Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) recently announced that it will provide a total of 1.5 billion yen (approximately US$92.7 million) in subsidies to DeNA, the developer of the popular mobile game "Pokémon Trading Cards Pocket", to support its mobile game development business. However, the decision caused an uproar on Japanese social media, with people questioning why huge tax dollars were invested in a profitable listed company.
This subsidy comes from the "IP360" project launched by the Japanese government, which aims to support the creation of new domestic IP and enhance the competitiveness of Japan's content industry in the global market. DeNA, along with major manufacturers such as Sega, Konami, Square Enix, Koei Tecmo and Arc System Works, were selected as the first batch of subsidy recipients in the "large-scale production comprehensive support" category. At the same time, the program also provides subsidies of up to 10 million yen (approximately US$62,000) to independent developers.
Criticism has focused on the fairness of the distribution of public funds. Many Japanese netizens expressed strong dissatisfaction. A large number of comments questioned why tax dollars are used to subsidize "capital-abundant" large companies, "While cutting the budgets of public museums and art galleries, while giving money to mobile game companies, if DeNA's games become popular, what benefits will we ordinary people get?"
Some users bluntly said that the government's approach "does not seem to be cultivating new talents, but to make the strong stronger."
Indie-us Games representative alwei explained that it is actually extremely difficult for independent developers to obtain such huge government subsidies. Application conditions are extremely strict, and subsidies are often paid on a “post-payment” basis—disbursements are made only after the project is completed. For individuals or small teams with weak risk resistance, they will not be able to bear the corresponding responsibilities once the project fails. In contrast, large companies with stable sales and significant performance are naturally much more likely to have their applications approved.