We are pleased to announce a partnership agreement with Anifie, a venture IT company based in the United States (Headquarters: California, CEO: Yohei Iwasaki), which will allow participants to attend virtual concerts held within Anifie by purchasing eligible tickets sold through ZAIKO.

Anifie is a U.S. venture company that develops a smartphone app for immersive virtual concerts. It offers a service where users can select their favorite avatars and experience live events and fan communities in a virtual space. By entering into a partnership agreement with ZAIKO, which is leading the new normal in the live entertainment industry, we aim to diversify the options for expressing live streaming under the philosophy of putting artists and event organizers first, and we will continue to support the live activities of artists and event organizers in the changing live entertainment industry.
 

As the first virtual concert to be sold through ZAIKO, tickets for the virtual concert of American Christian hip-hop artist CANTON JONES, scheduled for May 9 (Sunday), will be available for purchase starting April 28 (Wednesday) on the ZAIKO special page (https://anifie.zaiko.io/e/cantonjones).
 

ZAIKO views this partnership as a significant step towards a new future for the live entertainment industry and digital events, holding great potential. We will continue to provide artist- and organizer-first services centered around digital platforms, leading the new normal in the live entertainment industry.

■About the collaboration between ZAIKO and Anifie

Through ZAIKO, customers will be able to purchase event tickets (tickets for events held in real life) for artists and event organizers who hold virtual concerts within Anifie. Only customers who purchase eligible event tickets through ZAIKO will be able to purchase tickets for participating in virtual concerts held within Anifie for free. 

■Comment from Anifie CEO Yohei Iwasaki

"The music industry has undergone significant changes during the transformation brought about by the internet and computers, with the recording market in the U.S. dropping to half of its peak. On the other hand, the advances in the internet have enabled artists to connect directly with fans through social media. Under ZAIKO's vision of 'artists connecting directly with fans' (Direct to Fan), we hope to provide a place where artists and fans can connect directly and feel a sense of belonging in the online community through the concerts held in our virtual space, Anifie."
 

■ZAIKO CEO Malek Nasser

Comment: "As the live entertainment and the music industry faces a transformative era, I believe that this partnership with Anifie, which has potential across various fields in the area of XR, will significantly expand the possibility of ZAIKO's vision of Direct 2 Fan = D2F. I look forward to being able to provide new experiential value through the content of event x virtual space, starting with this collaboration with Anifie."
 

■About Anifie

Based in California, USA. Participated in the Stanford University accelerator StartX (

https://startx.com/) and has received investments from several venture capitalists, including Stanford Angels & Entrepreneurs (https://stanfordaande.com/portfolio/). The company's initiatives have also been featured in Stanford University's classes. Developing and distributing an app that offers interactive concerts.