■Business description
1. Secure cloud system business
The secure cloud system business, which is the main business of PP Systems ＜4447＞, in a nutshell, provides total support from digital work promotion to the realization of DX with cloud technology. Specifically, clouds used within a single enterprise/organization are called “private clouds,” and businesses are being developed with “private cloud conversion of systems” as the core. Speaking of corporate names, from various options such as Citrix, VMware, DELL, Microsoft, etc., they include hardware products such as security, storage, servers, etc., and various software products, and proposals for optimal cloud infrastructure that is a prerequisite for realizing corporate DX, as well as resilience. Also, in recent years, there have been many cases in large companies, and what is strongly viewed as a problem is “cyber attack.” Resilience from system failures caused by attacks such as ransomware and unauthorized access, etc., and the strengthening of the system itself, that is, having deep knowledge and abundant experience on a practical level of “resilience,” can be cited as one of the characteristics of the same business. Since it does not directly develop and provide cybersecurity countermeasure products in BtoC, its personality as a cybersecurity countermeasure expert is somewhat difficult to understand, but it is an advantage of the company, which is an independent SIer, that it can make optimal proposals for customers based on consistency with core systems etc. from a wide variety of options. In 2023, the company was newly added as a partner of Cybereason, which is a global manufacturer of cybersecurity, and its character is getting stronger.
Furthermore, the company is developing business with medium-sized enterprises with sales of 10 billion yen to 50 billion yen as the main target, and inquiries in the public (local governments, various organizations, etc.) area have also increased in recent years. The business consists of 3 divisions: “platforms” that virtualize servers and build strong security environments; “products” that specialize in virtualized environments and commercialize and sell functions that meet needs generated from the field; and “customizers” that perform scratch development (handmade development) to satisfy unique functions desired by customers (about 90% are “platforms”).
“MetaWalkers,” where traditional demand has revived and new needs are also being created
2. Emotional system business
The emotional system business is a business that manufactures and sells the experience-sharing VR theater “MetaWalkers (former name: 4DOH, changed on 2023/1/16)” series, which creates a VR space with a high sense of immersion, based on a patent (Patent No. 4166260: stereoscopic image projection method and stereoscopic image projection device) that seamlessly displays 3D images on a 360-degree screen. As of the end of March 2024, there are a total of 13 permanent installations in the same series, centering on amusement parks, 12 domestic locations and 1 overseas location (not including 1 domestic research institution that is not open to public use).
In 2020, sales began for a type with an interactive function that can perform story branching etc. of images being screened by viewer operation, and a type that has been miniaturized for a small number of people and enhanced ventilation performance so that they can also be used in a new normal society faced with the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (hereinafter, COVID-19), respectively. The Ariake Garden Christmas event will be held in December 2020, and the KBC (Kyushu Asahi Broadcasting) national internet special program “Hatori x Sashihara Everyone's Dream Awards will come true together in February 2021! Even under the extreme headwind of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as being used in “SP,” the appeal of the service provided by the same product was used as a hook and attracted interest. In addition, they are also producing content to be screened on MetaWalkers, and for example, starting with “Ultraman Zero Another Battle ~Light and Power~” in 2017/3, they are working on “The Acronym D Project VR -Fast Drive-” and “Shinkansen Transformation Robot Shinkalion 360° the Movie.” The fact that Mr. Tomita, the company's president and representative director, has extensive knowledge about anime/manga content will also have a positive effect on business development.
As for MetaWalkers, demand for attractions centered around amusement parks was originally the main one, but the possibilities are expanding, starting with use in museums and science centers. The COVID-19 pandemic hit directly when inquiries were expanding, such as being considered as a tool for regional revitalization, use in the nursing care and sports fields, and use as a simulator for various uses, starting with disaster prevention and factory tours. Therefore, rather than the trajectory so far or the current situation, the focus of the same business is on concretization of demand after COVID-19. It is already being used as a new attraction “Hamstan 4D Theater” at the pleasure garden at Hitachi Seaside Park, which is known nationwide for the scene where nemophila spreads all over, and inquiries are recovering recently.
(Author: FISCO Analyst Tomokazu Murase)