Sony Funimation Global Group finally acquired Crunchyroll from AT&T!

Sony Pictures is now the owner of Crunchyroll by completing the USD 1.175 billion acquisition recently.

Photo from: Crunchyroll

Sony sees anime as a rapidly growing medium

Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. Tony Vinciquerra said that the company aims to "create a unified anime subscription experience as soon as possible."

Crunchyroll is a popular anime direct-to-consumer service with 5 million SVOD subscribers and growing.  According to the press release, it has more than 120 million registered users across more than 200 countries and territories. It mainly offering AVOD, mobile games, manga, events merchandise, and distribution. 

In December 2020, Sony announced the agreement that it will own AT&T’s anime business Crunchyroll through Funimation Global Group. Funimation is a joint venture between SPE and Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc.'s subsidiary, Aniplex Inc. 

By sealing the deal, Crunchyroll and Funimation can broaden distribution for their content partners and expand fan-centric offerings for consumers. President and CEO, Sony Group Corporation Kenichiro Yoshida further said,

We are very excited to welcome Crunchyroll to the Sony Group. Anime is a rapidly growing medium that enthralls and inspires emotion among audiences around the globe. The alignment of Crunchyroll and Funimation will enable us to get even closer to the creators and fans who are the heart of the anime community.  We look forward to delivering even more outstanding entertainment that fills the world with emotion through anime.

Sony did not disclose how soon they are implementing the unified anime subscription experience. In the meantime,  Funimation and Crunchyroll will continue to exist as separate streaming platforms.

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Source: Sony