A brand new space policy or just papering over a political glitch? Japan's new space law in the making

The recent enactment of Japan's Basic Law for Space Activities appears to have ushered in a new policy-making paradigm favouring industry users over technology development for its own sake. Revealing the favourable party-political context that enabled the law's easy passage, compromises notwithstanding, the author briefly presents two case studies demonstrating why the old space policy was not working well and how the new law can be used to make industry's life easier in future.