Pear Japan
Software and reservation systems for Japan's bus industry.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| investor investor investor | €0.0 | round | |
$625k | - | ||
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Kobo Co., Ltd. is an information technology company specializing in the development and sale of computer systems for the Japanese bus industry. Founded in June 1979 as Hokkaido Sankyo Jimuki and officially established in October 1980, the company has grown to become a pivotal technology provider in Japan's public transportation sector. It later changed its name to Sankyo System Kobo before becoming Kobo Co., Ltd. in 2006. The company is headquartered in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, and is led by President and CEO Akimasa Narita.
The firm's core business revolves around a comprehensive suite of software solutions for bus operators. Its flagship product is "Hassha Oorai Net" (Departure, All Right! Net), a shared, online reservation system for highway and express buses that launched in 1998. This system was developed to solve inefficiencies in how joint-operation bus routes were managed, creating a unified platform for multiple companies to manage seat inventory and reservations in real-time. Today, it is one of the largest highway bus booking websites in Japan, serving over 120 bus companies and more than 4 million registered users. In addition to this B2C portal, Kobo provides a range of B2B software for charter bus management, route bus diagram creation, and operational management systems.
To cater to the growing inbound tourism market, Kobo launched "Japan Bus Online," an English-language version of its booking service in 2015. The company has further expanded its global reach through API integration with international travel platforms, such as Germany-based Distribusion, to make Japanese bus tickets available to a worldwide audience through various online travel agencies. The business model is based on providing these software systems and reservation platforms to bus companies. Beyond its primary focus on transportation IT, the company also operates a construction and architecture division.
Keywords: bus reservation system, transportation IT, highway bus booking, public transport software, Hassha Oorai Net, Japan Bus Online, fleet management software, route planning systems, travel technology, B2B software, ticketing solutions, Japanese tourism, operational management systems, charter bus software, inbound travel, public transportation technology, Saitama, Akimasa Narita