Crunchyroll Is Beating Disney, Netflix in Anime Thanks to Gen Z, Gen Alpha

As anime continues to gain popularity, many streaming sites are shifting their strategies towards anime-centric content to capitalize on the medium’s revolutionary boom. In this anime streaming war, however, Crunchyroll appears to be taking the lead as the organization has adapted many strategies to cater to the proliferation of anime in recent times.

In an enlightening discussion with Ravi Ahuja, the CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment, at the company’s press conference on September 4, he made it clear that Crunchyroll is a superior choice to competitors such as Netflix and Disney for mainstream anime viewing. Ahuja also explained the intricacies of Netflix and Crunchyroll’s symbiotic partnership, underscoring Crunchyroll’s unrivalled influence in the industry.

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Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Ravi Ahuja and his comments on Crunchyroll’s rivalries are an eye-opener on how Crunchyroll has outpaced its competitors in the streaming war. According to the President, the demand for anime is at its peak with Gen Alpha and Gen Z frontlining this development that heralds anime’s burgeoning future.

Yeah, it’s [the long-term goal] to continue to lean into the growth. The thing that excites us a lot is that there’s enormous demand for anime content, and it’s very much a Gen Alpha, Gen Z thing. Even Millennials to Gen X, there’s not as much anime fandom, so that also makes me very optimistic for the future. Because as that group ages up, they’ll subscribe a lot more, so we see continued momentum there, and global too, so it’s popular around the world.

Crunchyroll intends to tap into this expansive consumer base as it is undoubtedly a profitable venture for the company. Furthermore, Crunchyroll’s sister company, Aniplex, is a formidable force in the anime production space, placing the company leagues above Netflix and Disney, which are only marginally involved in anime production.

CEO Ahuja also outlined the numerous qualities that make Crunchyroll an undeniable choice for anime fans: digital manga can be purchased online through Crunchyroll; numerous anime series are available for streaming in various languages; and fans can obtain exclusive cultural merchandise and other perks from Crunchyroll’s multifaceted library.

You can get digital manga now, e-commerce… You can get a lot of products that you can buy through e-commerce… a lot of other things. So, it’s not just about streaming all of your anime. And even when streaming your anime, you can choose: dubs and subs. Translation works in a way through to many different languages, so it’s very user-friendly, so we look at it as super-serving the anime fan.

At the conference, Ahuja also openly stated that Crunchyroll has the highest viewership for anime among all other platforms. In fact, Crunchyroll sublicenses anime airing rights to Netflix and Disney (Hulu), indirectly expanding their outreach to these platforms, as the limited catalogues of the latter streamers would inexorably influence fans’ decisions in opting for Crunchyroll’s diverse library.

Infinity Castle’s Success Also Puts Crunchyroll Further In The Limelight As Anime

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Globally, Crunchyroll is undoubtedly spearheading anime’s appeal, as Infinity Castle’s success has broadened the cinematic playing field to include anime. However, Netflix’s popularity should not be undermined, as the platform still has a strong draw in anime viewership, especially in Western regions.

The scramble for global anime streaming dominance will likely continue for some time. Regardless, Crunchyroll appears to be taking the lead, as the franchise is quickly becoming a haven for anime fans in terms of content diversity.