In a new interview, Crunchyroll CEO Rahul Purini was asked about the streamer’s expansion plans, rivals, and calls from Japanese anime production companies for increased revenue from selling their overseas distribution rights. Purini told Toyokeizai:
“There are two aspects to this. First, I want to say that Crunchyroll wants to build a sustainable anime ecosystem. That means we want to win together with our fans and creators. That’s always been our focus in our approach.“
ALSO READ:
Crunchyroll and Discord Launch My Hero Academia Profile Collection Ahead of Final Season
“As you may know, most entertainment companies enter into fixed-fee agreements when licensing content, meaning they pay a set amount and the creators get the same amount whether the show is a big hit or not. But Crunchyroll is taking a different approach, calling it ‘minimum guarantee plus revenue share.’ With this system, creators can receive a guaranteed minimum amount of money even if they don’t achieve results. If the show becomes a hit, there is an unlimited upside. This system allows creators to invest in and produce hit shows,” Purini said.
The other aspect was finding ways to monetize anime so that it was even feasible to return royalties over a long time. Purini emphasized Crunchyroll’s experience with working with anime production companies, merchandising, its access to data, and relationships with fans and retailers in achieving this.
Purini also acknowledged competition from GKIDS and Toho but said, “We also collaborate on many titles, and we are confident that we will continue to deliver great films to anime fans.” He also revealed that Crunchyroll is in negotiations with Shueisha over adding its titles to the recently announced Crunchyroll Manga service.
Crunchyroll Uses a Revenue-Sharing Model, While Netflix Mostly Pays Upfront With No Royalties
Netflix, for example, is open about its stance of not paying royalties. In its Q3 2024 earnings call, co-CEO Ted Sarandos said about Netflix’s model, “Look, we like our model and talent likes our model. It’s so much more impactful for our business if we can make our films, our shows just a little bit better, so much more impactful than making them a little bit cheaper. Bela [Bajaria] said this very clearly a couple of weeks ago to all the talent agencies. We’re not changing our compensation structure. Paying upfront, something that Netflix actually pioneered, benefits creators and it benefits Netflix.“
“So for creators, Netflix takes all the financial risks so that they can focus on making the best possible version of what they’re working on. And for Netflix, that model enables us to attract the best talent in the world. Now with all that said, we have been and we continue to be and we are open to more bespoke deals where talent is interested. Now they rarely happen because typically the talent chooses the upfront model. So we think that we have the right model, and we are not looking to change it.“
While Netflix says its partners like upfront flat fees, the Association of Japanese Animations, representing some of the biggest names in anime, like Sony’s Aniplex and A-1 Pictures, KADOKAWA, Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Toei, and Toho, listed multiple negatives of the practice in a submission to Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs last October (PDF, Page 16).
The AJA said that even if the anime is a hit, flat fees mean they receive no additional funds and often not enough marketing data, such as viewer demographics. Flat fees mean they can’t do royalty audits — audits to ensure that they’re being paid a fair value. Since the fees they receive are decoupled from an anime’s success, there’s less leverage anime companies have to demand access to data. This makes it difficult to negotiate higher fees in the future, or to gauge whether to greenlight future seasons or similar titles.
Speaking at AnimeJapan 2025, Netflix VP of Content Kaata Sakamoto said that the platform does share some data (via Dokidouki):
“Netflix does not use personal information such as age or gender on its services, so we do not provide detailed data such as nationality or age group, which is often requested by partners. However, we do share feedback on creative content.“
“For example, we analyze which episodes of an anime caused people to drop out, and during script discussions, we discuss with the production side the expected viewer reactions. To improve the accuracy of the content, we often use Netflix’s data to discuss with the production side how to make the most of the rhythm of the story and the appeal of the characters.“
Nevertheless, despite revenue-sharing being linked to increased transparency, Crunchyroll was named in a Bloomberg report last year for providing untrustworthy sales data, according to three purported Japanese anime industry employees.
Source: Toyokeizai
Featured image © Crunchyroll
Participate In Discussions