Netflix is bringing its streaming service and original content to Japan, its gateway into the Asian market and a huge source of potential customers, revenue, and content. In addition to confirming the release date with VentureBeat, Netflix opened up a Japanese landing page and Twitter account early Tuesday morning.

Netflix has had a busy year of expansion. It entered the Australian and New Zealand markets in March of this year, and the company is poised to launch in Spain, Italy, and Portugal in October. Of course, its entries into individual markets are drops in the bucket when viewed against the spectre of its global expansion strategy. It's a mammoth effort that has the company aiming to achieve a presence in 200 countries by the end of 2016. (It's currently available in over 50 countries, meaning there's still plenty of work to be done.)

The benefits of Netflix's global expansion are obvious and plentiful

The benefits of this global expansion are obvious and plentiful. Netflix's subscriber base is still enjoying rapid domestic and international growth, but the size of its American contingent will eventually plateau. The company is hoping that a substantial investment in growth now will pay off a few years down the road, when cresting domestic subscription rates can be buoyed by an increasing share of international users. If Netflix can turn expansions like the ones planned for this year into a routine part of its business, it'll better its position in a video streaming race that's intensifying weekly.