Goma Books

What Goma Books does

Goma Books (ゴマブックス) is a Tokyo-based independent publishing company that produces, aggregates, and distributes digital books and print-on-demand (POD) physical books. Its catalog spans manga, business and self-help titles, literature, music scores, political documents, art books, the 366-title BIRTHDAY BOOK fortune-telling series, reprinted out-of-print works under the GOMABOOKS復刊シリーズ, and public domain collections from Aozora Bunko and the National Diet Library. The company's underlying technology stack is built around multi-format content delivery: e-books are aggregated and distributed across more than 20 Japanese and global platforms (Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, Google Play Books, Rakuten Kobo, Yahoo! Bookstore, ReaderStore, DMM e-books, 7net, eBookJapan, honto, Comic C'MO, Kinokuniya, BookWalker, MangaBox, Renta!, music.jp, Niconico Seiga, and dブック), while physical books are produced exclusively through Amazon's POD service and Disc-on-Demand (DOD) for DVD/CD media, eliminating inventory risk for niche and long-tail titles.

The company serves three primary segments: individual authors and content creators (including first-time and self-published authors) who use Goma Books as a publishing and distribution platform; general consumer readers purchasing e-books and POD books across mainstream and specialty genres; and corporate publishers reached through a subscription publishing (サブスク出版) partnership with Global Partners Co., Ltd. (グローバルパートナーズ株式会社). Revenue is generated predominantly through one-time unit sales of e-books (¥250-¥1,890 per title) and POD physical books (¥1,600-¥1,890+ tax per title), supplemented by the recurring subscription model and Kindle Unlimited enrollments. Distribution is primarily domestic Japan, with global reach only insofar as Apple Books, Google Play, and music.jp extend its catalog internationally. The 15-year-old company (15th anniversary celebrated in 2025) is privately held, led by Representative Director and President Hitoshi Akai (赤井仁), and operates with 11-50 employees from Minato-ku, Tokyo.

Name

Goma Books

Legal name

ゴマブックス株式会社

Website

https://goma-books.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Goma Books (ゴマブックス) is a Tokyo-based independent publisher producing e-books and print-on-demand (POD) books distributed across 20+ platforms, serving individual authors, consumer readers, and corporate publishing partners via one-time sales and a subscription publishing partnership.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

e-book and Print-on-Demand Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Book Printing (2732)

akta.pro primary industry

E-book Retail & Reading Platforms (Stores, Apps, Devices) (MPAJAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Trade Book Print-on-Demand (Fiction & Nonfiction) (MPAJANAA), Self-Publishing Platforms (KDP-style Marketplaces & Portals) (MPAJAJAA)

Keywords

• E-book publishing
• Print-on-demand books
• Multi-platform distribution
• Digital manga publishing
• Mobile novel platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. E-book Sales: One-time purchase model for digital e-books sold across Amazon Kindle, iBooks, Google Play, Rakuten Kobo, and other platforms. Prices range from approximately ¥250 to ¥1,890 per title. Some titles participate in Kindle Unlimited subscription program.
2. Print-on-Demand (POD) Book Sales: Physical books printed and shipped on demand via Amazon POD service. POD titles are Amazon-exclusive for physical format. Price points range from ¥1,600–¥1,890+ tax per title.
3. Subscription Publishing (サブスク出版): Joint subscription-style publishing model with partner グローバルパートナーズ株式会社. Authors publish works through a subscription model co-developed with Global Partners.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels18 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Goma Books is a Japanese publishing company that produces and distributes e-books, physical books, print-on-demand (POD) books, and disc-on-demand (DOD) media across 20+ digital and physical retail channels. The company specializes in niche and long-tail content including manga, business, self-help, literature, politics, music scores, Aozora Bunko public domain works, and National Diet Library collections. It also operates the Ori-on☆ mobile novel platform for new writing talent and revives out-of-print titles through its GOMABOOKS Reprint Series.

Product overview

Goma Books (ゴマブックス) is an e-book and print publishing portal offering digital books, physical books, and print-on-demand publications. The core offerings include 電子書籍 (e-books) available across multiple platforms like Amazon Kindle, iBooks, Rakuten Kobo, and Google Play, as well as 一般書籍 (physical books) and POD/PRINT-ON-DEMAND formats. The company operates the おりおん☆ mobile novel platform for discovering new writers and recently launched ゴマデジタルブックス (GD Books), a new e-book series. They also publish specialty series including the BIRTHDAY BOOK fortune-telling series, National Diet Library collections, Aozora Bunko public domain works, and Disc-on-Demand products. The company distributes through Amazon and multiple Japanese e-book retailers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GD Books: New e-book series launched in July 2026
• ゴマデジタルブックス

Products and services

• E-books (電子書籍 / Digital Books) Digital e-book versions of Goma Books' publications available for purchase across multiple online bookstores and reading platforms including Amazon Kindle, iBooks, Google Play, Rakuten Kobo, Yahoo! Bookstore, DMM e-books, eBookJapan, BookWalker, and others. Sold to individual consumer readers across genres including business, self-help, manga, literature, politics, music scores, and specialty reference content.
• Physical Books (一般書籍) Physical printed books sold through bookstore partners and retail locations, covering the same genre breadth as the e-book line (business, self-help, manga, literature, politics, music scores, etc.). Targeted at individual consumer readers who prefer physical formats.
• Print-on-Demand Books (POD / プリント・オン・デマンド) Physical books printed and shipped individually on demand through Amazon's POD service, eliminating inventory risk for niche and long-tail titles. Available exclusively on Amazon. Sample titles include 『中途採用に悩む人事に最初に読んで欲しい本』¥1,600+tax and 『美容医療で世界の頂点へ』¥1,620+tax. Format: 128mm × 188mm. Designed for individual readers and self-published authors seeking physical distribution without inventory risk.
• Disc-on-Demand (DOD / ディスク・オン・デマンド) Physical media products including DVD-based content (e.g., instructional DVDs, presidential speeches) and music CDs that are produced and shipped on demand. Sold through Amazon and the goma-books.com portal. Examples include 'トランプ大統領就任演説 DVD BOOK' and '認知症予防と改善にもなる家族のためのアロママッサージ' [DVD].
• Goma Digital Books (GD Books / ゴマデジタルブックス) A new e-book series launched in July 2026 as a new product line for Goma Books, offering digital books designed for easy purchase and immediate access. Announced via the company's news section on July 2, 2026. Currently proposed as 'a new e-book series offering' for the company's digital content portfolio.
• Ori-on☆ Mobile Novel Platform (ケータイ小説おりおん☆) A mobile novel posting website featuring works that have been adapted into dramas and novels, used for discovering and nurturing new writing talent. Functions as a talent pipeline for Goma Books' broader publishing portfolio.
• BIRTHDAY BOOK Series (バースデーブック) Fortune-telling book series comprising 366 titles, one for each day of the year, providing personality diagnostics and 10-year future predictions based on birthdate. Sold as e-books at ¥400 per title. Targeted at individual consumer readers interested in fortune-telling and personal diagnostics.
• National Diet Library Collection (国会図書館所蔵書) Digitized versions of publications from the National Diet Library (Japan's national library) collection, made available as e-books through Goma Books' multi-platform distribution. Targeted at readers, researchers, and consumers seeking access to historically significant or rare publications.
• Aozora Bunko Public Domain Series (青空文庫) Selections from the Aozora Bunko public domain Japanese literary collection, published as e-books through Goma Books' distribution platform. Targeted at readers of classic Japanese literature and public domain works.
• GOMA BOOKS Reprint Series (ゴマブックス復刊シリーズ) Revival/out-of-print title reissuance program bringing back previously unavailable works through POD and e-book formats. Enables monetizing content libraries that would otherwise remain inaccessible. Targeted at readers seeking out-of-print or hard-to-find titles, and rights holders seeking POD reissuance.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• グローバルパートナーズ株式会社 (Global Partners Co., Ltd.)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint subscription publishing (サブスク出版) partnership. Global Partners and Goma Books co-produce titles under the subscription publishing model. Global Partners is involved in digital marketing (YouTube CM 30,000 videos/year), global talent services (1,000 placements/year), overseas expansion support, and online school services.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Publiq (出版ワークス): Smaller Japanese POD and digital publisher with a long-tail focus; partial overlap with Goma Books' niche-content and POD positioning.

Direct peers

• Renta! (Papyless): Japanese e-book rental platform from Papyless offering Japanese-language digital content distribution; competing for the same digital reading audience with comparable genre breadth.
• BookWalker (Kadokawa): Kadokawa's e-book platform offering e-books and POD services across Japanese e-book retailers. Directly comparable as a multi-format digital publisher/aggregator serving Japanese readers and authors.
• BookLive: E-book platform (formerly 7net e-books) operated by BookLive Co., Ltd.; comparable distribution model serving Japanese consumers with broad content across genres.
• DMM Books: DMM.com's e-book platform offering manga, books, and digital content distribution in Japan; comparable retail/aggregation model with broad content catalog.
• Honto: Joint e-book service by Maruzen, Junkudo, and DNP; functions as a multi-platform distribution and discovery point for Japanese e-books, similar to Goma Books' aggregator role.
• eBookJapan (Yahoo Japan): Major Japanese e-book platform operated by Yahoo Japan/SoftBank; competes for the same reader and publisher pool with a similar aggregation and distribution model.
• NextPublishing (Impress R&D): Digital-first Japanese publisher using Amazon POD and multi-platform e-book distribution; very comparable small-publisher model with similar focus on niche and technical content.

Broad incumbents

• Rakuten Kobo: International e-book platform that operates as a distribution channel in Japan; overlaps with Goma Books as both retailer and distribution partner, but at much larger global scale.
• Kindle Direct Publishing (Amazon KDP): Amazon's dominant POD and self-publishing platform; simultaneously Goma Books' largest customer (POD exclusive) and a structural competitor for self-publishing authors.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/gomabooks
• Facebookbit.ly/2zvgZ6FC

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Goma Books