東大、授業料値上げの事情　抗議デモ受けても、変わる大学財政

Course fees increase at the University of Tokyo, changes in university funding continue despite protests

増谷文生 島崎周

MASUTANI, Fumio; SHIMAZAKI, Shu

2024年9月10日 21時04分

東京大学が、来年度入学者から学部の授業料を現在よりも約11万円値上げし、64万2960円にする方針を明らかにした。企業などとの共同研究や寄付などで収入を増やしてきたにもかかわらず、なぜ学生に痛みを伴う値上げに踏み切るのか。

The University of Tokyo has announced its new 642,960 yen (about 321,480 Philippine pesos) school fee policy which increases course fees by about 110,000 yen (about 55,000 Philippine pesos) starting next school year. Despite the increase in university funding through donations and research partnerships with businesses, what is the reason for this increase that causes so much hardship among students?

東大の藤井輝夫総長らが、幹部教員らに授業料の値上げ案を最初に示したのは5月14日。翌日に各社が報道すると、すぐに学生たちから反発の声があがった。

University President, FUJII, Teruo says that it was in May 14 when he first showed the plan to increase the course fees to the university's top faculty. The next day, when various news agencies reported this, protests immediately broke out from among the students.

　同19日に文京区の本郷キャンパスで開かれた学園祭「五月祭」では、30人ほどの学生が抗議デモを実施。「東大生が全員、恵まれているわけではない」「東大が値上げすれば他大学にも広がってしまう」などと撤回を訴えた。経済的に厳しい学生の声などを集めたフリーペーパーを配ったり、安田講堂前にテントを張って反対を訴えたりするグループも現れた。教員の一部も反対を表明した。

On the 19th, during the "May School Festival" at the home campus in Bunkyo district, as much as 30 students came out to protest. They complained, "Not all University of Tokyo students have been fortunate.", "If fees increase at the University of Tokyo, this will also spread to other universities." There was also a group who put up a tent in front of Yasuda Lecture Hall as protest, giving pieces of paper that contained messages from the financially stricken students. It was found out that there was also a part of the faculty who protested.

　こうした動きを受け、藤井総長は6月下旬、オンラインで学生に対し、値上げ案とともに財務状況の厳しさも説明し、理解を求めた。それでも学生らの反発は収まらず、幹部らは再検討を開始。7月中旬に25年度の入学者選抜要項と同時に発表する予定を、「学内で丁寧にコミュニケーションのプロセスを踏んでいる」として延期していた。

Due to this protest, University President FUJII, Teruo met with the students online at the latter part of June and explained the university's financial situation and the plan to increase the fees, seeking their understanding. However, he was unable to put the protests under control, which initiated the re-evaluation of the policy by top faculty members. Plans to announce the selection of new and incoming students for 2025 were postponed to mid-July to make way for "Beginning the process of polite communication inside the university."

　東大は値上げの理由として、教職員の人件費や教育関連に使われている運営費交付金の減額を挙げる。国からの配分額は約20年で80億円近く減り、23年度は847億円だった。このため産学連携や寄付金の獲得などに力を入れ、収入を増やしてきた。

The increase in the course fees at the University of Tokyo has led to the reduction in the amount of money alloted for operational expenses that are used for faculty and education-related activities. By around 2020, the total money distributed nationwide was reduced by close to 8 billion yen (about 4 billion Philippine pesos), and was at 84.7 billion yen (about 42.3 billion Philippine pesos) in 2023. Because of this, they've made efforts to increase university income through donations and by creating industry-partnerships.

Behind the increase in the course fees is the reality that there are plenty of University of Tokyo students who were born from affluent households. According to a study done by the university in 2021, 54% of students answered that their annual household income is "over 9.5 million yen (about 4.75 million Philippine pesos)." There were plenty who sent their children to review schools to prepare for middle school exams and to private schools that integrated both middle-high school levels. This limits the impact of the price increase.

Still, 14% of students are from households that earn less than 4.5 million yen (about 2.25 million Philippine pesos) per year. If they have a sibling, making ends meet would be difficult even with a decent annual income. The protesters which included students and teachers, among others, complained, "There are people who won't be able to go to the University of Tokyo due to the fee increase."

知人女性の顔写真を「性的画像」に　韓国でディープフェイク被害拡大

Harm caused by Deep Fake increases in Korea, "sexual images" using pictures with the faces of famous women proliferate

ソウル＝太田成美

@Seoul, OTA, Narumi

2024年8月31日 9時00分

韓国で、SNSに投稿された知人女性らの顔写真などを人工知能（AI）で合成して作られた精巧な性的画像がインターネット上で拡散し、政府が対策の強化に乗り出している。「ディープフェイク」と呼ばれるこれらの偽画像に関する被害を申告した小中高校生は今年1月以降、200人近くに達した。被害者だけでなく投稿者の側も未成年者が多いといい、深刻な社会問題となっている。

In Korea, graphic sexual images made from pictures with the faces of famous women and using Artificial Intelligence (AI) have proliferated on social media, hence the government's response to strengthen its counter-measures. Since January of this year, the number of elementary and middle school students who've filed reports of having been harmed due to fake images called "Deep Fakes" has reached close to 200 people. It was found that the victims aren't only the minors. Even the posters themselves are minors. It's a deep social problem.

　問題が注目を集めたきっかけは、8月下旬以降、次々に報じられた韓国メディアの報道だ。匿名性の高い通信アプリのテレグラム上に、性的な偽画像のほか、住所や名前などの個人情報を共有するチャットルームが大量にあり、学校別や地域別に分けられていると報じられた。お金を払えば、送った写真をひわいな画像に加工するチャットルームもあり、問題が発覚した時点で約22万人が登録していた。

The problem has received attention because there had been a series of reports on Korean media about this during the latter part of August. On the communications app Telegram where there's a high level of anonymity, other than fake sexual images, large volumes of private information like addresses and names are being shared in chat rooms, and these are said to be even sorted based on school, region, etc. If you pay money, there are also chat rooms where the photo you send can be turned into a scary image. At the time when the problem was found out, it had about 220,000 registered users.

　教育省によると、1月から8月27日までに、186人の小中高校生から被害の申告があった。10人の教員からも被害の申告があった。同省は緊急の対応チームを設け、被害状況の把握や心のケアなどにあたっている。

According to the Ministry of Education, from January until August 27, 186 elementary and middle school students have filed reports complaining of being harmed. 10 teachers have also reported their complaints of being harmed. The Ministry has setup an Emergency-Response team to understand the situation and to provide appropriate care.

Korea, which has been promoting digitization, has an abundance of young people who use social media. To prevent harmful misuse of the service, there's a growing call for users to delete the photographs that have their own faces and which they've posted in the past. Tens of people including college students who've been grappling with the problem and groups fighting to protect the rights of women held a meeting on the 29th in Seoul. They voiced out, "What we feel is not embarrassment, but anger." The venue of the meeting was in front of Seoul's Gangnam train station, where a murder incident that targeted nearby women occurred in 2016. A woman said, "By just uploading a photo on social media, my photograph can be stolen for use in deep fake crimes." She complained about "being kept as a potential victim."

The Korean government has also moved to respond to this problem. President YOON, Suk Yeol has noted during a cabinet meeting on the 27th that it's "clearly a crime." He exuded understanding of the situation, saying, "Anyone can be a victim of digital sex crimes," and sought for stronger supervision.

On the issue of Deep Fakes, it's characteristic that there are many minors posting. According to the Police, last year, there were 120 suspects who've committed crimes related to fake sexual images. 75.8% of these were in their 10's.

In Korea, incidents that use Telegram to share sex videos to threaten minors had become a huge societal problem from 2019 to 2020. In 2020, the punishment due to sex crimes was revised due to an incident called the "#n room incident", where images of people's faces and their bodies were edited for the purpose of distribution. The penalty is now under 5 years of imprisonment or payment of less than 50 million won (about 5.4 million yen). However, if the intention to distribute is not clear, the person cannot be punished.

At the National Assembly, discussions have continued to further amend the law and provide stricter punishment. It's reported that the ruling party of the government is examining whether to increase the maximum prison sentence from 5 to 7 years.

However, there's high anonymity in Telegram, and it's not easy for investigators to identify the person who posted the image. In addition, even after the problem is found out, a new chat room will be created, and an anonymous user will announce a new fake image post to come. It's become a cat-and-mouse game. (@Seoul, OTA, Narumi)

テレグラムCEO逮捕、表現の自由めぐり批判　仏大統領は声明で反論

The arrest of Telegram CEO is criticized for suppressing freedom of expression, French President argues to the contrary

パリ＝宋光祐

@Paris, SONG, Guangyu

2024年8月27日 6時07分

　通信アプリ「テレグラム」の最高経営責任者（CEO）がフランスで逮捕された問題で、仏検察当局は26日、組織的な違法取引を可能にするプラットフォームの運営など12件の容疑について捜査していると明らかにした。逮捕をめぐっては表現の自由の観点から批判が強まっており、マクロン仏大統領は同日、「政治的決定によるものではない」との声明を発表した。

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the communications app "Telegram" has been arrested in France. French authorities have announced that they are investigating the platform's operations due to 12 accusations concerned with enabling criminal organizations to make illegal transactions through it. There's growing criticism coming from the perspective of freedom of expression in the arrest of the CEO. In response to this, French President MACRON has issued a statement on the same day saying, "The action was not decided for political reasons."

　仏メディアによると、テレグラムのCEOで創業者でもあるロシア出身のパベル・ドゥロフ氏は24日夜、アゼルバイジャンからパリ郊外のルブルジェ空港にプライベートジェットで到着したところを仏警察に逮捕された。仏国籍を保持しており、現在はアラブ首長国連邦（UAE）に拠点を置いているという。

According to French media, the Telegram CEO and Russian-born entrepreneur Mr. Pavel DUROV was arrested by the French police on the evening of the 24th when his private jet landed at Le Bourget Airport, a suburb of Paris, coming from Azerbaijan. Possessing French citizenship, he is reported to have setup his headquarters in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

　パリの検察当局は26日の声明で、ドゥロフ氏の逮捕は7月8日に開始したサイバー犯罪に関連する捜査の一環だと説明。組織的な違法取引を可能にするプラットフォームの運営や児童ポルノ画像の流布などの共謀のほか、関係当局の規制への協力の拒否など12件の容疑を挙げている。

Paris Authorities explained on the 26th that the arrest of Mr. DUROV is part of investigations concerned with cyber-criminal activities which began in July 8. The platform is facing a total of 12 accusations including its refusal to abide with official regulations, in addition to enabling criminal organizations to make illegal transactions as well as anonymously share and distribute child pornography.

While authorities have not yet been clear on which accusations apply to Mr. DUROV, according to French media, it's possible that he's being questioned for the crime of negligence in moderating content on the platform which includes the monitoring and deletion of inappropriate posts by organized criminals who use the platform to share information anonymously.

There is growing criticism against France on the Internet coming from the perspective of freedom of expression after the arrest of Mr. DUROV. Telegram emphasized on the 25th, "It's unreasonable to demand that the platform and its owners take responsibility for the illegal use of the platform by its users." American Entrepreneur Mr. Elon MUSK posted on the same day on X (formerly, Twitter), "Release Pabel!", etc.

Russia's anti-administration leader, Mr. Leonid BOLCOF, who is close with Alexei NAVALNY who passed away while under-surveillance inside the prison in the Arctic, points out, "I don't completely understand the connection between third-party criminal activities on the platform and the imprisonment of its founder."

"In response to this, Mr. MACRON argued on the evening of the 26th, "France values more than anything the entrepreneurial spirit and freedom of expression." Regarding the arrest of Mr. DUROV, he posted, "This is never a political decision, but something decided by the judge."

Telegram is widely used in Russia to send out propaganda from the Putin Administration, presentations by the Russian Army, etc. Hence, there is growing sentiment that the arrest of Mr. DUROV is partially politically motivated.

On the other hand, even independent media and Russia's anti-administration groups make use of Telegram to send out important information. It's also actively used by the Ukrainian government and media.

Based on initial investigations, it's considered that the aim of Mr. MACRON's argument against the criticisms concerned with freedom of expression is to remove political speculations. (@Paris, SONG, Guangyu)

メルカリの売れ筋　10年前はシャネル、今ユニクロ　変化の背景は

Best sellers at Mercari: the Chanel of 10 years ago and the Uniqlo of today; What has changed in the industry?

聞き手・上地兼太郎

Reporter: UEJI, Kentaro

2024年8月22日 8時00分

　ある人にとっては要らないモノが、別の人にはのどから手が出るほど欲しい「お宝」に――。フリーマーケットの売り買いをスマートフォンで気軽にできるようにしたメルカリ。日々さまざまなものが流通していますが、売れ筋のデータをみると、約10年前と今では大きく変わっています。消費者が求めるものは何か。日本事業トップの山本真人・執行役に聞きました。

For some people, something that others don't need is "precious pearl" that they'd want to get their hands on... Enter Mercari where people can easily buy and sell flee market goods using their smartphones. While a whole variety of goods move through the service everyday, sales data show that there has been a large change between the items sold about 10 years ago and those sold currently on the service. What are consumers searching? We ask top Japanese Business Executive Mr. YAMAMOTO, Masato.

　――公表データでみると、メルカリでの累計出品数は30億品、月間の利用者は2300万人います。2010年代半ばにサービスが始まったとき、記者は「ヤフーオークションと何が違うのか？」と思いましたが、ここまで広まった理由をどうみていますか。

When we look at publicly available data, there are 3 billion products sold at Mercari, whose users number to 23 million per month. When the service started in the mid-2010s, reporters wondered "what its difference with Yahoo Auctions is." What do you think has been the reason for its wide popularity up to this point?

　「『要らないから捨てるしかないモノが、実は資産になる』ということが定着したからだと思っています。特に、1990年代半ばから2010年代序盤に生まれたZ世代は、『大きな消費はしない』と言われていますが、我々のデータでは、『推し活』など自分の興味の対象にはすごくお金を使う。そのために、いま不要なモノを売る。『推し』の対象が変われば売る。モノを抱え込むのではなく循環させることが、当たり前になっています」

We believe that "things that are not needed and can simply be thrown away actually turn into assets." In particular, during the mid-90s up until the start of the 2010s when the Gen-Z was born, we were told that "they don't consume a lot." However, from our data, we found that they actually spend a large amount of their money for their "favorite pastimes" and personal interests. Because of this, they now sell things that they don't anymore need. If their current "favorite" changes, they'd sell. It has become natural for them to let things go without holding on to them.

「もちろん、昨今の物価上昇もあります。物価が上がったので給料も上がる、なら良いのですが、なかなかそうでもない。ではどうするか。欲しいモノを買う原資を生み出すために不要なモノを売る。新品よりも安く買える。それが支持されていると思います」

"Of course, these days the price of commodities has also been rising. Since the price of commodities has risen, salaries have also increased. While this may seem good, it's hardly so in actuality. What then do we do? To create a resource fund for selling things that people want, things that are not needed have to be sold. They can be bought more cheaply than new products. I think that there is support for this endeavor."

　「ジャンル別でみると、14年で最多だったのは、女性向けの服やバッグ・靴といった『レディース』（37%）でした。これが23年は、おもちゃやゲーム・本などの『エンタメ・ホビー』（28%）になっています。ゲームボーイのソフトや昔の少年ジャンプ誌など、もはや新品が買えないモノは人気ですね。漫画でも、色あせした昔の本をわざわざ探している人も多い。レトロ感が受けています」

"Looking at the different genres, what has sold the most for the past 14 years is the so-called "Ladies" merchandise (37%), which includes female clothes, bags and shoes. In 2023, this became "Hobbies and Entertainment" (28%), which includes toys, games and books, among others. What have become popular are Gameboy software, old Shonen Jump magazines, and maybe new things that cannot anymore be bought. Even among Manga comic books, there have also been plenty of people who'd go out of their way to search for old books with almost faded text. These evoke a retro feel to them."

　――売れ筋のブランド品にも変化があるそうですね。

There also seems to be a change in the sales of branded items?

"The top items sold in 2013 based on brand have been 1) Chanel, 2) Apple and 3) Louis Vuitton." In 2022, "1) Uniqlo, 2) Nike and 3) Adidas."

What could be learned from this?

It's not that "there's decreasing movement in the quantity of high-class branded goods per genre. Instead, now even non-high value commodities can be sold. In actuality, there are people who want to buy those. Given such a situation, there's overwhelmingly more Uniqlo T-shirts sold than bags. This has become the new order of priority. We think that each item that can be sold for a low price will be sold."

"We believe that our biggest achievement is in consciously improving the items found in our service and its interface so that buying and selling things can become part of our daily lives, like breathing."

In recent years, the business has been expanding "Mercari Hallo", which Spotworks has been working on in short bursts during idle time, "Merpay", the mobile payment service, and "Mercoin", its digital crypto-currency. What is the aim of these?

"The Hallo service began in March of this year, and has 5 million registered users. It's a huge moonshot. We sense that there are many users who, instead of saying 'we want money', would work part-time for about three times at Hallo and buy things they saw and want at Mercari using their compensation." There are also many users of Merpay and Mercoin. They buy things that they want at Mercari using money that they've received from selling things there, and if there's nothing that they'd want, they may invest it in the service."

"The younger generation is especially sensitive to the destruction of the global environment as a result of high volumes of production and consumption. Commercial products and services that may be cheap but add to this problem are becoming less preferable to consumers."

"'Reuse' is tied to 'Economical.' From our study, there are 36 million people who say, 'We want to try selling a product that's not yet in Mercari.' We think that there's still room for expansion." (Reporter: UEJI, Kentaro).

KADOKAWA、サイバー攻撃で特別損失36億円　補償や復旧費用

KADOKAWA estimates a loss of 3.6 billion yen due to cyberattacks

井東礁

ITO, Sho

2024年8月14日 19時40分

出版大手KADOKAWAは14日、ランサムウェア（身代金ウイルス）による大規模なサイバー攻撃を受けた影響で、2025年3月期に36億円の特別損失を計上する見込みだと発表した。運営する「ニコニコ動画」などを使って収益を得ているクリエーターらへの補償や、システムの復旧費用などにあてる。身代金の支払いの有無は明らかにしていない。

Giant Publisher KADOKAWA has announced that for the March 2025 period, it forecasts that it'll be losing an estimated amount of 3.6 billion yen due to large-scale RANSOMWARE cyberattacks. System recovery costs and the compensation for creators receiving income from using services like the "niconico video" were reported to have been affected by these attacks, but the company has not clearly stated whether or not it has paid the money demanded by the RANSOMWARE.

　また、システム障害によって書籍の受注システムやニコニコ動画などのサービスが一時停止したことで、売上高が84億円、営業利益が64億円減少すると見込んだ。

In addition, the niconico video service and its book ordering system stopped temporarily due to system failure, such that the company estimates that based on it's sales earnings amounting to 8.4 billion yen, its operating profit has been reduced to 6.4 billion yen.

Because of this, the company has adjusted its forecasted net earnings for the March 2025 period from 13.4 billion yen to 9.7 billion yen (14.8% lower than the previous year). However, its digital books, anime and games businesses are still doing well, with sales amounting to 271.3 billion yen (a 5.1% increase).

The amount affected due to the leakage of private information of its business partners and school directors did not include the compensation that may be given to its "KADOKAWA Dwango Academy" students. The advertising company has taken measures to "sincerely confront this problem" regarding compensation. (ITO, Sho)