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Crypton Future Media

(Redirected from Piapro)

Crypton Future Media, Inc. (クリプトン・フューチャー・メディア株式会社, Kuriputon Fyūchā Media Kabushiki gaisha), or simply Crypton, is a Japanese media company based in Sapporo, Japan. It develops, imports, and sells products for music, such as sound generator software, sampling CDs and DVDs, and FX and BGM libraries. The company also provides services of online shopping, online community, and mobile content.

Crypton Future Media, Inc.
Native name
クリプトン・フューチャー・メディア株式会社
Company typeKabushiki gaisha (unlisted)
IndustrySoftware, Internet
GenreMusic
FoundedJuly 1990
Headquarters11F Nihon Seimei Sapporo Bldg., 1-1 Nishi4 Kita3, Chūō-ku, Sapporo 060-0003 Japan
Area served
Japan
Key people
Hiroyuki Itō (伊藤 博之), President
ProductsVocaloid
Services
Number of employees
130
Divisions
  • Media Phage
  • FX and BGM libraries
  • Mobile Contents Service Provider
Websitewww.crypton.co.jp (in Japanese)
Footnotes / references
[1][2][3]

Overview

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Crypton Future Media started business importing audio products in 1995, and has been involved in the development, import, and sales of sampling CDs and DVDs, FX and BGM libraries, and musical synthesizer/synthesiser applications. Its main business partners in Japan include musical instrument shops, computer stores, and software distributors.

The company has licensed software to the following organizations:[1]

Crypton Future Media also operates a number of Japanese mobile websites, mainly for i-mode of NTT docomo, EZweb of au by KDDI, and Yahoo! Keitai of SoftBank Mobile,[1] to distribute ringtones, sound effects (SFX), and voice-based ringtones (chaku-voice), including:

  • Hatsune Miku Mobile
  • Pocket Sound Effect Pro
  • Mazeteyo Nama Voice

Crypton Future Media imports products from more than 50 international suppliers based in Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.[1]

In 2010, Crypton Future Media was announced as a number-one company for sound-related software, bringing a share of 21.4% of the marketing for its products.[4]

Vocaloid products and services

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On October 12, 2008, Crypton president Hiroyuki Itō made a speech at the Science Café titled "Hatsune Miku Night - the diva transcending science" in Sapporo.

Crypton is best known for production and sales of speech synthesis software for computer music. Its products use the Vocaloid singing synthesis engine developed by Yamaha Corporation; they were also charged with finding and contacting English studios in order to gain recommendations for the English version of the Vocaloid software.[5] The company released Meiko in 2004 and Kaito in 2006, who were originally developed by Yamaha leaving the commercial release to Crypton Future Media.[6] The company then released the first Vocaloid developed by them, and member of the official Character Vocal Series, Hatsune Miku, which used the upgraded engine Vocaloid 2. The success of the Hatsune Miku Voicebank in Japan (and later in other countries) greatly raised Crypton's profile. The second Character Vocal Series are Kagamine Rin and Len and the third Megurine Luka. Because the popularity of these Vocaloids grew, Crypton launched the website Piapro to upload fan-made content and its own music label KarenT to sell Vocaloid songs.

On 31 August 2019, it was confirmed that Crypton ceased releasing new Vocaloid products on Yamaha's synthesis engine and Cubase editor. Instead, they will release new "Vocaloid" products on their newly-developed Piapro Studio engine-editor with the name NT (New Type) once Crypton has removed compatibility with the Cubase editor for their speech synthesis products.

Vocaloid products

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Kaito was the only one sold using the Vocaloid 1.1 engine; the previous Vocaloids before him were sold as Vocaloid 1.0, which he was also supplied with. However, he needed the additional Vocaloid 1.1.2 patch to work on the Vocaloid 1.0 engine.[7] A patch was later released to update all Vocaloid engines to Vocaloid 1.1.2, adding new features to the software, although there were differences between the output results of the engine.[8] Even though Kaito and Meiko were Japanese and sung using Japanese phonetics, the main interface was written in English for both English and Japanese Vocaloids.

Due to the success of placing a character on the box art of Meiko, the concept was carried over to her successor Kaito and later Vocaloids to encourage creativity; however, neither Vocaloid's box art originally had the intention to represent that Vocaloid.[9][10] Though Meiko experienced good sales, Kaito failed commercially, causing less demand for male voices for a while after Kaito's initial release.[11] However, sales eventually picked up and Kaito later won the Nico Nico Douga second best seller award of 2008.[12] In 2010, it was reported that Meiko and Kaito were in the discussion to receive updates.[13] Several updated vocal expressions have already been recorded for Kaito that year.[14][15][16] In April 2011, it was confirmed six vocal expressions had been created for Kaito, two of which were dropped and the remaining four were being brought forward with one having reached alpha stage at that point. The Character Vocal (Hatsune Miku, Kagamine Rin/Len and Megurine Luka) series Appends had been created from the vocal performances of their voice providers; however the new Kaito Appends were created by adding echo, force, and tension to the samples.[17]

Product Language Gender Voice actor Release date
Meiko[18] Japanese Female Meiko Haigō November 5, 2004
Kaito[19] Male Naoto Fūga February 17, 2006

Vocaloid 2 products

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Further information: Vocaloid 2

Crypton released Hatsune Miku, on August 31, 2007. The second of the Character Vocal Series is the first dual Vocaloid Kagamine Len and Kagamine Rin, a Japanese male and female, released on December 27, 2007. On July 18, 2008, the updated edition of Kagamine Rin and Len, named "act2" was released.[20] For a period of time, users who had bought the old version were allowed to get the new version for free. On June 18, 2008, beta demonstration songs using the new version were released on the company's official blog.[21] The expansion disc is an entirely different software and does not affect the original Kagamine Rin/Len installation in any way, giving the user options to either use the old or new voice sets exclusively or combine their usage. Crypton Future Media have now retired the sale of their old Kagamine Vocaloid and it is now no longer possible to buy the software from them.[22] This was also the very first Vocaloid update to be done for any Vocaloid. The third product of Crypton's Character Vocal Series is Megurine Luka, the first bilingual Vocaloid.

On April 30, 2010, an updated version of Miku called Hatsune Miku Append was released containing a package of six different tones of Miku's voice: Soft (gentle, delicate voice), Sweet (young, chibi voice), Dark (mature, heartbroken-like voice), Vivid (bright, cheerful voice), Solid (loud, clear voice), and Light (innocent, heavenly voice).[23] Crypton Future Media also released Kagamine Rin/Len Append on December 27, 2010.[24][25]

Product Language Gender Voice actor Release date
Hatsune Miku (CV01)[26] Japanese Female Saki Fujita 2007-08-31August 31, 2007
Kagamine Rin/Len (CV02)[27] Female (Rin), Male (Len) Asami Shimoda 2007-12-27December 27, 2007
Kagamine Rin/Len (CV02) Act 2[20][22] 2008-07-18July 18, 2008
Megurine Luka (CV03)[28] Japanese, English Female Yū Asakawa 2009-01-30January 30, 2009
Hatsune Miku Append[29] Japanese Saki Fujita 2010-04-30April 30, 2010
Kagamine Rin/Len Append[30] Female (Rin), Male (Len) Asami Shimoda 2010-12December 27, 2010
  • Crypton has a "Project if..." with a mysterious, childlike voice.[31][32][33]
  • Crypton has also done some work on a "CV04" with a male voice[34][35]

Vocaloid 3 products

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Further information: Vocaloid 3

According to Crypton, a petition started on Facebook exceeded the needed 39,390 members in November 2010 to join Hatsune Miku's account for an English version to be released; Crypton announced that they were working on an English Miku and was planned to be released in 2013.[36][37] Hatsune Miku English was released on August 31, 2013. Hatsune Miku V3 was released September 26, 2013.

Product Language Gender Voice actor Release date
Kaito V3 Japanese, English Male Naoto Fūga February 15, 2013
Hatsune Miku V3 English English Female Saki Fujita August 31, 2013
Hatsune Miku V3 Japanese September 26, 2013
Meiko V3 Japanese, English Meiko Haigō February 4, 2014

Vocaloid 4 products

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Further information: Vocaloid 4
Product Language Gender Voice actor Release date
Megurine Luka V4X Japanese, English Female Yū Asakawa March 19, 2015
Kagamine Rin/Len V4X Japanese Female (Rin), Male (Len) Asami Shimoda December 24, 2015
Kagamine Rin/Len V4 English English
Hatsune Miku V4X Japanese Female Saki Fujita August 30, 2016
Hatsune Miku V4 English English August 30, 2016
Hatsune Miku V4 Chinese Chinese (Mandarin) September 10, 2017[38]
Piapro Characters Super Pack Japanese Female (Luka, Meiko, Miku and Rin), Male (Kaito and Len) Various August 30, 2024

Piapro

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In response to the growing popularity of derivative works created with Hatsune Miku and the other Vocaloid applications, Crypton opened an online community Piapro (stylized as PIAPRO) on December 3, 2007. Vocaloid fans can upload their own content, such as music, art, lyrics, characters, and 3D models to the platform.[39] "Piapro" stands for peer production and promotes consumer generated media.[40]

Also under the Piapro brand is Crypton's Piapro Studio, a Vocaloid vocal editor implemented as a VST/AU plugin bundled with all of their full V3 Vocaloid products (Miku V3, Miku V3 English, Miku V3 Bundle, Meiko V3, Kaito V3). This allows for full vocal editing functionality nearly identical in feature support to Yamaha's full Vocaloid 3 Editor software, which is available either as a standalone application or a plugin for Cubase. All Vocaloid 3 voice libraries include the Tiny Vocaloid 3 Editor for free, however this is severely limited in functionality compared to the full V3 editor - serving mainly as a beginner's taste of Vocaloid editing or a way to easily test out a new vocal library. Piapro Studio was created to allow owners of Crypton's V3 products to have a fully featured vocal editor with a modernized and streamlined interface bundled free of charge. It also allows for the loading of 3rd-party, non-Crypton Vocaloid 3 voicebanks - as well as V2's that have been imported into the full V3 editor beforehand. Being a VST plugin, it allows the user to operate entirely within their DAW of choice, in contrast to the tiny or full V3 editors which are standalone applications and the user must export a wav to import into their DAW each time a change or update is needed - or export an updated wav file from their DAW as the background music to import into the V3 editor allowing for convenient editing and a smoother workflow. Currently Piapro Studio lacks some features of the full V3 editor, but most of these are not needed to work with the vocal composition and tuning of the Vocaloid. Crypton however has mentioned they would like to implement something similar to Job Plugins at some point in the future.

Piapro Studio is also regularly updated every few months with new features and bug fixes. Vocaloid 3 Editor updates appear much less frequently, generally only around the time of release of a new Vocaloid. Piapro Studio also features some Piapro social designed singer icons and vocal preview samples, added in an update in the Summer of 2014.

Published games

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In addition to their collaboration with Sega on the Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA series, Crypton Future Media also release their own smaller titles for smartphones, VR, and consoles.[41] On Steam, their games are published by Komodo (formerly known as Degica Games).[42]

Year Title Platform Genre
2018 Hatsune Miku VR Windows (Steam VR) Rhythm
2019 PlayStation VR
2020 Oculus Quest 2
Hatsune Miku Logic Paint Android, iOS Puzzle (nonogram)
Hatsune Miku Amiguru Jump Platformer
Hatsune Miku Amiguru Train Puzzle, auto-runner
2021 Hatsune Miku Tycoon Cards
Hatsune Miku Logic Paint S Nintendo Switch Puzzle (nonogram)
2022 Windows, Xbox One
Hatsune Miku: Connecting Puzzle Tamagotori Nintendo Switch Puzzle (tile-matching
Hatsune Miku Jigsaw Puzzle Nintendo Switch, Windows, Xbox One Puzzle (jigsaw)
2023 Hatsune Miku: The Planet of Wonder and Fragments of Wishes Nintendo Switch Minigame compilation, adventure
2024 Windows, Xbox One

See also

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Further reading

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  • 根津禎 (2008-02-11). "実録 開発物語 パソコン用歌声合成ソフト「初音ミク」(第1回)出会いは着メロから". Nikkei Electronics (971). Nikkei Business Publications: 107–110. ISSN 0385-1680.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Company Information". Crypton Future Media. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
  2. ^ "クリプトン・フューチャー・メディア(株)の会社概要 | マイナビ2023". Archived from the original on 2022-06-16. Retrieved 2022-09-26.
  3. ^ "クリプトン・フューチャー・メディア株式会社".
  4. ^ "link". Archived from the original on 2011-05-01. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  5. ^ Utaenai (August 13, 2010). "It's a toy!". Vocaloid Creativity Community. Archived from the original on May 15, 2011. Retrieved September 5, 2010.
  6. ^ link
  7. ^ "VOCALOID ENGINE製品サポート（KAITO）" [Vocaloid Engine Product Support (Kaito)] (in Japanese). Crypton Future Media. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  8. ^ "VOCALOID Software Update version 1.1". Yamaha Corporation. Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  9. ^ "[Vocaloid2情報] 出張終了のお知らせ。" [Vocaloid 2 News Official Tour End Notification] (in Japanese). Crypton Future Media. September 29, 2007. Archived from the original on June 5, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
  10. ^ "KAITOのプロフィール・仕様" [Kaito's Profile and Specifications] (in Japanese). Weekly Vocaloid Ranking. Archived from the original on June 1, 2010. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
  11. ^ クリエイターを支えるクリエイターでありたい クリプトン・フューチャー・メディア社長 伊藤博之氏（前編） [I Want to be a Creator Who Supports Creators: Crypton Future Media President Hiroyuki Itō (part 1)] (in Japanese). Internet Watch. May 12, 2008. Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  12. ^ "出た!「2008年ニコニコ市場年間売上ランキング」でKAITOが2位!" [It's Here! Kaito Got Second Place in the 2008 Nico Nico Market Yearly Sales Ranking] (in Japanese). Hatsune Miku Miku. January 18, 2009. Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  13. ^ "ミクの英語版や『リン・レン Append』が!? ミクの日感謝祭の上映イベントをレポ" [Miku's English Edition and "Rin and Len Append"!? Report on the Miku's Day Festival Event]. Dengeki Online (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. September 6, 2010. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
  14. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. Retrieved December 15, 2010.
  15. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. Retrieved December 15, 2010.
  16. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. Retrieved December 15, 2010.
  17. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. April 12, 2011. Retrieved April 19, 2011.
  18. ^ "MEIKO（音楽ソフトウエア）" [Meiko (Music Software)] (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  19. ^ "KAITO（音楽ソフトウエア）" [Kaito (Music Software)] (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  20. ^ a b ボーカロイド市場、「初音ミク」の対抗馬登場で激化 [Vocaloid Market "Hatsune Miku" Rivalry Intensifies]. BCN Ranking (in Japanese). BCN Inc. September 1, 2008. Archived from the original on December 10, 2008. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
  21. ^ "Rin/Len act2 beta demonstration songs released" (in Japanese). Crypton. June 18, 2008. Archived from the original on September 22, 2008. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  22. ^ a b "KAGAMINE RIN/LEN act2（音楽ソフトウエア）" [Kagamine Rin/Len act2 (Music Software)] (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  23. ^ "初音ミク・アペンド（Miku Append）" [Hatsune Miku Append (Miku Append)] (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved April 30, 2010.
  24. ^ "『VOCALOID2 鏡音リン・レン』の追加音声『鏡音リン・レン・アペンド』本日発売。" [The Additional Voice of "Vocaloid 2 Kagamine Rin/Len", "Kagamine Rin/Len Append", Is Released Today.]. Crypton Future Media (in Japanese). International Business Times. December 27, 2010. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2011.
  25. ^ "鏡音リン・レンの追加音声「Append」発売" [Kagamine Rin/Len's Additional Voice "Append" To Be Released] (in Japanese). IT Media. November 26, 2010. Retrieved December 4, 2010.
  26. ^ "CV01 初音ミク" [CV01 Hatsune Miku] (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  27. ^ "CV02 鏡音リン・レン act2" [CV02 Kagamine Rin/Len act2] (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  28. ^ "CV03 巡音ルカ" [CV03 Megurine Luka] (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  29. ^ "CV01A MIKU APPEND" (in Japanese). Crypton. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
  30. ^ "CV02A Rin/Len Append" (in Japanese). Crypton Future Media. Retrieved December 27, 2010.
  31. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. June 7, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
  32. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. June 7, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
  33. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. June 7, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
  34. ^ "New Append For Kagamine Len!". Vocaloidism. January 14, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
  35. ^ "クリプトンの「新しい男声VOCALOID」を聴いてきたよ" [We Listened to Crypton's New Male Vocaloid] (in Japanese). IT Media. October 21, 2009. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
  36. ^ 英語シンガー初音ミクがついに始動したようだ [English Singer Hatsune Miku Has Finally Seemed to Have Started] (in Japanese). IT Media. August 31, 2010. Retrieved October 9, 2010.
  37. ^ "Crypton's Twitter page" (in Japanese). Twitter. Retrieved November 18, 2010.
  38. ^ "初音未来CryptonFutureMedia". weibo.com. Retrieved 2017-08-31.
  39. ^ Yuka Okada (March 27, 2008). "「出口がない」「権利者は誰」――初音ミク2次創作の課題". ITmedia News. ITmedia. Retrieved June 5, 2012.
  40. ^ 岡田有花 (February 25, 2008). "クリプトン・フューチャー・メディアに聞く（3）：初音ミクが開く"創造の扉"". ITmedia News. ITmedia. Retrieved June 5, 2012.
  41. ^ "クリプトン|Crypton Future Media Games". crypton.co.jp. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  42. ^ "KOMODO HAWAI'I". Steam. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
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