Good Fellows

What Good Fellows does

Good Fellows (株式会社 Good Fellows) is a Tokyo-based talent agency founded on August 9, 2011, that recruits, trains, and manages live-streaming broadcasters—called 'livers'—on the 17LIVE platform in Japan. Operated by a 10-person team from a Shibuya-ku headquarters, the firm has developed over 3,000 cumulative affiliated streamers since inception and is officially recognized as a 17LIVE Gold and Silver Partner, the platform's highest business-partner tier. Its target customers are Japanese adults aged 18+ seeking supplemental or full-time income through live streaming, including students, homemakers and entertainment-industry professionals (models, idols, actors, dancers, artists); the company's value proposition centers on training, community, performance benchmarking, and access to higher revenue-share rates plus exclusive platform events reserved for partner-affiliated livers.

The company's core product is its talent management service, delivered through a five-step onboarding funnel that funnels prospects from a LINE inquiry into onboarding, screening, orientation/registration and contract. Supporting this funnel is a set of proprietary internal systems rather than a public technology platform: a year-round New Liver Training Room (新人講習ルーム), a 365-day dedicated manager support desk (365日対応相談窓口), and monthly performance benchmarking reports (月次パフォーマンスレポート) that compare individual streaming days and gift counts against peers. No proprietary streaming infrastructure is built; the firm operates entirely atop 17LIVE's application. Marketing acquisition runs through LINE, Instagram and X, with talent testimonials serving as a community-led demand-generation lever.

Good Fellows earns revenue via two streams. First, and dominant, the firm takes a commission on 'livers'' earnings derived from viewer gifts/tips on the 17LIVE platform under a transaction-fee model; no joining, annual, or withdrawal fees are charged to talent. Second, the firm conducts advertising and promotional proxy services for brands (professional-services revenue), routing campaigns through affiliated liver talent. As a Gold/Silver Partner, Good Fellows also participates in 17LIVE-organized competitions and brand campaigns, generating event-related income. Notable demonstrated outcomes include producing streamers placing 2nd and 4th at 17LIVE's global world championship, 7 livers in the monthly Japan TOP100, and a single historically cited general-housewife liver earning close to ¥100M (~$700K) in one year.

Name

Good Fellows

Legal name

株式会社 Good Fellows

Website

https://goodfellows17.info

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Tokyo-based talent agency recruiting, training, and managing live streamers (livers) on the 17LIVE platform in Japan. Operating as a Gold and Silver Partner at 17LIVE's highest tier, the 10-person firm has developed over 3,000 cumulative livers and supplements commission-based revenue with advertising services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Streamer Talent Management

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Sourcing / Talent Research & Pipeline RPO (Sourcer-as-a-Service) (BPACABAM)

Keywords

• Live streamer agency
• Talent management services
• Live streaming platform
• Streamer recruitment training
• Broadcast talent representation

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Talent Management Services for 17LIVE Livers: The company acts as a talent agency for 17LIVE, recruiting, training, and managing liver (live streamer) talent. Revenue is derived from commissions on talent earnings generated through the 17LIVE platform. The company also earns agency fees and event-related income from 17LIVE as a Gold/Silver Partner. Livers generate income through viewer 'gifts' (tips), and Good Fellows takes a share as the managing agency.
2. Advertising Agency Services: The company conducts advertising and promotional proxy services, potentially earning commissions or fees from brand campaigns that are routed through their liver talent.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Good Fellows operates as a talent management agency for live streamers (livers) on the 17LIVE platform, recruiting, training, and managing individuals who earn income through viewer gifts and tips. The company also provides advertising and promotional proxy services routing brand campaigns through its affiliated talent. It is recognized as 17LIVE's top-tier Gold and Silver Official Business Partner, with over 3,000 cumulative affiliated livers.

Product overview

Good Fellows operates as a talent agency and management platform for 17LIVE live streaming professionals. The company offers a single unified service focused on recruiting, training, and supporting 'ivers' (live streaming broadcasters) on the 17LIVE platform. Services include onboarding support, operational guidance, exclusive training materials, dedicated manager support, and access to agency-exclusive events and opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 17LIVE Liver Talent Management Services
• Advertising and Promotional Agency Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Livers earn from tens of thousands to over 10 million yen per month depending on performance and popularity
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 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

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• 17LIVEcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGood Fellows is officially recognized as 17LIVE's Official Business Partner at both Gold Partner (highest tier) and Silver Partner levels. The company recruits, trains, and manages liver (live streamer) talent that streams exclusively on the 17LIVE platform. As a channel partner, Good Fellows supplies trained talent to 17LIVE and participates in platform events, competitions, and brand campaigns. The partnership provides livers with access to official liver status, higher revenue share rates compared to unofficial livers, and eligibility for exclusive platform events and advertising opportunities.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• BitStar: Tokyo-based influencer and live streamer talent agency affiliated with multiple platforms including 17LIVE. Directly comparable as a 17LIVE partner agency recruiting, training, and managing Japanese livers, competing head-to-head for the same talent pool.
• Vspo: Japanese esports and gaming-focused talent agency managing professional streamers and competitive players. Overlaps with Good Fellows in the live streaming talent management space, particularly in gaming content creators.
• VAZ: Japanese short-video and live streaming talent agency operating multiple MCN brands across platforms. Closely comparable business model of recruiting and managing streamers/influencers with platform partnerships in Japan.
• Geelee (Glee): Japan-based talent and influencer management agency with a focus on emerging live streamers and social media talent. Comparable as a direct competitor in the Japanese liver/influencer recruitment market.

Broad incumbents

• UUUM: Japan's largest MCN (Multi-Channel Network) and talent management company, representing top YouTubers and influencers. Comparable to Good Fellows as a platform-talent agency relationship, but operating at significantly larger scale on YouTube rather than live streaming.
• SHOWROOM (DeNA): Major Japanese live streaming platform operated by DeNA. Adjacent as a competing platform that also works with talent agencies, and represents both a potential expansion channel and competitive threat to 17LIVE.
• 17LIVE: The live streaming platform itself, of which Good Fellows is a top-tier partner. Not a direct competitor but a critical ecosystem relationship — understanding 17LIVE's partner economics is essential to evaluating Good Fellows' position.
• Production Ace: Established Japanese entertainment talent agency representing voice actors, narrators, and performers. Comparable in the talent representation business model, though serving traditional media talent rather than live streamers.
• NOGIZAKA46 LLC / Sony Music Artists: Large Japanese entertainment talent agencies managing idol groups, actors, and entertainers. Relevant as the traditional entertainment agency model Good Fellows' secondary customer segment (models, idols, actors) may migrate from.

Emerging players

• IRIS (incl. Lemon, etc.): Japan-based emerging live streamer and influencer agencies operating under group companies like NextOne. Comparable as smaller, newer entrants in the Japanese liver talent management space, often competing for the same pool of aspiring streamers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/17_gold_partner
• Instagraminstagram.com/goodfellows_17

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Good Fellows