SONY-STRATEGY/ANIME (PIX): Sony expects streaming service Crunchyroll to drive growth as anime expands globally.
Sony is an anime powerhouse.
Anime market is predicted to treble by 2030.
* Sony does not offer a general entertainment streaming service.
By Samuel Nussey
TOKYO — Sony’s president of movies said on Thursday that the company sees its anime streaming service Crunchyroll as a growth engine as it attempts to capitalize on the popularity of anime outside of Japan.
“Crunchyroll is going to be our primary growth driver at SPE over the next few years,” Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Tony Vinciquerra stated at a strategy meeting.
While Sony is most known for its movies, games, and music, it is also an anime powerhouse, with Aniplex producing the “Demon Slayer” anime and Crunchyroll boasting 13 million subscribers worldwide.
The growth of the internet and streaming has made anime more accessible to a larger audience, with global entertainment corporations increasingly focusing on popular franchises.
The anime market is predicted to roughly treble to $60 billion by 2030, with Crunchyroll expanding into Southeast Asia and India via Amazon Channels, which lets users to access streaming services through Amazon’s interface.
Sony does not offer a general entertainment streaming service, but has argued that its independence as a content supplier is an asset as technology disrupts the sector.
Reuters reported earlier this month that Sony is interested in acquiring the assets of Paramount Global, a US media company, which may expand its franchise portfolio.
“Our strategy is to have more IP, more product, and more library to sell,” Vinciquerra stated when questioned about the company’s investment strategy.
In January, Sony called off a planned merger with India’s Zee Entertainment, which would have formed a $10 billion corporation.
“We are looking into some other options that may or may not come to fruition,” Vinciquerra said, without revealing any specifics.
