Dwango (company)

DWANGO Co., Ltd.
Native name
 株式会社ドワンゴ
Kabushiki gaisha Dongo
Kabushiki gaisha
Subsidiary
Traded as TYO: 3715 (until September 26, 2014)
Industry Entertainment
Founded August 6, 1997 (1997-08-06) in Tokyo, Japan
Headquarters Tokyo, Japan
Area served
 Worldwide
Key people
 Nobuo Kawakami
(Chairman)
Takashi Araki
(President)
Parent Kadokawa Dwango
Subsidiaries Spike Chunsoft
Mages
Niconico
Website info.dwango.co.jp

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 is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Dwango Corporation. 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's subsidiaries include Niwango, which runs the popular Japanese video sharing site Nico Nico Douga. The company also is the 100% owner of the game developer Spike Chunsoft. 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]

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.
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