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Crunchyroll: Shojo Anime Genre Has Strong Growth Potential

Crunchyroll held a business seminar on Tuesday aimed at Japanese businesses. Part of the presentation centered on explaining current consumer trends in the west based on the service's viewership numbers. Chief Customer Officer Asa Suehira explained that while shonen battle anime and "isekai" fantasy series continue to dominate, anime aimed at a female audience have strong growth potential. He stated that these titles tend to over-perform due to unmet demand from low supply, citing Fruits Basket as an example.

"In the west, where female anime fans were underserved with relevant content historically, shojo, josei, and even some BL titles are showing stronger performances than expected," he said. Fans of idol anime shouldn't get their hopes up, however, as female-targeted idol anime were singled out as the exception to this trend.

Nevertheless, Crunchyroll's data indicates that tastes among anime fans are becoming more varied, although Suehira did note that it can be harder to predict which of those titles will become hits. He also remarked that well-produced romantic comedies aimed at male audiences, such as My Dress-Up Darling, have also been on the rise in recent years, with such titles even cracking the top 5 in a given season.

Suehira further challenged the assumption that only fantasy and action shows perform well on the platform by displaying a pie chart of anime genres represented by Crunchyroll in 2021. He noted that slice of life, comedy, and drama "take up a big slice of the pie," although he did not state the percentages. He encouraged Japanese partners to work with Crunchyroll as a hub for all anime, especially in light of the Funimation merger. The presentation also highlighted Crunchyroll's extensive marketing efforts and community outreach.

Funimation and Crunchyroll announced on March 1 that that Funimation and Wakanim's anime library and simulcast content have moved to Crunchyroll. Sony's Funimation Global Group completed its acquisition of Crunchyroll from AT&T on August 9 last year. The purchase price was US$1.175 billion, and the proceeds were paid in cash at closing.

Source: AnimeJapan Business Seminar