TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Dentsu Inc. (TOKYO: 4324) (ISIN: JP3551520004) (President & CEO: Toshihiro Yamamoto; Head Office: Tokyo; Capital: 74,609.81 million yen) has announced it and Scrum Ventures LLC (Headquarters: San Francisco; General Partner: Takuya Miyata), a US-based venture capital firm, will co-host the SPORTS TECH TOKYO in 2019 in Japan and the U.S. This acceleration program* originates in Japan and aims to help the growth of sports-based startups gathering from all over the world and provide opportunities to companies in need of open innovation.

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Overall Timetable (Graphic: Business Wire)

Startups in the field of sports with advanced technologies and new business ideas are expected to apply from all over the world. They will receive special support such as mentoring** through the one-year program. The participants will also have networking and pitching opportunities with the Sports Advisory Board*** that consists of players and specialists from a variety of sports organizations and professional leagues and teams from Japan and the U.S.

Leading companies that are interested in sports-related open innovation are expected to participate as partners. In addition, we are planning to provide a place for testing and validating the participants’ products and services, collaborating with sports facilities such as a stadium, during the second stage of the program.

In 2016, the U.S. sports market was estimated to be more than 50 trillion yen. Within this booming industry, the investment in start-ups involved in Sports Tech, a technological solution that makes the most of IT and other new technologies that add new value to sports and create new business, has tripled in four years from 2011 to 2015.

In Japan, the government-sponsored Japan Revitalization Strategy 2016 selected sports as one of the 10 strategic public-private joint projects to be cultivated as a growth industry. The report shows a guideline set by the government which aims to expand the market for sports industry from 5.5 trillion yen in 2015 to 15.2 trillion yen in 2025.

Under this favorable environment, we aim to build a new system with which the Sports Tech innovations driven by this program are effectively fed back to the sports industry. Together with strategic, on-going involvement in sports business, we will contribute to the development of domestic sports and revitalization of sports industry.

*: Programs aiming to drive the growth of startups through mentoring from specialists and the matching with leading companies.

**: A method to develop an individual or a team. An experienced person (mentor) assists the self-sustaining growth of the assisted through personal communications and indirect advice, neither an order nor instruction, to develop the self-awareness.

***: Products and services that are accepted by the Program will be presented to the Sports Advisory Board to investigate the potential co-development opportunity with leading companies or the member of the Board.

Scrum Ventures LLC:



General Partner: Takuya Miyata (founder)

Headquarters: San Francisco, USA

Founded: February, 2013

Main Business: Venture capital investment, studio operation

SPORTS TECH TOKYO:

A sports-themed acceleration program with a global scale originated in Japan

• Main features:

1. Startups apply from all over the world

2. Program venues in Japan and the US

3. Networking and pitching opportunities with domestic and international sports experts

4. Opportunities for trial and validation for participating products and services

5. Other business opportunities including investment

Principal Organizer: Dentsu Inc.

Program Partner: Scrum Ventures LLC

Program Period: Approximately one year starting from January 2019

Venues: Japan (Tokyo), USA (San Francisco, and other cities)

Official Website:

Overall Timetable:

• Application Period: Starting from 8:00 am, October 2, 2018 until 23:59 pm, January 7, 2019 (Pacific time)
• Development Round: Approximately six months starting from January 2019. Programs include kickoff, matching, and mentoring
• Implementation Round: Approximately six months starting from the mid-year. Trials and validations for product and services in accordance with their development stages

Program Briefing:

Program briefing will be held in Japan and the U.S. Please see below for the schedule in Japan. The briefing will be held in the U.S. and other countries around October and November of 2018.

Program Briefing in Japan:

Date: Wednesday, October 31, 2018; Registration starts at 17:30; Briefing starts at 18:00

Venue: BASE Q Hall, Tokyo Midtown Hibiya

Program Content: Overview of SPORTS TECH TOKYO, Q&A, talk session, and networking

Participants: Startups, leading companies interested in sports-themed business development

Organizer: Dentsu Inc.

Fee: Free participation

Application:

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