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Kodansha Teams With Digital Garage for N. American Digital Manga Distribution
posted on by Karen Ressler
Japanese publisher Kodansha and Tokyo-based marketing and incubation company Digital Garage announced on Thursday that the companies have entered a joint venture for web manga distribution in North America.
The project seeks to use Kodansha's San Francisco-based affiliate company, Kodansha Advanced Media LLC, to bring manga content to North American readers via websites and smartphone apps. The digital content will also be used to promote print-media releases from Kodansha USA.
Kodansha Advanced Media was established on December 4, 2014 with funding from Kodansha USA to handle distribution and management of Japanese digital media in English. In addition to manga, the company will also handle films and events.
As part of the agreement, Kodansha has acquired a 0.5% or more stock in Digital Garage, and Digital Garage has invested in 19% of Kodansha Advanced Media.
The two companies are also establishing a Japan-based joint venture, tentatively titled DK Gate, in May. The venture will invest in and incubate startup companies related to e-book services, digital rights management, self-publication, and content distribution.
Digital Garage will own 66% of DK Gate, while Kodansha will control the remaining 34%.
Source: Anime!Anime!
