The value of something depends on how itâs used.
Jung Ho-young, the CEO of EYEAI, pondered this thought.
âA little controversy⦠isnât necessarily a bad thing.â
EYEAI was a rapidly rising name in the domestic VTuber industry. However, the VTuber industry in Korea wasnât considered mainstream.
In neighboring countries, there were dozens of VTubers with over a million subscribers. But in Korea, there were virtually no VTubers who had reached that milestone. Perhaps one or two had achieved it, but they werenât originally VTubers. They were streamers who later adopted VTuber models.
While the demand for VTubers in Korea was growing, there was still a significant amount of pushback against the concept.
âUltimately, we need to think globally.â
This was the reason all of EYEAIâs VTubers had Japanese-style names.
Jung Ho-young hadnât watched many foreign streamers. Language barriers aside, thereâs a resistance when it comes to unfamiliar faces.
For a Korean audience, the most familiar face is, of course, a fellow Koreanâs. After that, itâs typically other East Asian faces. Based on this logic, Western faces are less familiar.
There was a time when people would say they couldnât easily distinguish Western faces. Unless one is quite familiar with Western culture, the same probably holds true today.
So ironically, while VTubers may not yet be mainstream in Korea, they might perform better from a global perspective.
No matter the country, there will always be âotakus.â While the number of otakus may be small in each individual country, when you gather them all from around the world, it becomes a significant number.
After all, VTubers with 2 to 3 million subscribers only reached those numbers by gathering fans globally.
âSo from a global perspective, this current controversy is nothing.â
There was a case where a VTuber from a neighboring country got into trouble right after debutingâleaking confidential information. It was a significant issue, and the VTuber ended up retiring within a month of debuting.
However, fans overseas didnât seem to think it was such a big deal and were fired up over the VTuber regardless.
Thatâs how it works.
If the VTuberâs model is appealing and their voice resonates with fans, most controversies fade into the background. Especially when it comes to foreign issues, fans often donât care.
Itâs not a huge controversy, after all.
In that case, a small amount of drama could be used to attract attention.
- Knock knock.
"President."
A knock on the door, followed by Rionâs voice.
Jung Ho-young straightened his appearance.
"Come in."
The door opened.
As Rion stepped in, someone followed her with confident, measured steps.
Long black hair, reminiscent of the night sky.
Deep, captivating red eyes.
The sound of heels echoed rhythmically as she strode into the room, showing no signs of tension.
"Hello."
She smiled as she greeted him.
Seeing that smile, Jung Ho-young swallowed slightly. He had heard that she looked exactly like her VTuber model, but he hadnât expected such an uncanny resemblance.
As he felt the elegant atmosphere surrounding Laura, his conviction solidified. Even when watching her on Annaâs stream, he had sensed something special, but seeing her in person was on a different level.
She needed to be secured.@@novelbin@@
Before another company could swoop in, it was crucial to bring her into their fold and figure things out later. That would be the smartest move.
"Itâs a pleasure to meet you. Iâm Jung Ho-young, CEO of EYEAI."
Jung Ho-young smiled. Since they might be seeing each other often from now on, he wanted to make a positive impression.
"Thank you for making the trip. Today, Iâd like to talk about your debut, Aurora. Rion, you can stay and listen as well."
Rion had been preparing to leave the room, but Jung Ho-youngâs words stopped her.
"President, is this a serious conversation�"
"It could be serious. Aurora, youâre aware of the current controversy, correct?"
At the mention of the word "controversy," Rionâs expression grew serious.
In contrast, Aurora maintained her usual smile. From the moment she entered the room, it was clear she was unnervingly calm and unaffected.
"Of course, weâre aware of what happened, and we know Aurora is innocent. But weâll need a strategy to put this to rest. Fortunately, Rion has done a great job preparing, so letâs discuss that."
===
ãVirtual Idol VTuber Galleryã
[General] Looks like EYEAIâs 6th generation is debuting
Aurora Aurora ãEYEAI 6th Genã
@Aurora_EYEAI
Subscribers: 1 ⢠Videos: 0
The channel is up.
[Comments]
Are you the one subscriber?
ã´ (Author) Yeah
ã´ Wow, youâre fast, lol
Is she the only 6th gen member?
ã´ (Author) Only her channel and SNS accounts are up so far.
Are they debuting just one person for the 6th gen?
ã´ Doubt it. Theyâve always debuted five per generation.
===
[General] Oh, PV just dropped
(hyperlink)
Looks like theyâve put a lot into the 6th gen debut, lol.
[Comments]
Her voice is nice.
Rion edited this video.
ã´ (Author) Huh? What do you mean?
ã´ Check the credits. It says "Video editing by Nekozuka Rion."
ã´ (Author) Oh, youâre right.
ã´ So Rion quit VTubing to become an editor? Lol.
Nice work in Labyrinth VR, lol.
Is this the first VTuber from EYEAI to focus on Labyrinth VR?
ã´ (Author) Rinkoâs already doing that.
ã´ Sheâs not playing Labyrinth VR anymore.
Isnât she Rionâs cousin?
Yeah, her voice sounds exactly like Rionâs cousin.
===
[General] Letâs compare
(Clip from Annaâs stream)
(Clip from PV)
Judge for yourself.
[Comments]
The voices are exactly the same, lol.
So did they trade Rionâs cousin for her?
ã´ What is this, baseball? Lol.
No way Rionâs cousin actually debuted!
Whatâs going on, lol?
This is hilarious, lol.
Wait, isnât that username the one from that Dark Knight who destroyed the commander?
ã´ (Author) Whatâs the backstory on that?
===
"Phewâ¦."
Rion sighed in front of her computer.
-"The company will handle the initial response."
-"If things heat up after the PV is released, Rion, youâll need to step in."
-"So Aurora, donât worry about anything."
The words from the president echoed in her mind.
From the companyâs perspective, they would want to protect Laura at all costs. Laura was not only skilled at gaming, but she was set to be a VTuber specializing in Labyrinth VR.
Labyrinth VR was currently the most popular game in the world.
The president likely calculated that if Laura could showcase her gaming prowess, international fans would flock to her, and Rion agreed with that assessment.
Their goal now was early containment.
The fact that a controversy had erupted meant people were paying attention. If handled correctly, Laura could launch with a significant number of subscribers.
The plan was to soak up as much attention as possible and explain the situation before public sentiment took a nosedive. The truth was, Laura had done nothing wrong.
âBut the presidentâs real goal is likely elsewhere.â
The president wasnât just interested in boosting Lauraâs subscriber count. He was probably more focused on tapping into the Labyrinth VR fandom that EYEAI had yet to fully reach.
The VTuber with the most subscribers at EYEAI was Kisaki Rinko, a first-generation member, with around 300,000 subscribers.
No other VTuber from EYEAI had surpassed 300,000, meaning the total fandom size for EYEAI was roughly 300,000.
Not exactly an impressive number.
In contrast, Serenade of the 23rd, once the dominant force in Japan, boasted two VTubers with over 2 million subscribers each.
Meanwhile, Horizon Air, globally popular, had a VTuber with over 4 million subscribers.
Compared to these giants, 300,000 was insignificant.
The real issue was that EYEAI was struggling to grow beyond that 300,000 mark.
As previously mentioned, itâs difficult for subscribers to cross company lines.
Horizon Air, with its 4 million strong fanbase, had little reason to watch VTubers from other companies. Horizon Air already had around 80 VTubers. Why would their fans bother with smaller companies?
It was the same with Serenade of the 23rd. Stealing their fans was nearly impossible.
EYEAIâs strategy, then, was to bring in people who had never watched VTubers before. And the president was likely hoping Laura would be the key to tapping into the Labyrinth VR fanbase.
ââ¦Yes, I need to protect her. I need to protect Laura.â
Rion murmured to herself as she quietly tapped away at her keyboard.
While she didnât fully agree with the presidentâs overall thinking, she had to admit the business strategy made sense.
No one wanted to see Laura succeed more than Rion did.
===
Nekozuka Rion @Nekozuka_Rion
[Thank you for your continued support of EYEAI.
As a staff member of EYEAI, Iâd like to address the current situation.
The stream will begin at 7 PM.
â¼ Stream link]
===
"I hope my fans will come to like Laura too."
Rion whispered after typing the post.
She no longer had any lingering regrets about leaving the VTuber world.
But if she had any remaining attachments, it was her fondness for the fans who had supported her.
Since there was nothing more she could do for them, all she could do now was hope.
Hope that her fans would come to love Aurora as well.
ãWould you like to start the stream?ã
Rion clicked the "Start Stream" button.