Akira Chiba
Encyclopedia
Akira Chiba was the president of Pokémon USA, Inc (PUI). He is head officer of all worldwide Pokémon
business outside of Asia. Chiba joined PUI in 2002 to build momentum for one of the world's most popular entertainment properties, which includes video games, trading card games, an animated TV series, movies, toys, apparel and other licensed products. PUI manages Pokémon intellectual property rights, licensing, publishing of the trading card games, brand marketing and an e-commerce business.
Chiba has spent a good portion of his career establishing the U.S. subsidiaries of various Japanese companies including Recruit Co., Ltd., Tokyo and Sumitomo Real Estate Sales Co., Ltd. of Japan.
On Friday, December 23, 2005, Chiba, along with management, decided that 4Kids
would not be responsible of the Pokémon anime. Under the agreement terms, 4Kids will receive commissions for the next several years on payments made under existing Pokémon license agreements. These commissions are expected to be paid out over the course of the next several years.
Prior to joining Pokémon, Mr. Chiba founded New York Living Magazine, a residential real estate publication. A graduate of Kobe University
, Mr. Chiba has a degree in business administration. He currently resides in New York City
.
As of December 31, 2007, Mr. Chiba has stepped down from the position of Pokémon USA, Inc to begin Museyon, Inc, a travel guidebook publication geared towards different passions. Kenji Okubo, EVP and head of Pokémon USA's Seattle office, is stepping into the vacated post.
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
business outside of Asia. Chiba joined PUI in 2002 to build momentum for one of the world's most popular entertainment properties, which includes video games, trading card games, an animated TV series, movies, toys, apparel and other licensed products. PUI manages Pokémon intellectual property rights, licensing, publishing of the trading card games, brand marketing and an e-commerce business.
Chiba has spent a good portion of his career establishing the U.S. subsidiaries of various Japanese companies including Recruit Co., Ltd., Tokyo and Sumitomo Real Estate Sales Co., Ltd. of Japan.
On Friday, December 23, 2005, Chiba, along with management, decided that 4Kids
4Kids Entertainment
4Kids Entertainment is an American film and television production company in bankruptcy since April 2011. It is known for English-dubbing Japanese anime and specializing in the acquisition, production and licensing of children's entertainment around the United States...
would not be responsible of the Pokémon anime. Under the agreement terms, 4Kids will receive commissions for the next several years on payments made under existing Pokémon license agreements. These commissions are expected to be paid out over the course of the next several years.
Prior to joining Pokémon, Mr. Chiba founded New York Living Magazine, a residential real estate publication. A graduate of Kobe University
Kobe University
Shindai is one of the leading universities in Japan. It can be seen in the several rankings such as shown below.-General Rankings:The university is ranked 10th in 2010 in the ranking "Truly Strong Universities" by Toyo Keizai...
, Mr. Chiba has a degree in business administration. He currently resides in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
As of December 31, 2007, Mr. Chiba has stepped down from the position of Pokémon USA, Inc to begin Museyon, Inc, a travel guidebook publication geared towards different passions. Kenji Okubo, EVP and head of Pokémon USA's Seattle office, is stepping into the vacated post.