is a

telecommunications Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...

and

media company Mass media refers to a diverse array of media technologies that reach a large audience via mass communication. The technologies through which this communication takes place include a variety of outlets. Broadcast media transmit information ...

based in Japan, headed by Nobuo Kawakami. The company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2014. The company was spun off from a U.S.-based service offering

online multiplayer A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...

for video games,

DWANGO The Dial-up Wide-Area Network Game Operation, better known by the acronym DWANGO, was an early online gaming service based in the United States. Launched in 1994, it was originally known for its compatibility with ''Doom'', for which it function ...

(Dial-up Wide-Area Network Game Operation), which was shut down in 1998. Dwango's majority shareholders until its merger with Kadokawa Corporation included Kawakami himself, Kadokawa Corporation, and

Avex Group is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...

. Dwango runs the popular Japanese video sharing site Niconico. The company also is the 100% owner of the game developer

Spike Chunsoft is a Japanese video game development and localization company specializing in role-playing video games, visual novels and adventure games. The company was founded in 1984 as Chunsoft Co., Ltd. and merged with Spike in 2012. It is owned by Dwango ...

, which Dwango bought as the companies

Spike Spike, spikes, or spiking may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Books * ''The Spike'' (novel), a novel by Arnaud de Borchgrave * ''The Spike'' (book), a nonfiction book by Damien Broderick * ''The Spike'', a starship in Peter F. Hamilto ...

and Chunsoft in 2005 when they were separated companies, before merging them in 2012.

History

In November 2013, it was confirmed

Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...

purchased 612,200 or 1.5% shares of the company at the request of Nobuo Kawakami. On May 14, 2014, it was announced that Dwango and Kadokawa Corporation would merge on October 1, 2014, and form the new holding company Kadokawa Dwango Corporation. Both Kadokawa and Dwango became subsidiaries of the new company. In February 2019, Kadokawa Dwango announced that Dwango would stop being their subsidiary to be a direct subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation in a reorganization of the company. In July 2019,

Mages Mage most commonly refers to: * Mage (paranormal) or magician, a practitioner of magic derived from supernatural or occult sources * Mage (fantasy) or magician, a type of character in mythology, folklore, and fiction *Mage, a character class in s ...

was acquired by its CEO concept studio Chiyomaru Studio and stopped being a subsidiary of Dwango and part of the Kadokawa Group.

References

External links

* Kadokawa Corporation subsidiaries Japanese companies established in 1997 Mass media companies established in 1997 Internet technology companies of Japan {{Japan-company-stub