“We will open the breakthrough.” President Tanigo talks about the future of the VTuber industry. Hololive competes in the “world”.

Cover Co., Ltd. (hereafter Cover), which operates the largest domestic VTuber office “Holo Live Production” and was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in March.The first full-year results after listing were sales of 20,451 million yen (up 49.7% year-on-year), operating income of 3,417 million yen (up 84.2% year-on-year), ordinary income of 3,385 million yen (up 84.2% year-on-year), +82.6%), net income of 2,508 million yen (+101.6%)and achieved significant growth.

The recognition of VTuber has improved against the background of “home time” in the corona wreck. Hololive Production has gathered fans overseas, such as in English-speaking countries, and has acquired a cumulative total of over 75 million channel subscribers on YouTube. It has become one of the largest companies in the industry.

President Motoaki Tanigo, who leads Cover, which has been listed on the stock exchange, has his sights set on global business.corporate mission“Let’s create a culture that the world loves.”As can be seen in , Mr. Tanigo is not content with the current growth. Rather,“In the area of ​​Internet x 2D entertainment, Japan is not making a strong presence in the world.”and raises a sense of crisis.

What should we do to fight the world? Mr. Tanigo thinks about bringing together Japanese creators and content providers through the IP called “Holo Live Production”.”We will open the breakthrough”We asked Mr. Tanigo about the global strategy of the cover and the future he is aiming for.

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Online and offline, “proper use” of different values

──When the VTuber industry was growing rapidly, the world was in the midst of the corona disaster. Now, I feel that enjoying online entertainment has become a part of everyday life. On the other hand, the other day, the WHO announced the end of the “Emergency Declaration” of the new corona, but what do you think the value of online will be in the future?

I think people will become more aware of the “goodness of each” online and offline.

In March, at the same time as “hololive SUPER EXPO 2023”, we held a music live “hololive 4th fes.

Of course, the call-and-response system will be back on-site, and you will be able to enjoy the atmosphere of the stage where fans and talents are united.

On the other hand, all of the live performances were broadcast online, increasing the value of the live performance itself as well as the online experience.

──As the coronavirus crisis draws to a close, it seems that fans will begin to “distinguish” their time and experiences.

Due to the corona crisis, remote work has expanded, and some people who work from home have used VTuber’s distribution as BGM. However, recently, the ratio of those who go to work has returned.

It’s easy to watch short videos if you’re on the move, such as commuting to work or school. On the other hand, if it is a video of several tens of minutes or an archived video of a general distribution (about 1 hour), it may be difficult to choose which one to watch in a limited amount of time.

Hololive’s overseas strategy “Do what you have achieved in Japan, even overseas”

──About overseas strategy.in this summerSolo event of “Holo Live EN” in Los Angelesis also planned.

During the corona crisis, it was a situation where “overseas business was difficult”. In the first place, it was difficult to travel between Japan and overseas.

We believe that the great thing about Hololive Production is that the talents can not only distribute with Live2D, but also various distributions using 3D models.

It’s just that we couldn’t take full advantage of our goodness in the corona misfortune. In other words, it was difficult to hold live performances and events overseas similar to those in Japan. In the future, I would like to realize overseas what I have achieved in Japan.

──It seems that the key will be to create an environment where people overseas can experience Hololive Productions through live performances, events, and goods.

In 2022, I was able to participate in 21 anime-related events overseas as Hololive Production.

I have been in contact with anime on a daily basis, and I was able to recommend interacting with fans who learned about Hololive Production through YouTube. However, we have not been able to reach such people with enough goods.

Through promotions and tie-ups, Hololive Production has finally become something that can be touched on a daily basis in Japan.

I think that we still do not have a presence overseas, so I would like to do this properly.

── Ultimately, regardless of whether it is in Japan or overseas, we aim to have VTuber culture take root in “daily life” and increase the number of points of contact with Hololive Production.

Eventually, I would like to popularize the culture of VTubers both in Japan and overseas. However, even if you think about one aspect of lifestyle overseas, there are some differences from Japan.

For example, transportation. In Japan, many people travel by public transportation such as trains and railways. Advertisements in stations, trains, etc. will catch the eye of many people and may become an opportunity for them to know about it. On the other hand, cars are the main means of transportation overseas.

Considering the origins of countries and regions, not everyone finds the same things interesting, and not everyone accepts them.

──Certainly. Know-how in Japan does not necessarily work as it is.

In Japan, anime and game fans have recognized the existence of VTubers. On top of that, through other media such as music, we have finally moved to the phase of permeating the general public.

On the other hand, it has not yet reached that phase overseas, and it is not widely recognized by anime and game fans in the first place. But there is certainly room for growth.

First of all, I would like to firmly deliver contents that are in short supply, such as goods and live performances, to our fans.

Or, just like in Japan, I would like to implement tie-ups that have the meaning of acquiring new fans.

What will Hololive Production look like in 5 years?

──Holo Live Production will celebrate its 5th anniversary in 2022, making it its 6th year this year. What do you think will happen to Hololive Production and the industry over the next five to ten years?

Right now, when people think of Hololive Productions, they think of it as one of the VTuber agencies, but my assumption is that in five years’ time it will change to an IP that develops content in various media.

For people with creative talents, VTubers will become an even bigger choice as a means of expression.

As a result, the means of VTuber will become commonplace, and various talents will bloom. We are aiming for such a world.

──At Hololive ProductionauditionWe are in the process of discovering new talent.

The important thing is, “What do you want to do?” What you are aiming for is important. So you don’t have to be “someone”.

It’s better to be able to provide value that is different from the talents I currently belong to, and there is no such thing as “I want this kind of person”.

──The debut method of the talent is also continuing trial and error. recently”secret society holoX” debuted with a unified worldview.

Our policy is to have talent debut at a level that we can fully support.

In the sense of business continuity, it is also very important to protect the mentality of talent. Our stance is to cooperate with other companies where possible. As an industry, I wish I could think about how to make it sound.

“We will open the breakthrough” cover competes in the world.

──The VTuber industry has the potential to become a culture that originates in Japan and is loved all over the world. Mr. Tanigo, what kind of future do you want to create?

Japan is said to be “strong” in the area of ​​two-dimensional entertainment such as games and anime, and I myself think so. However, “strong” is limited to Nintendo and some other companies with strong IPs and platforms.

In the area of ​​”Internet × 2D entertainment”, we are aware that Korean and Chinese companies are ahead of us. Japan does not have a strong global presence. I feel a great sense of danger there.

Rather than a content company, we are aware that we are a company that combines the Internet, content, and entertainment.

Empowering Japanese 2D entertainment with the tool of the Internet. By doing so, we want to create a “culture that the world loves” and help the Japanese entertainment industry.

In the future, if there is no company that “will become a platformer” from Japan, we will not be happy, including content providers. As for the cover, I would like to collaborate with talents, creators and content providers in Japan to hit the world.

──For the cover, the mission of the company is “Let’s create culture that the world loves.”

I have always had a sense of crisis that if things continue like this, Japan will end. With the population declining from now on, it will be difficult to grow a business in Japan alone. In that case, we have to do business on the world stage.

For example, the field of “Internet × Manga” is growing as “Webtoon”. Korean companies are strong in this field, but in Japan, smartphone-native webtoons such as Shueisha’s “Shonen Jump+” are growing globally.

However, I have the impression that there are still few companies that can take on the global challenge in the field of “Internet × 2D entertainment”.

There are companies like miHoYo, the company that gave birth to Genshin Impact, that are developing open-world games and growing strongly.

──Amidst the awareness of what kind of new territory Japan can open up, VTuber has become a theme that Japan can challenge the world for the first time in a long time.

Based on this, I would like to make sure that Japan has a solid presence in virtual entertainment, including the Metaverse area.

Of course, I would like to realize such things by cooperating with various companies, not just my own company.

We will open the breakthrough.

(*The first part ishere)