Who is the world's number one IP?
A small Pikachu , how can it have such great market value and influence?
The birth of "first IP": How "Pikachu" is popular all over the world
989, one of the world's three largest electronic game giants, Nintendo , "game lover" Tomoto Tajiri established the game development company GameFreak to try to make some action games. And thus, the idea of developing a "insect" game was born, "Pokemon" took shape. GameFreak founder Tomota Tajiri
996, the first generation of Pokemon games, "Pokemon Red" and "Pokemon Green", which had been developed for six years, were officially launched. At the same time as Pokemon was launched, a comic based on the characters in the game, " Pipi Legend", began to be serialized. In this comic, Pikachu only appears as a supporting role. The real protagonist is another Pokémon Pipi, and the style and storyline are also relatively nonsensical. It is very different from the " Pokémon " series that was later well-known to the public, but it was popular with many readers at that time.
In March 11997, "Pokemon" had already jumped to the top 30 software sales list in Japan. In the following two years, Nintendo revised the game and launched versions such as "Pokemon Blue", and the sales of the first generation of "Pokemon" increased by more than one year, and eventually sold a total of 45 million sets, becoming one of the most popular games in Nintendo's history and successfully revitalized the company's business.
999, the Pokemon series has successively launched handheld games and a large number of derivative games and console games, including "Pokemon Gold and Silver", including 7 generations (the eighth generation is released this winter), with a total of more than 70 models, with a cumulative sales of more than 300 million sets worldwide, and has won 8 related world records issued by the Guinness World Record, laying the foundation for the popularity of this IP worldwide. And while Pokémon's influence gradually increased in Japan, IP operators are also constantly pushing it to the world. In the United States, companies such as Pokémon and Disney have had in-depth cooperation, and sold more than 25 million animation DVDs and VCDs in 2000 alone; Indian statistics show that the series was once the animation with the largest number of users among viewers aged 4-14.
As of now, "Pokemon" has been aired in 124 countries. Even in 2016, Netflix also revealed that "Pokemon" is one of the most popular series on Netflix.
The best-selling "Pokemon" DVD
In recent years, Pokémon's influence has been trending beyond the pure entertainment field and has gradually become a cultural symbol. In the United States, during the election period, politicians such as Hillary Clinton even go to the rallies of Pokémon fans in the United States to canvass votes from this huge audience.
In Japan, Pikachu is regarded as a "national symbol". When Japan played in the World Cup in 2014, Pikachu defeated Doraemon and others and joined forces with more than a dozen Pokémons to become the mascot of the Japanese team.
What do the "Pikachu" make $90 billion?
's global influence naturally makes the market value of Pokémon's IP rise.
According to public information, Dumou has sorted out the Pokémon monetization model published on the Internet and divided it into the following categories: licensing and sales of derivatives around , electronic game sales, card game sales, animation and movie revenue . The specific division is as follows - the authorization and sale of
1
peripheral derivatives and the authorization and sale of
peripheral derivatives is currently the most profitable business related to Pokémon. The "list" data points out that the cumulative revenue has reached more than US$60 billion in the past two decades. Although Disney, the entertainment giant and the overlord of the derivatives industry, can earn $40 billion in derivatives every year, this is the result of the joint efforts of multiple phenomenal IPs such as Mickey Mouse, Marvel, and Star Wars. Pokémon's single IP can sell $200 billion per year on average, which shows its influence.
Electronic game sales
Electronic game sales is Pokémon's oldest and most traditional monetization channel. It is the most popular game IP on almost every generation of Nintendo handheld console after GB. Up to now, Pokémon's various derivative games have sold more than US$17 billion and more than 300 million sets worldwide. In terms of sales, it ranks second in total sales in the history of electronic games, second only to Nintendo's Mario , and is also the best-selling role-playing game in history.
card game sales
card game sales is the most easily underestimated in Pokémon's monetization channel, but in fact, these inconspicuous small pieces of paper have generated more than US$10 billion in revenue. The official name of this card game is "Pokémon Trading Card Game, usually referred to as PTCG", which is an official authorized card game with the theme of Pokémon.
Anime and movie revenue
Anime and movie revenue mainly includes copyright revenue for comics and animations, as well as box office revenue for theatrical movies, and the global cumulative revenue has also reached billions of dollars. Although this income is so small that it can be almost "ignorable" compared to several other incomes, film and television and comics, as important carriers for Pokémon to maintain popularity and popularity, are still highly valued by Nintendo, Primary School Pavilion and other relevant parties.
The chance and inevitability behind the popularity of Pokémon
23 years since its birth, Pokémon's popularity is growing stronger and stronger with the diversification of media forms and entertainment channels.
The boss behind the hottest gaming platform Steam, the current hottest gaming platform, has repeatedly lamented the greatness of Pokémon, saying that its developers have made the series better than any series, and this IP is also the most valuable IP in history, which is stronger than any product of Valve.
, all accidents contain some inevitable factors.
It can be seen from this that although the game of "Pokemon" and the animation of "Pokemon" are full of unknowns in the creation stage, the team is forward-looking enough, from acceptance to derivative sales to audience characteristics, they are all included in the producer's planning, giving them full attention and preparation. And the emphasis on every small detail ultimately made this IP.
Whether it is Pokémon, which has been strong for twenty years, or Marvel, which has accumulated strength and spent ten years to create the strongest IP on the screen, these successful IPs are undoubtedly telling the same truth: the success of a good IP is not a one-day result. On this road, there are still many places to work hard on the Chinese film and television industry and even the entire entertainment industry.
edited from 36Kr
