IA

IA  (イア) is a Japanese VOCALOID developed and distributed by 1st Place Co., Ltd., and was released in January 2012 for the VOCALOID3 engine. Her voice is provided by the Japanese female singer-songwriter, Lia, known for "Tori no Uta". In July 2016, an English voicebank was confirmed to be in the works.

Concept
IA is the first vocal in the "- ARIA ON THE PLANETES -" project.

The design philosophy 1st Place worked toward was to make the voice simple and straightforward but easy to adjust and customize, letting creators create their own version of IA.

Etymology
"IA" is taken from her voice provider's name, "Lia".

There are at least two ways to read her projects name of "- ARIA ON THE PLANETES -":
 * The words "Aria" and "Planetes" are Latin and Greek for "open space" and "planet" respectively, giving the translation of "Open Space on the Planet".
 * "Aria", is also the Italian word for "air" and is used as a term in opera for expressive pieces, usually sung by a single singer. This also fits in with her more opera-esque vocal results compared to other released Japanese Vocaloids.

When she was first released, overseas fans often mistook "Aria" as the name of the Vocaloid.

Appearance
Her design was illustrated by Aka Akasaka (D. Z.), while the design direction was by Maxilla Inc. It was decided that they would go for soft colours instead of Vivid ones. At the time, there was skepticism towards avoiding vivid colours as there was a fear of her not selling because of the softer tones. Lia herself wanted her to be cute and pretty and was satisfied the first time she was shown the artwork.

Despite the myth of IA's age being 15, she has had no age assigned to her. This myth seems to originate from a section underneath the paragraph on IA about her provider Lia, wherein one of the first things mentioned was that Lia debuted in America at 15 years old.

Relations

 * is a vocal created for CeVIO able to talk as well as sing. She is the second vocal in the "- ARIA ON THE PLANETES -" project.

Music featuring IA
Examples of usage

Marketing


Information on IA was released much slower than the average VOCALOID. Her promotions have taken the approach to make her seem otherworldly and mysterious.

The licensing for IA is slightly different than past VOCALOIDs, and it is worth taking the time to read this page for more details. Unlike some past VOCALOIDs, users can use her image on CDs, flyers and posters without requesting permission, although some consent from the company is needed for greater use of her image. This is a departure from past VOCALOIDs such as Crypton Future Media, who require you to ask permission for use of their VOCALOIDs' images on things such as CDs, flyers and posters.

1st Place likes collaborations between their company and others. Their marketing style was designed to introduce IA to people unfamiliar with VOCALOID, expanding their audience.