SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Crunchyroll, Inc., the leading Anime streaming service, announces today an exclusive online distribution partnership with FUJI TV, one of the largest television networks in Japan, to bring 21 Japanese drama titles to its current content library, including 2 shows that will air nearly simultaneously with the original Japanese TV broadcast.
This content deal enables Crunchyroll and its syndication partners to stream one of the largest lineup of Japanese drama series on its existing platform in more than 120 countries and territories. Vince Shortino, EVP of Crunchyroll’s Japan channels, says of the partnership: “We are very excited to work with FUJI TV to bring popular Japanese drama titles to Crunchyroll. Our vision is to provide our users the best quality and variety of content anywhere, anytime. This partnership brings us one step closer to that vision.”
FUJI’s Deputy Director, Worldwide Production and Sales, Programming and Production Dept., Taka Hayakawa, is also excited about the partnership and states: “Creating streaming partnerships on a global scale around premium content to generate additional revenue for our partners is FUJI TV’s brand new strategy.” FUJI TV has historically been prudent about licensing content overseas and specifically in North America, making this deal with Crunchyroll particularly significant for the Japan broadcasting industry.
Crunchyroll is committed to providing its audience with the best in Japanese digital media. Crunchyroll recently announced that it passed the 300k subscriber milestone. Additionally, Crunchyroll members can now watch on PS Vita and with additional devices launching this year.
The Japanese drama series included in the FUJI TV deal are Gokuaku Ganbo, IRYU Team Medical Dragon S1-4, Galileo, Bookshop Biblia's Case Files, High School Entrance Exam, A Taste of Honey, Desperate Motherhood, The 101st Proposal, Always the Two of Us, Liar Game 1&2, Hard to Say I Love You, Switch Girl 1&2, Future Diary, and Last Cinderella. Also included are GTO Taiwan, GTO 2013 from Kansai Telecasting Corporation affiliated with Fuji Network System for Kansai region.
For more information, please visit www.crunchyroll.com
About Crunchyroll, Inc.
Crunchyroll is a leading global destination and platform for Japanese anime and Asian content. Crunchyroll delivers more than 25,000 episodes and 15,000 hours of officially-licensed content from leading Asian media producers directly to viewers translated professionally in multiple languages within minutes of TV broadcast, through applications including Crunchyroll for iPhone, iPad, Android, Kindle, Playstation®3, Playstation®4, Playstation®Vita, Xbox LIVE®, AppleTV, Roku, Internet-enabled TVs, set-top boxes, affiliate websites and its own streaming website. The Crunchyroll team recently launched KDrama, a new service aimed at offering the latest primetime drama simulcasts directly from Korea, as well as a collection of the most popular catalogue titles. The service will be available across a variety of web, mobile, and living room devices.
Crunchyroll’s majority investor is The Chernin Group, LLC (TCG), a privately-held, independent media holding company founded in 2010 by Peter Chernin and based in Los Angeles, CA. TCG builds, manages, operates and invests in businesses in the media, entertainment and technology sectors around the world. Crunchyroll has offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Tokyo, and is a member of the Association of Japanese Animations (AJA). More information can be found at http://www.crunchyroll.com.
About FUJI TV
Fuji Television has maintained its status as a leader in the television industry since its establishment in 1959, propelling Japan’s media industry forward over the years. Fuji has secured the number one spot in sales for over 30 consecutive years, above all competitor commercial broadcasters. Fuji’s terrestrial channel, Fuji Television, provides high quality programs in all genres, from drama, variety shows, infotainment, sports and news. For over 7 years since 2004, Fuji Television has been the ratings leader in all three rating categories. Aside from terrestrial broadcasting, Fuji Television has engaged in various fields of business ahead of their competitors. Fuji’s motion picture department created “Bayside Shakedown 2” (2003), which is the number one live-action box office success in Japanese movie history. Furthermore, in 2012, Fuji’s movies dominated the top 4 positions in the annual domestic box-office revenue ranking. Fuji is also proactively engaged in various businesses such as content distribution through DVDs, Licensing & Merchandising, and Pay TV. Fuji is also experiencing steady growth in its next generation digital business such as Video-On-Demand services and games.
