cobnet

What cobnet does

cobnet (株式会社cobnet) is a Tokyo-headquartered digital advertising and media production company founded in 2005 (originally as Tandem Inc., rebranded to cobnet in March 2014 following a 2012 Tandem-BPO merger). The company sells a diversified digital marketing services portfolio targeted primarily at Japanese small and medium-sized businesses, including performance-based Facebook advertising under a CPA pricing model, SEO, affiliate marketing, display advertising, app promotion, web production, and mobile app development. Its proprietary technology platform, Copra (コプラ), launched in February 2015, functions as an internal advertising management and measurement system supporting multi-channel media buying and performance tracking.

The firm's go-to-market is structured around low-friction onboarding for Japanese SMBs, with reportedly accessible minimum budget thresholds and a managed-service orientation. In parallel with client services, cobnet operates a portfolio of owned-media properties across niche verticals: DANCEQ (dance), 電気節約ドットコム (electricity comparison), Challenge (beauty), and 銀座カラー.jp (salon). Beyond advertising, the company offers in-house Ruby on Rails, AWS, iOS/Android development, and an SES (System Engineering Service) staffing line, suggesting a hybrid agency/technology-services revenue mix rather than pure ad-buying intermediation. Strategic partnerships are limited in the disclosed record, with the AppsFlyer mobile attribution partnership (November 2016) being the most notable infrastructure dependency. No funding rounds, revenue figures, or employee headcount are publicly disclosed.

Name

cobnet

Legal name

株式会社cobnet

Website

https://cobnet.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Short description

cobnet is a Tokyo-based digital advertising and media production company serving Japanese SMBs with performance-based Facebook ads, SEO, affiliate, display, and app promotion services, supported by its proprietary Copra ad management platform and a portfolio of owned-media sites.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Advertising Agency Services: Full-service digital advertising agency offering multiple online marketing channels including Facebook advertising (performance-based CPA model), affiliate advertising, display advertising, SEO services, and web production. Revenue generated through advertising fees, commissions, and service charges.
2. Media Operations: Operating owned media properties including DANCEQ (dance information), Denki Setsuyaku (electricity comparison), Challenge (beauty information), and Ginza Color (salon information). Revenue generated through advertising and affiliate placements on these media properties.
3. App Development and Systems Integration: Application development services for iOS and Android, Ruby on Rails web application development, AWS setup and management, and SES (System Engineering Service) providing engineers for development and operations support.
4. Study Abroad Support: Study abroad support services for university students, launched November 2012 as part of service diversification.
5. Event Promotion: Promotional events combining real-world events with internet-based affiliate services, launched March 2013.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

cobnet is a Tokyo-based digital advertising agency founded in 2005 that combines online and offline marketing strategies to support enterprise promotional activities. The company provides performance-based Facebook advertising, affiliate advertising, SEO, display advertising, web production, and app development services, and operates multiple owned media properties. Its proprietary Copra platform enables real-time campaign measurement, attribution, and optimization across advertising channels.

Product overview

cobnet is an advertising agency and consulting company that operates a platform-plus-modules product architecture. The core proprietary platform is Copra (コプラ), an advertising management and measurement system that enables real-time campaign optimization across multiple channels. This core system is complemented by specialized service modules including performance-based Facebook advertising, SEO services, display advertising, affiliate advertising, app promotion, web production, app development (iOS/Android), Ruby on Rails development, AWS services, and SES staffing. cobnet also operates a portfolio of owned media properties including DANCEQ (dance content), Electricity Saving Dot Com (utility comparison), Challenge (beauty information), and Ginza Color.jp (salon information). The company combines online and offline marketing expertise to provide integrated promotional support for enterprise clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Copra: Company's proprietary advertising measurement system used for real-time PDCA operations, ad network and DSP integration, and cross-device affiliate ad deployment
• DANCEQ
• 電気節約ドットコム
• Challenge
• 銀座カラー.jp

Products and services

• Copra Proprietary real-time measurement, attribution, and optimization platform for digital advertising campaigns across channels. Used internally and offered to advertisers to enable performance-based media buying and cross-channel tracking.
• Performance-based Facebook advertising Facebook advertising management service priced on performance (CPA) outcomes, including campaign strategy, creative, media buying, and ongoing optimization. Targeted at advertisers seeking measurable returns.
• Affiliate advertising (Copra affiliate network) Affiliate advertising program powered by the Copra platform that connects advertisers with media partners and pays commissions on referred conversions. Targeted at advertisers and publishers seeking outcome-based partnerships.
• SEO services Monthly retainer search engine optimization services including technical SEO, content optimization, and link-building for Japanese businesses seeking organic search traffic growth.
• Display advertising Display and banner advertising management service including media planning, creative production, and campaign optimization across web and app inventory.
• Web production Website design and production service covering landing pages, corporate sites, and conversion-focused web builds for advertisers and other businesses.
• App development Mobile application development service for iOS and Android, leveraging Ruby on Rails and AWS, marketed to advertisers and businesses needing integrated apps.
• App promotion services Performance-based mobile app install and user acquisition campaigns with attribution through AppsFlyer SDK integration and the Copra platform.
• Ruby on Rails development Custom Ruby on Rails application development service for clients needing scalable web backends.
• AWS services Amazon Web Services consulting, architecture, and infrastructure management services for clients needing cloud-native deployments.
• SES (System Engineer Support) Engineer dispatch service providing skilled technical staff (SES) to client projects on a contract basis.
• DANCEQ (owned media) Owned-and-operated vertical media property operated by cobnet, monetized through advertising and affiliate revenue.
• denkipita / Electricity Saving Dot Com (owned media) Owned-and-operated vertical comparison media property focused on electricity-saving services, monetized through affiliate commissions and advertising.
• Challenge beauty (owned media) Owned-and-operated vertical media property focused on beauty services and products, monetized through affiliate commissions and advertising.
• Ginza Color (owned media) Owned-and-operated vertical media property focused on beauty salon content, monetized through affiliate commissions and advertising.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90% keyword ranking success rate with manual link-building
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AppsFlyercoreTechnology or Integration · 3 November 2016cobnet partnered with AppsFlyer (Israel-based mobile measurement platform, CEO: Oren Kaniel) in November 2016 to offer mobile advertising measurement services. AppsFlyer serves 5,000+ companies globally, measuring 20B+ USD in annual mobile ad spend and 500M+ app installations monthly. cobnet combines AppsFlyer SDK with their proprietary 'copra' tool for optimal app promotion services. AppsFlyer is an official Facebook Mobile Measurement Partner and Twitter Official Partner.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Hakuhodo: Second-largest Japanese advertising agency with full-service digital and traditional advertising capabilities. Provides a relevant incumbent benchmark for the Japan advertising market in which cobnet competes, though serving much larger enterprise clients.
• Digital Garage: Established Japanese digital marketing and ad-tech company with broader payment, marketing, and fintech operations. Comparable as a Japan-based digital advertising and technology player, but operates at significantly larger scale and scope than cobnet.
• Dentsu: Japan's largest advertising agency with global operations across creative, media, digital, and performance marketing. Relevant broad incumbent comparator for cobnet, though operating at vastly greater scale across enterprise clients.

Direct peers

• GMO Ad Partners: Japanese performance-based digital advertising agency under GMO Internet Group. Highly comparable business model focused on affiliate, search, and display advertising with measurement technology—paralleling cobnet's CPA-driven services and Copra platform.
• ValueCommerce: Japan's leading affiliate marketing network and digital advertising company. Directly comparable to cobnet's affiliate advertising offering and provides a relevant benchmark for performance-based affiliate monetization in the Japanese market.
• FreakOut Holdings: Tokyo-headquartered programmatic advertising and DSP provider operating in Japan and APAC. Comparable as a digital advertising technology and agency player, with broader DSP/programmatic capabilities that overlap with cobnet's display advertising services.
• Septeni Holdings: Japanese digital advertising holding company specializing in performance-based online advertising with proprietary ad-tech and agency services. Closely comparable to cobnet in CPA-based Facebook advertising, display, and affiliate offerings, though at significantly larger scale.
• Adways: Japan-based mobile-first advertising and affiliate network operator. Directly comparable in mobile app promotion, affiliate advertising, and performance-based digital marketing—areas where cobnet also operates via Copra and its AppsFlyer integration.
• Allied Architects: Tokyo-based digital advertising agency known for performance-based Facebook ads and proprietary tools in Japan. Closely comparable to cobnet in performance-based Facebook advertising positioning and target SME client base.
• i-mobile: Japanese mobile advertising platform specializing in mobile ad networks and affiliate marketing. Directly comparable to cobnet's mobile app promotion and affiliate advertising services, with similar focus on Japanese SME and app advertiser segments.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/cobnet2014

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 cobnet