By Tony Wei, Scott Chen, Anita Chen, and Elsie Chu
Based on the popularity of the animation industry, Japan has naturally become the birthplace of VTuber or Virtual YouTubers. However, Taiwan has not fallen behind.
Taiwan’s companies launched local VTubers
Many companies have also begun to follow the Vtuber trend such as Yahoo, KKBOX, Creating Idea, Inc., and Axis 3D Technology, Inc. It seems that this is a new industry that has just started recently, but for people in the industry, it may be more like a transformation. The three elements--animation, KOL, and live broadcast--have begun to be closely integrated to create more value.
Which person or anime character reminds you of Taichung City?
In the past, Taichung had anime characters like the leopard cat family as endorsements, but now there are also virtual YouTubers that have been noticed. One of them is the 19-year-old Yume Amamiya, or “雨宮夢,” who is of Taiwanese-Japanese ancestry and lives in Taichung currently. Obviously, the character set aims to have a connection with Taichung. “In Japan, they also have a lot of virtual characters to combine with the city, so we think this is a great starting direction. Yume debuted on January 8, 2020, and has since been active in the first-line VT circle, cooperating with many other companies.” (You Qihong 2021). The team has a set of inertial motion capture equipment that allows Yume to perform many dynamic performances such as singing and dancing. Recently, Yume had a live talk with Taichung City Councillors, and the plot was fully connected to Taichung City. The connection has impressed the residents and gained popularity. The Taichung City Industrial and Commercial Development Investment Strategy Association also made a special invitation for Yume to co-produce a promotional video with Mayor Lu Xiuyan. Taichung city launched a selection of local gifts, targeting children, young people, and elders of all ages. The top ten souvenir activities in Taichung City started in October. Lu Xiuyan and Yume introduced good gift badges to guarantee the quality of souvenirs in Taichung. People are welcome to buy and express their wishes through gifts.
This battle to expand the Vtuber industry will not go it alone
The Vtuber industry is still growing, and so is Taiwan. From less than one hundred in 2018, the number of Taiwan Vtubers has reached nearly nine hundred in 2021. Although compared with the Japanese Vtuber industry, the Taiwan Vtuber industry still has shortcomings, and Taiwan Vtubers are also not as diverse as the Japanese Vtubers. However, the success of Yume has fully revealed the potential of the Taiwan Vtuber industry. We’re looking forward to seeing more and more creators and enterprises join this industry.
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