Satoru Ohyama, a managing director at Merrill Lynch Japan, claims that Bard anticipated the boom in i-mode mobile phones by predicting a "telephone computer" that would be a hot investment.

FORBES: Simply divined

At least 500, 000 Japanese small businesses, and many more overseas (Shigeta already has entered China, Hong Kong and Korea), are potential clients, says Merrill Lynch Japan Vice President Mahendra Negi.

FORBES: The Web Phone Evangelist

"It is the corporate sector that is waking up from 10 years of complacency and is starting to invest in more modern technology to stay globally competitive, " says Jesper Koll, chief economist at Merrill Lynch Japan.

CNN: You Need Two Legs To Walk