This discussion paper is the outcome of a workshop on the events of the 'Germany in Japan, 2005/2006'that took place in late 2005 at about half time and discusses the background, the development, organisational experiences and tentative results of this initiative. Friederike Bosse of the Federation of German Industries covers early experiences with the German Year from the perspective of German business. Werner Pascha of the University of Duisburg-Essen discusses basic issues of a socio-economic analysis of the German Year, stressing public good-properties and signaling. Roman Bartnik, also from the University of Duisburg-Essen, contributes a paper on 'Foreign trade, signaling, and the German pavilion - Expo 2005 in Japan from an economic perspective'.