The 27-year-old Tetsua Inoui began running the Asahi Ryokan hotel last year, a hotel in the Japanese city of Fukuoka owned by his grandmother, and has introduced a new service that reduces the cost of accommodation to one dollar a night.
Tetsua had the idea of using the Internet to bring in a new audience, and now guests arriving at the hotel have the option to pay only 100 yen (about $ 1) per night, if they agree to re-broadcast their entire stay.
However, there are limitations to how live streaming works. Aino explains to CNN Travel that the feed is video-only, so guests will have privacy in their conversations or phone calls. His YouTube channel is called One Dollar Hotel.
Guests are allowed to turn off the lights and the bathroom area is outside the scope of the camera.
"It's a very old hotel and I was looking for a new business model," says Inoue. "Our hotel is on the cheaper side of the city, so we need value-added, something special that everyone will talk about."
So far, four guests have shown their videos since Inou announced the deal last month. "Young people nowadays don't care much about privacy. Some say it's good to be watched for just one day," he said.
Although the $ 1 rooms are a losing deal for Illinois, he is not thinking about the cost of a one-night stay. His YouTube channel has exceeded 12,500 subscribers and more than 850,000 views, enabling him to advertise and monetize the channel.
On days when the room is empty, Inoue will post a live broadcast about himself.
Signs in Japanese and English are posted in front of the camera to notify viewers when outside the room.
Besides the opportunity to have thousands of strangers see your private life online, there are many other incentives for visitors to go to Fukuoka.The beautiful coastal city is famous for its wonderful food, as well as fresh local seafood.Fukuoka Art Museum also reopened in early 2019 after three Years of renovations.