If you’re on the internet, you may have heard of Nico Nico Douga (NND) at some point. It is a bit like a Japanese version of Youtube filled with Touhou fan videos and Vocaloids. The difference here is that NND’s comments are displayed on the video while you’re watching it. When a user posts a comment, they can choose to have it appear at a specific point in the video. This can either explain or poke fun at that particular moment. The result (or the intended result) is a greater sense of community and the feeling that you’re sharing the experience. Of course, the flood of comments across the screen can also be distracting and annoying. Fortunately, NND provides a button to turn off the comments. Until now, NND was only available in Japanese and if you couldn’t speak the language, you might run into a difficult time trying to view the content.
Well never fear! The English version of NicoNico is now up and running in a very early beta version. If you managed to make a Japanese account, you can use that on this site as well. Since it’s still in beta, you cannot yet upload content directly to the site, however you can import videos from Nico Nico Douga, Daily Motion or Youtube. NicoNico also provides you with the tools to do a live broadcast for your community. Live broadcasting requires a premium membership which is 25 cents per month during with premium. Unfortunately, there are a lot of kinks to work out, so the broadcasting feature may or may not work even in the beta.
Personally, I will stick to Youtube or NicoNico Douga until the English site is pulled together (and the uploading feature implemented). I’m not sure how well it will hold in the US, given the prevalence of Youtube, but here’s hoping that it at least brings more widespread attention to Miku Hatsune and the other Vocaloids.
If you want to check out the new English site, go here: http://www.niconico.com/
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