Japanese entertainment giant DMM accepts Bitcoin, blockchain says it is "overwhelmed"

Bitcoin has been growing rapidly in Japan recently, and according to a press release issued by DMM today, Coincheck will provide access to Bitcoin payment services for the company’s 19 million customers.

Since March 1, 2016, users have been able to trade Bitcoin for DMM points, which can be used to spend on consumer services across the DMM empire, ranging from online entertainment to theater tickets and even English tutoring.

“In recent years, Bitcoin and blockchain technology have attracted worldwide attention,” the press release said. “Due to the popularity of Bitcoin, DMM.com has decided to use Coincheck’s payment service before other companies in Japan.”

The head of Coincheck pointed out DMM’s plan to expand internationally in the near future, offering customers more payment methods. In this way, DMM will position itself to compete with giant companies such as Dell, Ratuken, and Expedia, which have also begun to offer Bitcoin payment methods to their customers in the past two years.

“DMM is the 26th most popular website in Japan,” said entrepreneur Roger Ver. “It’s a household name, and it’s a great springboard for bitcoin in Japan.”

The news is also a major milestone for Coincheck, which currently provides bitcoin payment services to 1,000 stores in Japan. Its monthly transaction volume is about 30 million yen ($264,000), and this number is likely to increase significantly once it is connected to DMM's customer base.

“Bitcoin payments are spreading around the world,” Coincheck said. “Bitcoin transaction volumes are increasing rapidly.”

Bitcoin in Japan

In the past six months, the Japanese market has seen a surge in interest in Bitcoin and blockchain. As early as October last year, Q&A platform OKWave announced that it would integrate Bitcoin tipping functionality and provide wallet support.

Recently, Japan’s largest commercial bank, Tokyo-Mitsubishi Group, confirmed that it is developing its own digital currency in an attempt to reduce transaction costs and improve efficiency.

In addition, Japan's regulatory agency, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), recently stated that in order to regulate Bitcoin, it is considering defining it as a legal currency.

What do you think?

Original article: https://news.bitcoin.com/japanese-entertainment-giant-dmm-accepts-bitcoin/
By William Suberg
Compilation: Overnight porridge
Source (translation): Babbitt Information (http://www.8btc.com/dmm-accepts-bitcoin)