收购美国电信巨头的日本狂人

    全球视野源于在美国生活的积极经历（就孙正义而言，是在硅谷上学的愉快时光），这是如今一小拨富人企业家们的共同经历，包括互联网巨头乐天（Rakuten）总裁三木谷浩史，他们都在日本之外寻找增长机会。不同于传统上目光向内、墨守成规的领导者，孙正义和三木谷浩史都在利用自己的海外关系拓展业务。他们的激进与传统的日本人形象大相径庭。

    这批人引领了日本企业海外收购热潮，去年日本进行的海外收购达到了创纪录的900亿美元。而且，三木谷浩史表示，未来还将有更多收购。三木谷浩史今年收购Kobo电子阅读器的举动或许堪称所有日本收购者中最迫切的一宗。他说，如果日本想克服当前本土市场萎缩、日元升值抑制出口等挑战的话，现在就应该向海外扩张。“我们需要更有创意，拿出更具竞争力的产品。我们有优良的质量，但我们需要超越竞争对手，”他在谈到未来日本公司进一步收购的可能性时表示。“如果日元强劲（目前正是如此），我们就应该在海外收购更多公司。我认为，我们不应该消极地看待强势日元，这是我们收购的机会。日本公司需要加大海外收购的力度。”

    希望日本的海外投资别再像昙花一现的洛克菲勒投资那样不幸。1995年在激烈的冲突后，三菱（Mitsubishi)终止了这桩收购，参与各方不欢而散。孙正义自然不希望重蹈覆辙。

    This global outlook engendered by positive experiences of life in America -- in Son's case happy schooldays in Silicon Valley -- is something now shared by a small band of rich entrepreneurs, such as Hiroshi Mikitani of internet behemoth Rakuten, who all grasp at growth opportunities outside of Japan. Unlike hidebound leaders of traditional, inward-looking Japan Inc. Son and Mikitani are using their foreign connections to expand business and have an aggressive streak that is counter to perceived ideas of Japaneseness.

    Such men have spearheaded the country's foreign acquisition binge which topped a record $90 billion last year. And, there is more to come says Mikitani, who with his purchase of Kobo e-reader this year is perhaps the most eager of all Japanese M&A shoppers. It is time for Japan to grow and expand way beyond its boundaries, he says, if it wants to survive current shrinking domestic markets and the buoyant yen that is killing exports. "We need be more creative and come up with a more competitive product. We have quality but we need to move ahead of our competitors," he says talking about the possibility of further acquisitions by Japanese firms. "And if the currency is strong (which it is) then we should buy more companies outside of Japan. Just don't be so negative about the strong yen, I say. This should be our chance to buy. Japanese firms need to buy outside more aggressively."

    The hope now is that Japan's interests abroad are not as ill-starred as the short-lived Rockefeller investment. After a bitter clash, Mitsubishi walked out of that deal in 1995, leaving nearly everybody involved very unhappy. Mr Son will be keen not to repeat history.