 | |
Type of site | Digitalmanga |
|---|---|
| Available in | English, Spanish, Thai, Indonesian, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, French, Vietnamese, German |
| Owner | Shueisha |
| Editor | Shuhei Hosono[1] |
| URL | mangaplus |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Optional |
| Launched | January 28, 2019 |
| Current status | Active |
Manga Plus (stylized asMANGA Plus by SHUEISHA) is an onlinemanga platform andsmartphone app owned byShueisha that was launched on January 28, 2019. It is available worldwide except in Japan, China, and South Korea which already have their own services, includingShōnen Jump+, the original Japanese service.Manga Plus publishes translated versions of new chapters from currently serialized manga inWeekly Shōnen Jump, a big portion of manga from theShōnen Jump+ app/website, and some manga fromJump Square,Weekly Young Jump,Tonari no Young Jump, andV Jump. Since the beginning of the app in 2019, all newShōnen Jump manga in the magazine are simultaneously released in English, while since January 2023 all of the newShōnen Jump+ manga are simultaneously released in English.
The first three chapters and the three most recent chapters of all titles on the platform are available for free, while all titles fromShōnen Jump+ have all of their chapters for free, except in the United States where some are also limited to first and last three chapters, due to the licensing of some manga.[2]
A Spanish version of the service launched in February 2019, and was followed by several other languages in the next five years.
A subscription service called "Manga Plus MAX" was added to the app in October 2023.
Weekly Shōnen Jump reached a peak weekly circulation of 6.53 million copies in the 1990s, but the decline of print media has since been reducing readership. In response, publisherShueisha turned towards digital distribution to attempt to reach out to a wider audience.[3]
Shuhei Hosono, the head editor forShōnen Jump+ andManga Plus, said that they were aware of the many manga readers overseas, and that they wanted to bring manga to more people around the world. They began talks about a possible global version ofShōnen Jump+ in 2017. Shueisha finally launchedManga Plus on January 28, 2019. The service was made available to every country except China, South Korea, and Japan, with the latter countries being excluded because they each already have their own separate services.[3] TheShōnen Jump+ editorial department manages overseas distribution throughManga Plus in-house. Yūta Momiyama, a Shueisha editor who manages theShōnen Jump+ andManga Plus online services, said this is with the intent of making the creation of hit manga on a global scale "a core part ofWeekly Shōnen Jump's editorial approach".[4]
UntilManga Plus, Shueisha's titles were distributed throughout the world via local publishers or distribution lines. The launch was the first time that Shueisha had expanded direct service globally.[3] 50 manga titles were available at launch.[4] A portion of the revenue earned from advertisements goes directly to the original manga authors.[4]
At launch, English was the only language available onManga Plus. The Spanish version launched on February 25, 2019, albeit with a different lineup of manga titles.[5] The Thai version launched in December 2019, only available in Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.[6] In February 2021, some titles became available in Indonesian.[7] The Brazilian Portuguese version of the site launched in April 2021, only available in Brazil and Portugal.[8] In August 2021,Manga Plus launched the Russian version as well as took away the region restrictions for all languages, making it possible to switch to other languages from the series page.[9] The French version followed its launch in September 2021.[10] In March 2024, some titles became available in German such asOne Piece andChainsaw Man.[11]
In October 2020,Manga Plus started its own officialDiscord server.[12]
In 2021, a redesigned web-app version ofManga Plus was announced to commemorate its second anniversary.[13]
At the end of June 2022, it was announced that starting in 2023, every new manga series launched onShōnen Jump+ would receive a simultaneous English release onManga Plus.[4]
In August 2022, Shueisha launchedManga Plus Creators, a website and app that publishes user-submitted manga from users inside and outside of Japan; theShōnen Jump+ editorial department is running the service along with localization company MediBang.[14]
In October 2023, a subscription service called "Manga Plus MAX" was added to the app. The service comes with two plans; The Standard Plan which consists of 80 currently serialized works totaling over 6000 chapters and costs $1.99 ($0.99 in Indonesia, India, the Philippines and other regions), and The Deluxe Plan which consists of over 190 titles, including completed series, totaling over 16,000 chapters and costs $4.99 ($3.99 in Indonesia, India, the Philippines and other regions).[15] Alongside the new subscription plan, the website and app had an overhaul on its user interface and an introduction of content ratings ranging from all ages, teen and teen plus to refer to the manga in the app.[16][17][18][19]
Since August 2024, all Shonen Jump+ One Shots are released simultaneously in English.[20]
Currently, in December 2023, the Manga Plus app has five sections:
Thank you for using MANGA Plus by SHUEISHA. We have renewed the MANGA Plus app and website. ＜Update Details＞ Introducing the new subscription service! We're excited to announce the launch of our subscription service, "MANGA Plus MAX", designed to provide you with access to a wider selection of titles! For more information ＜Other Updates＞ We have improved the app and website to make MANGA Plus by SHUEISHA more enjoyable for users. ・Title Information Page ・About Us ＜Changes to Re-edition Manga＞ Re-editions in English will be treated as "Completed Titles" and will now be accessible through the MANGA Plus MAX Deluxe Plan for unlimited reading! ＜Introduction of Content Ratings＞ Content ratings have been introduced to provide a clearer indication of the age group a particular title is intended for. Along with the website renewal, some changes have been made to the Terms of Use. Thank you for your continued support of MANGA Plus by SHUEISHA.