Securing the Weeb Vote: Reign of Dominance

In terms of pop culture, anime is Japan’s most famous export. Its influence has long been felt in foreign countries, influencing waves of references, communities, and movements. Streaming services are trying to wield this influence to exert dominance over the competition. Since the genre is so vast, a total monopolization is unlikely, maybe impossible. However, the article goes into the tactical acquisitions of certain anime studios in order to gain a competitive edge in overseas markets.

The article focuses mostly on Netflix, and their take on their own situation. The article goes into detail about the necessity of Netflix expanding its market, especially with the advent of new streaming services like Disney Plus. Each seems to have its “staple” show, and Netflix is—desperately—trying to capture Japanimation as its distinguishing factor.

Most of the article’s information comes from Netflix’s director of Japan and Anime, John Derderian. His statements are reminiscent of a public “statement of intent”, announcing its confidence to competitors. But I personally wonder how close these plans are to fruition. For example, Derderian was quoted saying that Netflix has “approached the renowned anime studio to secure the up-for-grabs streaming rights for its home country”. The studio is of course, Studio Ghibli, which has historically remained separate from large scale streaming services. The key word of this quote is “approach”. Many companies in the past have approached Ghibli, only to be turned down based on the company’s philosophy.  It almost seems like a desperate, reactive, bust of confidence from Netflix.

The article then goes into one of Netflix’s major acquisitions, “Ultraman”, and the response from the studio regarding the partnership. The studio appreciated the freedom Netflix gave in terms of content and non-censorship. Again, I took this as almost an advertisement to other creators; a way to showcase the benefits of partnership and catch the eyes of other creators. This sentiment was especially felt through the last line spoken by Derderian stating “We’re going to partner with studios for 5, 10 years so they can take that money…” One gets the sense that Netflix is doing all they can to remain a power player in the streaming world. Anime may prove to be their saving grace.