Isao Yoshino, current director of Yoshimoto Kogyo, announced that the company intends to enter the manga market. A new subsidiary, called Yoshimoto Books, will be created with help from established publishers such as Wani Books.

In the spring, the company will begin publishing Comic Yoshimoto, a seinen manga magazine targeted at males between 20 and 40. The publication will be issued semi-monthly at a price of 320 yen. It will be widely available in bookstores and convenience stores.

Stories will be created by rakugo artists and comedians managed by Yoshimoto Kogyo, and the artwork will be handled by professional mangaka. Rakugoka Sanshi Katsura and manga storywriter Ryo Kurashina are among the artists currently involved.

Yoshino's sales target is 250,000 copies. There are also possible plans for expanding the enterprise to film and the Internet.