Crunchyroll, the Sony-backed streaming service dedicated to anime, has surpassed 15 million monthly paid subscribers.
For comparison’s sake, the NBCUniversal-owned Peacock reportedly had 34 million paid subscribers in early 2024. Considering that Peacock offers a wider array of content than the niche Crunchyroll, these subscribers numbers speak well of the state of the streamer as well as the growing anime market.
“Today marks an exciting milestone not only for Crunchyroll, but for the entire anime industry,” Rahul Purini, president of Crunchyroll, said in a press release. “It is proof that the rich stories, characters and experiences that our partners create are resonating deeply with fans at record numbers all over the world. As the number of people excited about anime continues to explode and the breadth of content continues to widen, we believe it has never been a better time to be an anime fan.”
Currently, the streamer has the world’s largest streaming library dedicated to anime, including 50,000 episodes and more than 25,000 hours of anime series, music and films. Every season, the streamer brings in between 45 and 60 new and returning series to its service. Those include series such as “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 so far.
This subscription announcement comes on the heels of Sony’s first quarter earnings report. On Wednesday, the company reported a 10% increase in operating profit, owing in large part to increases in gaming and music. Though sales for the PS5 were down year-over-year, the sale of titles from first-party developers as well as network services — namely, the company’s PlayStation Plus subscription offering — accounted for a boost in gaming. The division saw a banked revenue of 864.9 billion yen in the quarter, 12% year-over-year increase.
As for Sony’s music division, that was boosted by the release of Beyonce’s “Cowboy Carter” in March. Future & Metro Boomin’s “We Don’t Trust You” and SZA’s “SOS” also received shoutouts on the company’s earnings call. Sony’s music division saw a 23% increase compared to this time last year.
