（株）講談社

What （株）講談社 does

Kodansha Ltd. (株式会社講談社), founded in 1909, is a major Japanese publishing company that operates the Disney Fan (ディズニーファン) publishing line under license from The Walt Disney Company since 1989. The core product is a monthly magazine released around the 25th of each month at ¥820, covering Tokyo Disney Resort news, attractions, entertainment, dining, merchandise, and fan activities. Surrounding the magazine is a portfolio of approximately 15 active guidebook (mook/ムック) series covering Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea individually and jointly, plus specialized editions for attractions, restaurants, hotels, merchandise (~1,800 items catalogued), family/kids audiences, adult visitors, photography projects, trivia, and overseas Disney parks (California, Florida, Hong Kong, Paris, Shanghai). Guidebooks retail between ¥1,400 and ¥4,620 and are refreshed on roughly annual cycles, with event-driven special editions tied to park milestones such as the Fantasy Springs grand opening (June 2024) and Tokyo DisneySea's 25th anniversary 'Sparkling Jubilee' (April 2026).

The publishing platform operates across direct-to-consumer channels including the Kodansha Book Club website (bookclub.kodansha.co.jp), Amazon Kindle, Rakuten Kobo, nationwide physical bookstore distribution, and subscription tiers (1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year) at ¥9,840 for the annual plan. A dedicated Disney Fan iOS App Store application is being shut down (service ended February 2025, content access ending February 2026), marking a retreat from owned digital channels in favor of third-party platforms and physical retail. The business is Japan-domestic only, with no stated international distribution footprint. Marketing channels include a LINE official account (@disneyfan), an editorial blog, wallpaper downloads, social sharing features, and reader engagement programs (letters column, contests).

Revenue mechanics combine recurring magazine subscriptions (monthly/annual) with one-time guidebook purchases and digital edition sales. Customer segments are Disney enthusiasts (primary) and families with children visiting Tokyo Disney Resort (secondary), both served through identical retail and digital channels. No enterprise customers, B2B channels, or advertising-driven monetization are evident in the data. The competitive position rests on a 35+ year official Disney licensing relationship, a deep archive of Tokyo Disney Resort content, and Kodansha's established nationwide distribution infrastructure. No AI/ML capabilities, patents, awards, or external funding are present in the source material.

Name

（株）講談社

Legal name

Kodansha Ltd.

Website

https://kds-disneyfan.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1909

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Kodansha Ltd. (株式会社講談社) publishes Disney Fan, a monthly magazine and 15+ guidebook series licensed from The Walt Disney Company since 1989, covering Tokyo Disney Resort, international Disney parks, and Disney/Pixar content for Japanese consumers via bookstores, e-book platforms, and subscriptions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Magazine Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313), Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s Subscription & Book Club Publishing (MPAJAFAO)

Keywords

• Disney licensed publishing
• Monthly magazine publishing
• Theme park guidebooks
• Licensed content publishing
• Japanese publishing

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

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

Revenue model

1. Magazine Sales: Monthly sales of Disney Fan magazine (月刊ディズニーファン) published on the 25th of each month, priced at 820 yen (tax included)
2. Guidebook/Mook Sales: Sale of special guidebook publications (ムック/mooks) covering Tokyo Disney Resort attractions, restaurants, hotels, character guides, and photography projects
3. Digital Content: Electronic versions of magazine and guidebooks sold through Amazon Kindle, Rakuten Kobo, and dedicated iOS app (until February 2025)
4. Subscription Services: Annual subscription service priced at 9,840 yen (tax included) with various course options including 1-year, 6-month, 3-month, and 1-month subscriptions

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kodansha publishes Disney Fan (ディズニーファン), a monthly magazine released around the 25th of each month priced at 820 yen (tax included), covering Tokyo Disney Resort attractions, entertainment, dining, merchandise, and character news. The company also publishes an annual lineup of specialized guidebooks (mooks) on Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo DisneySea, attractions, restaurants, hotels, photography projects, and international Disney parks, distributed through Kodansha's book club website, e-book stores, physical bookstores, and subscription services.

Product overview

Kodansha's Disney Fan (ディズニーファン) is a comprehensive publishing portfolio centered on a monthly magazine (released around the 25th of each month, priced at ¥820 including tax) covering Tokyo Disney Resort. The product line includes multiple guidebook series (パーフェクトガイドブック, まるわかりガイドブック) for Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea, specialized guides for attractions, restaurants, hotels, and character profiles. Supporting products include photography books (イマジニング・ザ・マジック), fan books for Duffy & Friends and Twisted Wonderland, chronicle/history books documenting park milestones, trivia quiz books, family-focused guides, international Disney parks guides, and animation encyclopedias covering Disney and Pixar films. The portfolio also includes digital editions available on Amazon Kindle and Rakuten Kobo. The company also operated a dedicated Disney Fan app for iOS (service ended February 2025).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Disney Fan (ディズニーファン): Official Disney fan magazine published by Kodansha covering Tokyo Disney Resort and Disney parks worldwide, including guidebooks, special issues, and monthly magazine content.

Products and services

• Disney Fan Magazine (ディズニーファン) Official monthly Disney fan magazine released around the 25th of each month, priced at 820 yen (tax included). Covers Tokyo Disney Resort news, attractions, entertainment, restaurants, merchandise, character guides, and fan activities for Disney enthusiasts and park visitors.
• Disney Fan Digital Edition (ディズニーファン 電子版)

Quantifiable outcome

• Regular monthly publication with special guidebook releases covering major park anniversaries and events

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Shufunotomo (主婦の友社): Japanese publisher of family lifestyle magazines and Disney-themed family guidebooks. Closely comparable niche audience (families, Disney fans) and guidebook product format.
• Tokuma Shoten (徳間書店): Japanese publisher producing specialty magazines and hobby/entertainment books including Disney-adjacent content. Comparable in publishing Disney-related specialty titles and serialized magazine formats.
• Shogakukan (小学館): Major Japanese publisher of similar scale to Kodansha that also publishes competing Tokyo Disney Resort guidebooks and family-oriented magazine content. Direct overlap with the Disney Fan guidebook portfolio.
• Kadokawa Corporation (角川): Large Japanese publisher with established Disney-related guidebook lines and broad lifestyle/entertainment book portfolio. Overlaps directly with Kodansha's Disney guidebook and fan-book categories.

Others

• PHP Institute (PHP研究所): Mid-size Japanese publisher with diverse magazine and book publishing operations across lifestyle and hobby categories. Comparable scale and distribution model in the Japanese publishing ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Disney Publishing Worldwide: The Walt Disney Company's in-house publishing arm, which controls the master licensing rights the subject company depends on. Directly comparable Disney-licensed content publishing at global scale.
• Shueisha (集英社): One of Japan's largest publishing houses and a sister company within the Hitotsubashi Group alongside Kodansha. Comparable monthly magazine and manga publishing scale, though not a Disney guidebook specialist.
• Gakken Holdings (学研ホールディングス): Japanese educational and lifestyle publisher with comparable children's and family guidebook publishing operations. Overlaps with the family-oriented Tokyo Disney Resort guidebook category.

Emerging players

• Mag Garden: Smaller Japanese publisher of manga magazines and specialty entertainment books, including Disney-adjacent fan content. Comparable product format at smaller scale.
• Hakusensha (白泉社): Shueisha-affiliated publisher specializing in manga and serialized magazine publications. Comparable in monthly magazine publishing operations targeting enthusiast fan audiences in Japan.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/share
• Facebookfacebook.com/kodansha.co.jp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/%EF%BC%88%E6%A0%AA%EF%BC%89%E8%AC%9B%E8%AB%87%E7%A4%BE

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 （株）講談社