The ¥2.7 Trillion Anime Market: Who is Really Profiting?

Even when you hear the anime market has reached ¥2.7 trillion, few people can answer the question: "Where do I fit in?" I recently spoke with a representative from a small-to-medium-sized motion-related manufacturer who told me this:

"Anime is popular all over the world. We want to release products linked to character goods, but I have absolutely no idea who to talk to or how to get started."

They know the market size, but they can't see where they fit within it. This "feeling of knowing yet not knowing" is likely a shared frustration for anyone interested in the anime business.

Breaking down the ¥2.7 trillion figure reveals the structure

It is a fact that the Japanese anime industry's market size reached ¥2.7422 trillion (2022, The Association of Japanese Animations "Anime Industry Report 2023").

However, taking this figure at face value can lead to misjudgments.

Looking at the composition, the overseas market accounts for approximately ¥1.26 trillion, or 46% of the total. In other words, about half of the earnings from "Japanese content" are already generated abroad. The overseas ratio has significantly increased since the early 2010s, driven by licensing contracts with streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

This leads to a question: Who actually holds this ¥1 trillion+ in overseas revenue?

Animation studios are creators, not necessarily the ones profiting

There is one crucial, often misunderstood fact about the anime industry's profit structure:

Animation studios that create the works do not necessarily benefit much from the market's growth.

For years, the "Production Committee" model has been the mainstream. In this system, TV stations, ad agencies, goods manufacturers, and publishers pool funds to mitigate risk. The animation studio is typically a "subcontractor" receiving a fixed production fee from the committee. Even if the work is a hit, most of the licensing revenue is distributed among the committee members.

In fact, a survey by the Japanese Animation Creators Association (JAniCA) in 2019 showed the median annual income for animators was approximately ¥3.33 million. This is significantly lower than the Japanese national average for wage earners that year (approx. ¥4.36 million, according to the National Tax Agency).

The work is seen worldwide. But it doesn't pay off for the creators.

This asymmetry is the core reason why the ¥2.7 trillion figure is so "difficult to parse."

So, who is actually "making money" in the anime market?

Organizing the structure, revenue streams are roughly divided into three tiers:

Tier 1: Rights Holders

Key committee members, especially publishers (such as Shueisha, Kodansha, and Shogakukan), hold the rights to the original manga. From the moment the work is adapted into an anime, the publisher becomes a recipient of licensing revenue.

For Shueisha, holding multiple hits like Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen has significantly improved their recent performance. While the overall publishing market trended downward in 2022 (Data from the Japan Magazine Publishers Association), the manga and comic sector remained strong, including digital sales. Essentially, rights are an asset that "provides returns every time a hit is made if you hold them."

Tier 2: Goods & Merchandising

According to the Anime Industry Report, the domestic market for goods and merchandising alone is worth approximately ¥580 billion (2022).

Manufacturers that produce and sell figures, apparel, stationery, and collaboration food items can directly convert market buzz into sales in exchange for paying licensing fees. This structure is similar overseas, and in fact, the character products market in North America, China, and Southeast Asia continues to grow.

Tier 3: Streaming Platforms

Netflix has explicitly stated its commitment to investing in Japanese anime, announcing in 2021 that it had "partnered with over 40 Japanese anime studios and streamed over 40 new titles in 2021 alone" (Netflix official press release).

Platforms often pay production costs upfront in exchange for exclusive streaming rights, which provides cash flow stability for animation studios. However, the structure is becoming more complex, with some cases where the platform retains part of the rights.

The forefront of global expansion: What is happening in the anime market?

In fact, there are signs of change in this structure.

Some studios are moving away from the committee system and exploring models where they hold the rights themselves. Ufotable is often cited as a representative example; they handle the production for Demon Slayer and are highly acclaimed for their quality. However, information on their specific rights-holding structure remains limited and the total revenue allocation is not public.

On the other hand, an interesting trend is the growth of Crunchyroll. Acquired by Sony Group in 2021, Crunchyroll is an anime-focused streaming service with over 10 million cumulative subscribers, mainly in North America, South America, and Europe (as of 2023, Crunchyroll official).

By combining Crunchyroll with Aniplex (a Sony Group subsidiary), Sony is building a structure that vertically integrates everything from rights holding to distribution. One could say Sony Group has provided a clear answer to the question of "who gets the final profit."

Viewpoint as an export business: Where is the "entry point" for SMEs?

Once you grasp the structure above, the realistic entry points for those wanting to get involved in the anime market become clear.

Generally, there are three:

1. Manufacturing and exporting goods/licensed products

This model involves signing official licensing agreements with publishers or agencies that hold the rights and manufacturing/selling character products for the overseas market. Recognition of Japanese anime characters is rising in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and South America, and demand for genuine products is growing.

Based on our observations, inquiries from the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam asking to "import genuine licensed goods from Japan" have clearly increased since 2022. While piracy hasn't disappeared, the rise of the middle class is creating demand for "authentic goods."

For those looking for concrete ways to reach buyers in Southeast Asia, our case study on expanding into the Philippines—where we helped a company make contact with three wholesalers from a list of buyers in 190 countries—may be helpful. Such steps are becoming a realistic entry point for companies considering the export of officially licensed goods.

2. Exporting secondary services for content production

Parts of the downstream production process—such as translation, localization, sound production, and background art—are shifting overseas. Outsourcing to production companies in South Korea, China, and Southeast Asia is common. There is room for companies with specialized skills in anime production to enter this field.

3. Cross-border e-commerce for official and fan-made (doujin) goods

While there are complexities regarding rights issues, there is real demand abroad for fan-made items and doujinshi sold at conventions like Comiket. The volume of "requests for buying agents for Japanese goods" on Twitter and overseas Reddit has, in our experience, increased. Since legal and commercial handling requires individual verification, we will simply point out that "the demand exists."

Summary: Reading the ¥2.7 trillion anime market as a "map"

We hear in the news repeatedly that "the anime market is huge."

But if you draw that ¥2.7 trillion as a map of potential revenue flows, the view changes. Publishing companies and committee members holding the rights, manufacturers producing and selling goods, and platforms controlling streaming rights—these three are the main beneficiaries. Unfortunately, production studios have been placed in a "vital but underpaid" position within this structure.

If you want to enter the market, it is realistic to first decide "which layer and which position you will take." Just saying you want to be involved in the "anime market" will likely get you nowhere.

Where could your products or services connect in this market? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

For more information on how to find overseas buyers and export strategies, please check out the Rinda service page.

FAQ

Q1. When entering the anime market through overseas sales, who is the first person I should contact?

A. The rights department of the publisher that manages the IP, or a specialized licensing agency, is your first point of contact. Contacting an animation studio directly usually leads nowhere, as they rarely have decision-making power over the rights. The starting point is confirming "who holds the rights."

Q2. Is an official license mandatory if I want to sell anime goods via cross-border e-commerce?

A. In principle, official license agreements are mandatory if you are selling products using existing characters. Unlicensed sales carry the risk of copyright infringement. For original designs without rights holders or fan-made items where the authorization limits are clearly stated, you will need to check individually. If you are starting a full-scale export business, clearing up legal risks beforehand will make your operations much smoother later.

Q3. Which categories of anime goods are in particularly high demand for expansion into Southeast Asia?

A. Items such as figures and acrylic stands (collector's items) and apparel (T-shirts, bags) are highly popular in the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. There is a strong need for "exclusive products that can only be bought in Japan," and the premium feel of genuine imports is a significant motivator for purchase.

Providing insights on developing overseas sales channels.