Dwango (company)

DWANGO Co., Ltd. (株式会社ドワンゴ, Kabushiki gaisha Dowango) is a telecommunications and media company based in Japan, headed by Nobuo Kawakami. The company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2014. The company was spun off from a U.S.-based service offering online multiplayer for video games, DWANGO (Dial-up Wide-Area Network Game Operation), which was shut down in 1998. Dwango's majority shareholders until its merger with Kadokawa Corporation included Kawakami himself, Kadokawa Corporation, and Avex Group. Dwango runs the popular Japanese video sharing site Niconico. The company also is the 100% owner of the game developer Spike Chunsoft, which Dwango bought as the companies Spike and Chunsoft in 2005 when they were separated companies, before merging them in 2012.

DWANGO Co., Ltd.
Native name
株式会社ドワンゴ
Kabushiki gaisha Dowango
TypeKabushiki gaisha
Subsidiary
IndustryEntertainment
FoundedAugust 6, 1997 (1997-08-06) in Tokyo, Japan
FounderInteractive Visual Systems d/b/a DWANGO
HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
Area served
Japan
Key people
Takeshi Natsuno
(President and CEO)
ServicesNiconico
ParentKadokawa Corporation
SubsidiariesDehogallery
Dwango AG Entertainment
Dwango Music Publishing
FromNetworks
Project Studio Q
Spike Chunsoft
Vantan
Vaka
Virtual Cast
Watanabe Amaduction
Websitewww.dwango.co.jp

History

In November 2013, it was confirmed Nintendo purchased 612,200 or 1.5% shares of the company at the request of Nobuo Kawakami.[1][2]

On May 14, 2014, it was announced that Dwango and Kadokawa Corporation would merge on October 1, 2014, and form the new holding company Kadokawa Dwango Corporation. Both Kadokawa and Dwango became subsidiaries of the new company.[3][4]

In February 2019, Kadokawa Dwango announced that Dwango would stop being their subsidiary to be a direct subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation in a reorganization of the company.[5]

In July 2019, Mages was acquired by its CEO concept studio Chiyomaru Studio and stopped being a subsidiary of Dwango and part of the Kadokawa Group.[6]

References
  1. Amano, Takashi (November 15, 2013). "Nintendo Rises After Buying Stake in Web Company Dwango". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  2. "dwango co ltd (3715:Tokyo)". Bloomberg Businessweek. November 15, 2013. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  3. Schilling, Mark (May 14, 2014). "Kadokawa and Dwango to Merge". Variety. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  4. "Publisher Kadokawa, Internet firm Dwango complete merger". The Japan Times. October 1, 2014. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  5. Ressler, Karen. "Nobuo Kawakami Steps Down as Kadokawa Dwango President". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  6. "Game Director Chiyomaru Shikura Buys Out MAGES., Goes Independent". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 22, 2022.


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