Redbox has announced that it has partnered with Digital Media Rights to offer RetroCrush's entire library of classic anime titles on its streaming service.
Redbox is best known for its automated DVD and Blu-ray rental kiosks that can be found within supermarkets and other retailers throughout North America, but the company is also continuing its push into the competitive streaming market. Redbox's new partnership with RetroCrush allows its streaming service access to many classic anime titles, including Street Fighter II: The Animated Series, Demon City Shinjuku, The Story of Saiunkoku, Great Teach Onizuka and the recently added Adolescence of Utena. RetroCrush is just one brand operated by Digital Media Rights, a privately-owned entertainment company that also operates the AsianCrush service, which distributes television content from across Asia, as well as the Midnight Pulp channel, which specializes in pulp and noir-based programming, among others. DMR's content will both be available on Redbox's on demand streaming app, as well as the Redbox Free Live TV service.
“Redbox is known for offering the very best selection of content for our customers, and this deal with DMR further enhances our free streaming services,” said Chris Yates, the general manager for Redbox On Demand. “Anime is one of the most sought-after categories, and we’re thrilled to provide our viewers with a deep dive into this hot genre.”
“Our aim with RetroCrush is to provide anime fans with the world’s best series and films. As one of the most recognizable brands in entertainment, we’re pleased to partner with Redbox and offer an exciting programming lineup of classic anime to their millions of customers,” said DMR's director of digital distribution and content strategy John Stack.
As the streaming industry becomes more crowded and competitive, anime is quickly growing into one of the most coveted sources of content for streaming companies. Sony, which already owned anime streamer Funimation, recently purchased Funimation's biggest competitor, Crunchyroll. Crunchyroll was previously owned by AT&T and WarnerMedia, and was sold to Sony for over $1 billion USD, cementing the Japanese tech giant's dominance in the streaming anime market. Netflix has also recently begun to invest more money into the anime industry, as in addition to financing their own productions, the company recently secured the exclusive streaming rights to the new seasons of the Pokemon and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure anime series. Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network recently promoted Toonami co-creator Jason Demarco to an executive position with the expressed intent of securing more anime content and partnerships for the company.
Source: Redbox
