The recent focus that Netflix has given to producing anime series has paid off in nearly every country where the service is available, but it has been less successful in anime's country of origin, Japan.
Netflix's worldwide popularity owes much to the international appeal of its programming, as reported by The Information. Japanese anime on Netflix has become a hit with subscribers in the Americas, with viewership of anime shows doubling in the U.S. over the past year. However, viewers in Japan have been less receptive to watching these shows on Netflix, which has signed up only around 13% of Japan's broadband-equipped households.
The primary cause of this appears to be a difference in cultural television viewing norms. Broadcast television is still more popular than streaming in Japan, and anime studios are more likely to uphold their loyalty to traditional broadcasters than to move toward streaming services. Fans of anime will therefore still find their favorites on TV without needing to subscribe to Netflix.
Other leading streaming services such as Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video continue to take part in the streaming wars with original content, but where anime is concerned, Netflix is also now competing with Sony's consolidated services of Crunchyroll and Funimation. Although Crunchyroll's subscription numbers are insignificant compared to Netflix's, it has the benefit of accumulating serious anime fans since its launch in 2007.
Crunchyroll and Funimation also release new episodes on a weekly schedule, rather than dropping an entire season at once like the Netflix model. This method is preferred by anime studios, as the anticipation may increase demand for manga and tie-in merchandise.
Source: The Information
