Editing Hiroyuki Nishimura (section)

== Career ==
Nishimura was born in [[Sagamihara]], Kanagawa, but raised in [[Tokyo]].<ref group="biblio" name=":0" /><ref group="note" name=":0" /> He founded Tokyo Access [[Gōshi gaisha|LP]] in 1998.<ref group="biblio" name="2chindepth" /><ref group="note">From the "about the author" section of the description of the book on [[Amazon.co.jp]]: 1998年、中央大学在学中に合資会社東京アクセスを設立。[In 1998, while enrolled at Chuo University, he established the [[Gōshi gaisha|limited partnership]] Tokyo Access.]</ref> In May 1999, he opened 2channel while he was studying at the [[University of Central Arkansas]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Matsutani |first=Minoru |date=6 April 2010 |title=2channel's success rests on anonymity |work=The Japan Times |url=http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100406i1.html |url-status=dead |access-date=23 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409055032/http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100406i1.html |archive-date=9 April 2010}}</ref> In June 2001, he founded Irregulars and Partners [[Kabushiki gaisha|KK]] with Ichirō Yamamoto, which was involved in 2channel's management,<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=株式会社イレギュラーズアンドパートナーズ代表取締役社長 山本一郎さん（切込隊長）|trans-title=Ichiro Yamamoto, President and CEO of Irregulars & Partners Co., Ltd. |url=https://keio-j.com/article/kirikomi/ |access-date=25 June 2020 |website=Next Influencers |language=ja}}</ref> but later left.<ref>{{Cite web |title=会社概要 |trans-title=Company profile |url=http://www.i--p.com/profile.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020407133908/http://www.i--p.com/profile.html |archive-date=7 April 2002 |access-date=24 June 2020 |website=Irregulars and Partners KK [株式会社イレギュラーズアンドパートナーズ]}}</ref>

He graduated with a degree in psychology from Chuo University in 2000.<ref group="biblio" name=":0" /><ref group="note" name=":0" /><ref name="gree_career">{{Cite web|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060410144731/career.gree.jp/interview/07/nishimura/01 |title=東京プラス社長 西村博之氏インタビュー |trans-title=Interview with Tokyo Plus CEO Hiroyuki Nishimura |publisher=GREE Career |date=2006-04-10 |accessdate=2025-02-02}}</ref>

In January 2007, Nishimura was an advisor to Skip-Up KK,<ref>{{Cite web |title=会社概要 |trans-title=Company profile |url=http://skipup.jp/corp/outline.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070222100122/http://skipup.jp/corp/outline.html |archive-date=22 February 2007 |publisher=Skipup Corporation [株式会社スキップアップ] |language=ja |quote=顧問: 西村 博之 [Advisor: Hiroyuki Nishimura]}}</ref> CEO of Tokyo Plus KK,<ref name=":2" /> co-founder of {{Nihongo|Future Search Brazil|未来検索ブラジル}} KK,<ref>{{Cite web |title=会社概要 |trans-title=Company profile |url=http://razil.jp/aboutus.html |access-date=25 June 2020 |website=Razil.jp |publisher=Future Search Brazil KK |language=ja |quote=役員等：代表取締役社長 竹中直純；取締役 西村博之 [Officers: Naozumi Takenaka, President and Representative Director; Hiroyuki Nishimura, Director]}}</ref> and a director of [[Niwango]], the company that launched [[Nico Nico Douga]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://info.niwango.jp/info/ |title=Niwango Company Info |language=ja |access-date=16 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221043401/http://info.niwango.jp/info/ |archive-date=21 February 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> He left his role at Niwango in February 2013.<ref name=":1" />

=== 2channel ===
{{See also|2channel#History}}
[[File:A_Week_in_Tokyo_65.jpg|thumb|Nishimura in 2011]]

During 2008, 2ch generated an annual revenue upwards of ¥100&nbsp;million for Nishimura.<ref name="2chrevenue" /> The site was also run by 300 "volunteer administrators" who received no pay. Nishimura justified this with the comment, "I don't think that's all that different from some dude who opens a convenience store in front of a train station. They can make a million yen a day."<ref name="2chrevenue" />

In August 2013, an accidental leak placed the credit card details of thousands of 2channel users into the public domain,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2013/09/17/digital/accidental-leak-ids-over-30000-anonymous-2channel-users/#.VgEwMcuqpBd |title=Accidental leak IDs over 30,000 'anonymous' 2channel users|date=17 September 2013 |website=The Japan Times|access-date=16 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190117135149/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2013/09/17/digital/accidental-leak-ids-over-30000-anonymous-2channel-users/#.VgEwMcuqpBd |archive-date=17 January 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> and this event resulted in a series of lawsuits against the website. Around the same time, the anti-matome movement took place throughout 2channel, a controversial community development involving users protesting against {{nihongo|"matome blogs"|まとめブログ}} which specialize in summarizing 2channel threads, which were taking away site traffic.<ref name="AkimotoJT2014" />

On 19 February 2014, [[Jim Watkins (businessman)|Jim Watkins]], as chairman of N.T. Technology, Inc., 2channel's [[domain registrar]], seized 2channel's domain.<ref name="AkimotoJT2014" /> He took full control over the website, relieved Nishimura of all power, and assumed the role of website administrator.<ref name="AkimotoJT2014" /> Watkins claimed that Nishimura had failed to pay him money owed which led to the seizure as a way to cover Nishimura's debts,<ref>{{cite web |author=Watkins |first=Jim |date=19 February 2014 |title=Let's talk with Jim-san. Part21 |url=http://pele.bbspink.com/test/read.cgi/erobbs/1383978434/554 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190508213224/http://pele.bbspink.com/test/read.cgi/erobbs/1383978434/554 |archive-date=8 May 2019 |access-date=21 May 2020 |website=BBSPink |quote=The previous management was not able to generate enough income to pay the bills for the expenses of running 2ch.}}</ref> while Nishimura claimed that he had in fact paid everything owed and that the domain transfer was an illegal [[domain hijacking]].<ref name="ITmedia20140401" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nishimura |first=Hiroyuki |date=1 April 2014 |title=昨今の２ちゃんねるの現状に関して。|trans-title=Regarding the current status of 2channel |url=http://2ch.sc/www2chscindex.html |access-date=18 May 2020 |website=2ch.sc |language=ja}}</ref> In response, Nishimura created his own clone of 2channel at {{interlanguage link|2ch.sc|lt=2ch.sc|ja|2ちゃんねる (2ch.sc)|WD=}},<ref name="ITmedia20140401" /> [[Web scraping|scraping]] the contents of the entire 2channel website and updating 2ch.sc as new posts appeared on 2ch.net. In a Q&A session on [[4chan]] shortly after becoming the site's owner, Nishimura claimed that 2channel was stolen by Watkins.<ref name="Nishimura4chanQA2" />

In October 2017, Watkins renamed 2channel to 5channel and transferred it to Loki Technology Inc. to avoid legal complications.<ref>{{Cite court |litigants=[[Office of the Solicitor General of the Philippines|Office of the Solicitor General]] v. James Arthur Watkins [[in re]]: Petition for Naturalization |court=Pasig [[Regional Trial Court]] Branch 166 |pinpoint=R-PSG-18-03091-SP, Petition by James Arthur Watkins |url=https://issuu.com/manilatimes/docs/11manilatimes |quote=[James Arthur Watkins] married Liziel O. Watkins ("Liziel"), of legal age and a Filipina, on 20 November 2001. [...] He is currently the Chairman of Race Queen Inc., Emerald Pedistal Properties Inc., and Loki Technology Incorporated.}}—via ''[[The Manila Times]]''.</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=6 October 2017 |title=５ちゃんねる掲示板へようこそ |trans-title=Welcome to 5channel |url=https://5ch.net/ |access-date=6 October 2017 |quote=権利関係に関する無用な紛争を生じさせず「・・・」掲示板の名称を新たに「5ちゃんねる」へと変更しました。[The name of the textboard has been changed to 5channel to help avoid future unnecessary disputes regarding our rights to operate it.]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Cicalese |first1=Louis |title=Biography of Hiroyuki Nishimura: The Father of 2channel |url=https://www.256kilobytes.com/content/show/4438/biography-of-hiroyuki-nishimura-the-father-of-2channel |access-date=27 March 2019 |work=256 Kilobytes |date=14 February 2019 |ref=bio |archive-date=27 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327115519/https://www.256kilobytes.com/content/show/4438/biography-of-hiroyuki-nishimura-the-father-of-2channel |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===4chan===
{{See also|4chan#History}}

On 21 September 2015, he bought the website 4chan from [[Christopher Poole]].<ref name="forbes2015" /><ref name="AdelsteinDB" /> The amount paid has not been disclosed, but ''The New York Times'' has reported that the sale was made possible with funds provided by three Japanese investors.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Isaac |first=Mike |date=21 September 2015 |title=4chan Message Board Sold to Founder of 2Channel, a Japanese Web Culture Pioneer |url=https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/09/21/4chan-sells-to-japanese-web-culture-pioneer-2channel/ |access-date=25 June 2020 |website=[[The New York Times]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="NYT-nishimura-4chan" />

Users on 4chan refer to him commonly as 'hiro' but also by the [[ethnic slurs|ethnic slur]] "[[gook]] [[Christopher Poole|moot]]", or the [[nickname]] "[[Jackie Chan|Jackie ]] 4chan", "Hiroshima Nagasaki," or simply "hiroshimoot".<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Orsini |first=Lauren |date=3 September 2015 |title='Welcome To 4chan, B***h': Site's Users Greet Their New Overlord |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurenorsini/2015/09/23/4chan-sold-hiroyuki-nishimura-qa-christoper-poole-moot-new-owner/#3662ca5bb069 |url-status=live |magazine=Forbes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206214212/https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurenorsini/2015/09/23/4chan-sold-hiroyuki-nishimura-qa-christoper-poole-moot-new-owner/#3662ca5bb069|archive-date=6 February 2019 |access-date=16 March 2019}}</ref>