Toppan Printing Co., Ltd. was responsible for the planning and production of the "SHIBUYA eSPORTS EXPERIENCE", which we recently visited.
I was engrossed in the event when I covered it, but after publishing a report on the event later, I wondered, "Come to think of it, why is Toppan Printing involved in e-sports? " and when I asked the person in charge, he was happy to comply!
"Why is Toppan Printing involved in e-sports? " "What kind of initiatives is Toppan Printing involved in? "
I asked them in depth.
Since I was in the mood, I stormed into Toppan Printing!
It's not enough just to ask for details by e-mail or phone! So I paid a visit to Toppan Printing in all seriousness.
The e-sports project is handled by the Information and Communication Division, and this department is not located in Akihabara, where the company's headquarters is located, but in the Toppan Koishikawa Building in Mizuto, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo.
This building is famous for the Printing Museum.
What is Toppan Printing Co.
As you know, Toppan Printing Co., Ltd. is a major company in the printing industry and one of the largest general printing companies in the world.
Founded in 1900, Toppan Printing started out in securities printing and package printing, and is now engaged in a wide range of businesses including digital signage, semiconductors, and information technology.
Toppan Printing also handles cash cards, credit cards, and other familiar items.
In the area of web services, Toppan Printing is well known for the e-book service " BookLive " and the map service " Mapion", both of which are developed by group companies.
The company is no longer a printing company, but rather a general information trading company, with a wide range of business areas.
If I introduce everything, the volume would be too large to fit in one article, so please refer to the history and Wikipedia for details.
Toppan Printing x e-Sports: How did you get involved?
Let's get right to the main topic of this visit, and hear what they have to say!
This time we talked to Mr. Hirayama, leader of Toppan Printing's e-sports project, and Mr. Kanai, director of the e-sports club.
Why did Toppan Printing enter the e-sports market in the first place?
Toppan Printing's e-sports projects are centered on "solving corporate and administrative issues" and "supporting corporations and governments through e-sports.
We do not want to host our own events or play a central role in the e-sports market, but rather to energize "towns" through e-sports, support governments and companies involved in e-sports, and thereby contribute to the promotion of the e-sports industry.
Originally, Toppan Printing was engaged in planning and production proposals to connect companies with companies, and many of our clients are government agencies. Recently, we have been receiving an increasing number of inquiries from local governments about planning e-sports events to revitalize their communities.
How exactly do you solve problems between companies?
eSports is still a new industry, and there are few resources available for local governments and companies that want to revitalize their communities through eSports events. We are looking forward to working with you to help promote the e-sports industry.
Local governments and public organizations, in particular, have little expertise in game license licensing. It would be good if local governments have a budget, but most of them do not.
Toppan is a company that is responsible for event planning, sponsorship, etc., and is able to provide a wide range of services. Toppan will help those who are involved in the event by taking charge of event planning, sponsor collection, etc.
The "SHIBUYA eSPORTS EXPERIENCE" held the other day in front of Shibuya Hachiko was a successful event that Toppan Printing was responsible for planning and production, connecting the government + game manufacturers + platformers + sponsors.
Attracted by the success of the eSports event in Shibuya Ward, many local governments are consulting Toppan Printing about eSports initiatives.
Collaboration with IP holders is Toppan Printing's forte
What are Toppan Printing's strengths in e-sports?
Toppan Printing has a proven track record of working with game manufacturers, publishers, animation companies, and other IP holders with IP (intellectual property) rights.
Toppan Printing has been involved in many collaborative projects such as game x food, animation x retail, etc. When it comes to e-sports, we can make use of the know-how we have accumulated in the way of handling IP and the concept of planning.
In e-sports, it is essential to collaborate with IP holders.
Yes, we have. Since licensing relationships are particularly delicate and time-consuming, Toppan Printing's intercession makes it possible to proceed smoothly with the planning process.
We did not enter the e-sports business on the strength of cooperation with IP holders, but when we actually proceeded with the planning, we realized that there were advantages, saying, "Hey, this is Toppan Printing's strength.
Mr. Hirayama was in charge of a tie-up project between Taisho Pharmaceutical's Lipovitan D and Love Live. Content tie-up and rights business is Toppan Printing's forte.
Developing e-sports related web services!
T: Is it because Toppan Printing is such a big company that you are able to proceed smoothly?
No, we have expertise in the field of planning and production, but sponsors do not give us money unconditionally, so we have to provide added value to them.
Therefore, Toppan Printing is currently planning and developing various web services.
We are currently developing a service that participants can enjoy on the day of the event, such as a speed raffle service to win prizes from sponsors so that audiences can enjoy themselves between games, and we may be able to showcase this service at an event soon.
In addition, since many companies and participants are involved when hosting an event, there are many questions and answers and confirmations of event regulations, so we are developing an AI chatbot that can respond to these questions and answers on a web browser without the need for registration.
Many of our web services are designed from the perspective of e-sports players and audience members who participate in events, but there is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes of actual events, so I guess you could say that we are developing tools to facilitate event preparation.
Why Toppan Printing is involved in e-sports? Not "Why Toppan Printing? "
When I hear a talk like this, "There is the reason why the Toppan Printing participating in e-sports? rather than "Why is Toppan Printing participating in e-sports?
Furthermore, Toppan Printing is not so much "boosting the e-sports market! Rather than "to boost the e-sports market", the concept is clear: "to use e-sports to boost the town!" The concept is also clear.
What I felt consistently was that Toppan Printing's e-sports project members love games.
I will be keeping a close eye on Toppan Printing's e-sports activities from now on! Fangler Games will announce any related events as soon as they are held, so don't miss them!
