Terms of Service
Effective date: 2026-05-17
These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of the website nipponbrief.com (the “Service”), operated by Nippon Brief (“we”, “us”, or “our”). By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms.
If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not use the Service.
1. Description of Service
Nippon Brief is an editorial publication providing curated, source-based briefings about Japan for international readers. We publish original editorial content across three pillars: regional information (47 Prefectures), practical travel systems (JR Pass, eSIM, Visit Japan Web, etc.), and industry analysis (AI, robotics, frontier technology).
The Service is provided free of charge. We include affiliate links to support continued operation.
2. Eligibility
You may use the Service if you are at least 13 years of age (16 in the EU/EEA). If you are using the Service on behalf of an organization, you represent that you have authority to bind that organization to these Terms.
3. Acceptable Use
When using the Service, you agree not to:
- Use the Service for any unlawful purpose or in violation of any applicable law
- Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Service or related systems
- Interfere with, disrupt, or overload the Service (including via automated scraping, denial-of-service techniques, or excessive crawling)
- Reproduce, duplicate, or republish substantial portions of the Service’s editorial content without permission (see §4 below)
- Misrepresent your identity in communications with us (e.g., email or partnership inquiries)
- Use the Service to harass, threaten, or defame any person or entity
- Use automated systems to scrape our content for training machine learning models without prior written consent
Violation of this section may result in termination of access without notice.
4. Intellectual Property
4.1 Our content
All editorial content on the Service — including text, original infographics, photography, layout, and the Nippon Brief name and tagline — is the intellectual property of Nippon Brief or its editor, except where third-party content is explicitly credited.
You may:
- Read and share individual articles on social media with a link back to the original
- Quote brief excerpts (under 200 words) with attribution and a link to the source article
- Print individual articles for personal, non-commercial reference
You may not:
- Republish full articles or substantial excerpts on other websites, newsletters, or commercial products
- Translate and republish our content in other languages without written permission
- Use our content for AI/ML training without prior written consent
For licensing or syndication inquiries, contact editor@nipponbrief.com.
4.2 Third-party content
Some images and data on the Service are licensed from third parties (Unsplash, Pexels, Pixabay, Wikimedia Commons, OpenVerse, JNTO, and others). These materials remain the property of their original creators and are used under the respective licenses. Attribution is provided per the Service’s Editorial Policy.
4.3 User submissions
If you submit content to us (e.g., by email, corrections, tips), you grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to use, reproduce, and reference that submission in connection with the Service. You retain ownership of your submitted content.
5. Affiliate Disclosure
The Service is monetized through:
- Affiliate links to third-party products and services (including but not limited to Airalo, Klook, GetYourGuide, Booking.com, Agoda, Amazon Associates, JRPass.com)
- Future sponsorship arrangements, which will be disclosed per §5 of the Editorial Policy
When you click an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. We choose products based on editorial judgment, not commission rate. See our Editorial Policy for our full disclosure standards.
6. Third-Party Links and Services
The Service contains links to third-party websites, services, and products. We are not responsible for the content, availability, accuracy, or practices of any third-party site. Your interactions with third parties (including purchases made through affiliate links) are solely between you and the third party.
We do not endorse third-party content beyond what is explicitly stated in our editorial coverage.
7. Disclaimers
7.1 No professional advice
Content on Nippon Brief is published for informational and educational purposes only. We do not provide:
- Legal advice (including visa, immigration, or tax advice — consult a qualified professional or the relevant Japanese embassy)
- Medical advice (we may discuss Japan’s healthcare system, but not treatments — consult a qualified medical professional)
- Financial or investment advice (we may explain Japan’s financial systems, but recommendations should not be relied upon as personalized advice — consult a qualified financial advisor)
- Real-time travel guarantees (transit schedules, prices, and policies change frequently — always verify with the official operator before booking)
7.2 Accuracy and timeliness
We strive for accuracy and update articles when underlying data changes (see Editorial Policy §4). However:
- All content is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind, express or implied
- We do not guarantee that information is current at the moment you read it
- Always verify time-sensitive information (prices, schedules, regulations) against official sources before acting on it
7.3 Service availability
We do not guarantee that the Service will be available without interruption, error-free, or secure. The Service may be modified, suspended, or discontinued at any time without notice.
8. Limitation of Liability
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Nippon Brief, its editor, and any contributors shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or exemplary damages arising out of or in connection with your use of (or inability to use) the Service, including but not limited to:
- Loss of profits, revenue, data, or business opportunities
- Travel disruptions, missed connections, or rebooking costs
- Financial losses from investment or affiliate purchase decisions
- Damages from reliance on third-party information referenced on the Service
This limitation applies regardless of the legal theory (contract, tort, negligence, or otherwise) and even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages.
In jurisdictions that do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or limitations of liability, our liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted by law.
9. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Nippon Brief, its editor, and any contributors from any claims, damages, liabilities, costs, or expenses (including reasonable attorney fees) arising out of:
- Your use of the Service in violation of these Terms
- Your violation of any third-party right (including intellectual property or privacy rights)
- Any content you submit to the Service
10. Modifications to the Terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. Your continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.
For significant changes affecting your rights, we may also provide notice via the newsletter (if you are a subscriber) or a banner on the Service.
11. Termination
We reserve the right to suspend or terminate access to the Service for any user at our discretion, including for violation of these Terms. Upon termination, your right to access the Service ceases immediately.
Sections that by their nature should survive termination — including Intellectual Property (§4), Disclaimers (§7), Limitation of Liability (§8), and Indemnification (§9) — will remain in effect.
12. Governing Law and Jurisdiction
These Terms are governed by the laws of Japan, without regard to conflict-of-law principles.
Any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Service shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Tokyo District Court (東京地方裁判所), Japan, as the court of first instance.
For readers in jurisdictions with mandatory consumer protection laws, nothing in these Terms is intended to override your rights under those laws.
13. Severability
If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.
14. Entire Agreement
These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, and Editorial Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and Nippon Brief regarding the Service.
15. Contact
For questions about these Terms, please contact us at:
- General inquiries:
hello@nipponbrief.com - Legal / privacy:
legal@nipponbrief.com - Editorial:
editor@nipponbrief.com
Or use the Contact page.
Last updated: 2026-05-17 Operator: Nippon Brief, edited by nachaman, based in Tokyo, Japan
Revision history
- 2026-05-17: Initial publication