For confidentiality, company names, project names, and system images have been replaced with pseudonyms and mocks.

StageVibe Co., Ltd. Build Story

Fans and their favorites 'Watch · support · connect' a live streaming platform that connects them, built in-house from scratch.

StageVibe is an idol-focused live streaming × creator-economy platform. Low-latency streaming, tipping, events, and operational moderation delivered through 4 web apps + an Agora RTC foundation.

The story of launching a new platform — built in-house from scratch with Amela over 18 months — solving 4 design challenges: 'simultaneous launch of idols and streaming features', 'bidirectional real-time communication', 'operational moderation', and 'monetization flywheel'.

See the build story Try the demo See overview

Streaming latency

< 500msAgora RTC

Concurrently operated apps

4 appsFan / Idol / CMS / API

Streaming uptime

99.9%Redis cluster

Monetization channels

5 typesTips/Subs/Events/VIP/Gacha

LIVE

👁 1,247 viewers

🌟

💎

💕

@aina

Aina

Let's all get fired up again today!

Write a comment…

REAL-TIME

CLIENT

About the client

'StageVibe', which develops an idol × creator economy.

Operates a platform that directly connects fans and idols in Japan's idol-focused live streaming market. Through diverse experiences — stream viewing, tipping, event participation, and collaborations — it serves everyone from rookie idols building their base to top idols generating revenue.

The business model is coin purchases (point-based billing) + subscriptions + event fees. The core of the business is 'real-time' and 'two-way interaction' — an experience design that makes fans and idols feel they are truly connecting across the screen supports both ARPPU and retention.

1,000+

Registered idols

Hundreds of thousands

Monthly active fans

Monetization channels

BUSINESS FLOW

STEP 1

Start streaming

Idols stream via Agora RTC

STEP 2

Fan participation

Notification → Watch → Comment

STEP 3

Tipping · support

Socket.io real-time updates

STEP 4

Monetization · distribution

Async payments and aggregation via Bull

CHALLENGE

Design challenges to solve

The 4 design challenges that underpin the idol economy.

Not just video streaming,The time-to-market that decides business life or death·Bidirectional real-time communication·The safety of operational moderation·Continuous monetization improvement all had to be solved by the very first design decisions.

We want to launch idols and streaming features 'simultaneously'

Time-to-market to MVP decides whether the business lives or dies. Idol acquisition · streaming infrastructure · billing · operations — 4 built in parallel Without it, you can't enter the market.

We want tips and chat delivered instantly during live viewing

A few seconds of lag breaks the fan experience. With Agora RTC + Socket.io, Bidirectional communication on a tens-of-ms scale Without maintaining this, the closeness between fans and their favorites is lost.

We want to respond quickly to policy violations and age verification during streams

The operations side handles live, blog, and events Approve/reject within minutesWithout a CMS that can do this, you lose service quality, legal safety, and fan trust all at once.

We want a foundation to continuously improve tipping, gacha, events, and more

In the idol economy, continuously rolling out new monetization initiatives is the source of competitiveness.Backend extensibility If this isn't designed up front, technical debt will shackle the business within six months.

ARCHITECTURE

The architecture we built together

Built in-house from scratch, solving 4 domains at once.

Built entirely in-house from scratch: 3 web apps (Fan / Idol / Admin) + an Express backend + Agora RTC streaming + Socket.io bidirectional communication + Bull/BullMQ async processing. We unified 3 stakeholders × 4 technical pillars onto a single platform, achieving a design that scales with business growth.

EXECUTION

Duration (months)

Total effort (person-months)

Domain ①

Streaming infrastructure

Challenge

A custom streaming implementation makes lag and troubleshooting a burden on the business

Solution

Adopts the Agora RTC SDK

Achieve world-class low-latency streaming (<500ms) with minimal implementation

Domain ②

Real-time communication

Challenge

We want chat, tips, and ranking updates reflected instantly

Solution

Socket.io + sticky session + Redis adapter

Simultaneous delivery to everyone at tens-of-ms latency, even in a multi-node environment

Domain ③

Operations CMS

Challenge

Unified management of 4 tracks: streaming, blog, events, and collaborations

Solution

Type-based approval queue + partner approval flow

Approval within minutes, with co-performer approval pending for safe publishing

Domain ④

Monetization foundation

Challenge

Continuous improvement of tipping, gacha, subscriptions, and event fees

Solution

Async payments, aggregation, and notifications via Bull / BullMQ

Scale 5+ monetization channels independently, continuously rolling out new initiatives

FRONTEND

React + TypeScript

Ant Design AAgora RTC SDK

BACKEND

Node.js + Express

TypeORM

MySQL

MongoDB

REALTIME & INFRA

Socket.io + Redis

Bull / BullMQ

AWS S3 / SES

IMPACT

The value the platform creates

Connect all 3 parties — fans, idols, and operations — on a single platform.

Experience quality · monetization speed · operational efficiency · scalability a platform that solves them all at once. It delivers concrete value to each of the 3 stakeholders.

Maximizing experience quality

Agora RTC + Socket.io maintain world-class low-latency streaming + tens-of-ms bidirectional communication. Technology that keeps fans close to their favorites.

Accelerated monetization speed

5+ channels (tipping · subscriptions · gacha · events · VIP) scale independently, shortening the time-to-market for new initiatives.

Improved operational efficiency

With type-based approval queues + a partner approval flow, the operations team can approve or reject within minutes.

Ensuring scalability

A Bull/BullMQ + multi-node Socket.io setup scales horizontally against user growth and new features.

💖

STAKEHOLDER

Fan

Fan-support experience

Typically

Streaming lag and chat delay break the fan experience

At StageVibe,

<500ms streaming + tens-of-ms chat create a 'right in front of you' feeling

Business impact

Retention and ARPPU improve

Supporting your favorite becomes a daily habit, and buying coins becomes routine

🎤

STAKEHOLDER

Idol

Creator activity

Typically

The burden of streaming equipment and operations, with limited monetization channels

At StageVibe,

Start streaming from the browser alone, freely choosing from 5+ monetization channels

Business impact

Lower activity costs, diversified revenue

Grow at your own pace, from rookie to top

⚙️

STAKEHOLDER

Operations

Business operations

Typically

Moderation, revenue management, and rolling out new initiatives weigh the business down

At StageVibe,

A unified CMS manages all 4 tracks together + Bull continuously adds new revenue initiatives

Business impact

Operational efficiency + competitiveness

Focus on business expansion, staying differentiated with new initiatives

Fans and their favorites 'Watch · support · connect' a live streaming platform that connects them, built in-house from scratch.

'StageVibe', which develops an idol × creator economy.

The 4 design challenges that underpin the idol economy.

Built in-house from scratch, solving 4 domains at once.

Connect all 3 parties — fans, idols, and operations — on a single platform.

Experience StageVibe through a live, working demo.