GASP! Crunchyroll has raised their prices for all tiers by $2. Does this mean I’ll cancel my Ultimate Fan tier subscription that I’ve had for 13+ years? Absolutely not! And I don’t think you should cancel the service either (unless you just don’t use it). You get what you pay for and for Crunchyroll, that means over 50,000 episodes, 25,000 hours and 2,000 series and films, alongside music videos, concerts, games and more. Not to mention they also have Manga that you can read. Basically yes, there was an increase but that just means you’ll get even more out of it.
The increases break down to the Fan tier increasing from $7.99 to $9.99 per month, the Mega Fan tier increasing from $11.99 to $13.99 per month and the Ultimate Fan tier increasing from $15.99 to $17.99 per month. This pricing will go into effect for existing subscribers on the next billing date after March 4th.
What Does Crunchyroll Do With Your Subscription Money?
The short of it? They pay licensing fees to Japanese anime producers. This is VERY important because it’s one of the best ways to support what you love, anime. Estimates suggest that half of user fees go to content owners which is apportioned by viewership time. Just like anything else it’s split in such a way that metrics keep track of overall payments.
The remaining money covers operational costs including Amazon Web Services (AWS) for content delivery, staff pay, marketing and then profit for its parent company, Sony. If you think that its cheap to keep the platform running smoothly, your sorely mistaken.
Why I’m Willing to Pay More
Here’s why I’m willing to pay more. Basically I want MORE anime! I love going through all the releases by season and if I can get more of what I love I’m for it. Not only that but with most of the subscriber fees going straight to the source, that means the animation studios are doing well enough to keep making anime.
Not only do they pay the animation studios but a large part of the money goes to content acquisition. They need that money to secure rights for simulcasts (new episodes) and to expand their already massive library.
And with other places like Amazon Prime and Netflix as competition for these licenses it’s more important than ever for users to pay up.
Essentially, subscription fees help fund the legal, high-quality, and ad-free distribution of anime while contributing directly to the production of future series. And while you could pirate it, I would suggest you not do that if you want anime to continue to be made. When you steal from the animation studios it’s a disservice to what they’re doing.
