• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.211-231
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• 2011

RYUTSUKEIRETSUKA(Vertical Marketing System) developed by the Japanese Leading Manufacturers began to turn weak with the presence of the large- scaled retail enterprises since 1980’s. Therefore the alliances between major manufacturers & large distributors that were in the conflict relations for a long time began to progress. In accordance with this change in the distribution channel practice, the stance of the distribution channel theory in Japan had also changed. As the normative researcher group who had been critical to RYUTSUKEIRETSUKA and sympathetic to the task of merchant judged that it would disappear sooner or later, they considered positively the alliances between major manufacturers & large distributors which the latter were in dominant position. On the other hand, even the empirical researchers who supported the affirmative function of RYUTSUKEIRETSUKA changed their standpoint. They recognized the new channel practice, in other words the vertical alliances between the power companies, would be the frontier of research in accordance with the impetus of positivism in terms of the Marketing methodology. Thus, researchers of distribution channel theory in Japan who supported the normative approach become few and even changed to hurry to absorb in the empirical research, while moving the main focus of the research from RYUTSUKEIRETSUKA to the Alliances. In the long run, the distribution channel theory which was regarded as the leading principle of the Japanese Marketing has just made the methodological paradigm shift. The author suggests a critical viewpoint against the current Japan’s academism with the assumption that RYUTSUKEIRETSUKA has negative aspects.