The story behind Netflix's rise in the Japanese market to hit the 10-million members milestone in less than 10 years

With Netflix's recent announcement that they have hit the 10-million members milestone one year shy of their 10th anniversary since they entered the Japanese market, there were a number of articles which analyzed how they did it and the challenges along the way. As such, I have extracted and added some more information to the key points raised so that you can gain a better understanding of the issues in the Japanese entertainment industry which isn't necessarily friendly towards a foreign company like Netflix.

(Source 1) / (Source 2)

- While Netflix does not provide a regular update on its membership numbers in Japan, it recently announced that it had surpassed the 10-million membership milestone in the first half of 2024. This was just one year shy of its 10th anniversary since it entered the Japanese market on 2 September 2015. As recent as 4 years ago, Netflix had announced that it reached the 5 million members milestone in Japan so this effectively meant that they had doubled their membership base in just 4 years.

- Paying for cable TV and on-demand streaming portals may have been commonplace outside of Japan but this was seen as something that wouldn't work so well in Japan because there were various free platforms for the domestic viewers to watch programmes made by private TV stations. Since subscription-based platforms like WOWOW and Sky PerfecTV! were reportedly having 3 to 4 million subscribers at their peak, the market consensus was that the Japanese market would not see membership numbers exceeding 5 million for the paid TV streaming segment. 

- When Netflix launched the drama series "Zenra Kantoku" in August 2019 after it started operating in Japan 4 years ago, that attracted a lot of attention and was said to be why its subscription number surged to 3 million members in the following month.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it added another 2 million members within a span of 12 months and easily cleared the 5 million subscribers milestone in September 2020.

- However, Netflix did not reveal its membership numbers after 2020 which industry insiders suspected to be due to a slide in its membership base after the pandemic. Adding on to the speculation was that the up-and-rising domestic competitor U-NEXT had seen its membership jump to 4.33 million after its merger with Paravi thus fanning the sentiment that it was giving Netflix a serious run for its money.

With this latest announcement though, it has become apparent that U-NEXT is still far from Netflix in terms of membership numbers and had actually been growing steadily over the years.

- The significance of a 10-million membership base can be put into perspective by comparing this with Japan's population numbers. Based on the current population of 124.5 million people, Netflix's membership number may be just 10% of that but when compared to the number of households i.e. 48.85 million, that works out to more than 20% (considering most households would only need one subscription even if it is to be shared among family members living together).

Most if not all free-to-air dramas these days are seeing low real-time ratings and that anything above 10% is considered a hit. Assuming that just half of Netflix's members in Japan watch one drama, that would be similar to having a reach of 10% of all households nationwide. And not to forget that people outside of Japan can also watch these Japanese titles on the Netflix platform so actual viewership reach (Netflix's worldwide membership base is said to be more than 283 million) would be wider than a domestic drama aired on free-to-air TV only.

- Considering that only paid subscribers can get access to a Netflix title, it was unusual to see that a pet phrase in a Netflix drama was chosen as one of the top 10 buzzwords in 2024. The line "mou ee deshou" by Pierre Taki in the drama "Jimenshitachi" released earlier this year seemingly proved to be popular enough for its inclusion in the buzzword top 10 ranking and even became a parody and game by comedian Chocolate Planet.

- It also seems that Japanese titles are gaining traction in the world with "Jimenshitachi" making it to the top 10 ranking in 30 countries. Another title i.e. "Shinobi no ie" released in February was the No.1 title in 16 countries during its first week of release and also made it to the top 10 in 92 countries. 

On the domestic front, "Jimenshitachi" was No.1 in Japan for 6 weeks in a row, "Shinobi no ie" was No.1 for 4 weeks while "City Hunter" and "Gokuaku Joou" both hogged the top spot for 3 weeks in a row following their releases.

- However, Netflix's entry into the Japanese market was not smoothsailing from the start. It has always been nicknamed as a black ship (kurofune) in a reference to the Western ships that came to Japan between the 16th and 19th centuries which essentially means a foreign disruptor in the Japanese market. The Japanese entertainment content industry was indeed exclusive and isolated to domestic players while being resistant to foreign competitors for a long time. With the success of Netflix and the titles it had produced over the years with domestic industry players, it has opened up more possibilities for Japanese titles making it in the world through this platform.

- Looking at Japanese dramas made by Netflix with Japanese directors and/or TV stations, you can see that there had been a steady flow of investment in J-content. Note that this list only mentions the first season's release year for those having multiple seasons and doesn't include the Japanese movies, anime and music content also available on the platform: 

2015

Underwear

2016

Hanabi

Shinya Shokudou

2017

Bokudake ga inai machi

Honoo no tenkousei REBORN

Salaryman Kantaro

100 man en no onnatachi

Nobushi no gurume

2018

Uchuu wo kakeruyo daga

Jimmy ~ Aho mitai na honma no hanashi ~

Mobusaiko 100

2019

Zenra Kantoku

2020

Imawa no kuni no Arisu

Juon: Noroi no ie

Ai naki mori de sakebe - DEEP CUT -

FOLLOWERS

2021

Gokukufudou

2022

First Love Hatsukoi

Hiyama Kentarou no ninshin

Kingyozuma

Shinbun Kisha

2023

Sanctuary

Kimi ni todoke

Yu Yu Hakusho

Mitarai-ke, enjou suru

Rikon shiyouyo

THE DAYS

Maiko-sanchi no makanai-san

2024

Shinobi no ie

Renai Battle Royale

Jimeshitachi

Gokuaku Joou

Sayonara no tsuzuki

- In Toyo Keizai's interview with Sakamoto Kazutaka, the vice president of Netflix Japan's Content Department, he revealed that the first three years of Netflix's entry into the Japanese market was not easy. From the start, they concentrated on acquiring as much content as possible and even dabbled in producing their own original content like the drama version of "Hibana" adapted from Matayoshi Naoki's novel but the results were not that satisfactory. Coupled with the fact that Japanese works did not really make an impact in the world back then, the US headquarters didn't think that it was worth spending money on making their own Japanese content. This was contrary to the notion that many people had about Netflix having a lot of money to spare and would be willing to do so just because they were a foreign company.

However, the efforts paid off gradually as more Japanese works made it into Netflix's top 10 global ranking. With reference to the most-viewed ranking released for the first half of 2024 (January to June), Japan accounted for the second-most number of non-English titles in the ranking while South Korea took the top spot.

- The success of Netflix's original titles have also translated into gains for the shooting locations such as Kobe City where "City Hunter" was shot at. It was reported in the media that the city managed to get economic gains of more than JPY 400m thanks to the popularity of the title.

- Unexpectedly, the music used in these original titles have also benefited from the popularity. The ending song for "City Hunter" i.e. TM NETWORK's "Get Wild Continual" soared up the karaoke rankings and saw a doubling of its monthly listener numbers on Spotify.

Another example would be from the reality show "Boyfriend" where its theme song "Dazed & Confused" by South Korean artist Glen Check grabbed the No.2 spot in Spotify Japan's Viral Top 10 ranking despite Check being relatively unknown in Japan.

- Netflix's growing prominence in the entertainment industry is said to have brought about significant benefits in neighbouring South Korea such as improvement in labour conditions. For example, the daily filming hours are restricted to 12 hours and not to exceed more than 52 hours a week. Even though this may mean an increase in costs due to the higher number of filming days, there is an increasing trend of more efforts put in to secure enough budget so as to accommodate such arrangements. However, there are also downsides such as the reportedly sky high salaries for the cast taking up a huge chunk of the budget and a drying up of suitable stories to be made.

- While Netflix intends to replicate the good stuff from their experience in South Korea and apply that to Japan, they are also mindful of potential pitfalls in areas like budget management. Hopefully, this will bring about a positive ripple effect in the industry for the long term.

Preview of "Slow Train" (Drama SP)

Title: Slow Train / スロウトレイン

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official X: here

O.A. Date: 2 January 2025 at 9pm

Broadcast by: TBS

Cast: Matsu Takako, Tabe Mikako, Matsuzaka Toori, Hoshino Gen, Chae Jong-hyeop, Matsumoto Honoka, Iketani Nobue, Kura Yuki, Furutachi Kanji, Uno Shohei, Iizuka Satoshi, Sugawara Daikichi, Nakamura Yuko, Maida Nono, Lily Franky & Iura Arata

Winners of Yahoo! Japan Search Awards 2024

Here are the winners of Yahoo! Japan Search Awards 2024 in selected categories:

For the full list and winners in other categories, please refer to here.

Top 5 Most Searched Dramas

1) Tora ni tsubasa

2) Hikaru kimi e

3) Umi no hajimari

4) Futekisetsu nimo hodo ga aru!

5) Black Pean Season 2

Top 5 Most Searched Movies

1) Gekijouban Haikyu!! Gomisuteba no kessen

2) Kingdom Daishougun no kikan

3) Last Mile

4) Inside Out 2

5) Hen na ie

Top 5 Most Searched Actors

1) Kawai Yumi

2) Chae Jong-hyeop

3) Deguchi Natsuki

4) Wakaba Ryuuya

5) Matsumoto Wakana

Top 5 Most Searched Musicians

1) Number_i

2) Mrs. GREEN APPLE

3) NewJeans

4) WEST.

5) ME:I

Quick Review #82: Onmyouji 0 (movie)

Title: Onmyouji 0 / 陰陽師0

Rating: 2 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who are fine with watching an uneventful prelude to Abe no Seimei's rise to become a top onmyouji

* Currently available on Amazon Prime Video (subject to geographical location)

Liked:

- Tsuda Kenjiro's narration was really good and fitted the vibe of this movie.

Disliked: 

- While I already adjusted my expectations to a certain extent considering that this was focused on the early days of Seimei and probably wouldn't be that exciting, the story still turned out to be very underwhelming and I even found myself dozing off multiple times. Although this movie was the commemorative work to mark the 1100th birthday of Seimei and was produced with the back-up of the original novel's author Yumemakura Baku's, the final result was disappointing, at least to me.

- Even for fans of Yamazaki Kento, I would find it hard to recommend this to them. Perhaps it's the way the story was but it certainly didn't portray Yamazaki in a very favourable light, both in terms of the onscreen image and the character's behaviour.

- Considering that the Heian era was known for its art and beauty, it was quite disappointing to see that the visuals certainly did not reflect this unique trait of that period. It could be due to the fact that most of the story actually took place within the Onmyouji Academy and there was only one female character among the guys. Even so, most of the characters were nobles from the aristocratic class or government officials so the costumes they wore or the set designs could have been a bit more elaborate, intricate and colourful.

Quick Review #81: Nankyoku Tairiku - Autumn 2011

Title: Nankyoku Tairiku / 南極大陸 (Antarctica)

Rating: 8.5 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a motivational story based on facts about how people overcame challenges posed by the harsh conditions in Antarctica and rebuild Japan in various ways during the days after WWII and/or are fans of stories about the bond between man and dogs

* Currently available on Netflix (subject to geographical location)

* Spoilers ahead!!!

Liked:

- While the drama was definitely not shot in Antarctica (given how far it is from Japan and the inaccessibility and danger of going there) but rather in Nemuro, Hokkaido, the harsh winter conditions would still have made this a very difficult piece of work to film for the crew, cast and the Sakhalin huskies featured. Just the Antarctica scenes took two and a half months to film while the entire drama was shot over 6 months and completed before it was aired. For the amount of effort put in, it was a visual feast to watch this drama for the beautiful snowy scenery without actually having to be there in person. Thumbs up for the cinematography!

- Considering that this is a dramatisation of an actual situation, the story was grounded in reality most of the time so it didn't come across as a far-fetched or overly idealistic portrayal of the Antarctica expedition or a blatant attempt to show Japan in a very patriotic or nationalistic light. Adding on to the difficulty of taking on such a dangerous mission at that time was the fact that it was just a decade after the end of WWII when Japan was trying to rebuild itself in many ways but it was still being viewed with suspicion and disdain by the international community. As such, not everything went well and there were some developments which were simply painful to sit through such as the unintentional "abandonment" of the huskies at the Showa Base. However, I think that was a good reflection of how life never goes the way you want it at times.

- For animal lovers especially those who like dogs or are big fans of stories featuring the strong bond between man and dog, a key component of this drama was how the first wintering squad depended a lot on their canine friends despite the initial misgivings by some members about the huskies' abilities. The scenes of how Kuramochi (Kimura Takuya) desperately tried to save his huskies but to no avail and was only reunited with the survivors one year later were really tear-jerking. I was especially impressed with these canine actors which were so spot-on with their actions, expressions and those soulful eyes. It's been said that filming with children and animals is extremely challenging so the high level of precision shown here by the canine actors was simply amazing. They were definitely an integral part of this drama's success.

- Acting was on the whole on a high level. And since this drama was aired more than 10 years ago, it also invoked some nostalgia because a lot had happened over the years - some actors are no longer so active in showbiz, gotten into trouble in various ways or had passed away. Given the star-studded cast, this is probably something that cannot be replicated anymore in present.

- Nakajima Miyuki's voice and the theme song were a perfect fit to bring out the grandeur and scale of this story.

Disliked: 

- The only part of the story which I found to be draggy was in the second half of Ep 9 when they were showing how difficult it was for the third Antarctica expedition to get the go-ahead and for Kuramochi to return to Antarctica to save his huskies. I got the point but there was simply no reason to keep going on and on about the same thing.

- While the drama featured the glorious and positive side of the bond between man and dog, the scenes showing the final fates of the abandoned huskies were very upsetting so you might have to be prepared for that. 

- Perhaps due to the fact that Sakai Masato's character was designed to be a very stern, stubborn and unyielding personality, his facial expressions and acting in two-thirds of the drama were so stiff and uncomfortable to watch. Likewise for Ayase Haruka whose character was sort of subdued and holding herself back on various fronts, her acting also felt stiff and boring at certain junctures. I wouldn't blame these on their acting abilities though but it would take a lot to make such unappealing characters become more palatable to the viewers.

- I liked Kimura's acting this time as a whole especially his scenes with the huskies although there were still undeniable traces of his usual stylish KimuTaku vibe seeping through at times. And I don't know if anyone else also felt the same way but Kuramochi somehow behaved and looked to be way more modern than the Showa era so this got me a bit bothered at times. While everyone else looked like they did belong to that time setting, Kimura stood out in a not-so-ideal manner so some people may not like that part of his performance.

The 121st Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2024) - Best Drama

Overall Ranking Top 3

1) Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
2) Tora ni tsubasa
3) Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

Voters Ranking Top 5

1) Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai

2) Umi no hajimari

3) Black Pean Season 2

4) Billion x School

5) Hidamari ga kikoeru

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
2) Tora ni tsubasa
3) Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

4) Kazoku dakara aishitan janakute, aishita no ga kazoku datta

5) Otto no katei wo kowasu made

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

2) Tora ni tsubasa

3) Ano ko no kodomo

4) Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai

5) Classmate no joshi, zenin suki deshita

Source: The Television

The 121st Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2024) - Best Leading Actor

Overall Ranking Top 3

1) Meguro Ren - Umi no hajimari

2) Nakano Taiga - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

3) Ninomiya Kazunari - Black Pean Season 2

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Meguro Ren - Umi no hajimari
2) Ninomiya Kazunari - Black Pean Season 2
3) Yamada Ryosuke - Billion x School
4) Watanabe Shota - Aoshima-kun wa ijiwaru
5) Narita Ryo - Furitsumore kodoku na shi yo

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Meguro Ren - Umi no hajimari
2) Nakano Taiga - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin
3) Ninomiya Kazunari - Black Pean Season 2
4) Narita Ryo - Furitsumore kodoku na shi yo

5) Yamada Ryosuke - Billion x School

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Nakano Taiga - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin
2) Meguro Ren - Umi no hajimari

3) Yamada Ryosuke - Billion x School

4) Takahashi Fumiya - Densetsu no head Sho

Ninomiya Kazunari - Black Pean Season 2

Source: The Television

The 121st Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2024) - Best Leading Actress

Overall Ranking Top 3

1) Ito Sairi - Tora ni tsubasa
2) Matsumoto Wakana - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
3) Koike Eiko - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Matsumoto Wakana - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
2) Ito Sairi - Tora ni tsubasa

3) Nakamura An - Aoshima-kun wa ijiwaru

4) Koshiba Fuuka - GO HOME ~ Keishicho mimoto fumeinin soudanshitsu ~

5) Koike Eiko - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Ito Sairi - Tora ni tsubasa
2) Matsumoto Wakana - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
3) Matsumoto Marika - Otto no katei wo kowasu made

4) Kawai Yumi - Kazoku dakara aishitan janakute, aishita no ga kazoku datta

5) Matsushita Nao - Sky Castle

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Koike Eiko - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

2) Ito Sairi - Tora ni tsubasa

3) Kawai Yumi - Kazoku dakara aishitan janakute, aishita no ga kazoku datta

4) Matsumoto Wakana - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai

5) Sakurada Hiyori - Ano ko no kodomo

Source: The Television

The 121st Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2024) - Best Supporting Actor

Overall Ranking Top 3

1) Matsumura Hokuto - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai

2) Sakurai Sho - Warau Matoryoushika

3) Ikematsu Sousuke - Umi no hajimari

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Matsumura Hokuto - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
2) Ikematsu Sousuke - Umi no hajimari
3) Abe Ryouhei - GO HOME ~ Keishicho mimoto fumeinin soudanshitsu ~
4) Takeuchi Ryoma - Black Pean Season 2
5) Mukai Koji - Mountain Doctor

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Matsumura Hokuto - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
2) Sakurai Sho - Warau Matoryoushika
3) Nomura Kouta - Otto no katei wo kowasu made
4) Ikematsu Sousuke - Umi no hajimari
5) Tozuka Junki - Tora ni tsubasa

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Hosoda Kanata - Ano ko no kodomo
2) Sakurai Sho - Warau Matoryoushika

3) Matsuyama Kenichi - Tora ni tsubasa

Yoshida Aoi - Kazoku dakara aishitan janakute, aishita no ga kazoku datta

5) Ikematsu Sousuke - Umi no hajimari

Source: The Television

The 121st Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2024) - Best Supporting Actress

Overall Ranking Top 3

1) Doi Shiori - Tora ni tsubasa

2) Arimura Kasumi - Umi no hajimari
3) Ishida Yuriko - Tora ni tsubasa

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Kurata Ema - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
2) Izutani Rana - Umi no hajimari
3) Arimura Kasumi - Umi no hajimari
4) Kinami Haruka - Billion x School
5) Ooshima Yuuko - GO HOME ~ Keishicho mimoto fumeinin soudanshitsu ~

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Arimura Kasumi - Umi no hajimari
2) Doi Shiori - Tora ni tsubasa

3) Kurata Ema - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai
4) Koyuki - Sky Castle
Ootake Shinobu - Umi no hajimari

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Ishida Yuriko - Tora ni tsubasa
2) Doi Shiori - Tora ni tsubasa

3) Kayashima Mizuki - Ano ko no kodomo

Izutani Rana - Umi no hajimari

Hashimoto Ai - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin

Source: The Television

The 121st Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2024) - Best Theme Song

Overall Ranking Top 3

1) Sayounara mata itsuka - Yonezu Kenshi (Tora ni tsubasa)

2) Atarashii koibitotachi ni - back number (Umi no hajimari)

3) Zarame - Aimyon (Furitsumore kodoku na shi yo)

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) strawberry - BUMP OF CHICKEN (Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai)
2) Atarashii koibitotachi ni - back number (Umi no hajimari)
3) Kimi wa boku no mono - Snow Man (Aoshima-kun wa ijiwaru)
4) Sayounara mata itsuka - Yonezu Kenshi (Tora ni tsubasa)
5) Sono saki ni aru mono - Oda Kazumasa (Black Pean Season 2)

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Sayounara mata itsuka - Yonezu Kenshi (Tora ni tsubasa)

2) Atarashii koibitotachi ni - back number (Umi no hajimari)

3) Zarame - Aimyon (Furitsumore kodoku na shi yo)
4) Koukyuu French yori anata to tsukuru shinya no French toast ga suki - SARM (Otto no katei wo kowasu made)
5) Koi no bugiugi night - Southern All Stars (Shinjuku Yasen Byouin)

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Sayounara mata itsuka - Yonezu Kenshi (Tora ni tsubasa)

2) Atarashii koibitotachi ni - back number (Umi no hajimari)

Wasurete kudasai - Yorushika (GO HOME ~ Keishicho mimoto fumeinin soudanshitsu ~)

Charade - Superfly (Maruhi no Mitsuko-san)

5) Ruru - Ado (Billion x School)

Source: The Television

Quick Review #80: Kokuhaku (movie)

Title: Kokuhaku / 告白

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a short suspense thriller in an extreme condition and are fans of Yang Ik-june

Liked:

- Thanks to the fact that the movie was just 73 minutes long, the story moved on pretty speedily after the 30-minute mark and culminated in a rather unexpected ending. The thriller parts i.e. the psychological and physical aspects really kept me on the edge of my seat despite the story being set in one place and featured only the two male leads with a long dead female lead who appeared in flashbacks.

- Yang was definitely the scene stealer in this film with his portrayal of Ji-yong who was alternating between the "normal" and "extreme" states for most of the film. The fury, craziness and sorrow blended into his character was really brilliant.

Disliked: 

- You have to be a bit patient in the beginning because the first 30 minutes or so was comparatively bland and slow-moving compared to the rest of the movie. It can be really easy to give up on this movie if you can't bear with this part.

- While the twist in Ikuta's character Asai was interesting to see, it did feel as if the change was too little and too late. As such, there was not really much Ikuta could do for most of the film to stand out other than be pushed to the brink both physically and psychologically by his co-star.

- Likewise for Nao, she hardly got the chance to say anything as the dead female lead Sayuri which I felt was a pity and I would have wanted to see more of her acting.

Nominees of the 49th Hochi Movie Awards (2024)

Here are the nominees of the 49th Hochi Movie Awards (2024) as announced on 12 November 2024. The numbers in brackets refer to the number of nominees in that category and the list is in the Japanese alphabetical order. Winners will be revealed in late November:

Best Japanese Movie (15)

PERFECT DAYS

Karaoke iko!

Yoake no subete

52 hertz no kujiratachi

Missing

An no koto

Kakushigoto

Hebi no michi

Samurai Time Slipper

Last Mile

Boku ga ikiteru, futatsu no sekai

Goman to zenryou

11 nin no zokugun

Aimitagai

Shoutai

Best Director (14)

Irie Yu - An no koto

Wim Wenders - PERFECT DAYS

Okuyama Hiroshi - Boku no ohisama

Katayama Shinzo - Ame no naka no yokujou

Kusano Shogo - Aimitagai

Shiraishi Kazuya - 11 nin no zokugun / Gobangiri

Sekine Kousai - Kakushigoto

Tsukahara Ayuko - Last Mile

Narushima Izuru - 52 hertz no kujiratachi

Hagiwara Kentaro - Goman to zenryou / Blue Period

Fujii Michihito - Shoutai / Seishun 18 x 2 Kimi e to tsuzuku michi

Mitani Koki - Suomi no hanashi wo shiyou

Miyake Sho - Yoake no subete

Yoshida Keisuke - Missing

Best Leading Actor (13)

Ayano Go - Karaoke iko!

Ikematsu Sousuke - Honshin

Nakano Taiga - 11 nin no zokugun

Narita Ryo - Ame no naka no yokujou

Hiraizumi Sei - Ashita wo tsuzuru shashinkan

Fujigaya Taisuke - Goman to zenryou

Matsumura Hokuto - Yoake no subete

Yakusho Koji - PERFECT DAYS / Hakkenden

Yamaguchi Makiya - Samurai Time Slipper

Yamazaki Kento - Golden Kamuy / Kingdom Daishogun no kikan

Yamada Takayuki - 11 nin no zokugun

Yokohama Ryuusei - Shoutai

Yoshizaqa Ryo - Boku ga ikiteru, futatsu no sekai

Best Leading Actress (13)

An - Kakushigoto

Ishihara Satomi - Missing

Eguchi Noriko - Amarokku / Okaasan ga issho / Ai ni ranbou

Kamishiraishi Mone - Yoake no subete

Kawai Yumi - An no koto / Namibia no sabaku

Kiyohara Kaya - Seishun 18 x 2 Kimi e to tsuzuku michi

Kusabue Mitsuko - 90-sai. Nani ga medetai

Kuroki Haru - Aimitagai

Shibasaki Kou - Hebi no michi

Sugisaki Hana - 52 hertz no kujiratachi / Ichiko / Kuchinai sakura

Nao - Goman to zenryou / Sensei no shiroi uso

Nagasawa Masami - Suomi no hanashi wo shiyou

Mitsushima Hikari - Last Mile

Best Supporting Actor (13)

Aoki Munetaka - Missing / Hebi no michi

Ikematsu Sousuke - Boku no ohisama / Baby Walkure Nice Days

Okada Masaki - Last Mile / Angry Squad Koumuin to 7 nin no sagishi

Okuda Eiji - Kakushigoto

Shison Jun - 52 hertz no kujiratachi

Nakamura Tomoya - Missing / Last Mile

Fuji Tatsuya - Ooinaru fuzai

Matsumura Hokuto - Dear Family

Mitsuishi Ken - Yoake no subete / Dear Family

Yasuda Ken - Kuchinai sakura

Yamada Takayuki - Shoutai

Yoshizawa Ryo - Kingdom Daishogun no kikan

Wakaba Ryuuya - Ichiko / Boku no ohisama

Best Supporting Actress (14)

Kawai Aoba - Kakushigoto / An no koto / Route 29

Kawaei Rina - Hen na ie / Dear Family / Angry Squad Koumuin to 7 nin no sagishi

Kuroki Haru - Gold Boy / Seishun 18 x 2 Kimi e to tsuzuku michi / Hakkenden

Sakura Yuno - Samurai Time Slipper

Takaishi Akari - Shinmai kisha Torokko Watashi ga yaraneba dare ga yaru!

Nakamura Yuri - Ichiko / Amarokku / Onihei Hankacho Kettou

Nishida Naomi - Ienai himitsu / Goman to zenryou / Aimitagai

Fujima Sawako - Yoake no subete / 90-sai. Nani ga medetai / Chacha / Aimitagai

Furukawa Kotone - Ienai himitsu / Cloud

Maeda Bibari - Goman to zenryou

Miyoshi Ayaka - Honshin / Sensei no shiroi uso

Yamada Anna - Golden Kamuy / Shoutai

Yoshioka Riho - Shoutai

Yoshine Kyoko - Karaoke iko!

Best Newcomer (8)

Kubozuka Airu - Happiness / Koi wo shiranai bokutachi wa

Koshiyama Keitatsu - Boku no ohisama

Saito Jun - Karaoke iko! / Karakai jouzu no Takagi-san / Muroi Shinji Yaburezarumono / Muroi Shinji Ikitsuzukerumono

Shiramoto Ayana - Hako Otoko

Nakasu Touma - Kakushigoto

Nakanishi Kiara - Boku no ohisama

Hamura Jinsei - Gold Boy

Hayase Ikoi - Ikoku Nikki / Ano ko wa daare?

Quick Review #79: Chinmoku no Parade (movie)

Title: Chinmoku no Parade / 沈黙のパレード

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who are fans of the Galileo series and want to see the lead trio back in action but don't mind a somewhat underwhelming suspense story

Liked:

- If you are a fan of the Galileo series and would like to see the leads Fukuyama Masaharu, Shibasaki Kou and Kitamura Kazuki back in action again, you should be satisfied with this movie which retained the usual formula in past installments to a certain extent.

- Since it had been some years from the first Galileo drama series, it was natural to see some progression and development in the characters from then to now. As such, there were notably more emotional scenes this time especially for Kitamura. While I was surprised to see such a vulnerable side to Kusanagi (Kitamura) in the movie, I was also impressed by the subtlety in Kitamura's acting as he didn't go too overboard when conveying the outpouring feelings of his character. Shibasaki's character Utsumi also showed a newfound stability and maturity as she no longer "hovered" around Yukawa (Fukuyama) cluelessly and could hold her own as a more experienced police officer now compared to when she first started out. Even Yukawa who used to be quite "emotionally detached" and a tad harsh at times, had a softer feel and felt much more "human-like" than before.

Disliked: 

- Despite my point above about this movie being quite standard Galileo fare, there were still some adjustments such as the famous scene when Yukawa always had to scribble lots of mathematical calculations on any surface for his deductions - this was omitted. Perhaps it was because the characters had "grown" over the entire series of dramas and movies so that kind of "dramatic scene" no longer fitted the current vibe in this movie. While I don't mind this kind of change to fit the characters' current state of mind and/or situations, these missing elements might not go down so well with longtime fans who enjoy watching them.

Likewise, because Yukawa is no longer emotionless, Utsumi has become so mellow and mature while Kusanagi is not cheeky and frivolous this time, it can be a bit of a turnoff for existing fans of the series if they are watching this for some nostalgia from the good old days. To be honest, the fun interactions between the three of them was something I used to enjoy but the atmosphere this time was a bit too heavy for that.

- The story or rather the truth behind the case was easy to guess from the start. If you have watched enough suspense/mystery stories to date and saw how the build-up to the murder was done, it would have been an obvious giveaway on what to expect. As such, I didn't enjoy the suspense element because I knew what was coming and that was very anti-climatic as a suspense story.

* NOTE: Do watch the credits till the end for the footage from past installments in the Galileo series. Great for a nostalgic walk down memory lane!

Behind the scenes of "Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo" - Oricon's interview with scriptwriter Nogi Akiko and director Tsukahara Ayuko

Oricon recently did an interview with Nogi Akiko and Tsukahara Ayuko, the scriptwriter and director of TBS Autumn 2024 drama "Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo" where you can find out more about how the drama came about, the pre-filming preparation work needed and the challenges in making it. While TBS is well-known for putting in a lot of effort and splurging on its signature Sundays 9pm timeslot dramas e.g. last year's "VIVANT" with its star-studded cast and long-term overseas filming in Mongolia, this year's "Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo" offers an entirely different set of challenges primarily because of the following reasons:

- the story shuttles between two timelines in Hashima and Tokyo spanning 70 years

- Hashima's infrastructure and buildings are left in a state of ruins after the mines were closed, the inhabitants moved out of the island and the effects caused by natural wear and tear thanks to the harsh weather 

- access to most of the island being restricted since some buildings have already collapsed or are about to. In fact, you cannot go to Hashima at will and must go through designated tour companies to book the boat trips.

As there is no other means of transportation to the island other than by sea, unfavourable weather conditions can make it impossible for the tourist ferry to get to the pier for landing at times. If you are taking the sightseeing ferry to Hashima, you won't get a refund on your ticket if it so happens that the weather prevents a landing on the day of your visit. It's been estimated that landings are only possible on less than 160 days of the year so certain months of the year have a lower-than-average landing probability. Given these limitations, on-location shooting is out of the question. Even if tourists can get onto the island, access is restricted to a designated area so you can't go around freely due to the danger of potentially collapsing structures or do any restoration works to them for the filming.

Here are the highlights from the interview and how the production crew managed to work around these limitations and challenges to bring this drama to life:

* This is the first drama series featuring Hashima.

* Research for the script began about one year ago in summer 2023. As Tsukahara and one of the producers Arai Junko were busy with other works, it was not possible for them to participate in this phase. However, Nogi didn't want to write the script without adequate research yet there was a limit to how much she could do on her own. Thus, she got the help of director Hayashi Satoshi who is from Nagasaki Prefecture to conduct the research. His presence was a great help to her as Nogi had to interview past residents of Hashima in Nagasaki who were mostly in their 80s and only spoke the Nagasaki dialect. For an outsider like Nogi to do the interviews would have been extremely difficult so without Hayashi, this drama would not have materalised.

* Nogi first visited Hashima before it was designated as a World Heritage site while on a private trip. That was when the island had not been made into a tourist spot and the Gunkanjima Museum was not even built so the only thing she could do then was just land on the island and wasn't allowed to go anywhere else.

The second time she visited the island was with Arai and they got to hear more about Hashima from the guide who was a former resident on the island. That was when she first got the idea for this drama. Since the residents lived under such harsh and unthinkable conditions back then without even a water supply, she wondered how their lives would come across to the people living in this era.

* The buildings on Hashima are in a bad condition where some can be described as just standing blocks of crumbling concrete. In order to replicate the sights of Hashima in the past, it was important to find a place which bore resemblance to the old Hashima for the CG works to be done. However, Tsukahara remarked that it was impossible to find such a place in current-day Japan where about 5,000 people lived in an area size amounting to Shinjuku Station. As such, no matter where they chose as the filming location, it would still be inadequate. She also revealed that as she looked at the scripts where each scene's location was mentioned, she would think to herself that she could not do the filming at the designated places such as the shrine at the top of the island. One other challenge was that Hashima had no greenery at all in the 1950s but it was not possible to find a remote island in present-day Japan where there was not a single tree around. The artistic department would always worry about how to come up with the sets every time they got the new scripts but thanks to the teamwork of everyone, they are clearing each challenge as it comes.

* Hashima was "split" into 15 pieces for the aerial shooting done by drones and put together onto a round-shaped island through CG just like how you would do with Lego bricks. As for the filming of scenes on the island itself, they did not search for a single island to do that and instead went to different places such as the streets and pier so that they could piece together everything to look like they were all filmed on the same island.

* The challenge this time was how to do the CG in a manner that was reasonable in terms of costs and speedy enough. In most situations, the main filming would be done against a green screen before CG was applied but this would cost a lot and be very time-consuming. For a 10-episode drama, doing this was simply not feasible. 

This time, they chose to do the CG based on the real dimensions of Hashima first and then do the filming at different places based on the specified camera angles so that everything could be fitted together quickly and easily. This method is hardly used in the TV industry now so hopefully, this might be something that could become more common in time to come. The issue would then be how to do the filming efficiently since they had to move around to multiple places.

* During the course of the research, Nogi mentioned that the love that former residents had for Hashima was very evident. In addition, despite shouldering the responsibility of literally powering Japan through their work in the coal mining industry and taking pride in what they did, these ex-residents had to deal with the discrimination against them because of their jobs and hide the fact that they came from Hashima even decades after they left the island. As such, these themes are important things which she hoped that the drama could convey to the viewers.

* The drama is based on the collective stories of the former residents so there is actually no single actual person who the lead character was modelled on. The story is ultimately fictitious but still based at an actual place with historical events happening in the background.

Winners of the Tokyo Drama Award 2024

Here are the winners of the Tokyo Drama Award 2024 as announced on 28 October 2024:

* YouTube Livestream (no subs): here

Drama Series Category

Grand Prix: VIVANT (TBS)

Excellence Awards:

* Fune wo amu, watashi, jisho tsukurimasu ~ (NHK)

* Tsubame wa modotte konai (NHK)

* Futekisetsu nimo hodo ga aru (TBS)

* Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (Kansai TV)

Best Single Drama / Drama SP Category

Grand Prix: Deaf Voice Houtei no shuwa tsuuyakushi (NHK)

Excellence Awards:

* Mikaiketsu Jiken File.10 Shimoyama Jiken (NHK)

* Shinnyuushatachi no bansan (NTV)

* Black Jack (TV Asahi)

* Ikitoshi ikeru mono (TV Tokyo)

* PICU Shouni shuuchuu chiryoushitsu SP 2024 (FujiTV)

Individual Awards & Theme Song Categories

Best Leading Actor: Kusanagi Tsuyoshi - Deaf Voice Houtei no shuwa tsuuyakushi (NHK)

Best Leading Actress: Ishibashi Shizuka - Tsubame wa modottekonai (NHK)

Best Supporting Actor: Wakaba Ryuuya - Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (Kansai TV)

Best Supporting Actress: Uchida Yuki - Tsubame wa modottekonai (NHK)

Best Script: Kudo Kankuro - Futekisetsu nimo hodo ga aru! (TBS)

Best Directing: Kaneko Fuminori - Futekisetsu nimo hodo ga aru! (TBS)

Best Theme Song: "Nidone" by Creepy Nuts - Futekisetsu nimo hodo ga aru! (TBS)

Source: Tokyo Drama Award

Preview of "Gezanmeshi" - Autumn 2024

Title: Gezanmeshi / 下山メシ

Official website: here

Official X: here

Official Instagram: here

O.A. Start Date: 14 November 2024

Timeslot: Thursdays at 12.30am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Original book by: Nishino Toshiko

Cast: Shida Mirai

Quick Review #78: Shrink ~ Seishinkai Yowai ~ - Summer 2024

Title: Shrink ~ Seishinkai Yowai ~ / シュリンク ~ 精神科医弱井 ~

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a short mental health-themed drama with a soft touch and/or are fans of Nakamura Tomoya

* Currently showing on Amazon Prime Video (subject to geographical restrictions)

Liked:

- Stories about mental health issues can sometimes be a bit emotionally-charged especially in the past which inevitably paints people with such conditions in a rather negative light. This drama did not go down that path and instead tried to reinforce the message that anyone can come down with a mental health issue just like any other physical ailments and that there is more help available than you know about and think of. The whole atmosphere of the drama including the soft colours in clinic seemed to be aimed at putting people at ease while balancing out the more emotional scenes when the patients had their outbursts and breakdowns.

One of the lines in the drama was especially worth considering - do you want to live in a country where there are many people who seek help for mental health issues but with a low suicide rate vs. one where there are seemingly lesser people with mental health issues but with a high suicide rate? Sometimes, not talking about something doesn't mean that it doesn't exist so I thought that this question was quite applicable in many situations and makes us reconsider if what we are seeing on the surface is reflective of reality. 

And the point about no issue is too small and that you don't have to wait till something becomes very serious before seeking help - hopefully, this helps in lowering the hurdle to seeking psychiatric or psychological help as soon as possible.

- Nakamura Tomoya was a very reassuring presence on screen as the slightly unusual and a bit eccentric psychiatrist Yowai (pun on his surname which means weak). And I am sure, his voice will put you at ease as well, regardless of whether you are his fan or not.

Disliked: 

- The length of the drama is a double-edged sword. It is easy to get started with watching this because there are only three episodes. However, the drama ended before I knew it and there were so many questions about the main storyline which were thrown at the viewers but not answered as yet. Given that there should be more material from the manga that could be used, I would expect that there would be a sequel to tell the story in its entirety. The thing is, this drama was made by NHK, not Amazon Prime Video so it is difficult to tell if and when a sequel will be made. As such, the feeling of dissatisfaction loomed over me when I finished the drama - too little and definitely not enough.

- Other than Nakamura who took centrestage in this story, the other key characters played by Tsuchiya Tao, Igeta Hiroe, Sakai Wakana, Miura Takahiro and Takezai Terunosuke felt quite flat and one-dimensional due to the lack of airtime for their development. Hopefully, this would be something that could be resolved with a sequel.

Preview of "Hustlin Boy" - Autumn 2024

Title: Hustlin Boy / ハスリンボーイ

Official website: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 November 2024

Timeslot: Fridays at 11pm

Broadcast by: WOWOW

Original manga by: Kusaka Shinya & Honda Yuki

Cast: Mamiya Shotaro, Maiguma Katsuya, Yokota Mayu, Takehara Pistol, Suruga Taro, Endo Yuuya, Takeda Kouhei, Yamaguchi Yoshiyuki, Goto Takenori, Ichinose Hayate and Tamayama Tetsuji

Preview of "Grand Maison Tokyo Special" (Drama SP)

Title: Grand Maison Tokyo Special / グランメゾン東京スペシャル

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Date: 29 December 2024 at 9pm

Broadcast by: TBS

Cast: Kimura Takuya, Suzuki Kyoka, Tamamori Yuuta, Kanichiro, Asakura Aki, Yoshitani Ayako, Kubota Masataka, Kitamura Kazuki, Onoe Kikunosuke, Tominaga Ai, Nakamura An, Oikawa Mitsuhiro & Sawamura Ikki

Preview of "ACMA: GAME World End" (Drama SP)

Title: ACMA: GAME World End / アクマゲーム　ワールドエンド

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Date: 25 October 2024 at 9pm

Broadcast by: NTV

Original manga by: Meeb & Megumi Koji

Cast: Mamiya Shotaro, Tanaka Juri, Furukawa Kotone, Ryuusei Ryo, Arashi Rina, Ozawa Yukiyoshi & Kikkawa Koji

Quick Review #77: Missing (movie)

Title: Missing / ミッシング

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a documentary-style story with realistic and raw emotions and/or are fans of Ishihara Satomi

* Currently showing on Netflix (subject to geographical restrictions)

Liked:

- Stories about parents grappling with the aftermath of their children being the victims of crime aren't new so what made this quite different was its singular focus on displaying the raw emotions felt by the parents and those around them as time went by rather than finding out what happened or what was the outcome. From the initial shock and panic to that of denial, anger, despair before trying to cope with the situation while getting on with life, this movie was certainly not meant to entertain but a realistic depiction of the emotions felt by the characters who were related and unrelated to the child. This somehow helped the movie become easier to relate to even if you aren't a parent or haven't gone through a similar experience of loss.

- Ishihara Satomi was definitely the highlight of the movie as the story focused a lot on her emotions. Perhaps in the traditional sense, a mother should be entirely devoted to her child and make sure that the child's well-being is her utmost priority. That being said, a mother is still a human being who deserves to take a break from time to time because if she's not well in any way, it will affect her ability to take care of her child. The issue in this movie was that, just because she went for her idol's concert for a couple of hours and asked her younger brother to take care of her daughter briefly, this decision indirectly led to the disappearance of her child. Stuck in an endless spiral of self-blame, self-doubt, the what-ifs and consumed by the anger she unleashed on the people around her, Ishihara's acting managed to show the spectrum of emotions felt by the mother although it may seem a bit hysterical at times and certainly not too pleasant to watch.

Disliked: 

- The lack of a cause and resolution in the story may not go down well with some viewers who want answers so this no doubt makes this story feel incomplete. In reality, a lot of child disappearance cases actually have no outcome and parents are stuck in a forever abyss of not knowing what happened to their children. And since the movie's focus was on the things that happened after the child went missing, it was understandable although I would have preferred a more complete story.

- Due to the overly heavy focus on the mother in the story, the other characters in the story did not get enough attention. I thought that the scenes showing the father's (Aoki Munetaka) emotions under his calm facade were very good but they were too little. As for the reporter played by Nakamura Tomoya, it wasn't very clear why he was so focused on helping the family or the reason why he was troubled over the gap between what he was supposed to do and what he wanted to do. There could be more exploration of these "side characters" to give a bit more insight on the whys about their actions and thoughts.

Preview of "Tamiou R" - Autumn 2024

Title: Tamiou R / 民王R

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 22 October 2024

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 9pm

Broadcast by: TV Asahi

Original novel by: Ikeido Jun

Theme Song: "Kocchi muite hoi" by asmi

Cast: Endo Kenichi, Oohashi Kazuya, Ano, Santoki Souma, Yamauchi Takaya & Kaneda Akio

Preview of "Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo" - Autumn 2024

Title: Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo / 海に眠るダイヤモンド

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 20 October 2024

Timeslot: Sundays at 9pm

Broadcast by: TBS

Cast: Kamiki Ryuunosuke, Saito Takumi, Sugisaki Hana, Ikeda Elaiza, Shimizu Hiroya, Tsuchiya Tao, Miyamoto Nobuko, Nakajima Tomoko, Kunimura Jun, Yamamoto Mirai, Sawamura Ikki, Sada Masashi, Watanabe Kenkichi, Ooshita Hiroto, Abe Ryohei, Omi Toshinori, Miho Jun, Sakou Yoshi, Miyazaki Tomu, Naitou Shuichiro, Nishigaki Takumi, Mamehara Issei, Kataoka Rin & Anzai Seira etc.

Preview of "My Diary" - Autumn 2024

Title: My Diary / マイダイアリー

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official LINE: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 20 October 2024

Timeslot: Sundays at 10.15pm

Broadcast by: ABC TV / TV Asahi

Theme Song: "Kusege" by Saucy Dog

Cast: Kiyohara Kaya, Sano Hayato, Yoshikawa Ai, Mikami Ai & Mochizuki Ayumu

U-NEXT - the uprising competitor against Netflix in Japan's VOD market and how it goes against the tide

If you have read my previous analysis about Japan's VOD market, you would have known that the highly competitive SVOD segment is dominated mainly by the top 3 i.e. Netflix, U-NEXT and Amazon Prime Video which accounted for close to 50% of the market share in 2023. As announced on 17 October 2024, Netflix is continuing to grow its membership base in the Asia Pacific region including Japan as it added another 2.28 million members in the last quarter since June 2024. Considering that this figure accounted for close to 45% of its new membership worldwide (5.07 million new members globally), it is clear that the APAC region offers a lot of growth opportunities for Netflix.

On the other hand, U-NEXT is pursuing a different kind of strategy as compared to its international competitor. The platform which operates only in Japan, provides a variety of content distributed from global companies like Warner Bros, Discovery, NBC Universal and Paramount Global on top of domestic titles from TBS, TV Tokyo and NHK etc. as well as streaming of sporting events. However, despite its wide range of sourced content, it actually doesn't dabble in original Japanese productions like Netflix,  Amazon Prime Video and Disney+.

NIKKEI Trend did an analysis on U-NEXT to examine its strategy which seems to be working as the platform overtook Amazon Prime Video to become the current No.2 in Japan and is edging closer to the Netflix which has been dominating the No.1 spot for years. While we may not be able to access U-NEXT from outside Japan now, it might be worth looking into how they managed to do this despite their limitations. 

What I found quite interesting was how they adjusted their strategy to fit their size and limitations rather than try to match what the richer and bigger players are doing. Quantity of content is indeed a huge differentiator especially if users need to choose just one streaming platform to pay for so it makes sense to be a generalist rather than a specialist. 

As to whether their rise will in turn cannibalise the market shares of other players or help to grow the pie further, it is still early to predict. At least for now, given that their focus is still the domestic market and that it will be costly to globalise because you need to have things like subtitles and different languages for the platform, I think that getting access to U-NEXT is still out of the question for those located outside of Japan in the foreseeable future.

* U-NEXT's paid membership numbers are going up and reached 4,339,000 people as of May 2024 compared to 2,925,000 at the end of 2023. This huge jump was partly due to the integration of Paravi in 2023. Revenue from the content streaming business had also increased by 19% to reach JPY 85.1 billion in the financial year ended August 2023.

* At present, it is said that there are as many as 360,000 titles on the platform which encompasses Japanese and foreign dramas and movies, anime, stage plays, musicals etc. While some titles may not have high viewership numbers, they are still kept in the lineup so as to grow the size of the catalogue. This is a strategy which U-NEXT had come up with since they do not have any original content. 

* During the COVID-19 pandemic, streaming services had become more attractive to consumers. Thanks to the range of its offerings, U-NEXT managed to attract more members because many of them had been in search of specific titles or content that they wanted to watch and found them on the portal.

* In order to make this "quantity is king" strategy possible, U-NEXT internalised the archive management process which includes recording of metadata, encoding and management of data stock. This has allowed them to control costs while being able to keep increasing the amount of content it provides to members.

* U-NEXT initially had a weakness of providing the least number of Japanese and foreign dramas as compared to its competitors. However, the situation started to change since 2021 when it started providing exclusive access to HBO dramas such as "Game of Thrones" and merged with Paravi in 2023. Paravi had been the platform to go for TBS and TV Tokyo dramas and variety programmes. Not only did they manage to get new members through these moves, it had also helped them to "recapture" former users who had been unhappy with its lacking range of content.

* One other benefit from the integration with Paravi was the boost in brand awareness. At the end of each programme's TV broadcast, there would be a short clip mentioning that past episodes can be viewed on U-NEXT. This allowed U-NEXT to reach people who they were unable to target through digital marketing and make the viewers be more aware of its presence.

* While free platforms like TVer boasts of high viewership numbers i.e. as many as 40 million unique browsers in a month, drama archives on the platform tend to be limited to the first three episodes plus the latest episode only. As such, TVer actually becomes the window leading to U-NEXT in a way as consumers look for the full series on the latter after sampling it on TVer.

* As to why U-NEXT doesn't make its own dramas and movies, it admitted that even though they may have the desire to do so, they are comparatively weaker when it comes to money. As such, rather than spend money on in-house productions, the company has made a conscious choice to build up its offerings through acquiring content from outside.

* In the meantime, U-NEXT had formed production teams working on creating original novels and manga in 2020 and 2022 respectively. One of their original novels "Danchi no futari" has been made into a NHK BS drama airing since September 2024. 

The reason why they have chosen to do so is that they are still unable to invest on a continuous basis on production of dramas and movies like their richer competitors. Since the publishing culture is strong in Japan, they decided it would be best to build their presence from scratch by working on original content in this manner.

* U-NEXT is also looking into improving its live content such as adding sports and music shows. In 2023 alone, there were 2,888 live sports broadcasts and 160 live music shows released on the platform. It has also entered into a 7-year partnership contract with the English Premier League since July 2024 so the U-NEXT Soccer Pack was launched in August this year for those who want to watch these live matches. The reason for this move was said to be the high interest in soccer content and that there are regular matches being played thus allowing U-NEXT to retain users.

* Thanks to the tourism boom in Japan, there is also strong interest from accommodation facilities like hotels which want to provide U-NEXT access to their guests.

* U-NEXT is known for its high retention rate when it comes to its paid membership. Although its monthly subscription is on the high side i.e. JPY 2,189, the membership allows full access to electronic books and magazines and earning of points which can be used within U-NEXT.

* While faced with strong competition from the bigger foreign platforms, U-NEXT intends to focus on its strengths and aim for the next milestone of 5 million users. This is expected to help them proceed to the next stage and do more beyond what is currently in place.

Quick Review #76: Angel Flight Kokusai reikyuu soukanshi - Spring 2023

Title: Angel Flight Kokusai reikyuu soukanshi / エンジェルフライト 国際霊柩送還士

Rating: 8 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch moving stories about life and death issues but not with a heavy touch or draggy pace and want to see some great acting from the cast

* Currently showing on Amazon Prime Video (subject to geographical restrictions)

Liked:

- While stories about those working in the funeral industry aren't new, this drama had a different angle by expanding the scale beyond borders since the staff in Angel Hearse handled the transportation and treatment of the deceased who had either passed away overseas or foreigners who died in Japan. Despite the short length of the drama with just 6 episodes, the story was still comprehensive and had a sound structure with a good pace and not being too draggy. While the theme is about life and death, the good thing was that the drama had a light touch at times but was still packed lots of emotions. 

- The acting from the cast was both entertaining and memorable at the same time but it would have been better if the supporting cast got a bit more airtime. Special mention goes to Yonekura Ryoko and Matsumoto Honoka who were especially brilliant in their emotional scenes and had a nice onscreen chemistry to watch. While Yonekura usually took on roles which had strong characters or were very confident, she managed to show a more vulnerable side this time which gave her acting a softer touch. On the other hand, Matsumoto's acting displayed a form of resilience and silent strength underneath the gentle façade that her character projected.

Disliked: 

- The drama's length also turned out to be its biggest weak point because there was just not enough time to cover the background stories of everyone in Angel Hearse other than for Nami (Yonekura) and Rinko (Matsumoto). From the little hints dropped in the drama, it looks like there is a lot of room to explore. And since the big question of what happened to Nami's ex-boyfriend Yukito was not answered, it seems to suggest that there should be a sequel coming up in future. What this means though is that the drama feels unfinished so the satisfaction derived from watching this was somewhat reduced.

Preview of "D & D ~ Isha to keiji no sousasen ~" - Autumn 2024

Title: D & D ~ Isha to keiji no sousasen ~ / D＆D ~ 医者と刑事の捜査線 ~

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 18 October 2024

Timeslot: Fridays at 9pm 

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Cast: Fujiki Naohito, Hayami Akari, Maeda Kentaro, Ootsuka Nene & Terajima Susumu

A look into Japan's domestic VOD market and its market share changes in recent years

Thanks to the continuous increase in the number of video-on-demand (VOD) service providers in Japan and beyond as well as the pandemic over the last few years, these have changed the viewing habits of content consumers from being tied to watching live broadcasts at designated timings to that of doing the same at your own time and pace. With the dizzying range of providers out there in the market, there is a lot of content, sometimes too much to choose from as consumers pick the platforms whose offerings suit their preferences and budgets. 

In Japan, there are 4 main categories of VOD providers as mentioned below. Note that the list of providers quoted as examples is not exhaustive:

- AVOD (Advertising Video On Demand): Generally free access to videos in return for watching ads served before the video starts and during the screening duration

E.g. YouTube

- SVOD (Subscription Video On Demand): Access to an unlimited number of videos for a fixed monthly subscription fee

E.g. ABEMA Premium, Amazon Prime Video, DAZN, DMM TV, d Anime Store, FOD Premium, Hulu, Lemino (previously named dTV), Netflix, Paravi, TELASA, U-NEXT, Anime Houdai and Disney+ etc.

- TVOD (Transactional Video On Demand): Pay-per-video but access with a viewing period limit as compared to EST so the rate is usually cheaper

E.g. ABEMA Store, Amazon Prime Video, DMM Douga, FOD Premium, Google Play, GYAO! Store, Hulu Store, iTunes Store, J:COM On Demand, Lemino, Paravi, Rakuten TV, TELASA, U-NEXT and Hikari TV Video Service etc.

- EST (Electronic Sell-through): Pay-per-video but without a viewing period limit; tends to be more expensive than TVOD

E.g. Amazon Prime Video, DMM.com, Google Play, iTunes Store, Lemino, Rakuten TV and Hikari TV Video Service etc.

GEM Standard, a platform which provides information about the entertainment business through paid content such as rankings and analysis reports, has been sharing free excerpts of its data about the market share movements in the Japanese VOD scene over the past few years. For the purpose of this analysis, I will be focusing on the SVOD market only since the data from GEM Standard is primarily based on the subscription income which the SVOD providers reportedly earn and does not include advertisement income that the platforms earned.

Here are some of the key highlights where you can observe how the market has grown and changed as well as how the platforms are faring against one another in this competitive industry:

1) The overall VOD market size i.e. SVOD, TVOD and EST combined has been growing since 2019 but the percentage of this increase is getting smaller. (Source)

Comparing 2020 to 2019, the reported market size was about JPY 387.7 billion which was 32.5% higher than the previous year. This was largely attributed to the pandemic which began in 2020 thus leading to a spike in the demand for at-home entertainment as people stayed home most of the time due to lockdowns and social distancing. Subsequently, the growth percentages narrowed where 2021 was 19% higher, 2022 went up by 15% while 2023's growth slowed to a single digit of 8.2%.

As for the market value on a yearly basis, the subscription income was reported to have reached JPY 574 billion in 2023 and expected to hit JPY 737.1 billion by 2028.

2019: JPY 292.5 billion

2020: JPY 387.7 billion

2021: JPY 461.4 billion

2022: JPY 530.3 billion

2023: JPY 574.0 billion

The slowdown in growth could be due to a variety of factors other than increased competition such as the reopening of countries post-pandemic, increased international travel as well as uncertain or worsening economic conditions which will lead to people cutting back on expenditure for entertainment. While the market is still growing, the quantum of growth is no doubt decreasing so it will be essential to attract existing users of other platforms to "jump ship" besides trying to expand the industry.

2) Netflix is the market leader since 2019 but its market share is gradually eroded as the number of competitors increases and their offerings improve. (Source)

Netflix is the undisputed king of the SVOD market segment as seen from its domination of the No.1 slot for 4 consecutive years since 2019. Considering that the platform only entered the Japanese market on 1 September 2015, it had only taken them less than 4 years to achieve this.

However, as the competition gets stiffer and their competitors evolve and improve, the size of Netflix's leading position is somewhat affected although the amount of decrease is still less than one percent for now. It remains to be seen if the competition can step up its game and lure more new users into the market and/or attract existing Netflix users to sign up for their services.

3) U-NEXT has surged to become the No.2 in the market by overtaking Amazon Prime Video.

As seen in the figures shown in the table, while 2022 was a mixed bag with 7 out of the 13 featured platforms in the table seeing a drop in their market shares, 2023 was a sea of red as only 4 out of 13 platforms increased their market shares. (DMM TV and Others not included)

While Amazon Prime Video was a distant second compared to Netflix which had almost double of its market share back in 2021, U-NEXT had taken over Amazon's runner-up position in 2022 and 2023 to become the new No.2. This is despite the fact that Amazon had also increased its market share in 2023 but not as much as U-NEXT. The gap between No.1 and No.2 in the SVOD market has also narrowed with just 6.7% separating the two positions. 

4) The market remains dominated by a few platforms only with the rest of the pie split among many competitors.

The number of platforms with more than 10% in market share remains limited to the top 3 or i.e. Netflix, U-NEXT and Amazon Prime Video. The only exception was DAZN which saw a temporary increase in 2022 probably due to major sporting events like the Qatar World Cup but it dropped below 10% in the following year as a result of dropping the most market share of 1.7%.

The changes in the top 3's combined market share i.e. 46.6% in 2021, 46.7% in 2022 and 49.6% in 2023 also show the following:

* The Top 3's dominance in the market has strengthened to close to 50% last year 

* The spread of the Top 3's market shares is getting more even compared to 1 being much more dominant over the other two prior to 2023

* The rest of the competitors are fighting for a smaller share of what remains outside the top 3's membership bases now

What's also worth noting is that those which are above 5% in terms of market share but still haven't been able to threaten the Top 3's positions yet i.e. DAZN, Disney+ and Hulu tend to focus on niche areas such as sports or in-house productions as the core of its content offerings. Will this mean a relook into their content strategies to expand "outwards" for varied content sources or will they continue focusing on their strengths and in-house productions going forward so as to distinguish their exclusivity from those which aim to "have it all"?

As content consumers, we are really spoiled for choice these days - in fact a bit more than I need at times especially when not everything I want is on the same platform. Especially when seeking Japanese content, the biggest frustration I experience is that even on an international platform, the content restriction means that you cannot access the full Japanese catalogue if your IP address is not in Japan. And don't get me started on the hoax masked as "international release" which can sometimes be a delayed release outside Japan or worse still, not available in most countries. Last but not least, most of the platforms featured in this analysis are actually "domestic platforms" so users outside of Japan won't be able to access them anyway. 

It doesn't make sense to subscribe to so many platforms not just because of cost concerns but also due to the limited time we have to spend on watching these shows. As such. it is interesting to see how consumers make more strategic choices going forward rather than pay for more platforms than they actually need. While our choices may or may not be necessarily affected by which platform is the market leader, these market movements provide interesting insights on how planned and unplanned events happening to consumers and the world at large can have an impact on our choices and possibly shape the type of content we can get on our chosen platform(s).