Calling a favorite idol or character your "oshi" and cheering for them has become ordinary in Japan. That was not always true. People who poured themselves into a single subject were once labeled "otaku" and often seen in a negative light, said journalist Soichiro Matsutani, who follows subcultures, in an interview with the Asahi Shimbun.
Matsutani said the devotion itself is nothing new. Idol fan squads existed in the 1970s, and otaku stood out in subculture circles in the 1980s. What changed, he said, is how society receives them.
Interests once tied to images of being gloomy or escaping reality became something people view positively as generations turned over, he said. The number of enthusiasts also widened from a devoted few to a time when nearly anyone might have an oshi.
Smartphones lowered the barrier
Matsutani pointed to the spread of smartphones and social media from the 2010s as the biggest factor. Fans can now find like-minded people easily and reach huge amounts of information and content about their oshi in real time, he said.
Collecting that information no longer takes specialist skill. Hobby activity sits at the end of everyday communication, he said, which lowered the psychological barrier to what had been "otaku activity" and helped it spread under the new name.
Companies could then see the devoted fan base more clearly. Matsutani said firms began building strategies to lock fans in and raise spending per person, and oshi katsu grew into a huge market.
The interview was published under the headline asking whether the "AKB business model" accelerated oshi katsu, and whether it is fine as long as the person herself is happy. The published portion ends as Matsutani is asked what turning point sped up the commercialization.