Anyone else having trouble with Kobo online store?

[kumaryu]

My colleagues in Japan report that the Japanese site is now up and running. It would appear that there GeoIP is preventing access to Japanese content from non-JP IP addresses.

I guess a proxy or a VPN would allow one to bypass this but the question is whether they would accept credit/debit cards issued outside of Japan. Likewise, for those wishing to buy US or UK titles with a Japanese credit cards a similar restriction in reverse may be in place.

[taming]

Well, in other locations, people can buy from Kobo using PayPal--no credit card required-- so maybe with a Japanese address and the right IP address that would work.

[Cdesja5]

Originally Posted by kumaryu

My colleagues in Japan report that the Japanese site is now up and running. It would appear that there GeoIP is preventing access to Japanese content from non-JP IP addresses.

I guess a proxy or a VPN would allow one to bypass this but the question is whether they would accept credit/debit cards issued outside of Japan. Likewise, for those wishing to buy US or UK titles with a Japanese credit cards a similar restriction in reverse may be in place.

I haven't tried this with Kobo, but with BooksonBoard, I bought gift cards on the site on my real account with my Canadian card and Canadian address and then created a US account with a US address (a real one). Without using a VPN, I was able to use them to buy the books I wanted, no problem. I would presume that Kobo works similarly... So if you are not in Japan and want to buy Japanese books buying a gift card and using it with a Japanese account could work.
And if it doesn't, you can still use the card for other books. It's worth a try...

[kumaryu]

Thanks for the suggestions. Some of the methods suggested, albeit with a few modifications may be required for my purposes.

My observations so far...

1. From a Spanish IP address, its not possible to display Japanese language content at <rakuten.kobobooks.com>. The site is displayed with some Japanese interface elements, but the content (ie, books, recommendations etc) are all in the default locale for the IP address region.

• I'm assuming that this is the case for access from other non-JP IP addresses)
• In this example, the site displays Spanish language content with prices in Euros.

2. After log-in, the content changes to reflect the (postal) address entered during previous purchase.

• In my case, this was my billing address in the UK and as a result, the books displayed are English titles with the prices in GBP

3. When HTTP proxy is used to masquerade the connection as coming from a JP IP address, interface and content display switches to Japanese (+ prices in JPY).

4. When making a purchase, its necessary to log in. If using a previously registeed account linked to a non-JP (postal) address, a pop-up indicates that the item is not available in your region.

Although its possible to edit the registered address, the comprehensive country selection drop-down which includes Western Sahara and Democratic People's Republic of Korea does not allow you to select "Japan".

[Cdesja5]

Have you tried setting up a new "Japanese" account while connected to the VPN and then logging in? Does the country show up as missing in a dropdown menu if you do that? Or can you just enter it into the field?

[Raquel]

When I accessed kobobooks.com this morning,
it already changed into KOBO/Rakuten store.
US store wasn't accessible.
(I live in Japan.)

From what I gathered, you can sign in KOBO/Rakuten store
only if you have/create Rakuten online store membership.
And I don't think non Japanese resident can be Rakuten member.

[kumaryu]

Originally Posted by Raquel

When I accessed kobobooks.com this morning,
it already changed into KOBO/Rakuten store.
US store wasn't accessible.
(I live in Japan.)

This may indeed be the case. They appear to have implemented a geolocation filter that modifies the content based on your country location.

Have you tried logging into your account? Without logging in, all the content appears in Spanish for me. (I live in Spain).

Originally Posted by Raquel

From what I gathered, you can sign in KOBO/Rakuten store
only if you have/create Rakuten online store membership.
And I don't think non Japanese resident can be Rakuten member.

I just created an account at Rakuten (not Rakuten Kobo). I have no Japanese credentials (other than my passport). They do require that you enter a "valid" mobile email address . Since I don;t have a JP mobile, I just entered something like: myname666@docomo.ne.jp)

You do need Japanese address. If you live in Japan, this shouldn't be an issue. (I used my brother's)

For a credit card, I entered the details for my UK issued card. This is curious since rakuten.kobobooks would not let me create an account with my UK credit card and hence, my recourse to creating an account with Rakuten instead...

[kumaryu]

I just logged into Rakuten.Kobobooks using my newly created Rakuten account.

I can login but geoIP kicks in and am presented with Spanish language content.
(In this respect, it works differently from when I log in using my other account registered to a UK address.)

It would appear that I would need to us a proxy or a VPN to make this work...

[murg]

Originally Posted by kumaryu

You do need Japanese address. If you live in Japan, this shouldn't be an issue. (I used my brother's)

Since Kobo isn't actually mailing anything to you, then any Japanese address should work. Unless you're buying an EReader, in which case the Geo restrictions may not apply.

I think I bought a UK book using the University of Bristol as my address (it was the first search result for Bristol).

However, you still have to get around the GeoIP stuff.

[Raquel]

Originally Posted by kumaryu

Have you tried logging into your account? Without logging in, all the content appears in Spanish for me. (I live in Spain).

I haven't logged into my account because I'm using same email address for my Rakuten membership and US KOBO account.
I was told if I log in as Rakuten member, they simply think I'm a new member and my US account wouldn't be recognized.
Since I don't want to lose my purchases, I need them to migrate my IDs.

Originally Posted by kumaryu

I can login but geoIP kicks in and am presented with Spanish language content.
(In this respect, it works differently from when I log in using my other account registered to a UK address.)

It would appear that I would need to us a proxy or a VPN to make this work...

Hmm, so if I'm staying abroad, I can't buy Japanese ebooks even if I have Rakuten membership and valid address.
That would have been very frustrating when I was living in Singapore.

[GA Russell]

Am I correct in concluding from this discussion that Canadians in Canada are not having problems buying Kobo books?

[taming]

No problem for this Canadian

[Cdesja5]

Originally Posted by Raquel

I haven't logged into my account because I'm using same email address for my Rakuten membership and US KOBO account.
I was told if I log in as Rakuten member, they simply think I'm a new member and my US account wouldn't be recognized.
Since I don't want to lose my purchases, I need them to migrate my IDs.



Hmm, so if I'm staying abroad, I can't buy Japanese ebooks even if I have Rakuten membership and valid address.
That would have been very frustrating when I was living in Singapore.

You would need to use a VPN with a Japanese ip address. I guess it depends how important it is to you to get the books vs the cost of the VPN... They can be subscribed to pretty cheap.
Concerning your email: can't you use a second one to open a separate account? That would allow you to keep your US purchases on the original one.

[Danger]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Am I correct in concluding from this discussion that Canadians in Canada are not having problems buying Kobo books?

No problems here. I just bought 5 over the past couple of days. I use paypal.

[plib]

Originally Posted by Cdesja5

You would need to use a VPN with a Japanese ip address. I guess it depends how important it is to you to get the books vs the cost of the VPN... They can be subscribed to pretty cheap.
Concerning your email: can't you use a second one to open a separate account? That would allow you to keep your US purchases on the original one.

For occasional purchases it would probably work with TOR. You can choose your exit node, or you could last time I did it.