A Crunchyroll executive recently stated in an interview that anime fans watching content on rival streaming service Netflix is “great for the fans, for the industry, and ultimately Ultimately, it's great for us.”
Via Deadline, Crunchyroll's senior vice president of global commerce, Mitchel Berger, revealed that he welcomes Netflix's presence in the anime streaming market. Instead of seeing it as a complicated thing, he said, “The way we look at it is Netflix clearly has a large platform — a large reachable audience. Whenever we can bring people to anime, I think it's better for the industry, it's better for us.”
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“What we found is that anime fans know right away whether they are fans or not,” Berger continued. You're either really a fan or you're like, 'I really don't know what's going on here.' So giving people the opportunity to try out a platform like Netflix and review it, I think it's great for the fans, for the industry and ultimately, it's great for us. I.” Crunchyroll sometimes licenses content on an exclusive basis and for certain periods of time such as months or years. It also licenses non-exclusive content or releases it on its own platform before sublicensing it for streaming on other platforms, as with the currently airing One Piece anime series. “So it's everywhere,” Berger said. Earlier this year, Crunchyroll sub-licensed Jujutsu Kaisen, Spy x Family, My Hero Academia and Black Clover to Netflix, among other titles.
Sony's acquisition of Alamo Drafthouse could result in more Crunchyroll theatrical releases
Berger also talked about Blue Lock: Episode Nagi, Crunchyroll's growth in North America, Europe and Latin America, and the anime industry in general. He added that the theatrical release is “very important to us from many perspectives,” highlighting the community aspect of anime fans coming together. Berger's words became even more interesting after Sony Pictures acquired the Alamo Drafthouse theater chain this week — the seventh largest theater chain in the U.S. Ravi Ahuja, president and COO of Sony Pictures Entertainment, notably spoke in statement this week (via Hollywood Reporter), “Alamo Drafthouse's distinct moviegoing experience, admired brand, and dedicated community are a great fit for [our] vision. Our Crunchyroll business also aligns with audience preferences,” possibly signaling an expansion of Crunchyroll's theatrical business.
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Whether Crunchyroll's attitude towards Netflix will change in the future remains to be seen. A recent data release revealed the most-watched anime series on Netflix in 2023, as well as the number of fans who watched several billion hours of anime last year. Although Crunchyroll's data is not publicly available, Polygon's survey of anime fans revealed that Netflix and Crunchyroll are the two most popular anime streaming services in the US among Gen Z, one of the most popular anime streaming services in the US among Gen Z. anime's largest demographic in North America alongside Millennial viewers.
Source: Deadline