In an interview with gamebiz, Hideo Katsumata, CEO of Anime Times, talked about the global expansion of his streaming service – and also mentioned Germany. We summarize below.
Globale Expansion
Anime Times is a Prime Video Channel operated by Avex Pictures. Numerous renowned publishers such as Kodansha, Shueisha, Shogakukan and King Records as well as well-known animation studios such as TMS Entertainment, Pierrot, Bandai Namco Filmworks and Shin-Ei Animation are involved in the project.
The company was initially launched in March 2015 as a “content supplier” for other platforms, but launched its own Prime Video Channel in Japan in 2021. The first foreign market followed in December 2023, India.
When asked why India was the start of the expansion, Katsumata said: »Since Amazon operates globally, we first considered the most important markets – the USA, Japan, Germany and India. India has long been a strategically important region for Amazon Prime Video. After we received a request for collaboration, we started there in December 2023.«
Regarding further expansion plans, the Anime Times CEO explained: »We are definitely thinking about other countries. From the Global South to Asia, there are still huge, untapped markets. China in particular is a challenge because of the strict testing procedures, but we still consider it to be an extremely important market. Germany, where Amazon is very strong, would also be an option.
By launching in India, Anime Times has ventured outside Japan for the first time. Even if there are currently no concrete plans for Germany, Katsumata’s statements suggest that this market could play a role in the long term – especially with Amazon’s global strategy behind it.
More on the topic:
Via gamebiz.jp
© Anime Times Co., Ltd.
‘;
}
