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posted by martyb on Monday December 18 2017, @02:11AM   Printer-friendly

This Japanese space startup raised $90.2 million to put the first billboard on the moon

iSpace[sic], a Tokyo-based startup company has raised $90 million Series A funding to send a spacecraft into lunar orbit by 2019, and then land a year later after orbiting the Moon. The funding was led by Japan Airlines Co. and Tokyo Broadcasting System Holdings Inc. Other investors in the Series A funding included Development Bank of Japan, Konica Minolta, Shimizu, Real Tech Fund, KDDI, Suzuki Motor, SPARX, Dentsu and and Toppan Printing. The investors will also be providing technology and other support to ispace, said Takeshi Hakamada, founder and chief executive of ispace. According to Bloomberg, Ispace plans on offering a "projection mapping service" which will serve as a small billboard on the moon. The company hopes to complete this mission by the year 2020.

It doesn't sound like the billboard is projected from an orbiter, but that it will involve a small display landed on the surface, photographed by the spacecraft:

Ispace[sic] says the initial business opportunity is mostly in marketing, including slapping corporate logos on its spacecrafts and rovers, and delivering images to be used in advertising. A successful landing will also let the company offer what it calls a "projection mapping service" -- a small billboard on the moon's surface. The startup says there will be demand from corporations looking to show off their logos with Earth in the background.

Hack that.

ispace, inc.'s website and its mission plans.

[Ed note: The proper capitalization of the company's name noted on their web site is "ispace, inc."]

Also at Space News and The Space Reporter.


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  • (Score: 4, Interesting) by requerdanos on Monday December 18 2017, @02:34AM (2 children)

    by requerdanos (5997) Subscriber Badge on Monday December 18 2017, @02:34AM (#611232) Journal

    the company [would] offer what it calls a "projection mapping service" -- a small billboard on the moon's surface. The startup says there will be demand from corporations looking to show off their logos with Earth in the background.

    Hack that.

    I can only hope that hackers have a silly message up on it on day 0.

    The proper capitalization of the company's name noted on their web site is "ispace, inc."

    They may identify as lowercase, but such capitalization is anything but "proper."

    I also see, at the bottom, ISPACE, INC, so they're at least consistently wrong if nothing else.

    Starting Score:    1  point
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       Interesting=1, Informative=1, Total=2
    Extra 'Interesting' Modifier   0  
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    Total Score:   4  
  • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 18 2017, @04:12AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 18 2017, @04:12AM (#611263)

    I can only hope that hackers have a silly message up on it on day 0.

    Flat Earth Society related? ;)

  • (Score: 2) by Reziac on Tuesday December 19 2017, @02:41AM

    by Reziac (2489) on Tuesday December 19 2017, @02:41AM (#611683) Homepage

    "There's a great Darsh face hanging over the garden wall."

    --
    And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.