Legal structure, business organisations and lobbying: The Japanese publishing sector, 1990-2001.

How did incumbents in Japanese publishing maintain resale price maintenance (RPM)? This article sheds light on the inter- and intra- industrial structure that enabled the protection of RPM, or the fixed price system, amid the country-wide liberalisation in the 1990s. By analysing textual data including governmental reports, trade papers in publishing and leaflets adopted for lobbying, the critical decade was reconstructed. It addresses a scarcity of business history literature about the link between RPM and business organisations, particularly concerning lobbying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]