"My Hero Academia"
Hulu and Funimation Announce New Anime Deal
December 4, 2018
Hulu and Funimation, a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Television, have announced a multiyear partnership and output deal. The deal marks Hulu’s largest agreement for anime programming to date and will significantly expand its anime collection with new subtitled and dubbed titles from Funimation each year, according to a press release from the companies.
The deal grants Hulu a first look at U.S. streaming video on-demand rights to future anime series produced and released by Funimation beginning in 2019, and will make Hulu and Funimation the co-exclusive premiere destinations to certain new subtitled anime hits day and date with the worldwide premiere in Japan, according to the release. It also broadens Hulu and Funimation’s previously-existing agreement and will make both Hulu and Funimation the co-exclusive U.S. premiere homes to dozens of new anime titles each year.
Hulu and Funimation continue to be the only platforms in the United States to stream all subtitled and dubbed episodes of anime shows such as “My Hero Academia,” “Attack on Titan” and “Tokyo Ghoul,” according to the release. Funimation’s catalog of anime titles includes more than 600 shows offering over 10,000 hours of subtitled and dubbed entertainment.
“This expansive agreement, which symbolizes both companies’ shared commitment to anime, along with the support of SPT, further cements Funimation’s position as a global leader in anime distribution,” said Gen Fukunaga, president and CEO at Funimation, in a statement. “It will fuel the acquisition of new titles and provide both Funimation and Hulu subscribers with access to the very best in anime that Japan has to offer.”
“Funimation has been a longtime partner of ours, and together we have curated a full library of the most sought-after anime series from all over the world on Hulu,” said Lisa Holme, Hulu’s VP of content acquisition, in a statement. “With this new deal, we are doubling-down on our investment to continue growing our world class anime offering with even more shows that we know our viewers love to watch.”