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Japanese flea market app secures investment of $3M just 6 weeks after launch

Takeshi Hirano 2013.08.13

Tokyo-based United, the company behind homescreen decoration app CocoPPa, announced today that it has partnered with Kouzoh. You may recall that Kouzoh is the mobile commerce company which recently developed a flea market app called Mercari.

As part of this partnership, United will invest 300 million yen (approximately $3 million) in the flea market company, thus taking a 14.5% stake in the company.

The partnership will be made official on August 28th, when United’s managing director Hiroki Teshima will join the Kouzoh’s management board. In addition, United announced it is also planning to establish a local subsidiary in the US to intensifying global marketing efforts for its CocoPPa app.

We heard from both United’s Hiroki Teshima and Kouzoh’s founder and CEO Shintaro Yamada.

According to Yamada, his main reason to enter this partnership was the prospect of a business collaboration with CocoPPa, which is showing rapid user growth. From his perspective, CocoPPa and Mercari overlap in their user demographics, and he figures the partnership will help Mercari accelerate its growth as well.

Teshima explained that United plans to treat Mercari as a ‘sister app’ and collaboratively work on driving user traffic and run joint promotional campaigns. The company is experienced in the smartphone ad business, and expects to bring some of that to Mercari to help it succeed.

Mr. Teshima also explained to us a little about their expansion to the US:

In terms of marketing CocoPPa in the US, this launch will be very speedy. We will renew the service in September, and add a paid service in October. I’ve been visiting the US to find potential partners which can provide attractive paid content for our app.

Regarding international expansion of the Mercari app, we need to focus on the domestic market for the time being and look to launching it in the US later on. When Mercari starts global expansions, CocoPPa will have a certain following in the US so that it can help Mercari to acquire users there. We’ll work closely together since United expects to let Kouzoh be one of its group companies.

According to the announcement, United’s US subsidiary CocoPPa Inc. will be established in New York where Mr. Naka Imuta, the general manager at CocoPPa business, will be named as the CEO. United’s CEO Yozo Kaneko and managing director Hiroki Teshima also join the management board for the NY company.

For more information on Mercari, check out our recent interview with CEO Shintaro Yamada.

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Japanese web service lets you request a portrait from professional illustrators

Yukari Mitsuhashi 2013.08.13

Drawing apps like Draw Something and French Girls are still wildly popular all around the world. I recently came across a similar service here in Japan called Draw Me, and if you like the aforementioned apps, you’ll want to try this one too. Draw Me was launched back in April of this year as a sort of crowdsourcing platform where users can get professional illustrators to draw their portraits. There are over 160 professional illustrators registered on the site, some from Japan and even some from overseas. To date, there are over nine million people who have used the platform to create portraits. Examples can be viewed in the gallery over on the Draw Me website. By looking at the profile pages of these professionals, users can choose who they want to draw their portraits, and then upload their photo to place an order. It usually takes about a week to complete a portrait. A one-person portrait of Twitter icon size is 980 yen, for two people it’s 1,480 yen, and for more people or for post card size, the price is set at 3,980 yen (or about $41). There is also a neat feature where you can ask anybody…

Draw Me was launched back in April of this year as a sort of crowdsourcing platform where users can get professional illustrators to draw their portraits. There are over 160 professional illustrators registered on the site, some from Japan and even some from overseas. To date, there are over nine million people who have used the platform to create portraits. Examples can be viewed in the gallery over on the Draw Me website.

By looking at the profile pages of these professionals, users can choose who they want to draw their portraits, and then upload their photo to place an order. It usually takes about a week to complete a portrait. A one-person portrait of Twitter icon size is 980 yen, for two people it’s 1,480 yen, and for more people or for post card size, the price is set at 3,980 yen (or about $41). There is also a neat feature where you can ask anybody to draw your portrait for free, although there is no guarantee of when the picture will be submitted.

The paying method is pretty convenient too, allowing users to pay at the nearest convenient stores, or by mobile carrier billing (only available on NTT Docomo). Users can also pay with PayPal, and that is likely a big reason why 20% of their orders come from outside Japan. This is interesting, considering that the website is currently available only in Japanese. So far international orders have been made from countries such as the United States, England, Canada, Australia, and Asian countries like Taiwan or Singapore.

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Pacific Rim director pays tribute to Tokyo’s iconic Gundam statue

Rick Martin 2013.08.13

I haven’t yet had a chance to see Guillermo del Toro’s latest film, Pacific Rim, but from the clips I’ve seen so far of the epic robot and monster battles, it looks like it’s going to be great. Of course a film like this obviously owes much to early Godzilla monster movies, but also to the country’s tradition of giant mechanized robots and suits. Recently del Toro visited Odaiba here in Tokyo to check out the iconic Gundam statue erected there, according to Japanese media (via ANN). The director explains that one of his characters, Cherno Alpha, was actually inspired by Gundam’s Zaku [1]. del Toro is clearly in awe, almost as if he has made a pilgrimage to see it. Here’s the entire clip below: But of course Japan has lots more to offer in the giant robot department, for anyone who wants to see. Suidobashi Heavy Industries’ Kuratas mecha is perhaps the most awesome example, standing 3.8 meters high, able to be piloted by a human passenger (pictured bottom left). If you’d like something a little on the lighter side, Sakajibara Machinery Works has a mecha suit that can be piloted by kids, appropriately called Kid’s Walker. That…

I haven’t yet had a chance to see Guillermo del Toro’s latest film, Pacific Rim, but from the clips I’ve seen so far of the epic robot and monster battles, it looks like it’s going to be great. Of course a film like this obviously owes much to early Godzilla monster movies, but also to the country’s tradition of giant mechanized robots and suits.

Recently del Toro visited Odaiba here in Tokyo to check out the iconic Gundam statue erected there, according to Japanese media (via ANN). The director explains that one of his characters, Cherno Alpha, was actually inspired by Gundam’s Zaku [1]. del Toro is clearly in awe, almost as if he has made a pilgrimage to see it. Here’s the entire clip below:

But of course Japan has lots more to offer in the giant robot department, for anyone who wants to see. Suidobashi Heavy Industries’ Kuratas mecha is perhaps the most awesome example, standing 3.8 meters high, able to be piloted by a human passenger (pictured bottom left).

If you’d like something a little on the lighter side, Sakajibara Machinery Works has a mecha suit that can be piloted by kids, appropriately called Kid’s Walker. That suit is much smaller but is still a pretty great real-life example (bottom right).

And of course, we can’t forget the (in)famous Robot Restaurant, a must-see for any robo-tourist coming to Japan.

Photos: Design you trust, Isstek.

del Toro has also cited Tetsujin 28 as an inspiration as well. ↩

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Old meets new as Puzzle & Dragons collaboration adds Space Invaders characters

Rick Martin 2013.08.12

Last month we told you about GungHo Entertainment’s successful collaboration with Finnish game developer Supercell, an effort to cross-promote their respective games, Puzzle & Dragons and Clash of Clans. And now today GungHo has just launched another crossover event with Taito corporation’s Groove Coaster Zero [1]. Like the Supercell promotion, this collaboration features special limited time dungeons within Puzzle & Dragons, including special Groove Coaster backgrounds and music, as well as special Space Invaders monsters like Octopus, Crab, Squid, and UFO. For those who have yet to try Groove Coaster Zero, it’s a rhythm game that features lots of popular music (such songs from Lady Gaga or Gwen Stefani), where the player has to tap out the beat when given visual cues. I was going to give you a video demo, but I’m absolutely terrible at it… On Taito’s side of the cross promotion, there’s be a free-to-play remix of the Puzzle & Dragon theme music, with the top 1000 ranked players eligible for a special in-game gift. There will also be a P&D themed music pack available for Groove Coaster Zero as well. Many people have wondered whether or not Puzzle & Dragons can succeed beyond Japan. Personally I…

Last month we told you about GungHo Entertainment’s successful collaboration with Finnish game developer Supercell, an effort to cross-promote their respective games, Puzzle & Dragons and Clash of Clans. And now today GungHo has just launched another crossover event with Taito corporation’s Groove Coaster Zero [1].

Like the Supercell promotion, this collaboration features special limited time dungeons within Puzzle & Dragons, including special Groove Coaster backgrounds and music, as well as special Space Invaders monsters like Octopus, Crab, Squid, and UFO.

For those who have yet to try Groove Coaster Zero, it’s a rhythm game that features lots of popular music (such songs from Lady Gaga or Gwen Stefani), where the player has to tap out the beat when given visual cues. I was going to give you a video demo, but I’m absolutely terrible at it…

On Taito’s side of the cross promotion, there’s be a free-to-play remix of the Puzzle & Dragon theme music, with the top 1000 ranked players eligible for a special in-game gift. There will also be a P&D themed music pack available for Groove Coaster Zero as well.

Many people have wondered whether or not Puzzle & Dragons can succeed beyond Japan. Personally I think if it can continue to execute smart in-game collaborations like this one, then its eventual success is virtually assured [2]. It’s a very clever promotional tactic.

This cross promotion was originally scheduled for July, but was postponed due to some technical difficulties. ↩
It could be argued that P&D has already succeeded in the US. Not because it has surpassed a million downloads, but because it has ranked relatively well on the top grossing charts – the most important metric for every game developer. ↩

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Surviving the smartphone switch: Japan’s Pictlink has 7M users

Yukari Mitsuhashi 2013.08.11

Japan is often considered ahead of its time in the mobile sector. There was particularly early development of advanced mobile features in its so-called ‘galapagos era’ when feature phones ruled the country. These phones had many services built in, with the most notable among them being i-mode’, provided by leading carrier NTT Docomo. But after Softbank first began selling the iPhone back in 2008, many feature phone services have been forced to switch to adapt. Back in July, we wrote about a Japanese company called Furyu which has been an important player in Japan’s ‘kawaii’ culture. Furyu is behind many interesting mobile services, as well as ‘purikura’ machines or photo booths. In 2003, the company released ‘Rakupuri Shot’ (roughly translated as ‘easy printing shots’), enabling users to save photos that have been taken in photo booths. At the time, this free service allowed users to download only one photo, and it still had over three million users. According to the company, 90% of girls in both middle school and high school have used the service at least once. Skip ahead to December of 2011 when Furyu released a smartphone app called Pictlink, a sort of an upgraded version of its…

Back in July, we wrote about a Japanese company called Furyu which has been an important player in Japan’s ‘kawaii’ culture. Furyu is behind many interesting mobile services, as well as ‘purikura’ machines or photo booths. In 2003, the company released ‘Rakupuri Shot’ (roughly translated as ‘easy printing shots’), enabling users to save photos that have been taken in photo booths. At the time, this free service allowed users to download only one photo, and it still had over three million users. According to the company, 90% of girls in both middle school and high school have used the service at least once.

Skip ahead to December of 2011 when Furyu released a smartphone app called Pictlink, a sort of an upgraded version of its photo-saving service previously offered on feature phones. The app was sort of a social network where girls could download photos taken at photo booths, but they could also upload and share photos taken on their mobiles. The company recently announced that this service’s registered users have surpassed the seven million mark, which is a very impressive total.

In a recent update Pictlink added a new sorting feature, as well as resizable screen. Users can also learn about new photo booths available to try out. To save all photos on their phone, the app requires users to pay a monthly fee of 315 yen (or about $3.30). This may sound a bit costly, especially for younger kids. But typical photo booth users likely take many photos in the span of a month, and they are also comfortable with the concept of a monthly fee, having been introduced to paid downloads like ringtones and other digital contents since the times of feature phones.

Adapting from feature phones to smartphones is an obstacle that many mobile companies are facing these days, and so far it looks like Furyu is doing a good job. If you’d like to check out Pictlink, you can find it over on the App Store or on Google Play.

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In Japan, a social network where single women can vent frustrations

Yukari Mitsuhashi 2013.08.09

Earlier today I wrote about a unique Japanese social network focused on souvenirs. And here’s another strange one. Amaryllis is a social network that allows single ladies in Japan to vent about their life. The community was first launched back in Feburary, and Tokyo-based Zappallas, the company behind this unusual social network, recently unveiled mobile apps for iOS and Android. The company created the community so that single women could vent anonymously about their everyday life as a form of stress relief. Amaryllis is designed for easy use, providing just three main features: Boyaki (which means grouch), ‘Tamariba’ (or ‘gathering place’), and Following. Using the Boyaki feature, users can freely express anything or complain about whatever they want because comments and sharing are not available. If you come across someone you think is interesting, or if you are concerned about the same issues, you can follow her. In the gathering place, single women can post questions to other women. It’s interesting how by using illustrated characters for avatars, their anonymity is more protected, allowing them to express themselves without any reservations. Some examples of topics I found on the gathering place include: A text just asking ‘What Are You Up…

The community was first launched back in Feburary, and Tokyo-based Zappallas, the company behind this unusual social network, recently unveiled mobile apps for iOS and Android. The company created the community so that single women could vent anonymously about their everyday life as a form of stress relief.

Amaryllis is designed for easy use, providing just three main features: Boyaki (which means grouch), ‘Tamariba’ (or ‘gathering place’), and Following. Using the Boyaki feature, users can freely express anything or complain about whatever they want because comments and sharing are not available. If you come across someone you think is interesting, or if you are concerned about the same issues, you can follow her.

In the gathering place, single women can post questions to other women. It’s interesting how by using illustrated characters for avatars, their anonymity is more protected, allowing them to express themselves without any reservations. Some examples of topics I found on the gathering place include:

A text just asking ‘What Are You Up To?’ is annoying
What kind of posts turns you off on social networks?
This couple really pissed me off

There is a character called Mitsuko on the site who works like a guide to Amaryllis. She posts questionnaires about all kinds of topics ranging from gossip to love issues to an annoying boss.

This sort of secret venting is a surprisingly popular vertical in Japan. There was a mobile social network called ‘Boys Farm’ by CyberAgent a few years back. It let women talk about guys, and actually refer to them by name, disclosing their real identities. That proved to be controversial, and the site was subsequently shut down within a week. Readers may also recall that I wrote about Japanese microblog Arrow’ back in April. That platform allows users to vent their stress toward a single random stranger. There is also an anonymous Q&A social network called ‘Hatsugen-Komachi’ which is wildly popular too. It is operated by a major newspaper company here in Japan.

Will this anger-release niche work out for Amaryllis? We will have to wait and see!

Japanese flea market app secures investment of $3M just 6 weeks after launch

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