TOKYO—The Japan Tourism Agency on Monday defended its handling of a new law that has led to thousands of Airbnb cancellations, saying the U.S. company had ample warning that unlicensed hosts wouldn’t be permitted to operate starting June 15.
Meanwhile, local officials said they were in no hurry to hand out licenses, saying their first priority was to assuage neighbors’ concerns about noise and other nuisances arising from Airbnb Inc. rentals.
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