Akihabara loses its edge as an anime mecca
Plus: NTT Docomo launches Manga Mirai reading platform; Kadokawa names leader of anime studios; Domestic anime home video sales return to growth; and more
This is your weekly Animenomics briefing, covering the business of anime and manga. Today is Wednesday, March 5, 2025.
Situational awareness: The United States imposed additional import tariffs on goods made in China this week but left in place the de minimis rule that exempts shipments with a retail value of less than US$800 from duties.
As previously reported by Animenomics, eliminating the exemption, which is still expected to happen at a later date, could impact American purchases of Japanese anime merchandise, most of which are made in China.
Chinese game studio advertisements swarm Akihabara
Tokyo’s Akihabara neighborhood has long been the premier destination for fans of Japanese anime and video games, but visitors exiting the district’s train station now are more likely to encounter advertisements for Chinese video game titles.
Why it matters: Akihabara’s fortunes have declined as since the COVID-19 pandemic with the shuttering of key retail stores, and the Ikebukuro neighborhood on the other side of Tokyo is now emerging as a new anime hub.
This month, Toshima Ward’s city government renamed the street in front of anime merchandise retailer Animate’s flagship store in Ikebukuro as Animate Street.
What’s happening: Advertisements for anime-style video games by foreign studios have multiplied in recent years around Akihabara Station, reports the Nikkei financial newspaper.
Shanghai-based studios MiHoYo and Yostar Games have been at the forefront of this trend, promoting games like Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, and Blue Archive on large billboards.
Chinese studio titles now make up 11 of the top 30 best-selling mobile games in Japan, according to data compiled by mobile analytics firm Sensor Tower and reviewed by the Nikkei.
The bigger picture: Akihabara is among a number of urban neighborhoods in Japan that are transforming with a growing number of wealthy and middle-class Chinese immigrants and visitors.
The number of Chinese residents living in Japan is expected to increase to more than 1 million by 2026, and it’s not uncommon to see storefronts displaying signs in Chinese language to attract both residents and tourists.
Japan welcomed 6.98 million visitors from China last year, about 73 percent of its pre-pandemic peak number of Chinese visitors.
Hybrid manga and webtoon reading platform launched
Japanese mobile phone service operator NTT Docomo launched this week an English-language digital manga service in the United States, Manga Mirai, with a catalog of 11,000 volumes across more than 780 titles.
Why it matters: Manga Mirai is unique for simultaneously supporting works that are read horizontally, the conventional style of Japanese manga, and vertically, the format used by webtoons that cater to smartphone users.
How it happened: Manga Mirai was built in partnership with Tokyo-based Akatsuki, a mobile gaming service provider that also operates the digital manga app HykeComic.
Developed in 2021 and launched in 2022, HykeComic focuses specifically on full-color digital manga titles that are read vertically.
NTT Docomo is also partnering with global anime and manga community website MyAnimeList to support the Manga Mirai’s marketing efforts.
What’s next: MyAnimeList parent Media Do, Japan’s largest e-book distributor, will acquire new titles for the platform from publishers and translation companies.
Manga Mirai has titles from more than a dozen publishers, but about 85 percent come from Kodansha’s North American subsidiary and Square Enix’s Manga Up! service today.
What we’re watching: How readers will react to Manga Mirai’s digital store format, which is more similar to traditional e-book stores.
Last week, former Kotaku staff writer Isaiah Colbert criticized both Manga Up! and Kodansha’s K Manga digital manga service for their use of microtransactions and gamification practices.
Clippings: Kadokawa names leader of anime studio units
Kadokawa chief anime officer Takeshi Kikuchi will oversee the group’s seven anime studios as its new chief studio officer. Licensing and merchandising veteran Daijo Kudo will take over as chief anime officer. (Press release)
A non-profit housing assistance project has helped 144 manga artists make their professional debuts since 2006. Aspiring artists live in communal environments to support one another and foster inspiration. (The Asahi Shimbun)
Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture has earmarked NT$50 million (US$1.5 million) in 2025 to support the island’s comics, or ‘manhua’, industry as publishers seek to export their catalog titles abroad to countries like Japan. (The Japan Times)
Digital advertising company CyberAgent‘s San Francisco unit CyberAgent America has formed a strategic partnership with MyAnimeList to market anime content while leveraging user-generated data from website users. (Press release)
Hakuhodo DY Media Partners and Standard Chartered-backed SC Ventures have partnered to grow the anime and manga market in Southeast Asia and the Middle East through the sale of digital IP asset tokens. (Tech in Asia)
Tokyo-based blockchain firm Questry and systems integrator TIS are building an anime film production fund funded by sales of blockchain-based digital securities. (CoinDesk Japan)
Sony Music exec outlines anime music expansion plans
“I first want to clear up a misconception: it’s dangerous to think of Japan and the rest of the world as separate markets. Anime is a big hit in western countries. I think that music related to anime, such as theme songs, should focus on western markets. On the other hand, the musicality of Asian people is similar to Japan in some ways. It’s possible to make our artists stars in Asia, where they can be understood in terms of their musicality, and then spread their music to the west.”
— Manabu Tsujino, Sony Music Labels chief executive officer
Context: Tsujino, speaking with Nikkei Business web magazine earlier this year, explains how the music production and promotion company approaches its strategy for overseas expansion.
Sony Music Labels partners with sister company Aniplex, an anime production planning company, to bring anime music to anime festivals abroad, increase the presence of artists on social media, and hold small concerts.
“We’re starting from the premise that there is no interest, so we’re doing everything from scratch.” Tsujino said.
Yes, but: As previously reported by Animenomics, there is concern from some music producers that closely associating J-pop with anime risks limiting the potential of Japanese music.
Anime home video market sees first growth since 2021
Japan’s animation home video market grew an average 6.2 percent across all genres and media formats in 2024, according to the latest annual survey of home video sales and rental data published by the Japan Video Software Association.
Why it matters: Growth in the market was driven by home video sales of Japanese anime titles, which rose 7.8 percent compared to the previous year.
This is the first time that anime home video sales have risen since 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and only the second time since 2016.
By the numbers: Anime home video sales totaled ¥24.9 billion (US$167 million), while rentals stood at ¥2.18 billion (US$14.6 million).
Sales of general anime titles, which is the second largest home video category at 27 percent of all sales, grew 7.2 percent in 2024.
Toei Animation’s The First Slam Dunk Blu-rays and DVDs contributed significantly to this category, selling half a million copies in the first two months of release.
“Japanese anime titles for the general public account for more than 90 percent of the total animation home video market,” Tadashi Sudo writes in the Animation Business Journal. “It’s safe to assume that the market is held up by this category.”
Zoom out: Japan’s overall home video sales fell below ¥100 billion (US$670 million) for the first time since 1985 and are now less than half their figure a decade ago.
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