Rakuten to Acquire SKY ESTATE

Tokyo, April 20, 2022 - Rakuten Group, Inc. today announced that it has concluded an agreement to acquire all shares of SKY ESTATE Inc., a leading developer of various drone-related businesses, including drone pilot dispatch and training. Through this agreement, SKY ESTATE becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of Rakuten Group.

SKY ESTATE is a leading company in the development of a wide array of drone-related businesses, including drone schools and operator crowdsourcing (human resource matching), drone-conducted external wall inspection and solar panel measurement and inspection, aerial photography, filming and video production using micro-drones, and consultation on the use and implementation of drones. Both companies intend to leverage SKY ESTATE’s management expertise and network in the drone industry to further expand Rakuten’s unmanned solution business, which operates drone schools and promotes labor-saving and efficiency improvements for work involving drones (including inspections, surveys and filming), and aim to further expand employment opportunities in the industry through producing highly skilled operators and crowdsourcing.

Rakuten launched a delivery project using drones in 2016^*1 and has implemented a number of unmanned delivery service demonstration trials  – some of which were firsts in Japan – to address logistics issues facing Japan by reducing the human resources required to make deliveries. Rakuten has also founded the Rakuten Drone Academy^*2, a school intended to provide operators with the knowledge and skills necessary to pilot drones, conducted inspections of Rakuten Mobile base stations using drones as well as surveys for fire insurance conducted by Rakuten General Insurance^*3, among other initiatives. Both companies are confident that the combination of Rakuten's vision and past achievements with SKY ESTATE's drone schools and expertise in drone-conducted inspections will make a significant contribution to the further growth of the drone industry.

Rakuten and SKY ESTATE will continue working to promote the use of drones, driving innovation and delivering new services.

*1 Reference link: https://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2016/0425_01.html
*2 Reference link: https://corp.rakuten.co.jp/news/update/2021/1018_01.html (*Page in Japanese)
*3 Reference link: https://corp.rakuten.co.jp/news/update/2021/1216_02.html (*Page in Japanese)

About SKY ESTATE Inc.
Location: KDX Nakameguro Bldg. 3F, 1-5-4 Higashiyama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan 153-0043
Representative: Tatsuya Aoki, President
Capital: 44.7 million yen (as of March 31, 2022)
Number of employees: 12 (as of March 31, 2022)
Business overview: Drone school operation (certified by the Drone Pilot Association, a Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism registered management organization), external wall inspection and solar panels inspection and measurement, aerial photography, filming and video production using micro-drones, and consultation on the use and implementation of drones.
Founded: September 28, 2016
Official site: https://sky-estate.com/

About Rakuten Group, Inc.
Rakuten Group, Inc. (TSE: 4755) is a global leader in internet services that empower individuals, communities, businesses and society. Founded in Tokyo in 1997 as an online marketplace, Rakuten has expanded to offer services in e-commerce, fintech, digital content and communications to approximately 1.6 billion members around the world. The Rakuten Group has over 28,000 employees, and operations in 30 countries and regions. For more information visit https://global.rakuten.com/corp/.

*The names of companies, products and services in this article are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective owners.