Bandai Namco Holdings acquire Anime Consortium Japan for 2.1 billion Yen

Anime is big business, and with the growing revenue of international territories via streaming and a growing market in China in particular it's only getting bigger.

With that in mind, perhaps it isn't so surprising to hear that at the end of this month Bandai Namco Holdings will be acquiring Anime Consortium Japan in a deal believed to be worth a little over 2.1 billion Yen.

Bandai Namco Holdings previously owned a 36% stake in the company, but plans to buy out the remaining shares on March 31st for the cost noted above, which equates to around £15 million.

Anime Consortium Japan was founded in late 2014 as a joint venture between Bandai Namco Holdings, Aniplex, Asatsu-DK and the Japanese government's Cool Japan Fund, as a vehicle for promotion of anime abroad which also took in investment from other related content providers including publishers Kodansha, Shueisha, Shogakukan and Kadokawa, figure manufacturer Good Smile Company, and anime studios Toei Animation and Sunrise.

The consortium's initial purpose was described as being "to deliver official and brand new Japanese anime titles in several translated languages in the form of simulcast distribution as well as content that was already aired in the past. Furthermore, it will operate e-commerce site to sell anime character-related goods and digital content. With the aid of Cool Japan Fund, it will be well positioned to provide Japanese anime content culture to international markets while growing the anime fan base."

Most notably, Anime Consortium of Japan run streaming service DAISUKI as a means to promote Japanese content and make it available to a wider audience, while it's also sought means to grow the international anime fan base via the Anime-Now web site and sponsorship of a number of North American events.

It's unclear as to what Bandai Namco Holdings intentions will be for Anime Consortium Japan and its offerings at this point in time, but one assumes they'll only want to grow the user base and influece of DAISUKI in particular as arguably the consortium's most successful facet in promoting anime and related content. We'll certainly be watching from the sidelines with interest.

The news was initially reported in English by Reuters, with further information provided by Anime Herald.