Japan is not a
black box.
End-to-end support for launching your app, game, or e-commerce brand in Japan — from market intelligence, regulatory compliance, user acquisition, and boost, to creative production. Based in Japan and working across borders and languages, our team will grow your business.
Japan is the world's
#3 mobile game market — and a hot one.
Japanese consumers spent US$16.5B on apps in 2024, #3 in the world. Of that, mobile game in-app purchases (IAP) account for about US$11B a year. For a country of about 120 million people, spend per person is among the highest in the world, with a small group of "whale" users driving the majority of revenue.
But with iOS at about 65%, vertical video ads up 56% YoY, and internet ads now over half of all ad spend, the acquisition landscape here works differently. Simply translating overseas ads rarely delivers results.
du-o runs campaigns on the ground in Japan while working side by side with teams overseas. We help you understand this landscape by the numbers, then execute end-to-end from strategy to operations.
Four numbers where the global playbook
doesn't apply in Japan.
The uniqueness of the Japan market, in numbers.
Global norms don't translate here. We've organized what makes the Japan market "different" using data. Mastering these dynamics is what separates successful launches from failed ones.
① An iPhone-heavy nation — the world runs on Android, Japan runs on iOS
Globally, Android dominates and iOS accounts for only about 30% of mobile OS usage. In Japan, the ratio is reversed: iOS accounts for about 65% (Statcounter, August 2026). That figure is based on web traffic; in a survey asking people which smartphone they mainly use, iPhone came in at 48.3% (MMD Research Institute, September 2025). Either way, Japan is far more iPhone-heavy than the rest of the world. An iOS-heavy market means you're strongly constrained by ATT / SKAN privacy measurement, so measurement design and creative optimization built for iOS require careful, Japan-specific handling.
② Social media is fragmented and split by age
In Japan, LINE and YouTube are used near-universally, while other social platforms are split across the population. According to Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), usage rates are LINE 92.9%, YouTube 81.5%, Instagram 54.8%, X (formerly Twitter) 44.7%, TikTok 36.7%, and Facebook 27.0%. Instagram reaches 82.6% of people in their 20s, TikTok 67.9% of teens, and Facebook is strongest among people in their 30s and 40s — a clear split by age. This means you must carefully match platform choice to your app's target demographics.
By age, the split is even clearer. In their teens and 20s, Instagram, X and TikTok each reach more than half of people, while from the 60s up every platform other than LINE and YouTube falls below 40%. And on weekdays, internet time exceeds live TV for everyone up to their 50s.
| Platform | Teens | 20s | 30s | 40s | 50s | 60s | 70s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LINE | 96.4 | 97.7 | 97.9 | 96.6 | 95.6 | 92.0 | 77.8 |
| YouTube | 95.0 | 96.3 | 94.0 | 91.6 | 84.9 | 72.6 | 48.5 |
| 69.3 | 82.6 | 76.6 | 67.1 | 54.4 | 36.1 | 15.8 | |
| X | 56.4 | 73.4 | 67.7 | 57.0 | 40.2 | 24.8 | 10.8 |
| TikTok | 67.9 | 61.5 | 44.7 | 42.6 | 32.2 | 21.2 | 11.1 |
| 14.3 | 23.4 | 37.4 | 38.9 | 33.1 | 22.6 | 12.5 |
③ A monetization culture driven by a few "whales"
Japanese consumers spent US$16.5B on apps in 2024, #3 in the world. Mobile game IAP accounts for about US$11B a year, or roughly two-thirds (an estimate, since the two figures cover different periods). The distinctive feature is that a small number of heavy spenders ("whales") drive the majority of revenue, so averages alone can be misleading. Rather than acquiring users broadly and thinly, acquiring and retaining core spenders is what wins.
④ RPG and Strategy make up about 60% of revenue
Looking at revenue, Japan's top genre is RPG (37.4%), followed by Strategy (21.8%) — together about 60%. Puzzle games account for a third of downloads but only 9.2% of revenue. Deep story, character growth, gacha, and event-driven monetization titles are strong here, and player attachment to characters and IP significantly influences revenue.
Japan's uniquely developed "ASP" (performance-based) culture
Performance-based advertising is well established in Japan (affiliate through ASPs, and reward ads), where ASPs sit between advertisers and publishers, handling media curation, quality control, and reporting with hands-on care. To succeed in Japan, partnering with an experienced ASP is the shortest path.
ASP sits in the middle
Performance-based (affiliate, reward) is well established. ASPs handle media curation, quality control, and reporting with deep, hands-on care.
Self-serve + MMP
Global markets are centered on self-serve programmatic networks + MMPs (measurement partners). There's no equivalent intermediary layer with Japan's level of hands-on service.
Vertical video is where advertising is being reinvented.
In 2025, Japan's total ad spend reached ¥8.06 trillion, with internet advertising crossing 50.2% for the first time. The growth driver is vertical video. For game apps, how well you craft vertical video determines your acquisition efficiency in the awareness and demand-generation stages.
Start here to understand Japan launch.
How Japan's market really works — organized from public statistics and primary data.
Japan App Market: The Complete Guide 2026
The world's #3 mobile game spend, iOS-heavy, fragmented SNS, RPG-dominant preferences — a unique structure where "global norms don't apply," organized with primary data.
Japan Major SNS Adoption Trends 2026
LINE, YouTube, Instagram, X, and TikTok usage by age group, based on survey data from Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Why Only Japan Has ~65% iOS Share
iOS holds about 65% of web traffic in Japan. How to design measurement and acquisition around a low ATT opt-in rate.
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Market & Trends
Market & Trends
Market size, iOS share, social media, payments — the starting point for understanding Japan's "different" market with numbers.
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Creative
Creative
Hands-on guidance for building vertical video ads for Japan: the first two seconds, message angles, subtitles and testing.
What the du-o Elite Team can do.
One discipline. Japan-specific execution.
From awareness to acquisition to boost — we execute across every channel needed for the Japan market. All hands-on, staffed by Japanese-native, senior UA specialists, with our group covering the full range of disciplines.
Full Japan Launch
Marketing Strategy
End-to-end design for "Entry decision → Budget allocation → Channel design → KPI design" — all built with Japan-specific assumptions. You leave with a phased roadmap from test entry to full-scale rollout.
- Measurement & UA design premised on 65% iOS
- Soft launch → scale, in 3 phases
- Multilingual global team as your partner
Vertical & Horizontal Social Ads
2,000+ creatives produced per month for TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. First 2 seconds, angle, subtitles, and CTA placement — all designed for Japan. Not translation, we replan and rebuild from concept for the Japan market.
- Both UGC-style and production formats
- Angle A/B testing at top speed
- Talent casting handled end to end
Launch Boost
Concentrate acquisition in the first 30 days after launch to build early momentum, with designs that comply with Japan's advertising rules and app store policies. Higher store rankings and organic traffic follow as a result, not as the goal.
- Pre-registration & launch boost coverage
- Rank tracking + rapid creative response
- Compliant with app store review criteria
Performance-Based Ads
Acquire users at conversion points such as installs and sign-ups through our partner media network. Keep upfront risk low while making the most of Japan's performance-based ad culture.
- Strong in apps, services, e-commerce and matching
- Delivery tied to conversion points to build volume
- Fraud screening to protect quality
Search Ads
Reach people already comparing options through search ads on Google and Yahoo! JAPAN. From choosing Japanese search terms to ad copy and landing pages, everything is designed for Japan.
- Japanese keyword design
- Native Japanese ad copy and landing pages
- Budget split alongside social and performance-based ads
Attribution & Measurement
Measurement design that works in Japan's 65%-iOS market. From ATT / SKAdNetwork / AAK implementation to MMP alignment and decision-making operations.
- AppsFlyer / Adjust and other major MMPs supported
- SKAdNetwork / AdAttributionKit value schema design
- Fraud & duplicate-attribution elimination
results
compliantly
Deliver results, on top of full compliance.
Full compliance with Japan's Premium Labeling Act, Specified Commercial Transactions Act, and the 2023 stealth marketing regulation. We label "PR" / "AD" clearly where consumers can recognize it, avoid misleading representations, and — on that foundation — deliver acquisition numbers. Our team knows Japan's platform-specific guidelines intimately.
A 5-step performance loop,
from launch to scale.
You don't win in Japan through one-off campaigns. Only by repeatedly running "gather data → form hypotheses → test fast → learn → expand" can you win here.
Gather market data
Build initial entry hypotheses from primary data (Dentsu, Sensor Tower, MIC, Statcounter) and competitor moves.
Localization & compliance
Ad expression that meets Premium Labeling, Specified Commercial, and stealth marketing regulations. Native Japanese copy & LPs. Full store review support.
Launch & boost
Combine social video ads, launch boost and performance-based ads to concentrate acquisition in the first 30 days.
Optimize & test
Parallel testing across creative × channel × segment. SKAN / AdAttributionKit + MMP combined for confident decisions.
Scale design
Codify winning patterns and widen reach through performance-based and search ads. Reviewed quarterly.
The questions we hear most about the Japan market.
A summary of the points overseas businesses raise most often before their first consultation.
Can du-o produce native Japanese creative?
Can we work with you on performance-only (CPI / CPA)?
How far does your compliance coverage go — Premium Labeling, Specified Commercial, stealth marketing?
Can you handle ATT / SKAdNetwork measurement design too?
Can we consult in English, Chinese, or Korean?
How long from first consultation to actual launch?
Based in Japan, in 4 languages.
Tokyo as our hub, with support in JP / EN / 中文 / 한국어. Comfortable operating across time zones with overseas teams.
Talk to a Senior UA lead.
Not a slide deck.
The first consultation is 30 minutes, one-on-one with a senior UA lead. Leave with a clear picture of where you stand in Japan and your next actions.
and will reply within one business day.
What is du-o?
The name du-o carries two meanings.
① duo: two that make one
Duo comes from the Latin word for "two," and in English means a pair or a duet. Japan and the world, data and the field, our clients and us — du-o wants to be the link that brings two separate things together as one. The hyphen in the middle is a bridge between here and the other side of the ocean.
② Do, On: do it, and keep at it
"du" stands for Do, and "o" for On. We don't stop at analysis and advice — we do the work ourselves, and keep going until it delivers results. Our team concept, "Hands-on, and on.", became the name itself.
Japan's online marketing — especially its app market — often looks like a black box from the outside. We aim to show how it really works, in high resolution, for an international audience. Then we team up as a "duo" with partners taking on Japan, and execute the path to winning together.
du-o — Japan App Market Intelligence
Japan is not a black box.
Hands-on, and on.
"Hands-on" (on the ground, doing the work ourselves) combined with "and on" (and continuing = keeping at it). It pairs with du-o = Do, On, so our company name, media name, and message tell one story.
- Business
- Internet advertising business & app development support tools
- Group Coverage
- ASP / In-app ad networks / Search + display / Vertical & horizontal video advertising
- Languages we work in
- Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean
- Global Operations
- Extensive track record of overseas booth exhibitions & business trips / Overseas branches
- Contact
- Contact form
- Operator
- Operator information