To begin with, I would like to express my utmost gratitude to everyone around the world to whom hololive production is a source of daily motivation. At the same time, in recent years and even very recently, there have been incidents that may have caused concern that the company’s support has not been sufficient enough. As the executive responsible for management, I take this very seriously.

Nearly three years have passed since we went public amidst the company’s rapid growth. The environment surrounding the company is constantly changing each day, and these changes have not always been what we anticipated. I strongly feel that delays in not addressing such unforeseen circumstances have led members of the community to worry that if this continues, the place we all value so dearly may no longer exist.

In light of this situation, we have certainly taken action in a variety of different ways, but we have not been sufficiently transparent with such processes or provided clear responses to the feedback we have received. At the same time, as the company has continued to expand, I personally struggled with distinguishing the company from myself as an individual, and as a result, I have held back from openly expressing my own thoughts and feelings.

However, although this is not a dialogue, I felt that there needed to be a place to deliver a sincere and candid message in my own words that we are fully aware of the expectations everyone has of us and we are doing our very best to meet them. I believe that I needed to say something not only as the executive of COVER, but also as a fan who cherishes the wonderful space that is hololive production.

Of course, it is not possible to openly disclose all of the issues we currently face, but I also fully accept the comments of disapproval asking, “Isn’t it a little too late?” However, the fact that we must continue to make improvements no matter how long it may take is something that is constantly with me, and it starts with me. This is the mindset with which I am approaching this.

As the representative of COVER Corporation, I would like to share with everyone my thoughts on what is required in order to protect hololive production.

First of all, regarding the environment surrounding the company, I strongly feel that VTubers have grown into something far beyond what I ever imagined when we first founded the company. This is not merely the fact that the company has kept on growing, but that so many more people have joined and expanded the community that supports VTuber activities, including all of the wonderful talents and fans. As such, in order to deliver the most enjoyable experiences to an even wider audience, we have been actively branching out into related businesses, while still keeping our primary focus on the VTuber business. One such challenge has been insourcing various operations.

To give some examples, in the music business, when a talent wants to create an original song, relying on an external label means that the label needs to show interest in the talent for the song to go ahead. Therefore, in order to maximize the motivation and potential of our talents without being restricted by outside assessment, we decided that supporting them through our own in-house label would be the best approach. In e-commerce (online sales) as well, some companies outsource the operation of their e-commerce sites, but in our case, when we were starting out and our fan base started to expand overseas, we were unable to find a company that could support both domestic and international markets. We made the decision that managing it ourselves would be the most suitable way to provide the best services for both markets.

In other words, bringing things in-house was a decision aimed at realizing the dreams of our talents and the aspirations of our fans without limiting what is possible. However, at the same time, as the business expanded, we found ourselves in a situation where we were not able to put all of our attention into the finer details.

When we say it was “a decision aimed at realizing the dreams of our talents and the aspirations of our fans,”  I understand that some may feel that this was not the case at all. In fact, it cannot be denied that there have been aspects that contradict our original purpose. As we have grown, what we are capable of has also expanded; however, various errors that at times have contradicted our aim to “live up to expectations” have also been made. I take this very seriously and am prepared to confront any issues we face with a grounded and steady approach.

Every day, we work to identify those things, improve them, and carry those improvements forward so that we can edge ever closer to our ideals. Although it is not easy to make everything public, we will continue to listen closely to what our fans and the hololive community has to say.

We may have to narrow our focus, but there is no doubt that we have reached a point where we must calmly reassess our current situation, and we are communicating both internally and externally that we will review our expansion up until now and make any necessary adjustments. 

By hearing from the talents directly, we have worked to align with what they want to pursue and coordinate with the relevant departments to move toward making those goals a reality. However, regrettably, there are still many areas where we have not been able to meet their expectations, and I am sincerely apologetic about that.

I recognize that only when the organization’s foundation is solid can we truly support major leaps forward. Although we began addressing improvement requests we received last year, issues have continued to arise, and truth be told, I am aware that we have lost some of the trust we had with talents and users a year ago.

Over the past year especially, we have found ourselves having to continually respond to issues retrospectively, but from here on out, we plan to take more fundamental measures, so that we can stay on top of and prevent potential problems. In that sense, as I mentioned earlier, I believe it is also necessary to take a moment and reconsider the direction we are currently heading in.

Tanigo: Our commitment to standing alongside our talents will never waver, now nor in the future. That said, the speed of our efforts to fully understand how they feel has not matched how fast necessary actions and care should have been provided by the company, and as a result, we have caused both talents and fans undue concern.

Needless to say, it has never been our intention to compromise talents’ main streaming activities or their physical and/or mental health. I have come to believe that what is required of the company now is not merely just managing the business, but to be a safety net of sorts so that talents can continue to stand on stage with smiles on their faces years from now and beyond, and when needed, be a trusted companion. This means making sure talents are in an environment where they don’t have to worry when taking time off and are able to conduct their activities at their own pace.

Because hololive production has grown to be such a significant presence, we have been blessed with many opportunities. However, if we do not remain conscious of an appropriate business scale that we can manage ourselves, it will put a strain on both the talents and our employees. I believe we need to take a measured look at the current situation once again in order to implement the appropriate actions.

For instance, this includes allowing talents to take time off freely for an appropriate length of time at the right time, depending on the talent, without worrying about their activities.  Some talents may feel anxious about their activities coming to a temporary halt, but I hope fans will kindly see them off and give them a warm welcome back when they return.

 I couldn’t possibly begin to tell you what troubles each individual employee is dealing with, but what I can say with certainty is that it is thanks to our employees that hololive production even exists, and for that I am eternally grateful.

Up until now, I have been talking about the shortcomings and insufficiencies in our support for the talents, but these can also be directly linked to any excessive stress our employees have been under as well. Our employees are very proud of the work that they do in their core mission to provide even better experiences for all of our fans, and it is my responsibility when there is no such environment that allows them to focus on their work without concern. We are working towards rectifying any imbalances in our current organizational structures and implementing systems so that staff can be proactive moving forward.

I plan to continue sharing messages from myself on various occasions going forward. I hope to use them to explain the details and progress of our activities to those supporting hololive production both inside and outside the company.

With respect to addressing defamation and harassment, I believe we are now in a position where we can implement more in-depth measures.

While carefully reviewing the reports we receive on a daily basis, we are proceeding with firm action to resolve each individual case. This goes beyond mere countermeasures, and also includes care for the mental well-being of any talents and/or employees who have been affected.

We are certainly not watching in silence. That said, legal action inevitably requires time. We would love nothing more than to tell everyone right away what we’ve done so far and put everyone at ease, but unfortunately disclosing how we are dealing with certain issues may allow other parties to prepare countermeasures. The frustration of wanting to say something, but not being able to is something that is genuinely painful for us as well.

That said, please know this.

Our ability to implement countermeasures has steadily grown stronger with each passing year. The number of cases we have prevented or resolved behind the scenes has steadily increased as well and we will continue to protect this precious place quietly, yet with unwavering resolve.

I understand that when the company does not provide specific explanations, fans are left with no choice but to fill in the gaps with their own imagination. However, if we let our imagination run wild with only pieces of information, it can get further and further away from the truth. In order to prevent this from happening, it may be ideal for us to release more detailed information, but please understand that there are some specifics we can’t make public as there are those who will repeatedly defame or harass others. We are strengthening our measures in dealing with such matters, with constant results.

All of the structural reforms we are working on now, which may at first glance appear like we are at a standstill, are ultimately aimed at delivering the greatest experiences in the future.

The season of “hololive SUPER EXPO ＆ hololive fes.”, our most important festivals and events so many of you look forward to, is upon us. They are unique spaces where talents and fans can come together and experience the passion of VTuber culture firsthand.

The future we envision is one in which the real and virtual worlds blend together, creating a new form of connection that puts smiles on everyone’s faces. We would like to gradually increase the number of places where this is possible.
As hololive production evolves even further, I genuinely look forward, together with all of you, to delivering all new surprises and sources of inspiration and I promise that we will journey together to enjoy the spectacle that awaits beyond what we are now challenging ourselves to achieve.

We sincerely appreciate your continued support of hololive production.