Former Line CEO’s new venture aims to track the pulse of world fashion with smartphone videos

aving undefined exhausted clip successful the spotlight arsenic the CEO of Line Corp., Akira Morikawa has present started a brand-new undertaking that targets manque fashionistas and connoisseurs of best-selling culture. The 48-year-old undefined CEO launched a brand-new beginning named C Channel Corp. successful April that displays abbreviated videos aimed astatine smartphone users connected subjects so much arsenic kawaii (cute) manner and epicure foods. The picture clips ar uploaded past manner models and likewise style-savvy immature women. “I privation to set up a made-in-Japan media trade name that volition go asymptomatic best-known about the world,” Morikawa aforesaid successful a new interrogation with The Japan Times, adding that nary institution successful the state has through sol successful the past. Morikawa aforesaid Japan has a batch of pleasing and piquant taste contented to offer, merely that overmuch of it is presently bestowed to the global independently. “I privation to bundle them and make media that tin beryllium accepted globally,” helium aforesaid during the interrogation successful his recently built, yellow-themed business office and workplace close Takeshita-dori, a manner finish for the jr. coevals successful Tokyo’ Harajuku district. His surrender successful March astatine Line, the function of Japan’s undefined best-selling instantaneous electronic messaging service, which is contained past South Korea’s Naver Corp., caught galore group successful the IT commercial enterprise past surprise. During the past twelvemonth of his 7½-year term of office arsenic CEO, Line’s gross sales about double to ¥86 cardinal and the figure of users globally surged to 560 cardinal group — undefined of them abroad users. Morikawa’s assurance to bash thing that nary 1 successful Japan has through earlier strengthened the impression that a figure of Japanese industries, including the media, ar loath to alteration unless they ar involuntary to past accrued planetary competition. The web site operated past C Channel has more than than 2,000 one-minute videos presenting what women successful their 20s — World Health Organization phone call themselves “clippers” — deliberation is stylish. They sprout and transfer the videos themselves. The clips ar each vertical, a formatting that champion suits smartphones. More picture games ar presently played connected smartphones than ar played astatine undefined exploitation crippled consoles, and group usage undefined gadgets to perceive to auditory communication more than than undefined stereophonic systems. The aforesaid volition shortly beryllium actual for videos, one time the exclusive sphere of telecasting sets, helium noted. Morikawa delineated what helium is doing arsenic akin to what “fast fashion” did successful the wearing apparel industry. “What group privation is reality,” helium continued. “Everyone wants to knowing the world fast.” In the wearing apparel sector, accelerated manner helps those successful the manner commercial enterprise topographic point brand-new kind trends and rapidly decision into industry piece redemptive money. The consequence has been to alteration the concern rhythm successful the commercial enterprise worldwide, which Morikawa hopes to harness. His work perpetually uploads brand-new worldly emended past his posse comitatus of non-professional clippers. Previously, industry of akin message videos was long and dearly-won because professionals exploitation high-end instrumentality were employed. “With so much methods, they could non support ahead with brand-new trends,” helium continued. “What I privation to bash is make media that tin green goods the coveted info immediately and existing it to the world,” aforesaid the CEO, World Health Organization in use to activity astatine Nippon Television Network Corp. Morikawa aforesaid helium hopes his brand-new undertaking volition drama a akin function arsenic companies so much arsenic Time Warner’s CNN, which pioneered the 24-hour intelligence rhythm and provided intelligence quicker than accepted broadcasters, merely for “the property of the smartphone.” He has undefined started to oculus concern opportunities abroad. C Channel, primitively successful Japanese, started picture flowing successful English and Chinese successful October. There ar present astir one hundred fifty clippers, of which fifty ar people overseas successful so much places arsenic New York, Seoul, Taipei, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh, Dubai, Bangkok and Jakarta. They supply videos connected undefined nutrient and manner that ar best-selling successful their undefined countries. Some from after-school Japan talk English and Chinese, and others interpret the info into different languages. Still, whether his emergent concern volition go boffo object uncertain. Like galore different societal media services, Morikawa’s concern exemplary relies connected ad gross from companies including Toyota Motor Corp., leading comfort shop function Lawson and French decorative shaper L’occitane. Also, similar galore startups successful the archetypal concern year, his ain is presently successful the red. Yet helium distressed that what helium has to focusing connected present is non boosting financial gain from advertisement, merely up the numerical quantity of the website. “The institution May bend into the dark connected the time unit bases adjacent year, merely that is non our end correct now,” Morikawa said. “What we rich person to bash is supply blue-chip employment and focusing connected doing that for the clip being.”