AMC’s HIDIVE Anime Streamer Adds Mainichi Broadcasting System Titles, Including ‘Most Heretical Last Boss Queen’
Anime content has become increasingly popular among streamers over the past several years. Data from Parrot Analytics in January 2022 found that global demand for anime content grew 118% over the past two years, making it one of the fastest-growing content genres by that metric during the pandemic.
So it should be no surprise that AMC Networks’ anime-focused streaming service HIDIVE is looking to significantly up its content library. AMC has announced a deal with Japan’s Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS) to grant the exclusive rights to broadcast a portion of MBS’s future schedule in all international markets outside of Asia. The output agreement includes MBS’s slate of titles based on various hugely popular manga and light novels. The series will be simultaneously broadcast on HIDIVE upon their release in Japan.
“This is a truly historic agreement for HIDIVE and is the culmination of our partnership with MBS,” Sentai Filmworks and HIDIVE president John Ledford said. “This output deal cements Sentai’s position as one of the world’s most established and leading suppliers of popular and high-quality anime content. But not only that, The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: from Villainess to Savior and the other series will significantly elevate HIDIVE’s reputation with fans as not only the new go-to anime streaming platform but also as the pipeline to some of Japan’s most highly anticipated titles.”
The new 12-episode series “The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: from Villainess to Savior” will be part of the programming line-up, along with the Winter 2023 simulcast of series “Endo and Kobayashi Live! The Latest on Tsundere Villainess Lieselotte,” which HIDIVE announced at Anime NYC last November. The remaining titles will be announced in the weeks and months to come.
In January 2022, AMC Networks made the announcement that it had purchased Sentai Filmworks and its HIDIVE platform. Crunchyroll, HIDIVE’s primary rival in the anime streaming space, charges $4.99 per month or $47.99 per year. HIDIVE has to have more than 500 titles available and is accessible through a paid subscription, Prime Video Channels, and the The Roku Channel.
“MBS has been continuously producing and broadcasting animated TV series for over half a century,” MBS director Shinji Nakano said. “In recent years, anime has become a solid representative of Japanese culture and has gained fans all over the world. We are pleased to partner with Sentai Filmworks, HIDIVE, and AMC Networks, a group that plays a huge part in this effort to further expand anime culture. We are accelerating our commitment to bringing anime to people around the world, without ever stopping our journey.”
Last year, Netflix reported that in 2021, more than 50% of the streaming giant's subscribers had watched an anime title. With more and more companies investing in anime, it would not be surprising for those numbers to increase across the media landscape.
HIDIVE
HIDIVE is an independent video streaming service for anime fans. The catalog contains 500+ niche content ranging from movies, OVAs, simulcasts, dubs, exclusives, live-action titles subbed shows, and simulcast versions broadcasted directly from Japan. There are tons of anime titles such as ‘Haikyu,’ ‘Kaiji,’ ‘Made in Abyss,’ and ‘The Promised Neverland.’