Insights
A 25,000-word editorial guide to how the $20-billion Japanese anime industry actually works — for foreign buyers, investors, licensors and brand teams. Ten articles, four themes, one map.
Inside the working day of a rank-and-file Japanese in-between animator — and the structural reasons wages stay low, talent is leaving, and the global anime boom faces a capacity wall.
Japan's manga market — print, digital, app — is now estimated over ¥6.9 trillion, larger than its anime business. For foreign publishers and investors, the entry point is the four Tokyo publishing houses.
How a single anime figure travels from a Tokyo production committee through Good Smile, Bandai Spirits and Premium Bandai to a foreign retail shelf — and why most foreign retailers misread the licensing stack.
Behind the neon, Akihabara is a working B2B node — Japan's most concentrated test market for anime IP. A foreign buyer's guide to a 1-km square of Tokyo.
Five platforms now dominate global anime streaming, but each holds different rights, libraries, and business models. A region-by-region map for media buyers and investors.
Most foreign companies bungle their first anime IP deal because Western licensing instincts produce wrong answers in Japan. A practitioner's step-by-step guide.
Overseas anime sales topped ¥1.7T and overtook domestic in 2023. What the AJA data, geography and licensing terms mean for foreign buyers.
Almost every Japanese anime is owned by a multi-company production committee — not the studio that drew it. A B2B guide for foreign buyers, distributors and investors on how the 製作委員会 system shapes rights, deals and timelines.
1.27 million ownerless companies are driving a record M&A wave — and the rarest opening yet for global buyers
Executive Summary The global matcha market, valued at USD 3.67 billion in 2025, is projected to reach USD 5.35 billion by 2031…
How a shrinking labor supply is turning Japan into the world's most aggressive automation market — and what that means for global businesses.
