“Crunchyroll has been gradually gaining a place among the streaming platforms, since it has facilitated the possibility of watching anime in a completely legal way. Since it began to become popular, it has not been exempt from one controversy or another, and today we will talk about the most recent one: it seems that many companies are dissatisfied with the platform due to the mishandling of its characters.
Crunchyroll misuses anime characters
The official @ChibiReviews account did not share a post on their Twitter/X profile where they talk about how multiple companies such as animation studios Toho Animation and Toei Animation are quite upset with Crunchyroll and the way they are handling merchandise from their anime series.
One user shared the following regarding the “Crunchyroll” platform, “The company often manufactures and sells merchandise or collectibles, such as figurines or posters, in ways that the publishers do not approve of.” Apparently, this has been commented on by Crunchyroll employees and Japanese publishing industry personnel, furthermore they say that Crunchyroll even knowing this has decided to remain silent choosing not to mention anything concerning this issue.
Some Japanese publishers are also dissatisfied with the job Crunchyroll is doing in managing merchandise rights, among these publishers are: Shogakukan Inc. which we know for publishing Beyblade, Godzilla, InuYasha, Ranma ½ or Monster, on the other hand, we have Shueisha Inc. which is one of the most important publishers in Japan and Kodansha, Ltd. which has published very recognized licenses such as; Shingeki no Kyojin, Sakura CardCaptor, Fairy Tail or Akira.
It was also said that “Crunchyroll” has angered both Toho Animation and Toei Animation employees quite a bit, apparently in July, Toei representatives were disappointed at a Crunchyroll gig for the hit anime One Piece which was held in the San Diego Bay Area during Comic-Con.
“Crunchyroll’s reports detailing sales for revenue sharing purposes are not considered reliable” this was said by three Japanese anime industry employees. Everything seems to indicate that the attitude of the streaming company annoyed some fairly well-known manga authors, as their characters were used in ways they did not want, this was commented by some workers and former employees. In addition, it is speculated that if this continues, the future of the “Crunchyroll” platform will not be pleasant, leaving to see that for the moment a disagreement that must be fixed soon.
“Crunchyroll is a streaming platform which is mainly dedicated to the transmission of anime, manga and content related to Japanese culture. Founded in 2006, the platform offers a wide variety of anime series, movies and TV shows, including both popular titles and more independent productions. “Crunchyroll” allows users to watch content online, either with a premium subscription that offers ad-free, high-quality access, or for free with ads.
“Crunchyroll” also features a simulcast service, which means it streams anime episodes right after they air in Japan, allowing international fans to watch episodes at almost the same time they air in their home country. In addition, the platform has expanded its offerings to include digital manga and merchandise, making it a one-stop destination for fans of anime and Japanese pop culture.
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