NTT Solmare, the operator of the comprehensive e-book store Comic C'moA, held a press conference on the 5th to announce its e-book business strategy. The company revealed that its revenue reached ¥81.2 billion (about $569 million) in the fiscal year ending March 2024. Comic C'moA is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Although the company had not previously disclosed its revenue, President and CEO Toshitaka Asahi explained that the decision to release the figures was made "to enhance transparency on the occasion of our 20th anniversary, for the growth of the industry and our company." In the fiscal year ending March 2024, their revenue reached ¥81.2 billion ($569 million), ranking first among domestic e-book providers (based on their research, compared with public records of domestic competitors as of August 2024). They also reported 11 consecutive years of profit growth. The company shared additional data, such as a peak daily sales of over ¥900 million ($6.3 million), over 40 million monthly users, and a catalog of more than 1.43 million titles (according to company data).

In both the domestic and international e-book markets, the market size in fiscal 2023 was ¥644.9 billion ($4.5 billion), with expectations of reaching ¥800 billion ($5.6 billion) by fiscal 2028. Factors contributing to this growth include the popularity of vertical-scroll manga, the rise of Korean content, the global spread of Japanese content, as well as the use of AI and other technologies to improve efficiency in production.

"We will leverage our curatorial expertise as an e-book store and technology to create opportunities for readers to discover more manga, pioneer new manga trends unique to e-book stores, and pursue diverse media expansions," said Asahi. The company aspires to become the "No. 1 comprehensive manga production group" with the goal of making Japanese manga a global mainstream culture. Additionally, NTT Solmare’s international platform MangaPlaza has grown by over 300% compared to the same period last year.

During the event, a representative from KADOKAWA’s Digital Sales Department, who collaborated on the hit title Dear Sir, I’m Divorcing You, also took the stage. The representative stated, "Comic C'moA's insights, which are closely connected to users, contributed to the success that publishers alone could not achieve."

NTT Solmare launched Comic i, the predecessor to Comic C'moA, in 2004 when reading manga online was not yet widespread, paving the way for the digital comic market. Now celebrating its 20th anniversary, the company boasts the highest revenue among domestic e-book providers.

Source : ORICON NEWS