MyAnimeList sold to blockchain startup
Plus: Studio Ghibli-style AI art raises legal questions; 'Oshikatsu' contributes 2 percent of Japan retail sales; Anisong CD single releases decline again; and more
This is your weekly Animenomics briefing, covering the business of anime and manga. Today is Wednesday, April 2, 2025.
In case you missed it: The IMAX 4K rerelease of Hayao Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke earned US$3.87 million in the North American box office last weekend. It was the top-earning film on a per-theater basis.
Media Do sells MyAnimeList stake to blockchain startup
Media Do has sold its stake in anime and manga fan community website MyAnimeList to Tokyo-based blockchain startup Gaudiy, the e-book distribution giant revealed in a disclosure filed last week with Japan’s Financial Services Agency.
Why it matters: The share transfer marks a complete divestiture by Media Do from the platform of 19.5 million users that it acquired from DeNA in 2019 for ¥1.2 billion (US$10.7 million).
Catch up quick: Gaudiy, which raised ¥3.4 billion (US$25.8 million) in Series B funding in 2022, develops online fan engagement platforms for owners of anime and manga intellectual properties (IPs).
Fans on these platforms earn digital assets known as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that are issued by Gaudiy and can purchase merchandise and event tickets.
Zoom out: While global interest in NFTs waned after cryptocurrencies collapsed in 2022, Japan is one market where NFT projects are still happening.
What we’re hearing: “As the world's largest anime and manga fan community site, MyAnimeList has been trying to strengthen its data sales in recent years,” manga industry consultant Takeshi Kikuchi observed. “It seems that the goal is to strengthen this point by collaborating with Gaudiy, which has a strong fandom presence.”
“MyAnimeList was the best way to find out trends in the overseas anime and manga fandom,” anime industry consultant Toshiyuki Koudate wrote in a blog post. “However, I felt that Media Do was struggling to monetize the site, which is probably why the decision was made.”
Last month, MyAnimeList said it would utilize fan activity data from its platform to support the launch of NTT Docomo’s digital manga service Manga Mirai.
Between the lines: Since the acquisition by Media Do, MyAnimeList’s operating entity has added 11 shareholders that now include the four manga publishing giants and other companies in entertainment like Dentsu and Bushiroad.
In February 2024, Media Do’s stake in MyAnimeList was listed around 30 percent, according to an annual securities report filing.
The sale of MyAnimeList is expected to generate ¥531 million (US$3.5 million) in extraordinary profit for Media Do this fiscal year.
ChatGPT tool imitating Ghibli art raises legal questions
“The current global consensus is that is not copyright infringement [to imitate style], regardless of whether the work was created by human or AI. This is because humans have developed their culture by imitating the excellent ideas of their predecessors, including the style of their works. On the other hand, when an image goes beyond imitation of style and becomes similar to a particular image in terms of composition, color, stroke, etc., this is not an idea but a similarity of expression. Unauthorized imitation of a person’s creative expression is, in principle, copyright infringement.”
— Kensaku Fukui, Kotto Dori Law Office managing partner and copyright lawyer
Context: Fukui, who served as an advisor to the Association of Japanese Animations and as a member of the Japanese government’s intellectual property working group, spoke with Bengo4.com, one of the country’s largest lawyer and legal portals, about the legal boundaries around using ChatGPT’s new image-generation tool to create Studio Ghibli-style AI art.
Yes, but: While imitation of style doesn’t constitute copyright infringement, Fukui says courts around the world are still determining how much freedom AI models should be able to learn by copying the works of a specific individual or group.
Fukui advises AI developers and rightsholders to consult materials from the Agency for Cultural Affairs on the Japanese government’s approach to AI and copyright and checklist and guidance on the subject.
Clippings: ‘Oshikatsu’ to contribute 2 pct of retail sales
Japan’s spending-driven fandom culture known as ‘oshikatsu’ could contribute up to ¥3.5 trillion (US$23.5 billion) to the country’s economy, about 2.1 percent of Japan's total annual retail sales, according to a new survey. (Reuters)
CyberAgent’s San Francisco unit is entering into a partnership with the Japan unit of social media giant X to develop special features on the platform and collaborate on marketing content to promote anime. (Press release)
Japan’s Fair Trade Commission has issued a warning to an unnamed anime studio for violating provisions of the newly enacted Freelance Act by not specifying deadline expectations, compensation, and pay schedules for freelancers doing key animation and sound direction work. (Press release)
Manga publisher VIZ Media has named chief operating officer Brad Woods as the company’s new chief executive officer. Outgoing CEO Ken Sasaki, who has been in the position since 2012 will become the publisher’s chairman. (Anime News Network)
Anime studio MAPPA has formed a music label subsidiary, with plans to release CDs, arrange digital distribution, and organize concerts for music associated with its anime properties. (Oricon News)
Toymaker Bandai Spirits plans to open 20 Gundam robot plastic model stores in 20 cities in China by 2027. The company plans to develop food and apparel products and will launch a new Gundam card game in July. (The Nikkei)
1 chart to go: Anisong CD single releases continue slide
The number of anime music, or anisong, record releases climbed 9.2 percent in 2024 compared to the previous year, new data from the Recording Industry Association of Japan’s latest annual statistical yearbook reveals.
Why it matters: After releases fell for two consecutive years to a record low in 2023, last year’s number could be a sign that the anime music decline has flattened.
Zoom in: Anime CD single releases have fallen in eight of the last nine years and are now at their lowest level since 2007.
Last year also saw the first cassette tape record releases since 2007 as FlyingDog rereleased the Samurai Champloo soundtrack albums in CD and cassette formats.
Between the lines: The boundary between anisong and non-anisong continues to disappear as more mainstream music artists perform theme songs for anime.
In the first quarter of this year, the popular idol group =LOVE, which is produced by a former AKB48 member, performed the opening theme song to I'm Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class, a late-night anime whose theme songs would typically be performed by a voice cast member or an anisong singer.
Animenomics is an independently run and reader-supported publication. If you enjoyed this newsletter, consider sharing it with others.