I thought she announced it closer to summer time? I seem to remember it coming up around the "UNITE!" era. Long time ago though.
But habits & posting style changes... ayu is ALOT more frank nowadays in her messages than she was back in her earlier career. She knows now that the fans she has now, she's not likely to lose, so she's much more forward. Back in the day she had to put up more fronts to keep more fans on board.