Orfium signs global UGC deal with Japanese label Pony Canyon
Pony Canyon Inc., a Japanese entertainment company and leader in the music industry in Japan, has chosen Orfium to help manage and monetize its vast music catalog on YouTube. Pony Canyon works with some of the biggest artists in Japan, including Official Hige Dandism whose song ‘Subtitle’ was the most popular Japanese song on Apple Music and the third most streamed Japanese song on Spotify in 2023. This marks Orfium’s fourth deal in Asia in the past six months.
Pony Canyon Chooses Orfium for Music Catalog Management
In recent years, Pony Canyon has focused on expanding its operations outside of Japan, establishing Pony Canyon USA in 2015. As its global promotional efforts have continued to resonate and feed their success, the audience for Pony Canyon’s music has grown, increasing the need for an effective international UGC monetization partner. Pony Canyon has chosen Orfium as that partner for music catalog management on YouTube, bringing in Orfium’s AI-based matching technology to help track the use of Pony Canyon’s music on user-generated content platforms, ensuring their artists receive the revenue they deserve.
The partnership is key for Pony Canyon as they continue gaining popularity internationally. For Orfium, the deal with Pony Canyon expands its presence in Japan following recent partnerships with Avex, Bandai Namco, Warner Music Japan and JASRAC. In March, Orfium announced that it had also been selected as the music reporting partner of choice for BROMIS, a consortium of major broadcasters and music rights holders in South Korea.
Shinichi Ishii, General Manager of Music Marketing at Pony Canyon, emphasized the importance of this partnership, stating: “With Orfium’s international reach, cutting-edge technology, and proven track record, they are the ideal partner to support our mission of ensuring Japanese music is celebrated and appreciated worldwide.”
Be a part of the journey with Orfium Japan
If you’re interested in our journey and want to explore opportunities with Orfium, get in touch here.
Building upon Orfium’s recent partnerships with Japanese entertainment giants Avex and Bandai Namco, we are thrilled to announce our latest collaboration with JASRAC, Japan’s largest collective management organization (CMO). Through this exciting venture, our AI-powered technology services will enhance YouTube revenues for JASRAC’s extensive network of over 20,000 members, including talented songwriters, composers, and publishers.
Japanese music is enjoying a global surge in popularity, thanks in part to its remarkable growth on streaming and user-generated content (UGC) platforms. As a result, JASRAC’s members catalogs are gaining unprecedented exposure and appreciation worldwide. In recent years, the Japanese Performing Rights Organization (PRO) has been actively exploring avenues to improve remuneration for its valuable community.
JASRAC’s collaborative efforts with the Music Publishers Association of Japan
In recent years, JASRAC has been actively seeking ways to improve financial returns for its community amidst the growth of Japanese music. In collaboration with the Music Publishers Association of Japan, it has been involved in investigating fingerprint technology since 2017. This endeavor led to the implementation of music recognition devices in retail outlets in 2021.
Orfium’s support for UGC revenue streams
Global recognition of JASRAC’s catalog, combined with Orfium’s expertise has the potential to significantly enhance revenue for JASRAC’s members.
By enabling revenue claiming across UGC platforms, we strive to ensure that Japanese creators and rights holders can fully capitalize on this new revenue stream and maximize the success of their music on a global scale.
Be a part of the journey with Orfium Japan
If you’re interested in our journey and want to explore opportunities with Orfium, get in touch here.
Just weeks after our exciting deal with the Japanese entertainment conglomerate Avex, we are thrilled to announce another significant partnership, this time with Bandai Namco Music Live, a key player in Japanese Anime music. This marks a major milestone in our expansion into Japan and entry into the thriving anime music industry.
As Bandai Namco Music Live’s rights management partner on YouTube, we will leverage our AI technology to oversee, optimize, and monetize their extensive catalog on the platform.
Introducing Bandai Namco Music Live
Bandai Namco Music Live, a leading player in the Japanese anime music industry, has an extensive collection of songs and represents over 3,000 talented creators. They have contributed to numerous beloved entertainment moments, from the popular Love Live! series to the action-packed One-Punch Man.
As the popularity of digital platforms such as YouTube continues to skyrocket, the global reach of anime is also increasing. Recognizing this opportunity, Bandai Namco Music Live chose to partner with Orfium for its superior technology, which optimizes the management and monetization of music used in UGC which will enable them to continually invest into new productions and reach more fans.
As Akiho Matsuo, Rights Department General Manager at Bandai Namco Music Live, put it, “By partnering with Orfium, whose superior technology allows for the management and monetization of music used in user generated content, we can ensure that artists and creators make their music available on a popular global platform and one that, importantly, is also optimized for monetization.”
The Rising Tide of UGC in Japan’s Booming Music Market
Our partnership with Bandai Namco Music Lives sees Orfium move into anime music, a genre with its roots firmly in Japan but which has grown in popularity around the world as anime (short for animation) has become a global phenomenon. According to research by Morgan Stanley, the market reached a value of US$ 25 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow to US $ 35 billion by 2030. Japan is the major contributor in the anime market, accounting for over 40% of the global anime market in 2020.
This growth provides a perfect opportunity for those in the entertainment and music industry to utilize new solutions to capitalize on international growth and fan appetite – a natural alignment with Orfium’s expansion into the Japanese and Asian markets. Leveraging our market-leading AI-powered technology, Orfium aims to help clients optimize and monetize user-generated content (UGC) in this rapidly growing market.
The Path Ahead: Future Opportunities for Orfium in Japan
Japan has held a pivotal position in Orfium’s global expansion strategy since 2022 when we acquired Breaker and established Orfium Japan, led by Alan Swarts. This latest deal builds on our partnerships with Avex, Warner Music Japan, and Victor Entertainment, highlighting our commitment to driving global digital transformation through local collaborations.
With the strength and expertise of our dedicated local team and the latest in cutting edge AI-powered technology, we are excited to continue forging more partnerships in Japan and across Asia’s dynamic music and entertainment landscape to power revenues for rights holders and creators across digital music and broadcast platforms.