Description

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Pachinko parlors offer a form of gambling unique to Japan located near train stations, in the suburbs, and in other everyday living spaces. Before World War II, pachinko was born as a game for both children and adults to enjoy at outdoor festivals. From its humble origins, it has grown dramatically to become a huge industry with a market size of 30 trillion yen per year. How did pachinko develop from a peripheral economy to become a major industry? Ethnic minority Koreans in Japan, who arrived during the Korean colonial era, are deeply involved in the economic activities of the pachinko industry—how should we understand their involvement in the growth of this huge market? Drawing on a vast amount of primary and secondary resources from the 1950s to the 1990s, this book sheds new light on the circumstances behind the emergence of the pachinko industry as a huge market force in Japan.

About the Author

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Jaehyang Han, PhD (Economics), is currently Professor at Hosei University in Japan.