Sony set to buy Crunchyroll for $1 billion

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2020-10-30-sony-set-to-buy-crunchyroll-for-nearly-usd1bn

Sony will pay almost $1bn to acquire Crunchyroll, the hugely-popular anime-streaming service available through both Xbox and PlayStation consoles.

The PlayStation maker is in final negotiations to seal the deal with a $957m bid and is the only company in the running, Nikkei Asia reports.

Sony already owns anime service Funanimation, which has a million subscribers, though this is dwarfed by Crunchyroll's three million subscribers and whopping 70m free members.

Investing in animation right now makes sense - it is relatively cheap to produce compared to live-action series (which currently have their own logistical issues with filming during the pandemic). Oh, and everyone's at home watching streaming services.

That value is reflected in the company's near-billion dollar value - although it's still nowhere near the $7.5bn Microsoft is paying for Bethesda.

Lol, take that Microsoft and your Bethesda deal! But I doubt Sony would make the service exclusive to Playstation. Or would they? 🤔 Your thoughts, SW?

Eeewwwww, Anime.

It's all yours, Phony. You only overpaid by about 900 mil. lol :P

I didn't know what it was before reading the OP, but it sounds like a smart investment. I bet they will go exclusive in some way, because that's part of their business model for the PS - maybe they won't allow a CrunchyApp or whatever to be supported for XBox but will for PC. Who knows

I had no clue what Crunchyroll was until this thread. Sounded like a food item. LOL

That sucks.

this is going to be a devastating blow to my gaming experience

Fanboys are so foolish sometimes. They will make CrunchRoll exclusive so that anime viewers are forced to what exactly now?

Expecting prices to rise , I am unsubscribing then.

in the words if the great author William Shakespeare

“fu%king who?”

and in the words of the great Charlie chaplain

“HaH”

they're not going to make this exclusive to playstation..

not everything sony does has to relate to playstation, people 🙄

this just means more profit for them since crunchyroll is the #1 anime streaming service and its practically on every device.

I could have sworn Sony bought both Funimation and Crunchyroll years ago, lol.

I had a crunchyroll last time I went out for sushi .. it was delicious

This is huge! All they need now is to add a start menu to each episode and call it a game.

Sounds like a portfolio expansion for their Sony Entertainment subsidiary; the movies, television and music part of their business. I don't think it will have much of an effect on their gaming side of things.

Why would they make it exclusive? That wouldn’t make much sense if they are pushing into the entertainment media market. They’d want it on everything.

I could see maybe a couple shows being exclusive to the app on the PlayStation but even then sounds like a weird business move.

All in all this is a smart move by Sony to further expand on their Anime portfolio.

Make Crunchy Roll free for PS+ subscribers and then I'll care.

What this have to do with gaming exactly?

What does Sony purchasing an anime streaming service has anything to do with System Wars or even gaming?

It's a service that's offered on gaming consoles as well as other devices. The System Wars has always involved service. Look at the PS2, the fact that it was also a cheap DVD player helped propel its sales to numba 1.

lawl. You win.

So, for AT&T (the parent company of Crunchyroll), Warner's video games division was "too valuable" to sell to MS or EA, and decided to sell Crunchyroll to Sony instead.

Yawwwwwnnnnnnn

Umm, ok? 🤷‍♂️

Lolanime

The majority of SW users who don't watch Anime won't even know what Crunchyroll is. But anyway, doesn't Sony own Funimation as well? Also, weren't they the reason the Funimation and Crunchyroll partnership ended as I remember? Would be weird if it goes full circle again and Funimation and Crunchyroll join up lol.

Edit: As for Crunchyroll itself. I was right to discontinue my sub when that site started talking about High Guardian Spice!

Yeah, this has nothing to do with PlayStation at all but I guess it is pretty interesting. Crunchyroll and Funimation were the west's main competitors so I guess now they'll kind of merge? It's nice to have everything in a single package but monopolies aren't very good either. Hopefully they can keep things consumer-friendly instead of hike up prices or whatever now that there aren't any competitors.

Nothing to do with Playstation, only the parent company and Playstation exclusivity is a ridiculously dumb move. Oh noes, no anime streaming service on Xbox, quick, better order a Playstation. Limiting potential revenue for nothing.

It does feel like that sometimes. Was playing God of War 3 on PSNow. QTE boss fights, it's as painful as it sounds.

Uuh, Can someone tell me what the heck "Crunchyroll" is? Is it anything like a sweet roll?

@eoten: Read the above posters like I stated above what's Crunchyroll is all about. If you don't like Anime, you won't know what it is.

Sounds like a Taco Bell menu item lmao

I think of all the hundreds of anime I've watched and rewatched, I've streamed one of them.

Indeed it does.

I'm just worried that Sony's going to get the wild idea in its bonnet to roll all these anime services into its also-owned Crackle, instead of letting the latter die the quiet death it deserves.

@ghost_of_phobos: I'm not gonna lie, that was funny lol.

Dammit, Sony. You could have bought like, four great studios with that money. Bluepoint wants some love.

To all the people crying about this, sony is more than games and you should know that better.

Was a smart sale. Netflix will put them out of business in a couple years. Get out while you can, one trick ponies never survive.

Actually netflix pay sony and several other movie studios for content, so if sony own the rights to several animes and netflix add then yeah sony is making money of them same with movies.

Netflix doesn't get free movies it pay royalties for them.

1. Why in System Wars?

2. Anime is garbage.

@tormentos: It cost to be the boss. Also Netflix is known to cut out the middle man and produce the content themselves using Netflix Studios. Which is now along with Amazon producing their own Anime at massive amounts like never before. Winter is coming,

why would sony be stupid to make it exclusive to playstation. if I was sony, i would be putting it on all the consoles and make tons off money

I don't think this has anything to do with the gaming aspect of Sony but probably more to bolster the Sony Pictures side of things.

Meh, I do like Crunchyroll for anime. Netflix anime is alright too but it's only once in a while does a netflix anime pique my interest.

Why would they do that? Is it that successful of a service? I'd personally rather them buy Bluepoint with that money.

@SecretPolice: JAPANIMEEEEEE GOOOOOO