What Cemic does

Cemic Co., Ltd. (株式会社セミック) is a Tokyo-based, privately held Japanese company founded in August 1990 that operates primarily as a licensing intermediary for Japanese professional sports intellectual property. Its core business involves securing authorization from sports organizations — including the Japan Professional Baseball OB Club, Japan Pro Baseball MEIKYUKAI, the Japan Golf Tour Organization, and J.League — to license player names, photographs, and team trademarks to video game manufacturers such as Konami, Bandai Namco, Colopl, Koei Tecmo, Mynet Games, and OneSports. Revenue is generated through licensing royalties on these IP rights, supplemented by two newer lines: a sales agent role in the Photoreco online photo marketplace (entered June 2020) and a consumer camera equipment storefront called Camera-Marche on eBay (launched July 2019).

The company's value proposition rests on long-dated exclusive or designated licensee relationships with Japanese sports bodies, dating back to 1991 for J.League and 1997 for both the OB Club and JGTO, which collectively cover baseball and golf — Japan's two most commercially significant individual sports. Cemic functions as a single point of contact between IP holders and game publishers, simplifying multi-party licensing workflows. The firm holds a Tokyo Second-Hand Dealer License (required for its eBay camera business) and is a member of the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA).

Cemic is founder-controlled, with Representative Director Mutsuhiro Yui (由井睦洋) as the named executive, no disclosed institutional investors or parent company, and stated capital of ¥50 million. The company operates from a single office in Minato-ku, Tokyo, and uses a sales-led B2B go-to-market model with no disclosed public pricing. Technology stack is not disclosed; the business is fundamentally a relationship-driven intermediary rather than a technology platform.

Name

Cemic

Legal name

株式会社セミック

Website

https://cemic.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Cemic Co., Ltd. is a Tokyo-based licensing intermediary that secures rights from Japanese professional sports organizations — including baseball, golf, and soccer bodies — and licenses player names, photos, and trademarks to video game publishers such as Konami, Bandai Namco, and Koei Tecmo.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Intellectual Property Licensing Services

NAICS

Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (7114)

SIC

Services-Allied To Motion Picture Distribution (7829)

akta.pro primary industry

Sports Rights Agencies & Brokers (Acquisition/Packaging) (MPABAJAH)

Keywords

• Sports IP licensing
• Trademark licensing services
• Athlete rights management
• Video game content licensing
• Professional sports media

Headquarters

HQ city

Minato

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Licensing Services: Cemic generates revenue by licensing professional sports intellectual property (team trademarks, player names, photographs) to video game manufacturers for use in their products. This is the core business, with partnerships with Japanese baseball and golf organizations enabling player content in popular sports games.
2. Photo Sales Services: Through a sales agent agreement with Exrant Co., Ltd., Cemic participates in the online photo sales service Photoreco, selling photographs and illustrations through the internet.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Cemic Co., Ltd. (株式会社セミック) is a Japanese licensing services company that obtains permissions from professional sports organizations and athletes to license trademarks, player names, and photographs to game manufacturers and other content creators for use in video games and digital content. The company holds exclusive single-point-of-contact licensing arrangements with the Japan Professional Baseball OB Club, Japan Golf Tour Organization, and Japan Professional Baseball MEIKYUKAI, and serves major game publishers including Konami Digital Entertainment, Bandai Namco Entertainment, Colopl, Koei Tecmo, and Mynet Games.

Product overview

Cemic operates primarily as a licensing services company that obtains permissions from professional sports organizations and athletes to enable product and content commercialization. The company's core offering is licensing services for game manufacturers and content creators to use professional sports trademarks, player names, and photographs in video games and digital content. Cemic also offers supplementary services including the online photo sales service Photoreco and the eBay-based camera shop Camera-Marche.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Professional Sports IP Licensing Services Core service providing authorized licensing of Japanese professional sports organization trademarks, player names, and photographs for use in video game software and digital content. Serves enterprise game publishers such as Konami Digital Entertainment, Bandai Namco Entertainment, Colopl, Koei Tecmo, Mynet Games, and OneSports.
• Photoreco Online Photo Sales Service (Sales Agent) Online platform participation where Cemic acts as a sales agent to recruit content providers and develop a photo and illustration sales business over the internet. Operated in partnership with Exrant Co., Ltd.
• Camera-Marche (eBay Camera Shop)

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Exrant Co., Ltd. (株式会社エクスラント)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 22 June 2020Sales agent agreement signed June 22, 2020 for participation in the online photo sales service Photoreco. Cemic acts as a sales agent, developing photo sales business through the internet and recruiting content providers who offer photographs and illustrations.
• eBayminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 July 2019Opened camera shop Camera-Marche on eBay in July 2019, utilizing the eBay marketplace platform for retail sales of camera equipment.
• Japan Professional Baseball MEIKYUKAI (日本プロ野球名球会)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2012Official licensee for commercialization of video games using the MEIKYUKAI organization brand and member player content. Partnership established in May 2012, expanding access to elite professional baseball players who have achieved significant statistical milestones.
• Japan Baseball Promotion Association (公益社団法人 全国野球振興会 / 日本プロ野球OBクラブ)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 1997Official licensee for commercialization of video games using the Japan Professional Baseball OB Club brand, player names, and photographs. This long-standing partnership since September 1997 enables Cemic to provide game manufacturers with authentic professional baseball alumni content.
• Japan Golf Tour Organization (JGTO) / Japan Golf Players ClubcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 1997Exclusive contact point for commercialization of real-name professional golf video games. Partnership with the Japan Golf Players Club (now JGTO) established February 1997, providing exclusive licensing rights for professional golfer content in video games.
• J.League (日本プロサッカーリーグ)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 1991In November 1991, upon inauguration of the J.League, Cemic signed a contract as the official licensee for the J.League Official TV Game, managing licensing rights for soccer league trademarks and content.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Panini Group: Global sports-licensing and collectibles company that acquires player and team likeness rights for trading cards, games, and digital content; broader portfolio but overlapping licensing-intermediary function.
• Topps (Fanatics Collectibles): Licenses player likenesses for trading cards and digital collectibles tied to video-game tie-ins; same category of sports IP monetization as Cemic.
• J.League (Japan Professional Football League): The rights-holder that licensed Cemic as its official TV-game licensee since 1991; operates as the incumbent IP owner in the same content category Cemic brokers.
• Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC): Licenses collegiate trademarks and athlete likeness rights on behalf of universities; analogous intermediary model serving institutional rights holders rather than athletes.

Others

• Getty Images: Broader image-licensing platform that includes sports photography rights; not a direct competitor in athlete name/likeness licensing for games, but operates the same content-licensing infrastructure.

Direct peers

• NFL Players Inc. Manages group licensing of NFL player names, images, and likenesses for use in video games, trading cards, and merchandise; structurally identical business to Cemic but for American football.
• NBPA (National Basketball Players Association): Licenses NBA player group rights for video games and digital content on behalf of all league players; operates the same group-licensing model Cemic uses for the OB Club and MEIKYUKAI.
• PGA Tour Enterprises: Licenses professional golfer names, likenesses, and tournament marks to video games and digital media; directly comparable to Cemic's exclusive Japan Golf Tour Organization arrangement.
• MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM): Licenses MLB team marks and player likeness rights to video game publishers and digital platforms; the most direct analog to Cemic's Japanese pro-baseball licensing franchise, operating at much larger scale.

Regional players

• Exrant Co., Ltd. Operates the Photoreco online photo-licensing marketplace where Cemic acts as sales agent; a regional Japanese peer in digital rights/photo licensing adjacent to Cemic's core sports business.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

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 Cemic