Reflections on Bungeishunju's Videos (2): "Element Decomposition" and Business Reconstruction
I would like to write a continuation of my reflections on Bungeishunju's videos.
I had intended to update this the day after my previous article. However, before I knew it, nine months had passed.
The photo used in the header is of a studio that no longer exists. A few months ago, we carried out a major renovation, and it now has a look much more fitting for a "video program studio." The handmade atmosphere of those days is now a thing of the past.
Nine months was more than enough time. To be honest, this might end up being more of a record of where I am now than a pure "continuation" of the previous article. Even so, I would like to dare to write this "sequel" here.
I reread my previous article. In it, I defined the essence of "Bungeishunju PLUS" as follows: 〈A business that decomposes the paper "Bungeishunju" into layers and combines them with (video) digital technology〉
This way of thinking itself has basically not changed even after nine months.
I used the word "layer" last time because I was citing the content of Keita Nishiyama's book, "Thinking Methods for DX." Of course, it was an expression based on my own understanding, but having been involved in the video business for these nine months, I feel that the resolution of my understanding has increased by one level.
In fact, in recent lectures and interviews, I have increasingly chosen not to use the word "layer" and instead express it with other words. That is the idea of "decomposing a paper magazine into elements, picking out the elements that are compatible with the video business, and reconstructing them as a business."
In the previous article, I listed text and interviews as elements that make up the paper "Bungeishunju." However, if I were to decompose the "elements of a magazine" from the functional aspect of business again now, the following could be listed.
A packaged product called a "booklet"
An "nurturing medium" for training new writers and letting them try their hand at writing
A "container for advertisements" to convey the client's message
A "platform for serialization" premised on book publication
These all have valid aspects, and interpretations will differ from person to person. But what is important here is that these are all "functions in business."
Paper magazines were an extremely functional and unique business model that enclosed these multiple business elements within a single "booklet." It goes without saying that this business model as a "single block (package)" is now on the verge of collapsing from the ground up.
This is an irreversible trend. The model of paper magazines will likely never again draw an upward growth curve.
However, when you decompose the elements like this, a different landscape comes into view. The individual decomposed elements themselves are all "indispensable businesses" that will continue to exist in the future.
We must continue to discover new writers. It also needs to be a medium that clients find valuable. And a place to regularly produce manuscripts for making books is also essential. When you take them apart, you realize that all of them are activities that should continue in some form in the future.
What we combine here is the YouTube platform. When you decompose a magazine into multiple "functions," you find that some of them are extremely compatible with video.
YouTube is basically a free platform. Therefore, in the single point of "selling it as is," it cannot replace a paper magazine. So, it cannot be combined with the element of "a packaged product".
However, what about the function of an advertising container? Currently, many clients are reducing their advertising in print media with declining circulation and are looking for new outlets. Video can become a massive receptacle for this. The function of a "highly reliable advertising medium" that magazines once fulfilled can be reconstructed into a powerful business by combining it with YouTube technology.
This is precisely the form of business I am trying to embody with "Bungeishunju PLUS."
The "layers" advocated by Mr. Nishiyama, or what I call "element decomposition" here. This is an extremely important way of thinking when discussing the digital transformation of magazines. It involves dismantling the roles once played by paper booklets, combining them using digital technology, and reconstructing them.
I will end the second installment here for now. Next time, I would like to delve a little deeper into another specific role that Bungeishunju PLUS is attempting to fulfill, after breaking it down into its elements.
(To be continued)