Crunchyroll and FUNimation Announce Streaming and Home Video Partnership

Online anime distributor Crunchyroll and North American anime licenser and distributor FUNimation Entertainment have announced a partnership for cross-streaming, dub production and home video distribution in the United States and Canada, Anime News Network Reports.

FUNimation first forayed into the streaming service scene in January of 2016 with the released of FUNimationNow.

Starting on Thursday, Crunchyroll viewers will be able to watch subtitled versions of FUNimation’s summer simulcast titles, such as D.Gray-man Hallow, First Love Monster, and Puzzle & Dragons X. Select FUNimation catalog titles, like Cowboy Bebop, Psycho-Pass, and Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, are also now available on Crunchyroll.

Certain Crunchyroll catalog titles, such as Free! – Iwatobi Swim Club and The Testament of Sister New Devil, will be available on FUNimationNow soon. Additionally, FUNimationNow viewers will be able to watch Broadcast Dubs of some of Crunchyroll’s summer simulcast titles, such as 91 Days, Mob Psycho 100, and Orange.

The two companies will not be embedding each others’ video players on their sites, but rather continue to use their own video players for their collaborative content and use cross-marketing to work together to promote the titles.

The companies will also continue to work together for future seasons for subtitled and Broadcast Dub content.

FUNimation will also serve as the distributor for Crunchyroll’s home video release titles. Titles currently planned include: Ace Attorney, Alderamin on the Sky, Bungo Stray Dogs, JOKER GAME, Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, and ReLIFE. Theses releases will include subtitles and English dubs.

Crunchyroll co-founder and general manager Kun Gao has stated that the companies have no intention to expand this partnership into a merger.

Crunchyroll, which says it has more than 700,000 paying subscribers (and offers free access with ads), is majority owned by Otter Media, a joint venture between AT&T and the Chernin Group. Funimation, founded in 1994, operates in-house anime studios along with technology and distribution partnerships.

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