If people in Indonesia didn't know before, they know now. The first JKT48 commercial for Pocari Sweat was aired recently. They have already had a TV appearance as well. This brings the newly formed group one step closer to their first performance!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzLQdiDkmSw...feature=related


JKT48 is an all Indonesian group in the family of Akimoto Yasushi Productions which includes AKB48, SKE48, NMB48, HKT48, SND48(disbanding next year) and in developement, TPE48 in Taiwan. In all likely hood, JKT members will perform integrally on stage and appear on TV shows with other x48 members as is currently the case. This will introduce Japanese audiences to Indonesian talent and create more awareness of Japanese talent in Indonesia. This is going to be great for both countries!

Will they share the same songs with AKB48 and perform mostly in Japan? Do you think they will participate in Senbatsu, too? The list will be huge.

Current standard for a just formed '48' group is to learn existing songs of other x48 groups so they have a repertoire to start with. then songs for their group are written for them. By first concert they usually have 1~2 songs that they can call their own. Hence, JKT will be singing a mix of Japanese songs and Indonesian songs.


For promotion on Japanese TV, 1~3 of the most promising JKT members will probably be flown weekly~biweekly to Japan to appear on TV shows along side other x48 members while the other JKT members perform in Indonesia. Likewise, to help in promotion in Indonesia, other '48' members will be flown into Indonesia to provide guest appearances.

Senbatsu is open to all x48 and student members. Senbatsu is gonna get really big. I'm thinking Yokohama Arena or bigger!

If JKT and TPE turn out good, I heard their was serious talk of creating a '48' in Korea - SOL48(Seoul 48). We already have a lot of Japanese interested in Korea, a successful SOL48 could bring more interest about Japan in Korea.

Akimoto knows what he's doing. Can anybody vote for Senbatsu on some website as long as they have a CD that contains a password? It would be interesting to have x48 girls from different countries on variety shows together. I hope the idea of SOL48 works out if it's not just a rumor. There are already a lot of trainees who don't get to debut.

^ Yes, buy the CD anywhere in the world and you get to vote! Some nutcases buy 10~100 CDs so they can vote more! But the average fan buys 1 or 2 CDs( one is played and the other is never opened).

An all Korean SOL48 would be great. It would bring healthy rivalry and comradeship at the same time because there are a lot of AA48 Vs BB48 competitions but there are also New members Vs Veterans or Northern Vs Southern etc... The girls will get mixed together into teams and must work together to win so thru laughter, sweat and tears, friendships are made. It will also introduce Korean viewers into the wacky world of Japanese Variety TV! lol. maybe not good?!


Will SOL48 become a reality? It all depends on how the other two work out. I don't think it was random selection in choosing Indonesia and Taiwan. Mr. Akimoto wanted to try out his Ideas on the most Ideal places first. If successful, lessons learned in these two countries can be applied to creating a '48' in Korea.

My concern is that Korean idol scene is really over-saturated so there will be a lot of competition and barrier. Akimoto will have to appeal to the base J-pop fans in Korea in the beginning and showcase the real strength of x48 groups, which is their variety shows. It will be interesting to keep an eye on how JKT and TPE48 work out. This idea is unprecedented.

I think Mr Akimoto weighed the different possibilities and came-up with his current plan. Five years back, Tsunku, (morning musume creator) added two Chinese girls, Linlin and Junjun to his lineup in hoped to create more fans in China. MM didn't gain any fans exactly but the two girls became famous in China. The moral of the tale is it's a tricky business selling Japanese media in Asia because of mixed feelings. Since the Korean music industry is very competitive as is, it would be very hard to sell a Japanese group in Korea. However, SOL48 would be totally Korean talents. It would give an option for those that didn't make the auditions or prefer an alternative to the main companies. Also, part of the AKB-TV aspect is it's like Reality-TV.(like Hells' Kitchen or American Idol). The girls are continuously moving in rank, some get cut while new ones are put in play. The girls are totally self dependent on gaining popularity for themselves. This real live drama is part of the AKB addiction.

I believe it's the AKB-format that Mr Akimoto is exporting, not Japan. Selling a show format while leaving Japan out of it has been long practiced by J-media companies. Japanese media companies have known for years they cannot sell their media in America with a Japanese face still on it. But, slap on a white face on the same movie/show and you got a hit! so currently Japan licenses like 7~10 shows worldwide, no one the wiser that the format of the show is owned by a Japanese media company.

Also, having '48' in different locations creates like a sports league feel. People in Osaka are clearly cheering for NMB, Nagoya is for SKE and Tokyo and most of japan is for AKB. This rivalry of one favorite '48'Vs the others is another selling point. Ultimately, how these factors into a competitive Korean market is still to be seen, but it's seems like a good plan.

Currently, there are a few audition programs in Korea but their format is dime a dozen. Contestants perform while judges judge. If the 48 TV show format is marketed properly, I think it can have a competitive edge. Some famous girl group's mentorship would be a good idea. Also, I think it would be better if there's some Japanese participation in any form. That will draw more interest.

I know "Takeshi's Castle" was directly exported to western media. Was it the only case?

Why doesn't Akimoto create more 48 groups from different cities like a real league? Or is he already working towards that direction?

I don't watch American TV. I think Iron Chef was dubbed into English.

I think a 48 in each prefecture would be over saturation - there are 4 groups in Japan already!
This '48' are expensive to manage so sufficient demand has to exist.

Seeing how popular the 48 groups are, it seems at least a couple more groups can be supported by enough fans. How much living costs does the company cover for the girls? There are too many girls to take care of but the company doesn't seem to spoon-feed them. Getting costumes and stylists alone will cost a lot.

Most of the girls live at home and their parents are paying for rent, food etc. The ones with homes far from Tokyo move to Tokyo and either live in an apartment by themselves or together with an older sister or mom. Only the high ranking members that get a lot of jobs in commercials, TV appearances or movie/drama can afford an apartment on their own money. Everyone else is partly paid for by their parents. Part of the problem is the entire Japanese media system. There are so many entities that are connected together and each need their cut of the profits. But, there is no doubt that the girls are getting short changed in this relationship. They are at the weakest position.

As far as I know, under the current policies of JASRAC, performers in Japan get only 1~2% from CD/DVD sales and that should also be divided by the number of the group members. If you write your own song, you can probably get up to 4%. Singers like Hamasaki Ayumi and Utada Hikaru still earned a lot during their heydays because they were song-writing solo artists and probably the overall music market was even bigger than now. AKB48 girls must be in a very different situation although they are at the top of the popularity ladder. JE has their own music publisher so their idols can probably take more cake whereas for AKB48, more separate media parties seem to be involved. I guess commercials and goods sales are the main sources of income for the individual popular idols.

In Korea, the profit distribution is in strong favor of the digital music distributors. Performers get 5% if they don't write their own songs while the digital distributors take 46%. Recently, a new cloud digital music service called "Genie" was launched with support from major music labels. It's gonna emulate iTunes' profit distribution structure. I think performers usually get 30% from iTunes.

That is why media companies luv Idols!

Some artist get a better percent. I'm sure giants like Southern All Stars and B'z negotiate at least 50%.

30% is a good deal for the artist. I think the better percent has to do with less leeches to feed along the way!