Hatena Co., Ltd.
3930・Growth Market・Information & Communication
Business
Hatena Co., Ltd. is an internet technology company founded in 2001. Building on the technological capabilities and user community cultivated through UGC services such as Hatena Blog and Hatena Bookmark, the company operates three business-facing services: (1) Content Platform Service (UGC for individuals), (2) Content Marketing Service (Hatena CMS, toitta, etc.), and (3) Technology Solution Service (the manga viewer GigaViewer, server monitoring tool Mackerel, and contract development). The company has 12.89 million registered users (as of July 2025) and counts major companies such as Shueisha, KADOKAWA, and Nintendo among its principal clients. It is listed on the Growth Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Business Model
A structure in which technical capabilities and user base accumulated through the development and operation of proprietary UGC services are repurposed for corporate clients. Technology Solutions Service (net sales of ¥2,839 million in FY2025 (ending July 2025), up 23.0% year on year) is the mainstay, accounting for approximately 75% of the total. The design increases the proportion of recurring revenue: GigaViewer operates on a revenue-share model, Mackerel on a SaaS-type monthly subscription, and contract development on a maintenance/operation stock-type basis. Content Marketing Service (¥620 million) combines SaaS-type CMS with advertising. Financial soundness is also high, with zero interest-bearing debt and cash on hand of ¥2,136 million.
Company Strengths
The manga viewer "GigaViewer" had been adopted by 17 companies across 25 services (Web and app versions combined) as of August 2025. Its app version is embedded in Shueisha's "Shonen Jump+" (over 30 million downloads), establishing a structure that directly captures the growth of the e-comic market (¥5,122 million in 2024, up 6.0% year on year).
As of the end of FY2025 (ended July 2025), the company had zero interest-bearing debt and held cash and deposits of ¥2,136 million (equivalent to 6.8 months of average monthly sales). In addition, it has secured overdraft facility agreements totaling ¥1,700 million with five partner banks as a backup line, giving it an extremely stable financial base.
In FY2025 (ended July 2025), net sales were ¥3,794 million (¥34 million above forecast) and operating profit was ¥339 million (¥135 million above forecast, achievement rate of 167%). Operating profit surged 398% year on year, recovering sharply from ¥68 million in the prior period to ¥339 million, while ROIC improved from 1.8% to 8.3%. Free cash flow also expanded substantially, from ¥40 million to ¥673 million.
ENVALITH's Perspective
Performance Trend
From FY2021 to FY2025, revenue expanded from ¥2,621 million to ¥3,795 million, and FY2025 achieved a significant recovery with operating profit of ¥339 million. However, in the cumulative nine months of Q3 FY2026, the core business sharply decelerated, with revenue of ¥2,718 million (down 6.1% year-on-year) and operating profit of ¥96 million (down 68.3% year-on-year). Furthermore, the recording of a special loss of ¥1,180 million associated with a cash outflow incident resulted in a quarterly net loss of ¥718 million. Full-year forecasts call for revenue of ¥3,640 million (down 4.1% year-on-year), operating profit of ¥113 million (down 66.6% year-on-year), and a net loss of ¥767 million. As an external factor, the declining trend in advertising unit prices has continued, putting pressure on revenue from the content platform and marketing businesses. Cash and deposits decreased sharply from ¥2,137 million at the end of the previous fiscal year to ¥950 million.
Growth Strategy
Aiming for non-linear growth through three pillars: expanding revenue share from GigaViewer for Apps, deploying Mackerel's APM capabilities, and commercializing toitta
Promoting additional app-version implementation at media outlets that have already adopted the Web version. As of end-May 2026, the service was implemented at 28 services across 18 companies combining app and Web versions. The app version generates higher pageviews and sales than the Web version, and the company aims for substantial expansion of revenue share (advertising and monetization revenue) in addition to development and operation fees. "Comic Growth powered by GigaViewer" has also begun full-scale operation, expanding the scope of support.
Through the APM functionality officially released in May 2025, the company is promoting upselling to existing server monitoring customers and acquiring new customers. Support for OpenTelemetry has lowered barriers to adoption. Management has noted that "signs of recovery are beginning to appear overall," and sales expansion efforts continue.
For "toitta," the AI interview analysis SaaS officially released in October 2024, the company has newly launched the "toitta N1 Interview Research" service, providing one-stop support from research design through to reporting. Going forward, the company plans to further expand its scope of support, including AI-based interview execution, and pursue revenue growth through continued investment in personnel. Current revenue scale remains minor (total other services: ¥5 million).
In October 2024, the company joined as a co-operator (validator) of JOC. Following the completion of the IEO in December 2024, validation operations began, with JOC tokens acquired monthly as compensation. The company is considering Web3 services utilizing JOC that could help address social issues. Current revenue contribution remains minor (total other services: ¥5 million, up 29.9% year on year).
Last updated: July 17, 2026