A complete report on "pixiv MARKET", Japan's first cashless doujinshi market

Article: Kazuki Miura
Editor: Hitomi Sakuma

"I have to prepare a lot of 1000 yen bills and 500 yen coins", "I'm worried someone will steal my cash", "I need to set a convenient price to ensure an efficient transaction"--these are some of the things commonly experienced by people who participate in doujinshi events. However, the days when doujinshi transaction will change drastically are perhaps coming sooner than we thought.

pixiv held a doujinshi event called "pixiv MARKET" on June 10, 2018 (Sun.) in Exhibition Hall B on the fourth floor of Sunshine City Bunka Kaikan.

The biggest highlight of this event is "pixiv PAY", a smartphone application that can be used to settle payments completely without cash. Through the usage of this app, there is no longer any need for circles and participants to prepare cash.

This is a complete report on "pixiv MARKET", Japan's first cashless doujinshi event! What does a doujinshi event without cash look like!? This report brings you not only the answer to that question but also details of the live drawing broadcast that was held during the event and the exhibition booths!

No more cash! Take your smartphone, not your wallet, to pay

"pixiv MARKET" is a doujinshi event that covers all genres. For this particular event, circles and participants were able to set up booths and enter for free under one condition: all transactions were to be settled with pixiv PAY, an electronic payment application. Participants were prohibited from paying with cash.

The event commenced at noon. In the morning, the hall was reserved for artists and circles to set up their booths. There were 300 circles, chosen through a lottery, that participated in this event. Lined next to each other, these circles originated from different genres and were there to present their wonderful works.

This picture was taken at 11:30 in the afternoon, showing participants who were lining up outside the hall before the doors were open. The weather was, sadly, showing signs of rain, but that did not seem to deter the crowd from waiting in line.

pixiv MARKET starts now!

12:00 marked the start of the event! The first cashless doujinshi event in Japan finally began. While clapping their hands to celebrate the start of the event and following the instructions announced by the staffs present, participants started to enter the hall. Not a moment later, the hall turned into a space heated with enthusiasm.

Since only pixiv PAY was allowed to be used during the event, the event provided participants and circles with free Wi-Fi and smartphone charging spots inside the hall. Also, a video that explains how pixiv PAY is used was played on repeat for circles and participants to watch.

Curious? What a cashless doujinshi event looks like

Soon after the doors were open, long queues began to form in front of popular circles' booths. Nevertheless, the hall remained well-organized and everything was in order. The reason why the event went smoothly despite the newly implemented mobile payment method might be largely due to two reasons: most participants are used to attending doujinshi events and they are a part of a generation that is familiar with smartphones.

Through this event, we got the impression that pixiv PAY is a cashless payment application that provides great merits to both circles and participants. Plus, it is easy to use. We will first explain how to use it if you are a buyer.

Purchasing a doujinshi has never been easier

First of all, you need to install pixiv PAY application on your smartphone. Register your credit card or purchase points at convenience stores beforehand. That's it, you are ready to go.

All you have to do next is set the application to "Payment Mode" upon purchase.

When a person from the circle presents you with a QR code, all you need to do is scan it. Once you see a notification on the application, your purchase is complete.

There are many merits for sellers too!

In case you want to use pixiv PAY as a circle, you need to register your goods on pixiv PAY application first. That's all it takes to prepare. When someone comes to purchase an item, simply choose the item, show your buyer the QR code, and have them scan it.

You no longer have to worry about miscalculation or running out of change. Now you can also set a price on your goods freely, leaving behind the days when you had to deliberately choose a convenient price. Isn't this good news? There is one more important point: by managing transactions with pixiv PAY, you can send messages to your buyers. Feel free to use this feature to thank your buyers or notify them of your next event.

▲ A portion of a manga strip drawn by Terada Tera (寺田てら) on "How to use pixiv PAY" that participants could find in the event's pamphlet. More features will be added to the app, including "save the goods for me" (取り置き; torioki).

We asked Eku Uekura (上倉エク), the artist in charge of pixiv MARKET's illustration, about his impression of pixiv PAY.

pixiv MARKET

by 上倉エク

▲ An illustration by Eku Uekura! She's "Pay-tan", pixiv MARKET's avatar

"Once we get used to the app, payments can be settled in the blink of an eye. I hope we can use this app at other events too. Even when our buyers aren't used to pixiv PAY, we can teach them and they'll be able to use it immediately. I think that's another great thing about it."

Another convenient feature of this app is "Assistant Feature", which can be used simultaneously among the artist, the salesperson (売り子; uriko), and the cashier. This feature is convenient because it gives freedom for an artist to leave their space and entrust all transactions to the salespeople. We also asked Eku Uekura about his pixiv illustration.

"Since blue is such a pixiv color, I decided to use it as the illustration's base color. The character's rabbit ears were inspired by how people think that the letters "pixiv" look like a rabbit. That's how I came up with this character."

On a different note, we were surprised when we learned that Eku Uekura spent only 2 days to finish drawing "Pay-tan". "Pay-tan" was everywhere inside the hall, decorating the event's pamphlet and panels, for starters.

Introducing exhibition booths other than those of individual circles

There were also various other booths aside from those operated by individual circles.

Near the exit was a "Trading Card Dama (トレカ魂)" booth. As long as the illustration involved is original, Trading Card Dama will print it on any kind of item. Trading Card Dama can also fulfill small orders, making it a reliable ally for sellers who wish to manufacture some goods.

In the back of the hall was a "pixiv Sketch" booth. At this booth, participants were able to experience "pixiv Sketch", a platform that allows artists to share their daily drawings in a few simple steps. We were able to see the participants who visited this booth drawing as they pleased and trying the feature that automatically colors the lines of their sketches.

This summer, "pixiv Sketch LIVE", which is a service that enables its users to broadcast their drawing process live, will get a large scale update. We can't wait to find out which cool features will be added to the platform.

"Palcy（パルシィ）", which is the name of a manga application jointly managed by Kodansha and pixiv, also set up a booth in the event. At this booth, people could bring in their manuscripts and received pieces of advice directly from the editors present. One never knows--the next popular mangaka might have visited this booth.

Next to Palcy's booth was a booth managed by "pixivFACTORY", a company that provides services related to goods production. The booth displayed various types of items which had been manufactured using a single illustration.

A surprise event!? Watch popular illustrators drawing live on "pixiv ONE"

"pixiv ONE", a live-drawing event which was aired using pixiv Sketch's broadcasting feature "pixiv Sketch LIVE", started at 2 in the afternoon.

The event featured Sora Tokui, a voice actress and mangaka, as the MC and refeia, an illustrator, as the commentator. And then, the two illustrators that did the drawing during this event were Mai Yoneyama and Kei Mochizuki!

The event challenged the two illustrators to draw an illustration based on a given theme within 1 hour. It was a pretty tough challenge, but "pixiv ONE" must have been a fairly important event to the audience since they were able to watch the two illustrators' drawing process with their own eyes. Many people gathered in front of the booth and every time an illustrator demonstrated a particularly awesome technique, the audience would cheer excitedly. Click here to check out an interview, held prior to the event, where the illustrators expressed their enthusiasm for the event!

For your information, the event's theme was "rain". It was raining the day the event was held, so the theme couldn't have been more fitting.

Additionally, during the live broadcast, many illustrators and mangaka, including redjuice, who opened a circle booth on that day, Norio Tsukudani, and Meru Kishida, took turns making a surprise appearance on stage. Casual conversations with Tokui and refeia also greatly energized the event's atmosphere.

Before long, the one-hour time limit was up. Mai Yoneyama's emotive illustration is an impressive depiction of a rainy day through a glass window, whereas Kei Mochizuki's pop illustration demonstrates a clever way of using a raincoat and an umbrella. Both works are of such a high quality that it's hard to believe the illustrators spent only an hour to finish them. Cheers of awe and wonder for the two illustrators could be heard reverberating inside the hall.

またね

by 米山舞

This event was broadcasted live through pixiv Sketch LIVE and YouTube, but the video is now available for everyone to watch, so please check it out!

The first cashless doujinshi event in Japan ended without a hitch!

Around 3,000 people attended this pixiv MARKET event. The event ended at 4 in the evening. Overall, everything remained in order until the very end of the event. After the event, a gathering that consisted of interested circle people was held and all of pixiv MARKET's programs were brought to a close in a harmonious atmosphere.

We sincerely hope that everyone, including those who attended the event as circles and general participants, was able to experience the advantages of a cashless doujinshi event. We also hope that the doujinshi market will continue to head toward a cashless era. The new shape that the doujinshi market has taken through the use of pixiv PAY may reach more people in the near future.

＞＞＞Check out pixiv MARKET's website here＜＜＜

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A complete report on "pixiv MARKET", Japan's first cashless doujinshi market - Smooth payments without cash!