Joining the fanclub with Tenso?

[thelilalbatross.livejournal.com]

Hi everyone! I'm fairly new to the Arashi fandom, and I have a question about the fanclub.

Is it possible to sign up for the fanclub and use a mail-forwarding service like Tenso for the address? I am currently in Japan, and so applying at the post office won't be a problem, but as I'm leaving in a couple of weeks, I don't have a long-term residential address to use. I guess the big problem would be that it asks for a phone number - would it be OK to use an international one or leave it blank?

My other alternative would be to ask a friend to forward stuff for me, but as I don't want to cause her too much trouble (she's not a big Arashi fan) and she will be leaving Japan next summer, I'd rather leave it as a last resort. But either way, I wouldn't want to use this friend's phone number, since she's still a beginner with Japanese, and I don't want her to get unexpected Japanese phone calls because of me! So again, would it be possible to leave the phone number blank? Or if you have to put one down, is there any chance that they'll actually call it?

Hope this question hasn't been asked too many times before. Thanks for any help! :)

Comments

[hontowa.livejournal.com]

You'll need to pay to renew the fanclub membership every year, which can only be done via the Japanese post office. I think using a forwarding service would be pretty impractical, unfortunately.

You'll also need the phone number to log on to the fanclub website, which is fairly useful around concert time. Your log in will be your fanclub number + the last 4 digits of your phone number that you sign up for. I don't think I've ever gotten a phone call from the fanclub.

If you've got a Japanese friend you could ask to forward the stuff for you, that'd be ideal. That's what I've been doing since I left Japan a few years ago. Most Japanese (as long as you're at a comfortable friendship level with the person, of course) are very kind and willing to help out, and if you can do something for them in return (such as send something from the US) they might feel like it's less of a burden. Keep in mind though that the person keeping up your membership for you will need to go to the post office once a year to pay for continued membership, so you'll need a way to get the money to them. If you're going to be applying for concert tickets, they'll need to do the same thing (go to the post office to apply, or I think now they have an online application system that likely uses Japanese credit cards or Japanese bank transfer). To find out if you got your tickets or not, there's a hotline number but it also only works in Japan (I tried to call it last year using a phone card and could never get through - not sure if skype would work).

[aishitsuzukeru.livejournal.com]

I am not familiar with Tenso, but it seems to be for ordering things off of Amazon every once in a while, rather than for subscriptions to fan clubs. I would say, ask them directly about that.

All your information has to be Japanese based (address and phone number).

How long are you planning on being a member for? Just until your friend leaves?

A friend of mine asked to switch her address over to my place, and then I am sending her pamphlets in bulk at the end of her subscription.

You can't leave the phone number section of your application blank because it is needed for your registration and for your account to the website.

[kumapuff.livejournal.com]

Phone number will be indispensable for registration. You might be able to have your brochures forwarded to your friend's place (Tenso) after you leave Japan. However, JFC is strict about tickets, so if you win under you account, they will not have it forwarded to another address. In order to collect your ticket(s), you will have to go the venue on the day of the concert and submit identification etc at the counter.

[miroku-luv.livejournal.com]

I agree with hontowa, i have a japanese friend maintain my club membership. they collect the mags and mail them to me once in a while or when I come to japan. The fanclub doesn't call the phone number. I think it just an additional way for them to ensure the applicant is in Japan. i don't know anything about tenso, but you will need a person with an actual address in japan, because they will have to renew membership and apply for concert tickets. the address is for the ticket application process (because they haven't caught up with the internet, yet...)
i hope the comments are helpful.
good luck!!!