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Kodansha's 1st Sales Jump in 18 Years Credited to Attack on Titan

Japanese publisher Kodansha reported its financial results for the 2013 fiscal year (December 2012 to November 2013) on Thursday. The company garnered 120.272 billion yen (about US$1.173-billion) in revenue, a 2.0% increase from the previous fiscal year. The publisher's profits increased by 107.3% to 3.214 billion yen (US$31.346 million). This is Kodansha's first revenue increase in 18 years and its first increase in both revenue and profit in 19 years.

The company's advertising revenue fell due to the suspension of publication of magazines for females. However, the company credits its overall revenue and profit increase to the immense popularity of works such as Naoki Hyakuta's Kaizoku to Yobareta Otoko novel and Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan manga. Kodansha's proceeds from digital publishing reached about 5 billion yen (US$48.765 million), nearly doubling from the previous fiscal year.

Kodansha increased the print run of its shōjo manga magazine Aria about 500% in November, thanks to the launch of Hikaru Suruga and Gan Sunaaku's Attack on Titan: No Regrets (Shingeki no Kyojin Gaiden: Kuinaki Sentaku) manga.

Isayama's original manga depicts the battles between humans and the giants who now rule the world outside humans' walled enclaves. Isayama launched the series in Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine in 2009, and the manga's first 12 volumes have 30 million copies in circulation in Japan. The 13th compiled volume will ship with a second original anime DVD on April 9.

Source: Mainichi Shimbun via 0takomu