Yahoo Japan is, if you’ll recall, not exactly the Yahoo most Americans know.  Yahoo only owns 33 percent of the organization, while Softbank controls a 42 percent stake.  And Yahoo Japan’s also on a different path in other respects, considering it’s arranged to make use of Google’s search tech.

It might make sense for Yahoo to collect some cash and walk away, then, which is what a Reuters article suggested will happen.  Nadia Damouni and Tim Kelly wrote earlier this morning, "Yahoo Inc is in advanced talks to leave its Japanese joint venture in an effort to sort out its dysfunctional Asian partnerships and free up as much as $8 billion to fight Google and Facebook."

In response, shares of Yahoo Japan shot up on the Tokyo Stock Exchange even as the rest of the market declined.  Shares of Yahoo are up this morning, too, and Evercore upgraded its rating.

Again, though, Softbank has said nothing is in the works, telling the Dow Jones News Service, "We have no intention to acquire the shares."

We’ll be sure to report any significant developments.

A quick note/reminder: Yahoo Japan is not exactly the Yahoo most Americans know.  Yahoo only owns 33 percent of the organization, while Softbank controls a 41 percent stake.  And Yahoo Japan’s also on a different path in other respects, as it’s arranged to make use of Google’s search tech, for example.

Anyway, an official statement announced today, "Ooyala and Yahoo! Japan will collaborate on a broad-scale initiative to optimize business results for Japanese broadcasters, publishers, advertisers and content creators.  Yahoo! Japan will standardize on Ooyala technology across all of its properties for initiatives such as cross-platform video delivery, subscription and advertising services."

Then the statement continued, "With Ooyala, Yahoo! Japan will deliver rich video experiences on connected PCs, smart phones, tablets and televisions in the Japanese market.  Additionally, Yahoo! Japan will both sell Ooyala video technology and provide support for thousands of media publishers and brand marketers that use Ooyala."

This deal is set to last for at least two years.  Unfortunately, no financial details were disclosed.

Ooyala was founded in 2007, and its other customers (of which there are over 500) include the Grammy Awards, the Telegraph, and Time Inc.

A little background information: Yahoo Japan said in July that it intended to make use of Google’s search tech, which came as a surprise to many since Yahoo and Bing were moving forward together in the U.S.

The idea was also a bit of a shocker since the arrangement would give Google control of something like 90 percent of the Japanese search market.

Still, Takujiro Kono of the Fair Trade Commission said according to Daisuke Wakabayashi, "We have not found any evidence that they are collaborating by sharing sensitive information such as ad pricing or any other problematic ways."

The Fair Trade Commission just intends to continue to monitor the two companies to make sure they don’t cooperate more than they should.

Not much else seems to stand in the way of Yahoo Japan and Google moving forward together, although Microsoft and Japanese competitor Rakuten still object to the tie-up.

Cirius’s primary business is a service called AdLocal.  It acts as a location-based mobile advertising network, allowing marketers to pick where and when consumers will see an appeal to buy something, along with who (in terms of demographics) the consumers will be.

What’s more, Cirius operates in the U.S. in addition to Asia, signaling that although it only has around 30 employees, it’s not too small or unsuccessful a venture.

Serkan Toto reported, however, "Following the acquisition, Cirius will close the office in the US and move its HQ to that of Yahoo Japan’s," so it doesn’t look like Yahoo Japan is trying to expand its reach right now.

Otherwise, details are scarce.  Yahoo Japan and Cirius haven’t disclosed the purchase price or how to the AdLocal tech might be integrated into other properties, for example.

SoftBank, which is a Japanese telecommunications giant, owns a 40 percent stake in Yahoo Japan, by the way.

The Asahi Shimbun reports that Yahoo Japan Corp. is seeking to save face with its customers by reimbursing defrauded customers up to 500,000 yen ($4,300) per transaction with that particular store.

The Osaka-based jeweler folded in July, owing 95 million yen ($821,000) in debts. With plans to pursue legal action against the seller, Yahoo! said it would reimburse all transactions with the store without limit. Most bids peaked at below 200,000 yen ($1,729).

Though the company is not limiting the number of claims an individual can file, the number failed transactions is finite, topping out at 207.

If this happened stateside, it makes one wonder if such action would open Yahoo! (or eBay) up to claims by others who’ve been scammed. This thought occurs to TechDirt’s Michael Masnick, as well.

“It’s likely a very good move for loyalty purposes, but it makes you wonder if scammed users will end up feeling that they, too, are owed money after botched auctions,” said Masnick.

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Everyone in Japan seems to want to take deposits from customers. Sony and 7-11 both own virtual banks in the country, Reuters reported, and the rumored arrangement between Yahoo Japan and SMFG would place Yahoo in the mix.

While Yahoo has confirmed talks with SMFG and Japan Net Bank have taken place, details have not been provided. Should these prove fruitful, SMFG’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp and Yahoo Japan would form a joint venture in Japan Net Bank.

Though Yahoo would start with a minority share of 14 percent ownership in the joint venture, that would eventually rise to 50 percent. This will equate to a 30 percent position in Japan Net Bank held by Yahoo Japan, and should provide favorable benefits to Yahoo like reduced payment processing costs.

Owning a bank gives an enterprise control over the payment processing aspect of its business. Instead of paying a third party for processing credit card payments, a company bank does the work.

The world’s biggest retailer, Wal-Mart, has long wanted to have an institutional bank as part of its business. That prospect has terrified the commercial banking industry, and Wal-Mart has not yet been able to accomplish this.

Perhaps Yahoo plans to use the expertise it gains in Japanese banking in the US. Ebay has PayPal, and Google has been developing its online payments system. Yahoo has similar needs for payment processing for its auctions and virtual storefronts that it hosts.

Maybe NetBank will receive a call from Terry Semel, seeking to open discussions about a venture similar to that of Yahoo Japan and SMFG. The purely online NetBank would benefit from the influx of business from Yahoo’s users, while Yahoo would receive more favorable payment processing terms.

A joint venture should be simpler than writing a payment system from the ground up to compete with PayPal and Google Payments, too.

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David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business.