Momofuku Ando, founder of Nissin, was actually Taiwanese Japanese. The family still controls the corporation and still can speak Chinese, so it should help them at doing business in the growing Chinese speaking markets.
Almost all instant noodle package instructions say pour in hot water and wait for 3 minutes. The manufacturers have the technology to make the noodles ready sooner but they've kept the traditional 3 minutes mark, so there's time for consumers to get worked up like a salivating dog waiting for the owner to say "Go!" When I was in first grade, I remember that 3 minutes of waiting felt far longer than 1 hour of not waiting for anything.
Further reading:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Momofuku_Ando