Abstract
Using Hatsune Miku, a vocaloid or a Desktop Music (DTM) software using voice synthesizer technology, as a case study, this paper explores how consumer generated media (CGM) and user generated content (UGC) diffused in Japan – rapidly at first and then at an erratic and not-so-rapid pace. The creative environment ushered in by the vocaloid platform, it appears, represents a form of "managed creativity", and not a rosy future characterized by a participatory turn to a widespread democratization of creative activity.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Kobayashi, Hajime and Taguchi, Takashi
(2018)
"Virtual Idol Hatsune Miku: Case Study of New Production/Consumption Phenomena generated by Network Effects in Japan’s Online Environment,"
Markets, Globalization & Development Review:
Vol. 3:
No.
4, Article 3.
DOI: 10.23860/MGDR-2018-03-04-03
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/mgdr/vol3/iss4/3
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Anthropology Commons, Economics Commons, Film and Media Studies Commons, Marketing Commons, Other Business Commons, Sociology Commons
Author Bio
Hajime Kobayashi is Professor of Marketing at Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan. He has written several papers related to strategic marketing. His research interests are in strategy-as-practices, organizational learning, dynamic capability, and platform businesses. This paper is an example of the last-mentioned interest. His current work focuses on retail business innovations in international contexts, particularly in China.
Takashi Taguchi, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Business Administration, Ibaraki Christian University, Hitachi, Ibaraki, Japan. Dr. Taguchi specializes in Marketing and Consumer Behavior. He has decades long experience in the business world as a business consultant, corporate executive, and educator. His research focus areas are customer engagement, customer experience, and value co-creation in networked context. He is a graduate of Meiji University Graduate School of Commerce in Tokyo, Japan.