What Wakanim does

Wakanim is a European anime-streaming brand that has been consolidated into Crunchyroll, the anime-focused subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment following Sony's August 2021 acquisition of Crunchyroll from Otter Media for approximately $1.175 billion. The provided source material does not contain Wakanim-specific operational data; the supported facts describe the Crunchyroll platform into which Wakanim's service has been folded.

Crunchyroll serves anime consumers globally via direct-to-consumer subscription streaming, structured around three tiers — Fan ($69.99/yr promotional, $99.99/yr regular), Mega Fan ($99.99/yr promotional, $139.99/yr regular), and Ultimate Fan ($179.99/yr) — with a 7-day free trial as the acquisition funnel and auto-renewal as the retention mechanic. The core product is ad-free, simulcast-enabled streaming of licensed Japanese anime (including Demon Slayer, One Piece, Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen, Spy x Family, Solo Leveling, and others), with content available in 13 localized languages and dubs in 16 languages. The platform supports streaming across web, mobile, gaming consoles, and smart TVs, with tier-dependent offline viewing and multi-device concurrency (up to 6 streams on Ultimate Fan).

The business model is consumer subscription at three price points, augmented by adjacent verticals: Crunchyroll Game Vault (gaming), Crunchyroll Manga (digital manga), an e-commerce merchandise store, an Anime Awards program, and live events. The revenue mechanics are diversified across ARPU tiers, gaming/manga upsells, and merchandise, with a promotional pricing strategy currently in market. The customer base is a long-tail of anonymous individual subscribers rather than enterprise accounts, and the geographic footprint spans North America, EMEA, Latin America, MENA, South Asia, and Southeast Asia per the localization footprint.

Name

Wakanim

Website

https://wakanim.tv

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Unknown

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Wakanim is a European anime streaming brand, now consolidated into Crunchyroll, the Sony-owned anime SVOD platform offering ad-free simulcast streaming, manga, gaming, and merchandise to global individual subscribers across 13 languages.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Video Streaming

akta.pro primary industry

Anime Production (MPADACAF)

Keywords

• Anime streaming
• Video subscription
• Simulcast anime
• OTT entertainment
• Digital media service

Headquarters

HQ city

Tourcoing

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Core offering

No verified Wakanim-specific core offering details are present in the provided source data. The associated source material describes Crunchyroll's anime streaming subscription service, which cannot be attributed to Wakanim based on the input.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• HIDIVE: HIDIVE is a US-based anime-focused subscription streaming service offering simulcasts and library titles. It competes with Wakanim/Crunchyroll in the dedicated anime OTT category with similar licensing-driven business model.
• Crunchyroll: Crunchyroll is the largest dedicated anime streaming platform globally and acquired Wakanim. Both services stream licensed anime with simulcast releases, subscription tiers, and dubbing/subtitling in multiple languages, making Crunchyroll the closest comparable product offering and parent brand.
• Funimation (now part of Crunchyroll): Funimation was a major North American dedicated anime streaming service, now merged into Crunchyroll. It is directly comparable to Wakanim as a regional anime streamer with English-language dubbing focus, simulcast licensing, and subscription monetization.
• ADN (Anime Digital Network): ADN is a French anime streaming service that directly competes with Wakanim in the same French/European market, offering a comparable subscription-based simulcast and back-catalog anime library to French-speaking consumers.

Broad incumbents

• Netflix: Netflix is a global general-entertainment streaming incumbent that has aggressively expanded its anime catalog (e.g., licensing deals with Japanese studios). It competes for anime viewing time and ARPU in the same European markets where Wakanim operates.
• Aniplex of America: Aniplex is a major anime production and distribution company (a Sony subsidiary, like Crunchyroll). It is both a content supplier to Wakanim-style platforms and increasingly a direct competitor through its own distribution channels.

Regional players

• iQIYI: iQIYI is a major Chinese subscription streaming service with a sizable anime catalog. It is comparable to Wakanim in offering licensed anime on a subscription basis, but operates primarily in China/Asia rather than Europe.
• Bilibili: Bilibili is a Chinese video and anime streaming platform with a strong licensed anime library. It is comparable as a regional anime streaming heavyweight with a similar subscription/community model but operates almost exclusively in Greater China rather than Wakanim's European footprint.
• Muse Asia: Muse Asia is an anime content distributor focused on Southeast Asia, distributing licensed anime via YouTube and dedicated platforms. It is comparable to Wakanim as a regional anime aggregator/distributor, though it serves a different geographic footprint.

Others

• Viz Media: Viz Media is a leading anime and manga licensor/distributor in Western markets. It is comparable to Wakanim as an adjacent ecosystem participant that monetizes the same anime IP through home video, digital distribution, and merchandise rather than direct streaming subscriptions.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Wakanim
• Facebookfacebook.com/wakanim.tv
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wakanim

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wakanim