer saw hundreds flocking to the Yasukuni on this, the 55th anniversary of the Japanese surrender in World War Two.
For many Japanese the shrine symbolises the desire to placate the souls of fallen soldiers. But others see it as proof of the country's refusal to own up to its brutal past.
00:50 While the older generation still struggle with their past, for Japan's youth the future is all.
Every Sunday Haranjuko Park becomes a catwalk of the young, the new, and the different. This is Japan's dotcom generation, symbolizing a new era in a country undergoing dramatic social changes.
After struggling through a ten year recession Japan now finds itself at the forefront of a new age in internet technology.
01:18 Kota Osahi writes for a magazine aimed at young people. He has witnessed a change in recent months in the country's attitude to developments such as playing games and surfing the net. A social revolution is taking place, led by the mobile phone.
01:35 KOTA OSAHI, WRITER/PUBLISHER, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"From now on, with the development of mobile technology I think people will become more split from one another. People will be less in touch, communicating with their phones, not their mouths."
01:50 So what exactly is this all about? Despite its reputation as a technological powerhouse, Japan has been slow to embrace the world wide web. As of April only 29 million people were online, less than a quarter of the population.
02:07 But i-mode telephones have changed the story. Users are kept online 24-hours a day, only charged for the data they transmit or download. Where WAP phones are still finding their feet elsewhere in the world, i-mode has become firmly established.
02:26 The success of i-mode has made the country's telecommunications operator, NTT DoCoMo, into Japan's biggest company in terms of stock market valuation.
02:39 The growth rate shows no sign of slowing, says the company's Executive Director, Takeshi Natsuno.
02:43 TAKESHI NATSUNO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DoCoMo:
"We set up a content portfolio to fit in everyone's requirements. And according to this technology we set up alliances with our content providers. And again, you know, by using different standards of technology for content providers to offer content on this network has been very easy."
03:23 Aggressive marketing has seen i-mode become a fashion statement for the young - an essential prop for a new generation.
03:31 TAKESHI NATSUNO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DoCoMo:
"I-mode brought a lot of profit to manufacturers, to content providers, to us, and the biggest profit, to our subscribers. Win, win, win situation."
03:43 DoCoMo are now looking to move into international markets with a $20-billion US dollar war chest. And as the rest of the world echoes to the sound of the bursting internet bubble, Japan ploughs on relentlessly.
Matsushita's prototype house is expected to be available on the market by 2003. Everything, from the television, the fridge, to the toilet are wired up to the web.
04:06 Toyota's Intelligent Multi-mode Transit system is based on 'smart' cars and buses that run automatically on dedicated thoroughfares. Navigation devices are linked to the internet. Analysts see it as the first step in the introduction of self-driving vehicles.
04:24 And Honda's P3 robot has been heralded as a breakthrough in technology. The first bipedal robot, P3 is the result of nearly twenty years of research. It is hoped it will soon replace humans in carrying out jobs where a high level of risk is involved.
04:42 The Shibuya district of Tokyo, affectionately known as Bit Valley, is home to hundreds of internet consultancies and web design agencies. Companies such as NetYear. Despite the sudden surge in development, some traditional values have to be overcome in certain areas.
04:59 HIROKO KOBORI, NET-YEAR SPOKESPERSON, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"There has been no start-up community here like there was in the United States, when we began, we looked for investment, but in the traditional Japanese system the only way to get investment for small companies such as this one is through venture capital firms and banks, and this became a stumbling block for our company. Because of their refusal to invest in this business it took a long time to overcome their traditional values and convince them of our worth. It was tough. We, of course, expected these difficulties, but the obstacle was a lot bigger than we had anticipated."
05:36 Kota tries out new game technology for his magazine. The speed of technological developments here is awe-inspiring. For Kota's generation, it is this very same technology that means they could be fortunate to live through a new golden age in Japan.
Though Bit Valley is yet to produce a homegrown Bill Gates, they are nurturing a new generation of young and adaptable game-players. Entrepreneurs who are very different from the conformist and drone-like employees often associated by the young with Japanese corporate culture. Branching out on your own is no longer viewed as unacceptable. Traditional systems are being shaken up.
06:23 But just as the e-wave could herald a tide of new-found wealth here, back in Haranjuko teenagers are concerned that change might not necessarily be for the better. Some talk of a bleak future.
06:39 VOX POP, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"When you write a letter on the internet you get a response immediately don't you? But to actually meet someone and to talk directly to them, well, that's more fun. I think it would be a shame if this died out. But I think there's room for both."
06:54 VOX POP, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"If we go on like this communication will become colourless, and the future will not be an interesting one."
07:04 VOX POP, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"With new developments, if you get really used to these things, really really used to them, then you can't do without them. And that's a bit scary."
Japanese economists and politicians have struggled to find a way out of a ten year rut that has seen the country struggling to climb out of recession. Now, the world's second biggest economy is standing on the edge of a new era. It would seem the sun is rising again.
The shrine honours Japan's war dead. The names, dates and place of death in battle for two and a half (m) million war dead are preserved in record books dating back to the late 19th century. The summer saw hundreds flocking to the Yasukuni on this, the 55th anniversary of the Japanese surrender in World War Two.
For many Japanese the shrine symbolises the desire to placate the souls of fallen soldiers. But others see it as proof of the country's refusal to own up to its brutal past.
00:50 While the older generation still struggle with their past, for Japan's youth the future is all.
Every Sunday Haranjuko Park becomes a catwalk of the young, the new, and the different. This is Japan's dotcom generation, symbolizing a new era in a country undergoing dramatic social changes.
After struggling through a ten year recession Japan now finds itself at the forefront of a new age in internet technology.
01:18 Kota Osahi writes for a magazine aimed at young people. He has witnessed a change in recent months in the country's attitude to developments such as playing games and surfing the net. A social revolution is taking place, led by the mobile phone.
01:35 KOTA OSAHI, WRITER/PUBLISHER, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"From now on, with the development of mobile technology I think people will become more split from one another. People will be less in touch, communicating with their phones, not their mouths."
01:50 So what exactly is this all about? Despite its reputation as a technological powerhouse, Japan has been slow to embrace the world wide web. As of April only 29 million people were online, less than a quarter of the population.
02:07 But i-mode telephones have changed the story. Users are kept online 24-hours a day, only charged for the data they transmit or download. Where WAP phones are still finding their feet elsewhere in the world, i-mode has become firmly established.
02:26 The success of i-mode has made the country's telecommunications operator, NTT DoCoMo, into Japan's biggest company in terms of stock market valuation.
02:39 The growth rate shows no sign of slowing, says the company's Executive Director, Takeshi Natsuno.
02:43 TAKESHI NATSUNO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DoCoMo:
"We set up a content portfolio to fit in everyone's requirements. And according to this technology we set up alliances with our content providers. And again, you know, by using different standards of technology for content providers to offer content on this network has been very easy."
03:23 Aggressive marketing has seen i-mode become a fashion statement for the young - an essential prop for a new generation.
03:31 TAKESHI NATSUNO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DoCoMo:
"I-mode brought a lot of profit to manufacturers, to content providers, to us, and the biggest profit, to our subscribers. Win, win, win situation."
03:43 DoCoMo are now looking to move into international markets with a $20-billion US dollar war chest. And as the rest of the world echoes to the sound of the bursting internet bubble, Japan ploughs on relentlessly.
Matsushita's prototype house is expected to be available on the market by 2003. Everything, from the television, the fridge, to the toilet are wired up to the web.
04:06 Toyota's Intelligent Multi-mode Transit system is based on 'smart' cars and buses that run automatically on dedicated thoroughfares. Navigation devices are linked to the internet. Analysts see it as the first step in the introduction of self-driving vehicles.
04:24 And Honda's P3 robot has been heralded as a breakthrough in technology. The first bipedal robot, P3 is the result of nearly twenty years of research. It is hoped it will soon replace humans in carrying out jobs where a high level of risk is involved.
04:42 The Shibuya district of Tokyo, affectionately known as Bit Valley, is home to hundreds of internet consultancies and web design agencies. Companies such as NetYear. Despite the sudden surge in development, some traditional values have to be overcome in certain areas.
04:59 HIROKO KOBORI, NET-YEAR SPOKESPERSON, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"There has been no start-up community here like there was in the United States, when we began, we looked for investment, but in the traditional Japanese system the only way to get investment for small companies such as this one is through venture capital firms and banks, and this became a stumbling block for our company. Because of their refusal to invest in this business it took a long time to overcome their traditional values and convince them of our worth. It was tough. We, of course, expected these difficulties, but the obstacle was a lot bigger than we had anticipated."
05:36 Kota tries out new game technology for his magazine. The speed of technological developments here is awe-inspiring. For Kota's generation, it is this very same technology that means they could be fortunate to live through a new golden age in Japan.
Though Bit Valley is yet to produce a homegrown Bill Gates, they are nurturing a new generation of young and adaptable game-players. Entrepreneurs who are very different from the conformist and drone-like employees often associated by the young with Japanese corporate culture. Branching out on your own is no longer viewed as unacceptable. Traditional systems are being shaken up.
06:23 But just as the e-wave could herald a tide of new-found wealth here, back in Haranjuko teenagers are concerned that change might not necessarily be for the better. Some talk of a bleak future.
06:39 VOX POP, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"When you write a letter on the internet you get a response immediately don't you? But to actually meet someone and to talk directly to them, well, that's more fun. I think it would be a shame if this died out. But I think there's room for both."
06:54 VOX POP, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"If we go on like this communication will become colourless, and the future will not be an interesting one."
07:04 VOX POP, IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
"With new developments, if you get really used to these things, really really used to them, then you can't do without them. And that's a bit scary."
Japanese economists and politicians have struggled to find a way out of a ten year rut that has seen the country struggling to climb out of recession. Now, the world's second biggest economy is standing on the edge of a new era. It would seem the sun is rising again.