Japan's retail electricity market is about to be liberalized, which has the top power companies as well new entrants vying for a share. The companies have come up with their mascots to lure the customers, from a suited gorilla to a cuddly bear, in a land where such characters are loved by children and adults alike.

The Japanese telecom giant, SoftBank, has announced buyback of shares amounting to $4.4 billion, its biggest repurchase ever. This move is a desperate attempt by the company to regain its footing after its shares plunged to an all-time low following the company's overseas investment in US mobile operator, Sprint.

Japanese startup aroma sensor developer Aroma Bit has appointed Batara Eto and Atsushi Tanaka as its advisors.

The US wireless major Sprint backed bonds tumbled in the market following the downgrade by Moody's, which sees increasing burden of debt maturities, brutal competitions and lack of operational stability for the third largest US wireless company.

Alibaba Group Holding (BABA.N) is in talks with India's Micromax Informatics (IPO-MINF.NS) to buy an about 20 percent stake in the smartphone maker, helping the Chinese e-commerce giant expand in one of the world's fastest growing markets for the devices, several people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Indonesian conglomerate Lippo Group plans to launch payment, chat and other online services early next year as it continues expanding in the nascent e-commerce industry of the world's fourth-most populous country, a senior executive told Reuters.

Two Indian firms could get a boost from tech majors in what might turn out to be the first direct investment in the country by Google Inc and Alibaba. Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is in talks with Indian online marketplace Snapdeal over a potential cash investment,

Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache, two of China's leading taxi-hailing apps, said on Saturday they would merge to create one of the world's largest smartphone-based transport services.

Nestle SA will enlist a thousand humanoid robots to help sell its coffee makers at electronics stores across Japan, becoming the first corporate customer for the chatty, bug-eyed androids unveiled in June by tech conglomerate SoftBank Corp.

Google Inc Chief Executive Officer Larry Page has put Sundar Pichai, one of his key lieutenants, in charge of the Internet company's products.