Livedoor calls on Fuji TV to support restructuring
January 27, 2006Livedoor Co. on Friday called on Fuji Television Network Inc., its second-largest shareholder, to support the Internet company's restructuring during the two companies' first executive-level talks since prosecutors raided Livedoor offices on Jan. 16 over alleged securities exchange law violations, according to Fuji TV's president. Koichi Murakami said at a press conference that Kozo Hiramatsu, who replaced Takafumi Horie as Livedoor president Tuesday, visited the head office of Fuji TV in the afternoon and met with him and the broadcaster's chairman, Hisashi Hieda.
Jailed ex-Livedoor head Horie concerned about company's management
January 27, 2006Former Livedoor Co. President Takafumi Horie is concerned about the Internet company's business management while he is in jail and continues to deny any wrongdoing following his arrest earlier this week over alleged securities exchange law violations, sources close to him said Friday. ''I wonder if the company's fund management is all right,'' one of the sources quoted the 33-year-old founder of Livedoor as telling his lawyer.
Japan-N. Korean talks to begin in Beijing on Feb. 4
January 27, 2006Japan and North Korea have agreed to hold talks from Feb. 4 in Beijing to discuss normalization of their relations, the North's past abductions of Japanese nationals, and the issue of Pyongyang's nuclear and missile development, Foreign Minister Taro Aso said Friday. The talks are expected to last about four to five days, Aso told a press conference.
Livedoor deliberately overestimated value of bought-out publisher
January 27, 2006The Livedoor Co. group deliberately overestimated the value of a bought-out publisher in 2004, apparently in an attempt to later obtain more gains on sales of its shares, sources familiar with the publisher's buyout said Friday. The sources said the Livedoor group valued the publisher, Money Life, four to eight times above its actual value.
LDP policy chief to study separation of SESC from FSA
January 27, 2006The visiting policy chief of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party said Thursday he will study a proposal for separating the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission from the Financial Services Agency. Hidenao Nakagawa, chairman of the LDP's Policy Research Council, said the separation would be for reinforcing the functions and authority of the SESC as the securities watchdog, which he sees as necessary to prevent the recurrence of accounting fraud cases such as the recently suspected one involving Livedoor Co.