Professional Luncheon
Tadashi Sudo, CEO of AnimeAnime.jp
Roland Kelts, Japanese pop-culture Expert & Author of "Japanamerica."
Christopher Macdonald, CEO& Publisher, Anime News Network

The speech and Q & A will be in English.

Japanese manga and anime take on the world!!

Japanese pop culture is on a tear worldwide. Manga and anime, long popular at home and abroad, are becoming an important export business, with even METI and MOFA throwing their support behind the genres. Universities are setting up study courses and archiving collections, while even the sober British Museum staged a manga exhibition recently.

But, once again, an industry that Japan created and developed is increasingly under threat, in particular from the content industries of South Korea and China. In addition, Internet distribution provides a huge audience - but one that is disinclined to pay for content, stunting the Japanese firms that produce it. What is the current situation surrounding one of modern Japan's most important -- but hidden -- industries? And what is its future?

The panelists include Tadashi Sudo, the CEO of AnimeAnime.jp; Roland Kelts, an expert on Japanese pop-culture and the author of the book "Japanamerica"; and Christopher Macdonald, the CEO & Publisher of Anime News Network.

Please join us for a fascinating look inside the business of manga and anime -- and a lens into one of Japan's most creative areas of art and expression.

Menu: Herb Marinated Sauteed Swordfish with Tomato & Olive Sauce, Carrots and Green Vegetables

Christopher Macdonald, CEO& Publisher, Anime News Network

Roland Kelts, Japanese pop-culture Expert & Author of "Japanamerica."

Tadashi Sudo, CEO of AnimeAnime.jp