Anime Giants Unite: Aniplex and Crunchyroll Launch Game-Changing Venture HAYATE

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Summary

  • Aniplex and Crunchyroll launch HAYATE, a joint venture for premium anime content production.
  • HAYATE promises high-quality anime by combining Aniplex’s expertise with Crunchyroll’s distribution.
  • The joint venture could see major studios producing exclusive content for Crunchyroll, shaping the future of anime.

Leading figures in the anime industry, Aniplex, Inc. and Crunchyroll, have unveiled a fresh collaboration, establishing a new joint venture to deliver original anime content exclusively through Crunchyroll’s streaming service. HAYATE, Inc., a production company dedicated to the conceptualization, development, and creation of anime content tailored for Crunchyroll.

In this collaboration, personnel from both parties will manage the new company. Masanori Miyaki of Aniplex will hold the positions of Chairman and CEO, while Leo Watanabe serves as President and COO. HAYATE aims to offer top-tier anime content to fans by merging Aniplex’s longstanding industry knowledge with Crunchyroll’s marketing and distribution capabilities, ensuring a global delivery of superior anime content.

More About the Collaborating Companies

The Joint Venture Means Several Major Studios Could Potentially Produce Content For Crunchyroll

As an outside viewer, I note that Aniplex is a Japanese entertainment company with a diverse portfolio, primarily focusing on the creation and development of anime and related intellectual properties. This encompasses various sectors such as video games, merchandise, theatrical releases, music, and event planning. Notably, it holds the reins and owns several prominent anime production studios, including A-1 Pictures (known for shows like Lycoris Recoil and Sword Art Online), and CloverWorks (responsible for hits such as Spy x Family, Bocchi The Rock, Wonder Egg Priority, Horimiya, The Elusive Samurai). Additionally, they are associated with game developer Lasengle (creators of Fate/Grand Order) and Aniplex of America.

Last year, Sony, which owns both Aniplex and Crunchyroll, announced plans to establish an academy for anime creators in collaboration with Aniplex and Crunchyroll. The recent development, seemingly named HAYATE, appears to be a significant stride towards realizing that vision.

The official statement assures global anime enthusiasts access to high-quality content, leveraging Aniplex’s extensive production expertise gained through partnerships with numerous creators and studios over the years, combined with Crunchyroll’s innovative development, promotional, and distribution strengths, rooted in its close ties to the anime community and devoted fanbase.

Through the direct link between two prominent anime production studios owned by Aniplex and Crunchyroll streaming service, there lies significant opportunity for this partnership to create intellectual properties specifically tailored for the platform. Over the last five years, Crunchyroll has experienced substantial transformation, including its acquisition by Sony in 2021. This followed a series of successful global anime theatrical releases such as “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train” and subsequent films like “Jujutsu Kaisen: 0”, “Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle”, “One Piece Film Red”, Makoto Shinkai’s award-winning “Suzume”. These releases are symbols of the era where anime has rapidly grown into a thriving global industry and an integral part of mainstream culture.

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2025-03-21 21:25