Crunchyroll, the Sony-backed streaming service committed to anime, has surpassed 15 million monthly paying subscribers.
For comparison, NBCUniversal-owned Peacock had 34 million paying subscribers as of early 2024. Considering Peacock offers a broader diversity of content than niche Crunchyroll, those subscriber numbers speak well for the state of the transmitter and the anime in development. . market.
“Today marks an exciting milestone not only for Crunchyroll, but for the entire anime industry,” said Rahul Purini, president of Crunchyroll, in a press release. “It’s proof that the rich stories, characters and reporting our partners create resonate deeply with a record number of enthusiasts around the world. As the number of people passionate about anime continues to increase and the reach of content continues to expand, there has never been a better time to be an anime fan.
Currently, the streamer has the largest anime streaming library in the world, adding 50,000 episodes and more than 25,000 hours of anime, music, and movie series. Each season, the broadcaster offers between forty-five and 60 new and old series at its service. These come with series like “Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba,” “JUJUTSU KAISEN,” “One Piece,” “Chainsaw Man,” and “Solo Leveling. “Last year, the streamer also partnered with SMEJ (Sony Music Entertainment Japan) to bring anime-related music to the platform, a collaboration that has resulted in 3,300 music videos and concerts for Array.
This subscription announcement follows Sony’s first quarter earnings report. On Wednesday, the company reported a 10% increase in operating profit, largely due to increases in the gaming and music sectors. Although PS5 sales have decreased year after year. , the sale of titles from first-party and network developers, namely the company’s PlayStation Plus subscription offering, has contributed to the gaming boom. The department reported a banking profit of 864. 9 billion yen in the quarter, up 12% year-on-year. .
As for Sony’s music division, it was bolstered with the release of Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” in March. “We Don’t Trust You” to Future