Past, Present, Future

Our website (www.phileweb.com) is in its sixth year, and in September it received 77 million hits, so it looks possible that we will be able to reach our target of 100 million hits a month by the end of the year. At present, it is no exaggeration to say that almost everyone who has an interest in audiovisual matters is visiting the phileweb.com site.

I have heard some people say that “It’s good that you got an early start” or “The trends of the time were in your favor.” But operating a website is more than simply a matter of luck in getting swept along by the trends of the time. You must have a solid concept and marketing strategy. You must be able to sharply foresee what the world is going to be like in 3 years, 5 years, and 10 years’ time, make speculative guesses and test them, and, as a result, boldly develop the present. People who make comments like the above will be saying the same things even in 100 years’ time. They are typical of the kind of people who are going to fall behind.

I always say that everything that happens in the present is the result of policies that have been adopted in the past. This is an eternal truth. If the policies have a negative element, then there are only going to be negative results. If positive and foresighted measures are put into practice, naturally the results are going to be positive. Furthermore, if a company continues to take positive measures on a day-to-day basis, then it is definitely going to grow. While the biggest unforeseen incident will be a natural disaster, unexpected situations are going to occur continuously.

I also often hear people say that “Yes, I understand about positive measures, but still things do not go well.” The main thing here is the strength or weakness of your essential recognition. Basically, there really isn’t any strength or weakness in essential recognition. Rather, it is a question of whether or not you have a firm understanding of what the essence is.

In the fundamental sense, the answer is that there are people. People exist amid the flow of time ? in the past, the present, and the future. This, I believe, is the essence. And the fundamental essence and value of a company’s existence lies in its contribution to people’s happiness. This, I believe, is the “life” that continues to flow through the ages.

I have taken quite a roundabout route here, but what I want to say is that good products will not be created without a strong recognition of the essence, namely, people and life. Our phileweb.com website is growing because, based on a recognition of the above-mentioned essence, it is operated in accordance with a refined policy stemming from the essence of “contributing to the development of the business.”

From now on I think that the collaboration of megasites is going to further spread, deepen, and strengthen. That, I believe, is the world of the web. But even then, companies are not going to grow unless they contribute to people’s happiness and have a concept. Armed with a firm recognition of this fact, we will continue our efforts to enhance our phileweb.com website.