Crunchyroll surpasses 15 million monthly paid subscribers

Crunchyroll, the Sony-backed anime streaming service, has surpassed 15 million monthly paying subscribers.

By comparison, NBCUniversal’s Peacock reportedly had 34 million paying subscribers at the start of 2024. Given that Peacock offers a broader range of content than the niche Crunchyroll, the subscriber count speaks well to the streaming service’s health, as well as the growing anime market.

“Today is an exciting milestone not only for Crunchyroll, but for the entire anime industry,” said Rahul Purini, president of Crunchyroll, in a press release. “It’s proof that the rich stories, characters, and experiences our partners are creating are resonating deeply with fans in record numbers around the world. As the number of people excited about anime continues to grow and the range of content continues to expand, we believe there’s never been a better time to be an anime fan.”

The streamer currently has the world’s largest anime streaming library, spanning 50,000 episodes and over 25,000 hours of anime series, music, and films. The streamer introduces 45 to 60 new and returning series each season. These include series like “Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba,” “JUJUTSU KAISEN,” “One Piece,” “Chainsaw Man,” and “Solo Leveling.” Last year, the streamer also partnered with SMEJ (Sony Music Entertainment Japan) to bring anime-related music to the platform, a partnership that has spawned 3,300 music videos and concerts to date.

The subscription news comes on the heels of Sony’s first-quarter earnings report. On Wednesday, the company reported a 10% increase in operating profit, largely due to growth in sales of games and music. While PS5 sales were down year-over-year, sales of first-person titles from developers as well as online services — namely the company’s PlayStation Plus subscription offerings — helped fuel the growth in games sales. The division reported banking revenue of ¥864.9 billion in the quarter, up 12% year-over-year.

As for Sony’s music division, it was boosted by the release of Beyonce’s “Cowboy Carter” in March. Future & Metro Boomin’s “We Don’t Trust You” and SZA’s “SOS” were also mentioned on the company’s earnings conference call. Sony’s music division saw a 23% increase compared to the same period last year.