By Toshiro Agarwal
About 120 million users in India watch anime content across linear and digital platforms, with 55 million watching on official platforms and 20 million coughing up good money to consume such programming.
Little wonder that Amazon’s OTT service is moving fast to load up on its anime offering. About a week ago, it launched anime OTT platform Crunchyroll on its aggregation service Prime Video Channels as an add-on for `79 per month. Crunchyroll will be the third anime OTT platform on Prime Video Channels besides Anime Times and Animax Gem.
It’s a win-win for both Prime Video and the Sony Group Corp-owned platform, say experts. The anime market is on a roll in India. Anime merchandise itself is a `3,000-crore market currently, with clothing comprising about 70% of the sales. If licensors are to be believed, consumers are willing to shell out up to `2,000 for a single item of clothing.
When the two joined hands, Gaurav Bhasin, head of Prime Video Channels and Movie Rentals, Prime Video, India, said, “The availability of select shows and movies in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu, besides English, will make anime more accessible to fans, while also helping introduce the genre to new viewers.” Indeed, Crunchyroll has a wide repertoire — from sports to romantic comedy, horror and action.
For its part, Sony sees its anime streaming service Crunchyroll as a growth driver. Estimates show India is already the second-largest anime market in the world. The company expects 60% of the global growth in the category over the next few years to come from India.
However, it’s not going to be a walk in the park for the two. Streaming rival Netflix boasts of a huge anime catalogue — at least 160 anime series including titles such as One Piece to Netflix originals like Cyberpunk: Edgerunners besides 65-odd anime movies.
That said, what can’t be disputed is the fact that the market is ripe for the picking. And the booming merchandise market will only help amplify the digital fare. As Jiggy George, founder & CEO, Dream Theatre India, puts it, “Revenue is just one part of it. Licensed merchandise helps you build a brand because it gives fans an opportunity to touch and feel the brand outside of the show they’re consuming. So merchandise will have a direct correlation to any increase in the awareness for the brand and loyalty to the animation as a genre.”