Some thoughts on Crunchyroll acquisition by Sony

So Sony acquired Crunchyroll few days ago and those who are connoisseurs of anime and lovers of console gaming cannot stop talking about it. The deal concluded between AT&T and Sony after the US Justice department ratified the acquisition for a possible anti-trust issue.

Crunchyroll, if you didn’t already knew, is an anime streaming service. It has huge content of anime from Japan and has millions of subscribers. Sony also owns Funimation which is another anime streaming service.

There are reports that the anime streaming service can be included with a more expensive tier of Playstation Plus Plans. This will be music to ears of those who are subscribed to both Crunchyroll and Playstation Plus. I mean, what’s not to like in this.

Many have voiced concerns about Sony having a virtual monopoly in the Western market for anime. I don’t think that was ever the case though for following reasons: firstly, anime is not a mainstream entertainment genre, no matter how many Anime-Stans you may come across on Internet; they are few but they are loud. Secondly, Netflix is heavily investing in anime and already has some good shows in its catalogue. Thirdly, there is a good chance that Disney will be looking at creating some anime content either organically or by acquisitions. Both the abovementioned services will be bundling their anime content with their already burgeoning video content. So Sony with no interest in having their own streaming service in the western world will in no way pose any kind of monopolistic threat.

However Sony will offer the anime subscription experience in variety of platforms. This serves their main purpose: to make Playstation Plus more valuable for any subscriber. They are already experimenting with offering video content in certain markets such as Poland with the Playstation Plus subscription.

All in all, there is harm in Sony acquiring a growing streaming service. But, it would be strange if Sony does not offer a streaming service that combines both Funimation and Crunchyroll into one single package.