Station Ai, 1-2-32 Tsurumai, Showa Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture
mizutani-s@mizuku.co.jp
This business began when the CEO, who was working as a salaryman at Kadokawa Group, received numerous requests for "permission to use works" from around the world. While many people expressed their desire to use various works, the traditional publishing model, which generates revenue by managing works, made it difficult to grant official permissions. As a result, the CEO often had to either respond with "No" or turn a blind eye.
However, the CEO saw great potential in these requests. He wondered how much wider these works could spread across the globe if a cooperative relationship could be built with people who wished to use them. Driven by the concept of "expanding works through collaboration with fans," he became determined to create a new publishing system. This decision led him to leave Kadokawa Group and start developing the service.
The CEO's family business is a printing company, which led to an initiative to translate manga published on Japanese social media and sell it as magazines overseas.
Through this process, it became evident that some independent manga artists, who already have a large fanbase in Japan, are eager to expand internationally. We continue to feature their works in magazines while also accompanying them to overseas events.
Additionally, we discovered that there are many excellent manga from overseas. By translating these works into Japanese and selling them at Japanese events, we are building trust not only with Japanese manga artists but also with international manga artists. To encourage voice actor participation, we organize contests using our platform.
The results of these contests are published in our magazine, providing voice actors with tangible achievements and expanding opportunities for them to showcase their talents.
Fan Voice Actor
What Participants Liked About the Event: The collaboration with an Indonesian manga site felt like experiencing a drama CD! It was a fresh and exciting experience. I’d love to participate again!
Fan Voice Actor
The best part was being able to interact indirectly with creators overseas through their works. The internet allows us to connect across distances, so I’d love to see more events that anyone can join and enjoy, and I’d love to participate!
Fan Voice Actor
Engaging with Indonesian doujin content sparked my own creativity. I hope to continue building relationships and raising the quality of voice acting as audio works, leading to even better creations for both sides.
Fan Voice Actor
What Participants Liked About the Event: The collaboration Discussing the intentions behind the scenes with partners and deeply considering how to express the story was a valuable learning experience for my future in voice acting. CD! It was a fresh and exciting experience. I’d love to participate again!
Fan Voice Actor
I was deeply moved by DouDouDoujin's commitment to supporting derivative works while respecting original creations, helping to spread culture across borders…!
As you know, due to copyright and publishing rights, it’s quite challenging for individuals to add voice to existing manga and publish it online. So, a service that allows adding voice to manga is exactly what I've been looking for…!
If I were to be honest, I’ve always had a strong desire to voice my favorite manga and preserve it as a work of art! I wanted to make the original creators so happy they’d cry, but I’ve kept that feeling bottled up for years. In the end, I won the Original Creator Award for both works I submitted, which was the best proof that the creators were delighted…!! Turning it into a contest, rather than just a simple voice acting play, allowed all participants to pour their pride as performers into creating 'audio works.'
DouDouDoujin was launched in November 2022 as a new business venture of Mizuku Printing Co., Ltd., which was established in 1885. In September 2023 , it was selected as one of the top 100 global startups from Japan in the Web3 course of the "Global Startup Acceleration Program (GSAP)" organized by JETRO, in collaboration with the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, leading to its incorporation.
Subsequently, in June 2024 , DouDouDoujin received startup funding from the Japan Finance Corporation and a local credit union, gaining recognition as a successful startup model. Leveraging the insights from its Beta version, the service "DouDoujin" was officially launched with limited features in October 2024.
Originally started as a new business of the family company MIZUKU Printing Co.ltd
After becoming independent from MIZUKI Printing Co.,LTD
Received Joint Financing from the JAPAN Finance Corporation (JFC) and a Credit Union as a Startup Support Target.
Planning to Release The Official Version focusing on core features
Originally started as a new business of the family company MIZUKU Printing Co.ltd
After becoming independent from MIZUKI Printing Co.,LTD
Received Joint Financing from the JAPAN Finance Corporation (JFC) and a Credit Union as a Startup Support Target.
Planning to Release The Official Version focusing on core features
During my time at Keio SFC, I focused on management information systems and media studies.After joining the Rakuten Group as a new graduate, I worked as a book buyer and contributed tothe launch of a music app. Following my transfer to the banking division, I was involved inproduct development for Fintech projects. Later, I moved to the KADOKAWA Group, where Iworked in overseas publishing, focusing on influencer marketing for English-speaking regionsand the expansion of translated e-books. Subsequently, I joined my family business, Mizuku Printing Co., Ltd., established in 1885, as the seventh-generation successor, launching a publishing platform as a new venture.
A Collaboration Platform for Manga Around the World