Activity Report Vol.21: Otaku Coin FAQ: Revised Edition (Current As of May 14, 2018)
Ask Us Anything!
The Otaku Coin Concept Presentation was held on May 9, 2018, and we received lots of feedback from everyone. We have updated the Q&A based on the presentation and everyone’s opinions, so please read it for clarification.
Q. The name “Otaku Coin” isn’t very good. Why did you name it that way? Did you think about the fans overseas when you chose the name?
A. Yes, we chose the name while thinking about fans overseas. However, there is a possibility that we may change the name of our cryptocurrency in the future.
We chose to use the word otaku in the naming of our cryptocurrency because we want it to change its image around the world to a positive one. We also intentionally used it in our company name, Tokyo Otaku Mode. That is how strong our thoughts toward changing the image are.
The word otaku used to have a far more negative meaning than it does now, which made it difficult for fans to talk to others about anime, manga, games, and other otaku content. Fans would enjoy content while keeping it a secret from their parents, teachers, and friends.
However, the word otaku is now being used in less negative or even positive ways. For us, the definition of otaku is an individual who actively pursues and enjoys what they like or the act of doing so. We think enjoying what someone likes is a wonderful thing, and we hope to have the word otaku used in a positive manner around the world.
Because we want otaku, one of the few Japanese words recognized around the world, to be used with a positive meaning, we chose to use it in the name of our cryptocurrency so that we can all have more chances to use otaku in a positive way.
To be completely honest, the naming of our cryptocurrency caused heated debates within the Otaku Coin Preparation Committee, as some of us wondered whether it would be appropriate for us to use the word otaku. Therefore, we expected to be questioned and criticized for our decision. Having said that, if the discussion and debate regarding the word otaku in Otaku Coin can cause people to think deeply about the meaning and their impressions of the word, our efforts in naming our cryptocurrency are already significant.
Q. Who is Otaku Coin designed for?
A. Otaku Coin is a cryptocurrency that can be more accurately be called a community currency. It came about from the wishes of fans of Japanese pop culture like anime, manga, games, and more all around the world to be able to support creators.
Fans can use Otaku Coins through the processes of enjoying their daily otaku activities, sharing content with friends, and purchasing content-related merchandise. They can also support their favorite creators through voting.
Also, cross-border e-commerce sites that sell otaku goods continue to charge handling fees. If there is a single cryptocurrency within the community that has the same value, instead of relying on different legal currencies, there will be no middleman and handling fees can be lowered to the bare minimum to promote circulation. The money that was originally used for handling fees can be used by fans for other content, products, or future ideas, so that money goes back to anime creators and the content industry for a cycle that can support future content. By using a cryptocurrency based on blockchain technology, the cycle becomes cleaner and can be constructed without any kickbacks.
The concrete acquisition and support methods are still in the middle of conception. Because the possibilities are endless, we, the Otaku Coin Preparation Committee, cannot complete these tasks alone. That’s why we are asking for opinions from various people at this stage of conception.
We have one goal for Otaku Coin: to serve as a bridge connecting and energizing fans around the world who love otaku content and creators who produce it. In order to achieve our goal, we must further promote Japanese otaku culture around the world and create a lasting environment where otaku content can continue to be produced.
Q. Why can’t you use another cryptocurrency? Why does it have to be Otaku Coin?
A. We believe there should be different cryptocurrency options to choose from based on the purposes behind each of them.
That is why we are considering providing services that are possible only through the creation of Otaku Coin as a new community currency.
When we presented the concept paper in May 2018, we announced the voting platform SPIRIT VOTE (name subject to change), which will be one of Otaku Coin’s biggest characteristics. On SPIRIT VOTE, Otaku Coin holders will be given voting rights (voting tokens) that they can use to contribute on deciding which projects will be developed, making the voting platform also a fundraising platform.
There is no other cryptocurrency in existence with these sorts of special functions and platforms.
Each cryptocurrency around the world has its own traits, industries or communities it wants to stimulate, as well as its own distribution networks. Therefore, we believe the purpose and vision behind the design of each cryptocurrency are different. Also, with the Otaku Coin Preparation Committee, a group with fans around the world and connections throughout the content industry as the point of contact, we can allow funds to be provided to creators and anime production committees through official methods that are in accordance to contracts and agreements.
Furthermore, issuing our new cryptocurrency and successfully implementing the service platform and other possibilities we are considering could potentially allow our cryptocurrency to be used in even more ways and have an increased range of circulation.
We believe that our new cryptocurrency will function effectively when all participants move the project forward in the same direction.
Q. Isn’t this just a scheme to make Tokyo Otaku Mode a lot of money?
Tokyo Otaku Mode (hereafter referred to as TOM) drafted Otaku Coin in the beginning and created the Otaku Coin Preparation Committee (hereafter referred to as OCPC) made up of various third parties in order to make this idea a reality. Now, more than half of the members of OCPC are not related to TOM, so all the decisions are made independently of TOM. Otaku Coin is progressing through OCPC’s decision-making.
As of May 2018, the OCPC is comprised of various experts who have spent their careers in the content industry or who have set up their own businesses, so they are the main players in daily operations. Members who have been part of the OCPC from the beginning (including TOM-related members) are still a part of it, as well as experts from various industries like blockchain technology, IT, and finance, so it is made up of people with a very diverse background.
・Anime/manga production
・Game production/development
・Manga contest judge
・Website/app development
・Blockchain technology expert (legal, financial, security, systems)
New business creation, stock market, managing a listed company, finance, M&A, etc.
This is so that Otaku Coin doesn’t become the currency of any specific organization or group, but can continue with the goal of becoming the currency of a community that holds the same goals and values. We will not create a structure that only benefits one company, and we believe that if that happens, Otaku Coin will have lost its value and meaning.
Q. 39% of the distributed coins will be given to OCPC members. Is this necessary?
We will elaborate on the “39% of the Otaku Coins will be used by the OCPC members (made up of the planning partners, advisors, and management members) for operating costs” sentence listed in the concept paper.
These operating costs are as follows:
Software development fees (the tokens themselves and all related applications such as the voting platform and the wallet, planned to be developed using open-source software)
Marketing fees
Costs related to creating model cases for projects to be discussed later
Labor costs for the OCPC members
All costs related to developing Otaku Coin, as well as creating and maintaining the community
We aim to fund a project that will become a model case on the voting platform SPIRIT VOTE and will also be a test to make sure the platform works smoothly.
In other words, the operating fees are to be used for the development and maintenance of Otaku Coin itself, and not as funds for the OCPC members to use as profit. That 39% will be used over time to make Otaku Coin a reality. In order to stabilize otaku culture like anime, we will use Otaku Coin to support those actions, but it will not happen overnight. We believe it will take a long time and a lot of trial and error at various steps before it becomes a reality.
Q. Is 1 Otaku Coin 1 yen?
No, the exchange isn’t fixed. As explained in the Otaku Coin Concept Presentation, if Otaku Coin’s partners (for example, an online shop) will accept it as payment, then we will create a fixed exchange rate for our users.
In order to spread Otaku Coin both as an idea and reality, the planning partners, including Tokyo Otaku Mode, will accept it as payment. The exchange rate is currently under consideration. If the idea of Tokyo Otaku Mode accepting Otaku Coin brings forth any kind of suspicion that will harm the spread of Otaku Coin, we will consider avoiding accepting it in the beginning.
Q. Is the OCPC managing Otaku Coin in a decentralized manner?
We approve of the use of blockchain technology being the basis of this cryptocurrency for decentralization purposes. There are already plenty of planning partners and advisors taking part, so it is being managed in a distributed manner. Because Otaku Coin is meant to connect anime, manga, and game fans all around the world, more than half of the OCPC members are not related to Tokyo Otaku Mode in order to freely give unbiased opinions that will help make Otaku Coin a reality.
Since we are creating a voting and fundraising platform that connects fans with creators and production companies, we will have to take leadership like a company in the beginning. However, our goal is for Otaku Coin to continue being distributed even without the existence of the OCPC. We are still in the middle of considering how to make that happen.
Q. Are there really any otaku in the Otaku Coin Preparation Committee?
A. We do believe there are individuals out there enjoying what they like who are more otaku than we are in the fields of anime, manga, games, and more. Still, we would like to assure you that in the Otaku Coin Preparation Committee, we have members who have watched over forty anime series every season, represented Japan in international online game tournaments in their student days, dedicated more than five years of their life to online gaming, read tens of thousands of manga, and served as a judge in a certain annual manga award event. Our committee is composed of a wide variety of individuals.
We hope this Q&A effectively conveys our thoughts toward this project, and we will post updates on this blog once they become available.
While the concept paper lists “Otaku Coin Foundation,” it has not yet been established, so we use the name “Otaku Coin Preparation Committee” here.
If you would like to contact us, please join our Facebook group..
Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/otakucoin/
Otaku Coin Concept Site: https://otaku-coin.com/ja/
Otaku Coin Preparation Committee
