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Single AKB48 43rd [Kimi wa Melody] (2016/03/09)

Discussion in 'AKB48 News & Releases' started by ForrestFuller, Dec 15, 2015.

  1. ForrestFuller

    ForrestFuller Senbatsu

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2013
    Location:
    Columbus, Ohio
    Week 2, Day 1 Sales: 4,455 (Total: 1,242,346) (2nd)
     
  2. kyoto48☀︎☂

    kyoto48☀︎☂ Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2015
    The past is the past lol
    Are we gonna talk about their demise for the next 5 years too? Because this is the same conversation for every single release since 2012...

    Don't worry, unless sales drop below 500k, there will still be an AKB as we know it today. Even if they drop below 500k, there will still be an AKB with less girls in it. MM can still be around with sh*t <125k sales, so AKB will always be here too.

    Honestly, I don't care at all how they get the sales, at the end of the day, it sold at least 1.2 million, and after the first day it still sold over 100k... I see absolutely nothing to be negative about
     
  3. Togasaki

    Togasaki Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Dec 13, 2014
    Oshimen:
    shimazakiharuka
    If we're going to worry about sales, I think the decline in DVD/BD sales is much more worrying. The CD sales can be propped up by adding more and more events or more and more groups, so I don't think the CD sales are the problem.
     
  4. ArashNine

    ArashNine Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Feb 25, 2014
    Oshimen:
    shiromamiru
    I don't think so. With the exception of Oogoe Diamond, there hasn't been an A-side center by a sister group member who wasn't a kennin though.
     
  5. natsunishi

    natsunishi Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 2013
    Oshimen:
    Iriyama Anna
    *picks up some marshmallows* :awesome:
     
  6. Kawamoto-san

    Kawamoto-san Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Mar 21, 2015
    Ahhh, Kami-level KFC and HN
    (well, Sasshi is an AKB-origin girl so... and they're Election singles so never mind :D )
     
  7. ArashNine

    ArashNine Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Feb 25, 2014
    Oshimen:
    shiromamiru
    Well, obviously excluding the sousenkyo singles.
     
  8. SorrowAir

    SorrowAir Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Feb 11, 2015
    Location:
    New Zealand
    Oshimen:
    kashiwagiyuki
    As far as I know, soundscan's number will not be public anymore.

    Not that it really matters tbh.

    I always thought soundscan is dubious in ways where it assumes everyone who buy from official store = crazies.
    It's like you cannot be a "normal" fan if you pre-order in their store with a draw to win something.


    I can buy a pizza in person... Or I can order online for the same price and get free garlic bread. (Or potentially free 1000 dollar gift card)
    Decisions decisions...
    In soundscan's statistics, I am not there for the pizza, I'm there for the garlic bread/gift card, therefor I don't love pizza enough to be part of their statistics.


    Maybe people should also do test on McDonalds and see just how much their sales will drop without Happy Meals to get a realistic view of their "actual" overall sales... I bet it'll plummet by at least 8% and that's discounting the fact that they need to actually order the toys and...
    Oh wait.. It's business, and it's about giving aspiring girls a stage to start off in the industry.


    The way I see it.
    Financial "main" Objective = Make money, hopefully make some stars and make more money

    Side "image" Objective = Make girl's dream come true, perhaps provide positive energy to the society.

    Hidden "true" objective = Get Otaku to spend more money, need more money flowing around instead of people keeping it in their banks, like seriously, Japanese people, especially elderly are not spending jack shit and it's killing the country's economy, literally.

    So far, it seem like they're still doing all that, just not as successful as before.
    Which btw, is amazing, especially considering
    1. How large their group have become
    2. How many storm they have weathered that could've killed several groups over
    3. How they still maintaining this even with Japanese's current economy and aging population
     
    Last edited: Mar 16, 2016
  9. Ashitaba

    Ashitaba Upcoming Girls

    Joined:
    May 2, 2014
    Location:
    Idol Hell
    Oshimen:
    Minegishi Minami
    Sasshi is an exception to the rule, as she would never ever center a management-chosen single under any circumstance. In order to center an A-side, it takes for her to be the absolute Queen.
     
  10. Togasaki

    Togasaki Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Dec 13, 2014
    Oshimen:
    shimazakiharuka
    The only time Sasshi will ever center AKB is for election singles. On the other hand, Sasshi said she doesn't mind other girls getting centers for other singles, but for the sousenkyo single, she wants to win no matter what (and be the center).
     
  11. Ashitaba

    Ashitaba Upcoming Girls

    Joined:
    May 2, 2014
    Location:
    Idol Hell
    Oshimen:
    Minegishi Minami
    Sasshi knows what's good about life [hehe]
     
  12. Slacker13

    Slacker13 Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    May 17, 2012
    Oshimen:
    oguriyui
    An interesting "Amendment" to you analysis- The Happy Meal "Margin" is probably even bigger than that.
    every year they they have like 2 (or3?) "Special Toy franchises" a Month - sometimes 1 for Boys & Girls alone. So it's like 24 separate promotions - I.E. the "Minions" Happy Meal probably kept the "lights on" for half of America's McD's for a few weeks. They learned this in the 90's with Beanie Babies- People would buy 20 toys and Never have them make the Happy Meal basket.

    For those NOT in America - McD's has been "Forced" to experiment w/ Breakfast ALL DAY long items because it's the only "demo" where McD's is leading or still has growth. Sadly - it's a "Scaled Down" version of mostly Microwavable "stuff" but aside from the day shift.

    McD's killed their $1 Menu for a $2 menu that started in Jan & is already Scrapped. Now, they've ripped off Burger King w/ a 2 "large sandwiches" for $5...which is what you'd pay w/ an average Sunday newspaper coupon anyway.

    Without the TOYS....McD's would be dead by now. I will address that their FREE Wifi is the best quality anywhere. When I torrent - I use McD's - I can DL 4 gigs in less than 2 hours.

    WHY isn't AKS trying to break into Western markets? I used to love when AKB would do things on YouTube now it's like they don't care at all about the West. Shame... Idol music seems to be on the verge of a something & even MomoClo isn't anti-Western.

    Lastly- I may or may not be making references or examples using KPOP in the relative future (in my statements)...only because they've been "Watering my Plants" (like I might need an Arc there's so much ENG Subs)- What if AKB48 goes the way of an industry leader like "Blockbuster"?
    People in America remember Blockbuster Video- They killed all the small video stores & then Online Streaming & NetFlix killed "Blockbuster"...and it only took about 2 years. The last year alone was almost 'Free fall' they were closing so fast.

    Shouldn't AKB48 be focusing on getting it's girls out there into the "Market Place" and to bring people INTO AKB fandom?? Paruru is certainly trying this... But If AKS doesn't allow the spread or bolster it's "English Sub" people might move on. Korean already has an AKB clone meets "American Idol"- called "Produce 101" (yes, 101 girls!)- Season 1 isn't even 1/2 way done & it's already a massive success.... and yes, SUBBED

    I'm not going to lie - I'm not as "thick into AKB" as I was before Sept 2015...wasn't Jurina either sent (or Chose?) to lead SKE48 only? like she said she wanted to concentrate on SKE more than AKB (like in respect to SKE)... Doesn't a Jurina center undermine her position? Or was this situation already "dealt with". I remember reading grumblings on here about her Janken single winning request hour again people complaining (On Stage48) about she was leaving AKB but this was something she asked for as she left?

    Isn't it "poking that bear" to have her center the Election single? Unless you make it a Captains Mulit-Center maybe. Anai = HKT, Sayanee = NMB, Kitaharie = NGT, Yui = AKB ect.... NOT trying to start crap...I've been "out of it" for like Six Months. I think it would be a disaster for AKB to NOT shine light on the NEW Gens - utterly playing w/ fire. No One who is a serious fan of the Next Gens has patience enough to wait 12 months after the election to see the NEXT chapter of AKB. If the "new girls" are NOT ready? It's because AKI-P, Toga-san, & whomever DRAGGED Their Feet since "Sayonara Crawl" - since Minegishi Team 4 they've should've been building.
     
    Last edited: Mar 16, 2016
  13. garnetjester

    garnetjester Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2007
    Location:
    On the slope
    @Slacker13 It's definitely Off Topic but since you brought it up, Korea has a very different market for music, and there's a "hallyu" or korean wave concept which means that they are interested in exporting their artists, this means that they are very western-friendly, there are lots of official subs for shows, and even a show called After School Club that is half in english half in korean for idols to connect to their international fans. Here in South America K-pop is super popular, and they even hold tours here.

    The fundamental difference is that Korea needs all the revenue it can get to keep its industry afloat, while the japanese music market is big enough that it's self sustainable, so there's no real need to look for consumers elsewhere or cater to them, that's why Jpop sounds different to mainstream western music, especially when compared to K-pop which is much more influenced by american music which makes it in turn more public friendly for the west.

    Also, there's a cultural trend in Japan to be kind of an isolated country, even though they've been trying to market aspects of its culture with the Cool Japan initiative, it's a half assed effort, and the country has been criticised for it before.

    Anyway, back to KwM, I'm glad that it broke a million in the first week, this will give everyone a breather since the summer single is usually the best seller of the year anyway. FWIW, I don't think Jurina is going to center anything now that she left AKB's kennin, and it's for the best while SKE gains more footing after Rena's departure. I hope we get another Labrador Retriever type of song inspired by showa idols :D
     
  14. kyoto48☀︎☂

    kyoto48☀︎☂ Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2015
    The reason was already stated by @garnetjester , but Japan doesn't need any western markets for its music industry. The Japanese market is huge, and most of their international market is coming from China/Taiwan. Foreign sales (even from other Asian countries) are never counted among sales in Oricon, so any drop you see also has nothing to do with the foreign fandom's lack of interest.

    I'm guessing less than 2% of AKB sales are to Western fans, so it is not worth the money or the time to cater to them in any way at all.

    K-pop/K-dramas, on the other hand, are really trying to export to the west. But you need to understand, the main reason is the number of Koreans living in the west dwarfs the number of Japanese living in the west, especially in America. Almost all of the Korean groups are trying to show off to Koreans in the west, not white/black/spanish people. Many of those Koreans don't speak Korean fluently, their main language is English. So it makes more sense for the Korean companies to do this, because they are targeting the very large Korean diaspora, especially in America.
     
  15. ryandtw

    ryandtw Next Girls

    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2010
    Location:
    Seattle, WA, USA
    Twitter:
    ryandtw_jpop
    *Rounding error :p
     
  16. plomeplome

    plomeplome Upcoming Girls

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2014
    Actually they rounded it correctly, no?
     
  17. Minowa Natsuki

    Minowa Natsuki Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Sep 29, 2014
    Oshimen:
    miyawakisakura
    Its just my prediction. Even when she cancelled her kennin with AKB, she is still at the front in KwM. So why cant she be the center? Im not a Jurina-Oshi but I can tell she is still management favourite and her being "SKE only" will not affect her position in AKB Single. However, I still wish for AKB young member to center the next single. Paruru, Sakura n Jurina will still be at the front lol
     
  18. Jurinavenclaw

    Jurinavenclaw Future Girls

    Joined:
    Dec 25, 2010
    Location:
    Laguna, Philippines
    Oshimen:
    Matsui Jurina
    ^

    I wonder though, how will it affect Jurina's chances in the sousenkyo if she centers the summer single? Will it boost her chances since it's like a call for SKE fans to grab the chance or will it backfire by fueling the passions/anger of other top 48G members.
     
  19. ABF48

    ABF48 Member

    Joined:
    Apr 23, 2015
    Next single would be the right time to rise AKB new ace. i see kojimako or renachi as the candidate of this, miion perhaps. or even annin if ohtapro still want to continue their reign.
     
  20. ArashNine

    ArashNine Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Feb 25, 2014
    Oshimen:
    shiromamiru
    I'm not sure if anyone noticed but Renacchi, for the first time afaik excluding maybe BwT, received a higher position than Annin & Yuria in KwM, according to Stage48 lyrics. Hopefully this is the start of something better for her, imo she has more potential to grow compared to Yuria who basically stagnated after leaving SKE.
     

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