Table of Contents
Niconico
Niconico (ニコニコ),1) also called Niconico Douga (ニコニコ動画), is a Japanese website that is mostly known for a video-sharing service with danmaku-style commenting and a tag registration system, but there is also other services that may or may not be very useful for some people.
It was launched by Dwango subsidiary, Niwango, on December 12, 2006 as a third-party service to YouTube,2) then the DDoS-related block around February 23, 2007 forced them to host videos locally. Since 2014, it is now under the Kadokawa umbrella.
Summary
Notice for users outside of Japan!
A number of services are region-locked or have limited functionality since October 30, 2024.3) Personally, I think it's a payment processing issue, considering that Shunga was removed on January 29, 2025.4) The block is not very complex, so just get a 'user agent switcher'.
…However, you may have to manually change the language every time.
The platform houses a video-sharing service, but it also has live streaming, an encyclopedia, places to share artwork, materials, and 3D models, and so forth. However, the climate can be harsh and uninviting since it literally had roots in 2channel, vandalism is especially rampant, and their culture hasn't really stood the test of time with management bearing the brunt of criticism for their overall bias or inaction.
In the past, Niconico was once synonymous with an 'internet culture' renaissance,5) then times would change and Inmu became the first rejection of tradition. By the 2010s, the conflicts and tensions were clear as day,6) while the website largely 'stagnated' after the Kadokawa merger was finalized. It still has an audience, but most people have moved to TikTok, YouTube, legal streaming services, etc.
List of Niconico services
This section will only list the 'active' services.
For a more comprehensive list, see the Japanese Wikipedia article.
| Service | Possible English translation(s) | Description | Launched |
|---|---|---|---|
| Niconico Douga⚠️ ニコニコ動画 www.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Douga • Niconico Moving Image • Niconico Video | A video-sharing service with danmaku-style commenting. The website's main feature. | 2006-12-12 |
| Niconico Namahōsō ニコニコ生放送 live.nicovideo.jp | • Niconama • Niconico Live • Niconico Namahoso | A | 2007-12-19 |
| Niconico Daihyakka ニコニコ大百科 dic.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Encyclopedia • Niconico Pedia | An online encyclopedia service, which has 2channel-style comments for some reason. | 2008-05-15 |
| Niconi Commons ニコニ・コモンズ commons.nicovideo.jp | • Niconi Commons | A video material-sharing service, remember to check the terms. It's a play on Creative Commons. | 2008-08-15 |
| Niconico Channel⚠️ ニコニコチャンネル ch.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Channel | A multi-content, monthly subscription platform for creators. | 2008-12-05 |
| Niconi Koukoku⚠️ ニコニ広告 nicoad.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Ad • Niconico Advertising | A service that lets users advertise on their favorite videos. | 2009-03-10 |
| Niconico Jikkyō ニコニコ実況 jk.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Commentary • Niconico Jikkyō • Niconico Live Commentary | A live commentary service. | 2009-07-24 |
| Niconico Seiga❌ ニコニコ静画 seiga.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Image • Niconico Seiga • Niconico Still Image | An illustration-sharing service, like Pixiv, but made several years late. No more Shunga. | 2009-11-14 |
| Niconico News ニコニコニュース news.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico News | A general news service. | 2010-10-29 |
| Niconico Rittai ニコニ立体 3d.nicovideo.jp | • Niconi 3D • Niconi Solid | A 3D model-sharing service, remember to check the terms. | 2014-05-02 |
| N Anime Nアニメ anime.nicovideo.jp | • N Anime • Niconico Anime | A general anime information hub that also links to the legal streaming options. | 2018-04-25 |
| Niconico Q ニコニコQ q.nicovideo.jp | • Niconico Q | A quiz and questionnaire service. | 2018-07-05 |
| Niconi Koken ニコニ貢献 koken.nicovideo.jp | • Hogehoge • Niconi Contribution | A way for creators to show their appreciation to supporters. | 2021-06-09 |
| NicoFT NicoFT nicoft.io | • NicoFT | An external NFT marketplace for member passes. | 2023-03-28 |
List of former categories (before the 2019 update)
Before the June 26, 2019 update,7) every video on Niconico Douga had to be categorized and each category used to have their own ranking page. The system was later deprecated for 'genres', and the rankings were overhauled to be more 'algorithmic' or 'personalized' like most platforms. Despite this, some of their categories are still used as tags, as the categories were essentially tags, so I've preserved them below:
Version history
| No. | Version | Meaning | Timespan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start date | End date | |||
| 01 | ニコニコ動画(仮) | Provisional8) | 2006-12-12 | 2007-01-15 |
| 02 | ニコニコ動画(β) | Beta | 2007-01-15 | 2007-02-24 |
| YouTube blocks Niconico | ||||
| 03 | ニコニコ動画(γ) | Gamma | 2007-03-06 | 2007-06-18 |
| 04 | ニコニコ動画(RC) | Release Candidate | 2007-06-18 | 2007-10-10 |
| 05 | ニコニコ動画(RC2) | Release Candidate 2 | 2007-10-10 | 2008-03-05 |
| 06 | ニコニコ動画(SP1) | Service Pack 1 | 2008-03-05 | 2008-07-05 |
| 07 | ニコニコ動画(夏) | Summer | 2008-07-05 | 2008-10-01 |
| 08 | ニコニコ動画(秋) | Autumn | 2008-10-01 | 2008-12-05 |
| 09 | ニコニコ動画(冬) | Winter | 2008-12-05 | 2008-12-12 |
| 10 | ニコニコ動画(ββ) | Double Beta9) | 2008-12-12 | 2009-10-29 |
| 11 | ニコニコ動画(9) | 910) | 2009-10-29 | 2010-10-29 |
| 12 | ニコニコ動画(原宿) | Harajuku11) | 2010-10-29 | 2012-04-30 |
| 13 | ニコニコ動画:Zero | Zero | 2012-05-01 | 2012-10-17 |
| 14 | ニコニコ動画:Q | Q12) | 2012-10-18 | 2013-10-07 |
| 15 | ニコニコ動画:GINZA | GINZA13) | 2013-10-08 | 2018-06-27 |
| 16 | niconico(く) | Crescendo14) | 2018-06-28 | 2020-08-09 |
| 17 | ニコニコ(Re) | Re | 2020-08-09 | 2022-12-12 |
| 18 | ニコニコ(eR) | Er15) | 2022-12-12 | 2024-06-08 |
| 19 | ニコニコ(Re:仮) | Re:Provisional | 2024-06-14 | 2024-08-05 |
| 20 | 帰ってきたニコニコ | Returned | 2024-08-05 | 2024-09-17 |
| 21 | ニコニコ(Re:turn) | Re:turn | 2024-09-17 | Ongoing |
Third-party extensions
- Userscripts for the search engines
- Add Niconico Tag Search Tab - Allows you to narrow your search results to a specific tag.
- Niconico Ranking NG - Additional functionality in search results.
- Nicovideo Search Spam Reporter - Adds in clickable report buttons. Partially broken.
- Userscripts for Niconico Seiga
- MOD_Seiga - Reveal 'Shunga' thumbnails. Adds in 'full screen' and 'save image' buttons.
- Shunga Thumbnail Unmask - Reveals 'Shunga' thumbnails.
- Userscripts for Niconico Namahōsō
- Prevent Seekbar Movement - Lets you stop the video progress bar during live streams.
Notes
- There used to be a Spanish-language and German-language version of the website.
- In order to manually disable autoplay, you have to go into the video's 'settings' (設定) menu and set the 'autoplay the next video' (次の動画を自動再生) option to 'OFF'. This is no longer translated.
External links
- Niconico - The front page of Niconico.
- Niconico Info - Website announcements, formatted like a news website for some reason.
- @nico_nico_info and @nico_nico_talk on Twitter - The official Twitter accounts.
- @sigekun on Twitter - For some reason, Shigetaka Kurita has become a target of blame.
- Niconico Douga on Niconico Encyclopedia
- Niconico Douga on Pixiv Encyclopedia