Weathernews : Corporate Report 2024

Corporate Report

2024

Weathernews Inc. Integrated Report

The landscape photographs on the cover and table of contents were provided

by our supporters (users).

Contents

Our Corporate Story

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・02

Co-creatingValue ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・03

Our Dream ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・04

Our Business

Overview of businesses and services ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・05

Growth Strategies Past and Future

40 Years of Progress ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・07

Medium-Term Management Plan 2023-2025・・・・・・・・・・・08

Value Creation Process ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・09

To Our Shareholders ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・11

Dream Session ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 16

Session 1 The evolution of the "trinity loop" will add new value to the weather services we create

Session 2 Achieving highly accurate forecasts to solve the world's weather challenges

Achieving Our Dream with a Network

That Spans the Globe ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 25

European Sales Headquarters ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 26

North America ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 27

Europe ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 28

Asia ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 29

News ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 30

Corporate Outline / Stock Information ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・ 32

"I want to save sailors' lives"

The origins of Weathernews

Weathernews was founded by Hiroyoshi Ishibashi in 1986. Ishibashi chose to become involved in meteorology in 1970 when, while working for a trading company, a cargo ship he oversaw became involved in an accident at sea.

Founder

Hiroyoshi Ishibaashi

The dream lives on

January 1970. Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture.

An explosive low-pressure system hits the local port of Onahama, causing the sinking of a cargo vessel.

The lives of 15 of its crew are lost.

At the time, it was not possible to predict this dangerous weather phenomenon, nor was weather information tailored to the needs of sailors available.

"This tragedy might have been prevented if truly useful weather information had been available"

The accident inspired Ishibashi to enter the world of meteorology, and he later founded Weathernews in 1986. Ishibashi's dream of protecting the lives of sailors and being of help to others in times of need still lives on with all of us at Weathernews today.

Co-creating Value

Together

with our supporters

Together with the "supporters" who are our stakeholders

We use the term "supporters" to describe all of our various stakeholders. Customers, shareholders, even our employees-we all experience, think about, and are affected by weather on a daily basis. We all have an interest in the weather. So by gathering data together with input from a lot of people and finding out what it is they want to know, we can provide information and services that are better and more useful. Weathernews will continue to co-create new value together with everyone who is interested in weather.

Co-creating value based on trust

The trust we have built with our supporters is our strength. Individual supporters send us weather reports through the Weathernews app.

Each day, we receive an average of 180,000 reports on weather and conditions all across Japan from people on the ground. Feedback and requests from corporate supporters also serve as key hints for the creation of new services.

It is thanks to our supporters, who communicate with us day after day, that we are able to improve the accuracy of our weather forecasts and produce valuable services.

Our Dream

Our dream today

We want to save sailors' lives

We also want to protect the future of this planet

Our dream has grown

In recent years, climate change has resulted in the frequent occurrence of extreme weather and severe natural disasters.

As the world seeks to solve this issue shared by all humankind and make the shift to a carbon-neutral society, we have redefined the dream of Weathernews.

As we renew our dedication to our founding aspiration, we are evolving into a company that saves lives and also protects the future of this planet.

From weather to climate change

We provide weather impact forecasting and response strategies to businesses in ocean-,air-, and land-based transport; weather-sensitive retail; electric power; and even professional sports.

We have also expanded our services to include the climate domain. We have launched a service that analyzes the risks of climate change on companies and helps them develop measures to adapt to a changing environment.

Going forward, we will be combining our vast accumulation of business and weather data with AI, risk analysis, and other technologies to create new services that not only aid adaptation to climate change but also help mitigate it through the reduction of CO2 emissions.

Weathernews originally began offering weather services in the marine

Business overview and composition (main businesses)

segment based on a passionate dream to save sailors' lives, and its markets have since expanded to include land and aviation segments as well. Today, Weathernews provides services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to customers in approximately 50 countries and regions around the world in a variety of markets, including not only B2B (business-to-business) but also B2S (business- to-supporter, our term for business-to-consumer).

B2S 46.6%

Mobile/ Broadcasting Internet

In the air

Weathernews supplies information that supports optimal decision-making on when

Weathernews' main services

For airplanes

and whether to operate aircraft. To airline operators, airports, aircraft, and pilots, we provide notifications for sudden weather changes and information on predictable weather phenomena which aids in selecting appropriate countermeasures.

For drones

Provision of high wind risk notifications and wind forecasts up to 150 meters above the ground for drone operators in Japan.

Support for ensuring the safety, economic efficiency, and comfort of aircraft operations, from pre-planning to in-flight.

Our domestic and international airline market sales increased as the number of both domestic and international flight passengers continued to recover, mainly due to strong inbound demand and domestic leisure demand.

On land

For helicopters

Support for decision-making on when and whether to operate medical helicopters and other flights requiring emergency dispatch.

●B2S

We provide weather services through a variety of media platforms. We see the final recipients of our information, individual users, not as consumers (C) but rather as supporters (S) who work together with us and in turn benefit the weather industry, hence the term "B2S" instead of "B2C."

For transport

Support for transportation operators to help them understand the conditions of transport infrastructure based on land, sea, and air service information.

Through television commercials and other advertising strategies, our mobile and web forecasting services increase awareness of Weathernews' apps and brand, making them a growth driver for the entire company. Backed by steady user growth and improved advertising market conditions, these services saw increased revenue.

While the importance of weather information is increasing, especially for disaster-related reporting, television stations and other major customers are continuing to revise their costs due to changes in the business environment. Weathernews is promoting improvements to create a more profitable structure by streamlining service operations and building new services.

For roads and railways

Support for road safety and safe railway operations during snow, ice, rainfall, and other inclement weather.

For broadcasters

Support for the production of weather content tailored to the needs of individual regional broadcasters. In addition, the provision of disaster information bulletin systems.

For sports and events

Support for decision- making on whether to hold sporting and various other events, as well as the safe and smooth operation of such events.

Apps and SNS

Distribution of weather information via the Weathernews app and Weathernews LiVE video stream.

In logistics-related markets such as expressways and railroads, the need for weather information will increase from the perspective of ensuring safety in logistics, including disaster preparedness for business locations in the event of extreme weather events and impacts on transportation. Revenue increased due to an increase in the number of customers in the expressway market.

FY2024 results WxTech Data and Weathernews for Business, two SaaS-type products, saw sales to Japanese electric power companies expand, resulting in increased revenue.

By sea

With regard to the marine transportation that underpins global trade, we provide services that support safe and economical navigation for large vessels on long voyages, as well as support for efficient port operations and the maintenance of offshore wind power generation facilities.

For large vessels

Provision of services to oceangoing vessels around the world such as Optimum Ship Routing (OSR), which supports safe navigation and efficient fuel consumption.

For ports

Support for safe and efficient port and maritime operations and coastal navigation with detailed weather countermeasure information.

Despite ship cargo movement

shifting to a weakening trend against the backdrop of geopolitical risks on major routes, revenues increased due to expanded sales and new orders for support services for environmentally- friendly operation, as well as the positive impact of foreign exchange rate fluctuations.

Growth Strategies Past and Future | 40 Years of Progress

Value Creation History

2012-2022

Pursuit of

Innovation

2018

Started broadcasting Weathernews LiVE

2019

Started broadcasting Weathernews app TV commercials

2021

Started providing a climate change risk analysis service

2022

Ranked no.1 in forecast accuracy as evaluated by a third-party organization

2023-

Scaling Business

A new phase of scaling our business to also protect the future of this planet

WebFor details, refer to ourMedium-TermManagement Plan

We provide highly accurate forecasts for a variety of industries

・Electricity supply and demand forecasting ・CO2 emissions forecasting

・Forecasting numbers of customers

・Navigation and flight risk prediction

・Driving risk prediction

・No.1 most accurate weather forecasts

Business data

Future

Forecast

Various layers of weather, business, and other data are utilized in our highly precise forecasting. This spurs the growth of our community, a space for sharing the value of our forecasting, giving us more data in a self- reinforcing cycle.

Leveraging weather and multi-industry business data accumulated since our establishment

・Weather forecasting models for individual countries ・Oceanographic data and private satellites

The value creation of trinity loop forecasting

Through the loop of data,

forecasting, and community, Weathernews will create more and more new value.

・Pollen dispersal forecasting

Weather layer