Animax Broadcast Japan Inc. (Japanese:アニマックス,Hepburn:Animakkusu), stylized asANIMAX inall caps, is a Japaneseanimationsatellite television network, dedicated to broadcastinganime programming. Launched on July 1, 1998, Animax is the first 24-hour network in the world dedicated to anime.^[2][3]

Animax

Logo used since 2006
Country	Japan
Broadcast area	Nationwide
Headquarters	Toranomon,Minato, Tokyo,Japan[1]
Programming
Language(s)	Japanese
Picture format	1080i (HDTV)
Ownership
Owner	AK Entertainment (Nojima)
Key people	Ryoji Nojima, CEO Masao Takiyama, President[1]
History
Founded	July 1, 1998; 26 years ago (1998-07-01)
Links
Website	www.animax.co.jp

Animax is part of AK Entertainment, owned by Nojima, and is headquartered in New Pier Takeshiba North Tower^[4] inMinato, Tokyo,Japan. The channel was originally co-founded bySony Pictures Entertainment Japan, with its shareholders including studiosSunrise,^[1][5]Toei Animation,^[6][7]TMS Entertainment, and production companyNihon Ad Systems.^[8][2]

Animax previously operated separate TV channels for Asia (four separate feeds for South East Asia, thePhilippines,Hong Kong andTaiwan), South Asia andSouth Korea; in addition to either owning, or licensing its brand to, several television networks, programming blocks, andVOD platforms around the world. As of 2020, most of these services have either been sold off to third-parties or closed altogether.

Established on May 20, 1998, bySony,Animax Broadcast Japan Inc. (株式会社アニマックスブロードキャスト・ジャパン(Hiragana),Kabushiki-gaisha Animakkusu Burōdokyasuto Japan) launched in Japan on July 1, the same year, across theSKY PerfecTV! satellite television platform.^[1] Headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, and presided byMasao Takiyama, Animax's shareholders and founders includedSony Pictures Entertainment Japan,Sunrise,^[1][5]Toei Animation,^[6][7]Kyokuichi (later known as TMS Entertainment), and NAS.^[8][2] Its founders also include noted anime producer and production designerYoshirō Kataoka.^[1] The network began broadcasting inhigh definition from October 2009.^{[citation needed]}

Animax also exhibits affiliations with anime pioneerOsamu Tezuka's Tezuka Productions company,Pierrot,Nippon Animation, and numerous others.^[8] Other noted Japanese celebrities and personalities to have appeared on Animax with their own programs include actressNatsuki Katō, among numerous others.^{[citation needed]} The network's narrators are the voice actorsYukari Tamura andKōsuke Okano; and from October 2007,Sayuri Yahagi.^{[citation needed]}

Beyond the channel, Animax has hosted and organized several anime-based competitions across Japan, such as theAnimax Taishō scriptwriting competition^[9] and theAnimax Anison Grand Prix; ananime songmusic competition judged by a panel of notedanime figures

Several other Animax-branded events and concerts across Japan have included the annualAnimax Summer Fest (アニマックスサマーフェス,Animakkusu Samāfesu), a live concert during which renowned Japanese bands, artists andvoice actors perform, and is often held atZepp Tokyo.^[10] They've also held another annualAnime song concert event calledAnimax Musix.^[11][12]

Animax previously operated amobile television service, which was announced in February 2007, and launched through the mobile phone company MOBAHO! from April 2007.^[13]

On December 18, 2023, Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan announced that will sell their stakes in both Animax and sister channelKids Station to electronic store chainNojima. The deal was finalized on April 1, 2024.^[14][15]

Sony would first establish a new company called "AK Media", which would take over all shares in Animax and Kids Station from their previous owners. Nojima's AK Entertainment subsidiary^[a] would then acquire AK Media from Sony.^[16] It's been speculated that Animax was sold in-order for Sony to focus on its US-based, global, anime entertainment andstreaming companies –Funimation (which was acquired in 2017) andCrunchyroll (which was acquired in 2021) – which have since been merged intoCrunchyroll LLC and operate as ajoint venture withSony Music Entertainment Japan'sAniplex.^[16]

In May 2024, AK Media would be absorbed into AK Entertainment.^[17]

Animax's programming is dedicated toanime, and it has been acknowledged as the largest 24-hour anime-only network in the world.^[3] The channel's programming has ranged from television series, to films andoriginal video animations. It has also aired imported foreigncartoons that have been dubbed into Japanese.^[1] Its viewer reach has been quoted as spanning over 89 million homes. across 62 countries and 17 languages.^[18][19]

The channel has co-produced and exclusively premiered several original anime series, includingGhost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex^[20] andMarvel Anime.^[21]Other Animax originals includeUltra Maniac,Astro Boy,Hungry Heart: Wild Striker, andAishiteruze Baby'.

Asian versions of Animax, featuring its programming within separate networks and feeds in their respective regions and languages, were rolled out beginning in 2004. The first one was launched inTaiwan and thePhilippines on January 1, 2004, and inHong Kong on January 12, 2004. A week later, Animax launched inSoutheast Asia on January 19, 2004, featuring its programming within feeds inEnglish audio, as well asJapanese audio, with English subtitling, and other languages in the region, becoming the company's first English-language network.^[22]

On July 5, 2004,Animax India was launched acrossIndia and neighboring countries featuring its programming in English.^[23]

On April 29, 2006, Animax started its operations in South Korea, broadcasting separately from Seoul.^[24]

Animax Asia aired their first eversimulcast,Tears to Tiara, on the same time as the Japanese broadcast. They would also premiereFullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood series, within the same week as Japan.^[25]

In January 2020, Sony sold the South Korean and Southeast Asian Animax channels to formerSony Pictures Television executives Andy Kaplan and George Chien, who have since formed KC Global Media.^[26]

Animax ceased transmissions inLaos, 16 March 2021.^{[citation needed]} One year later, Astro shut the channel down on 1 January 2022 inMalaysia.^{[citation needed]}

Animax was launched inLatin America on July 31, 2005, replacingLocomotion after Sony's purchase fromHearst Corporation andCorus Entertainment, in January 2005.^[27]

Animax Latin America would rebrand in August 2007, coinciding with the premiere of a new adult-oriented programming block namedLollipop.^[28] Likewise, on March 18, 2008, it was announced that the mobile service Animax Mobile, available on Japan and Australia, was to be launched as well in Mexico and eventually in other Latin American countries.^[29]

Animax Latin America would eventually incorporate live-action programming and was later relaunched asSony Spin on May 1, 2011, with anime programming retained until March 2012. Sony Spin would be discontinued on July 1, 2014, and replaced with a local version ofLifetime.^[30]

Animax has sponsored several anime-based events acrossNorth America, including hosting an anime festival, in association with other anime distributive enterprises such asBandai Entertainment andViz Media, across Sony'sSan Francisco-based entertainment shopping complexMetreon in October 2001, during which it aired numerous of its anime titles across the centre, including specialGundam,The Making of Metropolis, andLove Hina screenings.^[31]

The noted international business newspaperFinancial Times, reported, in September 2004, of Sony planning and being "keen" to launch Animax across the United States and North America, after Sony had signed an agreement with the largestcable company in the United States,Comcast, with whom it had co-partnered in a US$4.8 billion acquisition of legendaryHollywood studioMGM, to bring at least three of Sony's television networks across the region.^[32][33]

On June 13, 2007, Sony Pictures Television International officially announced that Animax would be launching its mobile television service, Animax Mobile, inCanada from July 2007, onBell Digital's mobile phone service.^[34] This was Animax Mobile's third major expansion, after initially launching the mobile television service in Japan from April 2007 andAustralia from June 12, 2007.^[35]

On January 17, 2012, the streaming serviceCrackle, added Animax to their lineup^[36] for the North America region, marking the network's first launch in the United States. Its programming has included for the first time several of Animax's English language dubs, including that of shows that had yet been adapted into English and had only aired inSoutheast Asia andSouth Asia prior, such asNodame Cantabile,Yōkai Ningen Bem and several others. By the end of March 2013, the Animax branding was dropped.^{[citation needed]}

In April 2007, Animax launched across several countries inEurope, includingHungary,Romania, theCzech Republic,Slovakia, with Sony announcing plans to launch in theUnited Kingdom,Germany,Italy,Spain,Portugal,France,Poland (put on hiatus) and other major countries in the continent, with discussions at an advanced stage.^[37][38] The launch marked Animax's first major expansion into Europe.^[37][38] The network then soon launched inGermany in May 2007,Spain andPortugal in 2008.^[39]

In October 2007, further details emerged on Animax's launch details in the United Kingdom, with Sony Pictures Television International senior-vice president of international networks Ross Hair being quoted by Brand Republic'sMedia Week as stating that Sony was preparing to launch Animax in the United Kingdom initially as avideo on demand service alongside other Sony television networks, with Sony also looking at launching Animax across the freedigital television serviceFreeview subject to new frequencies and slot being available.^[40]

As of April 2011, one of Sony's 3 channels that they were planning to launch in the UK since 2007,Sony Entertainment Television, is now available there onSky following Sony's acquisition of channel slots 157 and 190, which were previously owned byFilm 24 andOpen Access 3, respectively, not only making it now possible that Sony can launch Animax in the UK but also markingSony Pictures Television's entry into both theBritish andIrish markets. On October 15, 2013, Sony Pictures Television announced it will launch a UK version of Animax as a SVOD service. SPT also announced a multi-year volume deal with Viz Media to secure exclusive content for the service.^[41]

The SVOD service launched online on October 24, 2013, with three simulcast series and over twenty archive series^[42] including many titles which originally debuted on Kaze's Anime On Demand service. Some content has also appeared onSony Movie Channel's Late Night Anime block,^[43] with the channel's website referencing Animax. Starting from March 2014, the Late Night Anime block has since been rebranded to Animax. An app forPlayStation 4 was released in October 2014.^[44]

On March 5, 2015,Scuzz launchedAnimax Movie Nights, a weekly block that aired anime movies on Thursday nights for the next month.^[45]

On October 15, 2018, the service closed down, with subscribers being directed toFunimation's streaming service.^[46]

In September 2006,Sony Pictures Television International bought A+ (Anime+) television channel and rebranded it as Animax in July 2007 The channel aired from 8 pm to 2 am on same frequency asMinimax and broadcast anime in Japanese with Romanian subtitles and also with Romanian dubbing inRomania, with Hungarian dubbing inHungary and with Czech dubbing for the most of them in theCzech Republic andSlovakia.^[37][38] Among the most popular series were:Naruto,Bleach,Fullmetal Alchemist,InuYasha,Death Note,D.Gray-man,Blood+,Kaleido Star,Hell Girl,Kilari,Dragon Ball GT,Kirarin Revolution,Love Com,Vampire Knight,MegaMan NT Warrior,Trigun,Slayers,Yu-Gi-Oh!,Digimon,Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo,Nana,Kiddy Grade.

On June 1, 2009, the channel changed its focus, targeting a more broad young adult audience and adding more American television series. At the same time, it dropped support of its forums on its website and, in September 2013, closed them entirely. On June 9, 2009,RCS & RDS (Digi), the largest Romanian cable operator dropped the channel due to high costs of broadcasting.

On March 31, 2014, the channel was closed down and replaced byC8.

Meanwhile, in Romania, Sony's AXN Spin was launched on 1 March 2013 onRomtelecom's digital lineup, a few months after both Minimax and Animax were dropped from that platform. Until 2015, AXN Spin broadcastNaruto,Dragon Ball GT,Dragon Ball Z Kai,Kinniku Banzuke,Kirarin Revolution andHello Kitty.

Animax began as a programming block inSpain andPortugal in the channelAXN. Shows broadcast on the block includeInuYasha,Outlaw Star,Trigun,Orphen,Excel Saga andSamurai Champloo. Later shows includeCorrector Yui,The Law of Ueki,Detective Conan,Lupin III andKochikame. These shows were shown in Portugal and Spain from October 2007 until September 2008, airing weekends from 13:00 to 16:00.^[47][48]

The full channel was subsequently launched on April 12, 2008, on theMovistar TV andDigital+ platforms in Spain andMeo and Clix in Portugal.^[39] Among the series broadcast across Animax's networks in Spain and Portugal wereNana,Black Lagoon,Love Hina,Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle,Chobits,Devil May Cry. As of 2011, the Portuguese feed was removed due to low ratings and was replaced byAXN Black, an offshoot of AXN.^[49] In 2013, the Spanish feed rebranded and eliminated all of its western programming in favor for anime, although the programming consisted on continuous reruns of four anime, later reduced to two. On December 31, 2013, the Spanish feed was also removed due to its low ratings.

Animax in Italy began as a nighttime 1-hour programming block on sister channelAXN Italy on January 12, 2008, indicating that it will eventually launch as a 24/7 channel. The programs that aired on the block werePlanetes,The Vision of Escaflowne,.hack//SIGN, andNoein.^[50] The block hasn't aired since 2009, likely to avoid competition withMTV, who also aired anime and was more widely available.^[51]

On May 14, 2007, Sony announced Animax would be launching inGermany from early June 2007, becoming the country's first ever television network solely dedicated to anime programming.^[52][53][54] Animax launched in the country from June 5, 2007, on Unity Media's digital subscription television service in the regions ofNorth Rhine-Westphalia,Hesse and other regions.^[52][54][55] Among the first anime series premiering on Animax Germany were.hack//Sign,Dragon Ball,Earth Girl Arjuna,Eureka Seven,Gundam SEED,Oh My Goddess!,One Piece,Record of Lodoss War,School Rumble,The Candidate for Goddess,X and numerous others.^[55][56] The channel later launched into Austria and Switzerland.

Animax closed on July 7, 2016, but would continue as a VOD service in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, before it was replaced byCrunchyroll on September 30, 2022.

There were plans to launch the Polish version of the channel on January 1st 2008 but they never materialised, most likely due to financial issues.^[57]

Animax launched as a two-hour programming block on theSci Fi Channel Australia (which was co-owned by Animax's parentSony Pictures Entertainment) from November 5, 2008, playing on Wednesday nights and Saturday mornings.^[58] It launched with the seriesGhost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex,Cowboy Bebop,Black Lagoon andBlood+.^[58][59]

This was Animax's latest English-language venture, following their networks in Southeast Asia, South Asia and South Africa. As of 2010, the block no longer airs.^{[citation needed]}

Animax programming has also been available since June 12, 2007, through its mobile television service, Animax Mobile, available on3 mobile's 3G network.^[35][60] Its initial programming on launch consisted of four full-length anime series,Blood+,R.O.D the TV,Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo andLast Exile.^[34][35] As of 2016 Animax Mobile has been discontinued.^{[citation needed]}

In August 2007, it was announced that Animax would be launching across several countries inAfrica, includingSouth Africa,Namibia,Zimbabwe,Botswana,Zambia,Mozambique andLesotho, on theDStv satellite service and inNigeria on HiTV, from March 19, 2009.^[61][19]

On 31 October 2010, Animax was removed from DSTV, due to a lack of viewers. The channel had engaged inchannel drift with the introduction of reality shows to its line-up.^{[citation needed]} It would be replaced by in February 2011 withSony MAX.^[62]

Animax broadcast onDStv from November 3, 2007, until October 31, 2010.

It featured English language programming.^[63] It had been lauded by publications such asThe Times for having singularly spread awareness about anime than any other platform,^[64] and celebrated its first year of broadcasts in South Africa in November 2008.^[64] Sony Pictures Television International manager Philipp Schmidt was quoted byThe Times as saying that Animax's primary goal was to "establish itself as the destination for anime programming" in South Africa, and also that the feedback that it has received has shown it has been making an impact in the country.^[64]

Animax South Africa premiered programs such asNeon Genesis Evangelion,Tenjo Tenge,Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex,Record of Lodoss War,.hack//SIGN,Negima! Magister Negi Magi,Mobile Suit Gundam SEED,Eureka Seven,Angelic Layer,SoltyRei,Black Cat,Hinotori,Final Fantasy: Unlimited,Chrono Crusade,Last Exile,Samurai 7,Burst Angel,Black Jack,Black Lagoon,Hellsing,Wolf's Rain,Basilisk,Gantz,Paranoia Agent,Witchblade,Elfen Lied, andLe Chevalier D'Eon.^[65]

Apart from operating its programming as a television network, Animax begun launching its programming acrossmobile television, first beginning in their original home in Japan and subsequently overseas. In February 2007, Animax announced that it would be launching a mobile television service in Japan on the mobile phone companyMOBAHO! from April 2007, having its programming being viewable by the company's mobile phone subscribers.^[13] Subsequently, in June 2007, it launched inAustralia^[60] andCanada, its firstEnglish language mobile networks,^[34] inLatin America on March 18, 2008,^[29] andSoutheast Asia on November and December 2008, their third mobile English language network, launching inMalaysia andSingapore through mobile service providersAstro,Maxis andStarHub respectively.^[66][67][68]

As of 2016 the Animax Mobile service is discontinued worldwide.^{[citation needed]}

Animax-branded streaming channels are available in Hong Kong, Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia, Selected Countries also available On Demand Across Southeast Asia (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines) and Germany (Deutschland, Switzerland and Austria).^{[citation needed]}

Sony Pictures Television International signed a deal with developer Arkadium on January 7, 2009, to provide game arenas for Sony Pictures Television International websites, including Animax, with more than forty games licensed.^[69][70]

• Animax Taishō
• List of programs broadcast by Animax

Official sites