Naked News, which features anchors and reporters who disrobe during newscasts, launched its risque take on current affairs in Japan Tuesday. Beneath a banner proclaiming Naked News as ?The program with nothing to hide,? Sunrise Corp. CEO Takuya Uchikawa described the service as ?a unique concept for the Japanese market.? Sunrise, which specializes in sales of goods and services via the Internet, and Naked News owner eGalaxy Multimedia have set a target of 10,000 mobile subscribers in the first year.

?We would not have dared to come to Japan unless we were convinced that there was a definite market, and we now see there is a massive market here, we have a partner that understands that market and the technological skills to provide an enjoyable product,? eGalaxy Multimedia Inc. CEO David Warga said. Since making its debut in Canada in 1999, Naked News has become available via the Internet, television and mobile phones in North America, Australia and Europe.

?We believe there is a huge untapped market for the right kind of information if it was properly packaged,? Warga said. ?So we created a news-entertainment program in which women, and later men, informed while removing their clothing.? The service initially will be news that is provided for Naked News? existing markets but with Japanese subtitles. Newscasters will strip to their underwear, but Uchikawa indicated that he hopes to be able to see how far Japanese obscenity broadcasting laws can be bent before they are broken.

Julian RYALL