The Litmus Test

Within a newspaper, there is often tension between two departments that are, at least in theory, far apart: accounting and editorial. While the journalist focuses on reality, the accountant ensures that the books balance — and those books largely depend on the advertising the publication attracts to its pages. The conflict arises when a news story is critical of a company that advertises in that same medium.

– “But did you really have to publish that? Couldn’t you give it a softer tone?”

This conflict is unavoidable, but it is also survivable. The powers at work manage their differences because the field covered by news reporting is much broader than the specific interests of any single advertiser. Thus, the publication does not depend excessively on any one external source of funding.

A very different situation arises when the publication’s raison d’être is the consumer goods available on the market — and there are many such publications, particularly in Japan. Their fields are diverse: cars, watches, fashion, gastronomy…

Publications in Japan.

And the problem now is obvious — the number of potential advertisers is very limited, and the publication becomes more vulnerable to any negative reaction its reporting might provoke.
But who is the reader of the publication? For whom is it produced? Where does the publication’s loyalty truly lie?

Beyond polite words and public relations, the litmus test is simple: does that publication ever say anything negative about a product? According to them, is there a bad car on the market? A bad watch? A bad pen? Do they ever dare to publish a negative review?

Because at the end of the day, they must decide whether they are in the business of reporting — or in the business of collecting advertisements.

Mannenhitsu-no Yamada – Akkerman #13 Simpliest Violet


Bruno Taut
October 28th, 2025
etiquetas: mercado, publicaciones

The Lonesome Death of the Pilot Petit

New pens are widely advertised―and that makes sense. Makers need to recoup the investment made to develop and market them. The fanfare and drumroll are loud, designed to create a sense of anticipation in buyers.

Conversely, when a model is discontinued, its demise is silent—almost secret. The pen simply vanishes from the catalog.

Such was the case of the Pilot Petit, which disappeared from the catalog sometime in 2025.

The three generations of the Pilot Petit 1.

This family of pens was first launched in 2010 and went through three different generations. It was an inexpensive model—JPY 300 for the first iteration and JPY 200 for the rest (..2.., ..3..)— with only one nib option, F. The nib unit was shared with the nominally disposable Vpen (also known as the Pilot “Prince of Wales”), in which both F and M points were available.

All three generations—plus the additional signature pen (Petit 2) and brush pen (Petit 3) introduced in the second generation—used the same type of dedicated ink cartridge. These cartridges were specific to the series because their size prevented the use of any Pilot converter or regular cartridge—they simply did not fit inside.

Petit vs. regular Pilot cartridges.

Now, about 15 years after its debut, the Pilot Petit is no more. Pilot has phased it out, and it is hard to find any leftover stock—even in those small stationery shops that time forgot. The spare cartridges now appear as “available while stocks last,” suggesting they are no longer manufactured.

The typical presentation of the Pilot Petit spare cartridges from the second generation on. Its price, JPY 100, plus taxes.

The consequences are clear: for how long will we be able to use our Pilot Petit pens? Surely, we will treasure and refill the old cartridges, but how long will they last before cracking?

And that is the problem with creating pens that rely on unique systems—they are highly vulnerable to marketing decisions. And the Petit is gone with the cartridge.

Pilot Décimo – Pilot Black

Bruno Taut
October 7th, 2025
etiquetas: Pilot, mercado, conversor