Japan Music Marketing - Distribution in Japan for Foreign Record Labels Bands Artists

Selling and Promoting Your Music in Japan
Japan Music Marketing Resources for foreign record labels, bands and artists

Distribution in Japan
How to Get Digital Distribution in Japan | How to Get Physical Distribution in Japan

Distribution means getting your products (digital music and/or CD's) into stores where consumers can buy them. Recently, the flagship HMV store in Shibuya, Tokyo closed its doors forever as the majority of music consumers in Japan now purchase digital music instead of CD's. Today, consumers do not visit a physical store to purchase music—instead they visit web and mobile stores to buy CD's, downloads and music subscription services. Ideally, you should get your music distributed to the stores used most by Japanese consumers. To see a list of the main digital stores in Japan, click here.

As a foreign indie label or artist, you can try to get a deal with a Japanese record label/company for distribution or DIY (do-it-yourself) using the methods described below. In a standard agreement with a Japanese record label/company, expect your share of net sales to be 35% to 50%. (Net sales means the wholesale price minus taxes and other fees).

Even if you focus on a digital sales strategy, it is still a good idea to make a few CD's for promos and press (many still want you to send a CD). Since your advertising/promotion will lead consumers to your Japanese website anyway, you might as well sell your CD there if you have one. It gives consumers a greater choice. But don't manufacture a truckload of CD's. The cost of short-run manufacturing has dropped so it is possible to make 50 to 100 CD's cheaply. You can always manufacture another batch if the demand is there. If you are targeting Japan, you can even make a "Special Japanese Edition" CD (or vinyl record) with packaging in Japanese text, or a bonus track, sticker, poster, etc. This always makes for a nice collector's item for Japanese and non-Japanese consumers. A unique, value-added product may even sway consumers to pay more for a full physical album rather than just a single song download. (Contact us for custom Japanese print and packaging design.)

Naturally, you should try to find a record company that will provide and pay for both distribution and promotion for your music in Japan (i.e. a record deal, licensing, P&D deal, etc.) and give you a fair share. However, record labels only take on a few new artists every year so you may be forced to take a DIY approach to distribution and promotion. Fortunately, there are services and resources available to help you.

See below to learn how to get both digital and physical distribution in Japan.

Digital Distribution in Japan

Digital distribution means getting your music (digital contents) in the main Japanese internet and mobile stores. This is the method of distribution most artists/record labels are concentrating on as CD sales become nonexistent in Japan. Unlike in the West where most digital sales are from computers/smartphones (internet), the majority of digital sales in Japan are from traditional mobile phones. This is mainly due to the advanced mobile phone culture in Japan. More people own a mobile phone instead of a computer. (Try using a laptop on a crowded Tokyo subway!)

According to the data published by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ), over 475 million digital downloads (over US$1 billion worth) were made in Japan in 2008. About 90% of those were made from traditional mobile phones while 10% were made from computers/smartphones (internet).

There are 2 main formats of digital music content sold in Japan:

FORMAT 1
Chaku-Uta™ / Chaku-Uta™ Full
These are special music file formats compatible with traditional mobile phones (known as keitai in Japanese). They are typically purchased and downloaded via the mobile carrier network. A Chaku-Uta can only be used (technically and legally speaking) on the mobile phone to which it was downloaded. Chaku-Uta is a registered trademark of Sony Music Entertainment. The sales, technology and distribution of Chaku-Uta is highly regulated in Japan by the major phone carriers, record labels and rights administrators.

Chaku-Uta™ are ringtones (and ringback tones). They retail for 80 to 120 YEN each. (open currency converter)
Chaku-Uta™ Full are full songs in "CD" quality. They retail for 210 to 410 YEN each.
*The first Chaku-Uta service was introduced in 2002 by KDDI (one of the big 3 mobile carriers in Japan). Between 2004 and 2006, all the carriers started introducing Chaku-Uta Full as mobile technology advanced.

Label Mobile is the main Chaku-Uta content provider operated by a group of many of Japan's largest and most influential record labels. In general, to sell your music as a Chaku-Uta, you need a deal with a Japanese record label.

Chaku-Uta (ringtones and full songs) account for almost 90% of all digital music sales in Japan. However, we believe that the share of non Chaku-Uta formats such as internet downloads (i.e. MP3 stores, iTunes, etc.) and subscription services will increase with the growing popularity in Japan of smartphones and other portable devices with built-in WIFI and music players.

Quick Links

Promotion in Japan

Find a Japanese record label to release your music

Send your demo to Japanese record companies

Do a live tour in Japan

Create a Japanese web + mobile site

Links to Live Houses (Venues) in Japan

See what foreign artists are "Big in Japan"

FORMAT 2
Downloads via the internet to computers, smartphones and other internet-enabled portable music devices
These are the traditional MP3/AAC or other music files you can download via the internet to your computer (and then transfer to your portable digital music player such as an iPod, iPhone or other smartphone). These downloads cannot be used (technically and legally speaking) on traditional keitai mobile phones in Japan. iTunes Japan sells a song download for 150 to 200 YEN retail. Other internet stores sell a song download from 100 to 150 YEN retail. *Now we can do away with the desktop/laptop computer and download straight to our handheld device.

UPDATE: iPhones, Android and other smartphones were introduced in Japan by the big 3 carriers (NTT Docomo, au KDDI, and Softbank). Japanese users of these types of devices can access iTunes Japan or other online stores via the internet where they can readily purchase and download songs.

Smartphones, especially the iPhone, are becoming popular in Japan. However, smartphones only represent about 6% of all mobile phone contracts in Japan. The majority of mobile contracts are for traditional keitai mobile phones, about 100 million, whereas mobile contracts for smartphones are about 6 million, but growing in share. You can see why 90% of all digital music sales are sales of the Chaku-Uta format which is used with tradtional keitai mobile phones, not smartphones.

Traditional keitai mobile phones in Japan have great features/functions but are not especially cost-efficient for those who want to use the internet on their mobile phone. Those who use the mobile internet a lot are better off getting a smartphone.

It is not uncommon to see people in Japan carrying 2 phones—the traditional keitai mobile phone and an iPhone (smartphone). The smartphones offer better internet/web capabilities and media players, but the traditional keitai mobile phones are still hard to get rid of because they have become such a fashion statement and a daily neccessity for Japanese people. Unlike smartphones, traditional keitai mobile phones can function like digital wallets (among other features) and can simply be swiped like a pass when travelling the trains/subways and to pay for things at stores and vending machines. Until someone makes just one device that has the best features of the traditional keitai mobile phone and smartphones then you will see people carrying both types of phones for a while in Japan. And they don't mind paying the fees for both.

How to distribute your digital contents in Japan

To sell your digital music content in Japan, you can do the following:

1. First contact your current distributor (or record label/publisher) to see if they have relations or contacts with Japanese record companies/distributors that can distribute your music to the internet and mobile stores in Japan.

2. Use the digital distribution service provided by Top Music Japan.

3. Find a distributor/record label in Japan to get it into internet and mobile stores for you.
*Even the smallest record labels in Japan can distribute your music (physical, Chaku-Uta and non Chaku-Uta) the same way as the major record companies. With a standard record company/label contract in Japan, you can expect to get around 35% to 50% of sales (net wholesale price).

4. Or you can just sell your music downloads in iTunes Japan and Amazon Japan MP3 Store (no Chaku-Uta™ sales) by using companies (aggregators) such as CDBaby, TuneCore, ReverbNation, or SongCast.

Click here to see a list of the main Japanese internet and mobile stores for digital distribution.

Physical Distribution in Japan

Nowadays, it is almost impossible to get your CD on store shelves in Japan unless you have a major record company pushing your products. Most indie and foreign CD's will be made available for sale through online shops and special order.

How to distribute your CD in Japan

If you want to distribute your CD in Japan, you can do the following:
*First check with your current record label or distributor to see if they can distribute in Japan for you or have connections in Japan.

1. Register your CD with CDBaby.
*All the major retail shops in Japan can buy your CD wholesale from Super D which distributes the catalog of CDBaby worldwide. In theory, any customer in Japan can go to a retail store and special order your CD. You can contact Super D to let them know you are doing promotion or a live tour in Japan. Super D has a Japanese rep that may be able to push your CD to retail shops that may put your CD in their online catalogs or even on shelves at shops in places you are doing a gig in Japan. But you have to let them know you're actively marketing in Japan or else they will do nothing. Show the stores you are committed to sales promotion in Japan by establishing a Japanese web site, doing an online Japanese ad campaign, etc. Click here to read more details about CDBaby and its distribution partners Super D and Amazon, and how they can get your CD into over 2,400 retail shops worldwide.

2. Find a distributor/record label in Japan to get it into shops for you (or to license your music or give you a P&D deal).
*Even the smallest record labels in Japan can distribute your music (physical and digital) the same way as the major record companies. With a standard record company/label contract in Japan, you can expect to get around 35% to 50% of sales (net wholesale price).

3. Sell your CD (and other merch) in your own Japanese online shop using the Top Music Japan Artist Shop Service. Since most people will visit your web site when you do promotion/advertising, it is a good idea to sell your CD and merch directly from your Japanese web site (and you get more money without having to pay a middleman).

You can do all of the above at the same time. If you can't get #2, then doing #1 and #3 together is a good alternative.

CDBaby website
Super D website
Click here to find a distributor/record label in Japan to get your CD's/records into shops
Click here to sell your CD (record, T-shirt, poster) in the TopMusic.jp Artist Shop

Finding a traditional distributor / licensor in Japan
Access the Japan Music Marketing Members Resources Area: Do-it-yourself resources which include contact list and info on Japanese record companies and ready-to-print Japanese cover letters intended for foreign independent record labels, artists and bands who want to send their music to Japanese companies that distribute, import and license foreign music. You may want to try this first since you may find a company in Japan that will release / license your music or give you a P&D (production & distribution) deal where there is minimal risk/cost to you. It is a cost-effective resource for any indie artist, band or music business. Click for more info

Members Resources Area contains the following resources:

List of main distributors/licensors/record labels in Japan that deal with foreign artists/bands/labels
Ready-to-print Japanese cover letters
List of Music Festivals/Conferences in Japan which book and showcase foreign artists/bands
List of Japan Concert Promoters and Tour Planning Companies that specialize in booking foreign artists/bands
Other useful info/advice to help sell and promote your music in Japan

CLICK HERE TO GET MORE INFO and ACCESS THE MEMBERS RESOURCES

Articles about The Music Market in Japan - How to Make it "Big in Japan"

1. Japanese Market Opportunity for Foreign Music - If you are in the business of selling music, do not forget Japan!
2. The Music Business in Japan - Indie Music Culture and Record Companies in Japan
3. Playing Gigs in Japan - Promoting your music at Japanese "Live Houses" and other venues
4. How Much Does It Cost? - The activities and related costs of selling and promoting your music in Japan
5. Useful Tips On Visiting and Doing Business in Japan - Info and advice for visiting and doing business in Japan

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