Less than two weeks after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order enabling his government to forbid US firms from using Chinese tech products over security concerns, the Japanese government also took steps to limit China’s influence in the tech industry.
Japan is taking a different route than the US however, by restricting foreign ownership of firms in 20 IT-related industries. The measures, which will go into effect on August 1, will make it impossible for foreign businesses to acquire over 10% of a IT Japanese company without prior government approval. The new law was announced yesterday, while Trump was meeting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for trade talks.
The government said that the legislation was adopted “in view of the appropriate prevention of situations that may seriously affect Japan’s security, such as the outflow of technology important for security.”
Read more: Japan to Restrict Foreign Tech Investment on Security Fears