Anime Industry Report 2017

Summary 
Authors 
Anime Industry Researcher
Hiromichi Masuda
Auditor, Video Market Corporation
Tadashi Sudo Journalist
President, Character Databank, Ltd.
Kazuo Rikukawa
Director/Secretary-General, Character Brand Licensing Association
President, Senior Director, Dentsu Consulting Inc.
Yuji Mori
Specially Appointed Professor, Graduate School of Asia University
Department Director, Content Strategic Planning Office Content Division,
Naofumi Ito
ASATSU-DK INC.
Ph.D. Student, Graduate School of Media Design, Keio University
Yasuo Kameyama
senior director of C i P committee

Editor 
Hiromichi Masuda Anime Industry Researcher
(editor in chief) Auditor, Video Market Corporation
Masahiro Hasegawa Producer, HUMANMEDIA Inc.

Cooperation in Material Research 
Mitsuru Soda JuGeMu Co., Ltd.

Cooperation in Editing 
Part-time Lecturer , Japan Electronics College
Hiroko Uehara
Part-time Lecturer , Shobi University Graduate School
Megumi Onouchi President, HUMANMEDIA Inc.

January, 2018
The Association of Japanese Animations
 Trends in Japanese Animation Market (2016 version)
The upper part shows Japanese animation market trends in a broad sense (i.e. market size based on estimated revenues in animation and animation‐related product markets). The lower part shows Japanese animation market trends in a more limited sense (i.e.
 

market size based on the estimated revenues of all domestic commercial animation studios). It’s obvious that the animation market in a broad sense is overwhelmingly larger than in a limited sense. This is because the animation‐related businesses including
character merchandising have significant leverage effects.

Japanese animation market trends in a broad sense (i.e. market size based on estimated revenues in animation and animation‐related markets)〈2002 – 2016〉 
■ ① ＴＶ ■ ② Movie ■ ③ Video ■ ④ Internet Distribution ■ ⑤ Merchandising ■ ⑥ Music ■ ⑦ Overseas ■ ⑧ The Pachinko and the like ■ ⑨ Live Entertainment
2,001billion Definition of each item(end‐user basis)
2,000billion yen 61.5 1) TV: domestic TV animation revenues 
1,821billion 2) Movie: domestic theatrical animation box office revenues  
3) Video: domestic videogram animation revenues (DVD, etc. 
1,800billion yen 47.5 281.8
media) 
1,630billion 4) Internet Distribution: domestic online animation revenues  
31.1 294.1
1,600billion yen 5) Merchandising: domestic animation‐related merchandise 
1,471billion revenues

1,350billion 1,380billion 24.5 298.1 6) Music: domestic animation‐related music revenues 

1,400billion yen 1,303billion 1,314billion 1,313billion 1,330billion 1,333billion 7) Overseas: overseas Japanese animation revenues (movie, 
1,221billion 152.8 1,254billion 242.7 TV, videogram, MD, etc.) 
122.6 767.6 8) Pachinko and Pachinko‐slot machine: estimated shipment 
202.6 227.2
1,200billion yen 1,095billion 1,119billion 166.5 583.3 value of animation character‐themed Pachinko and Pachinko‐
326.5
520.4 439.0 slot machine machines.
521.5 286.7 282.3
413.7 9) Live Entertainment: animation‐related live‐performance, 
1,000billion yen 482.7 266.9 240.8
254.4 23.7 event, exhibition, and cafe revenues (Note 4) 
372.5 421.2 29.7 24.6
26.3 25.8 28.5
24.5 23.0
800billion yen 26.1 27.0 30.7 Note 1: Domestic TV animation revenues were calculated based 
12.0 on the following formula: (the sum of commercial TV broadcast 
13.8 23.5
9.1 stations’ revenues and NHK’s broadcast revenues) x (the ratio of 
655.2 animation program to overall program broadcast minutes) + 
600billion yen 598.5 579.4 562.7
530.5 597.4 627.4 594.3 573.2 (revenue of animation channels) 
504.9 536.4 559.7
435.0 433.7 461.7 Note 2: Pachinko and Pachinko‐slot machine with animation 
character values were estimated based on their percentage of 
400billion yen total Pachinko and Pachinko‐slot machine shipments.  
34.0
Note 3: The survey for Pachinko and Pachinko‐slot machine 
0.2 1.0 1.8 4.1 8.4 27.2 40.8 43.7 47.8
9.8 10.2 12.3 14.9 16.0 started from 2008. 
200billion yen 129.4 117.6 103.1 138.8 135.8 127.8 111.3 105.2 108.5 106.7 105.9 115.3 102.1 92.8 78.8
Note 4: The survey for Live Entertainment started from 2013. 
19.8 19.6 38.0 40.9 47.0 41.7 46.9 66.3
17.8 28.4 21.2 33.8 29.9 33.8 28.5 The amount is the sum of the revenues of the following: anime 
124.1 116.5 110.0 104.1 100.3 92.4 94.6 95.5 89.5 90.0 95.1 102.0 110.7 107.2 105.9 song/voice actor appearances, events, 2.5D musicals, museums, 
billion
0 yen exhibitions, cafés. 
Note 5: The revenues for Merchandising from 2007 to 2013 were 
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 recalculated in 2014. 

Based on questionnaires conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations and other publicly available statistics 

Trends in Japanese animation market in a limited sense (i.e. market size based on the estimated revenues of all domestic commercial animation studios〈2002 – 2016〉) 
■① ＴＶ ■ ② Movie ■ ③ Video ■ ④ Internet Distribution ■ ⑤ Merchandising ■ ⑥ Music ■ ⑦ Overseas ■ ⑧ The Pachinko and the like ■ ⑨ Live Entertainment ■ ⑩ Others Definition of each item 
230billion (animation studio basis) 
223billion
208billion 212billion 18.4 1) TV: revenue from TV animation production and 
201billion 3.1 broadcasting right fees 
17.3
200billion yen 54.7 include pachinko and the like187billion 185billion 186billion 11.1
13.3 2) Movie: revenue from production and profit distribution of 
include pachinko and the like
181billion 2.6
theatrical animations
53.6 0 9.1 10.8 3) Video: revenue from production and profit distribution of 
31.2 13.9
include pachinko and the like 26.0 12.4 164billion 1.2 1.6 45.9 animation videograms
0 0 0 3.1 11.6 14.2
7.5
include pachinko and the like
149billion 153billion 5.0 4) Internet Distribution: revenue from the Internet 
146billion 10.9 16.9 34.9
150billion yen 137billion 141billion 31.3
26.8
24.8
7.2 8.5 19.5 3.6
distribution and profit distribution related to animation 
14.4 3.1 content
29.0 35.4 3.3 11.7 2.5 9.7 3.0
11.3 2.1 3.3 5) Merchandising: revenue from character licensing, 
0 8.3 0 3.1 4.5 17.2 2.9 26.5 30.4
include pachinko and the like include pachinko and the like 4.1 16.0 26.6 advertisement, promotion, events etc. related to animation 
2.1 36.3 15.3 3.4 25.8
22.4 25.3 34.5 30.7 3.1 26.7 content
4.0 8.5 12.0
2.4 29.2 26.0 24.4 10.2 11.0 6) Music: revenue from music related to animation content
100billion yen 1.6 1.0 37.3 2.6 6.8 15.5
2.5 27.4 7) Overseas: revenue from overseas markets including license 
21.6 0.5 12.5
25.4 21.8 3.7 4.0 15.3 16.1 14.5 fees related to animation content
0.1 30.1 3.1
0.3 34.9 16.4 16.2 24.8 25.2
27.7 22.6
8) Pachinko and the like: revenue from animation production 
22.8 17.9 20.7 23.1
and profit distribution for Pachinko and Pachinko‐slot 
35.8 33.5 31.0 15.3
16.9 18.0 25.2 machines 
18.4 18.6
50billion yen 9) Others: revenue from services/businesses other than above
8.8 6.8
61.6 67.4 61.7 60.5 65.7
58.4 56
56.0
45.9 47.8 50
50.0 45.9 43.2 47.2 Note 6: The survey for Pachinko and Pachinko-slot
37.2 36.4
machine started from 2008. Figures for this industry were
billion
0 yen included in Others until 2007.

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Based on questionnaires conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations and statistics released to public.
 The market expanded continuously, recording the highest sales for 4 
consecutive years while the size crossed the 2 trillion yen mark driven 
by overseas sales.   
The Japanese animation market, which hit bottom in 2009 and picked up in 2010, recorded growth for 7 consecutive years and reported its highest sales for the fourth consecutive year. The market size finally exceeded 2 trillion yen, which was
110% on a year‐by‐year basis. Videogram sales shrunk considerably (84.9%), and TV (98.8%), Merchandising (97.1%), and Pachinko (95.8%) also decreased. Meanwhile, Movie (141.4%), Music (110.5%), Internet Distribution (109.4%), Live
Entertainment (129.5%) and Overseas (131.6%) expanded. Movie enjoyed strong sales thanks to the blockbuster hit movie “Your Name.” Among those, Overseas, which recorded the largest sales, especially stood out.

Expanding the Japanese Animation Market and Overseas Sales  Topics in the Japanese Animation Industry From 2016 to 2017 
Recently, the Japanese animation industry has been covered a lot in the mass media, including 〈The 4th Anime Boom Without any Felt Benefits〉 
newspapers and TV, and the data in this report is frequently cited in the coverage. That helps build As also mentioned in the last report, the animation industry entered the 4th anime boom in terms of
people’s awareness of the industry in some way. In 2016, the industry, which recorded positive growth sales. The situation, however, was not quite so simple. As shown in Fig.1, the sales amount hit bottom in
for four consecutive years, crossed the 2 trillion yen mark when they recorded sales of 2 trillion 900 2009, picked up in 2010, and has accelerated since 2013. Focusing on the domestic sales trend for the
million yen (109.9% on a year‐by‐year basis). past 4 years, the annual sales remained mostly level, increasing by 3.8% from 2013 (¥1.19 trillion in
Looking at each genre, 5 genres (Movie, Internet Distribution, Music, Overseas and Live Entertainment) 2013, ¥1.30 trillion in 2014, ¥1.24 trillion in 2015 and ¥1.23 trillion in 2016). Meanwhile, the overseas
increased while 4 genres (TV, Videogram, Merchandising and Pachinko) decreased. The number of sales trend showed a dramatic increase, increasing by 171.9% from 2013 (¥282.3 billion in 2013,
increased genres and that of decreased genres are almost the same. The main factors of the growth were ¥326.5 billion in 2014, ¥582.3 billion in 2015 and ¥767.6 billion in 2016). Actually, the growth of the
Movie, which recorded the highest box office in the animation genre (¥66.3 billion, 141.4% yr/yr), industry was attributed to the overseas market. This was also the reason the industry felt little benefit
Internet Distribution, which records the highest sales every year (¥47.8 billion, 109.4% yr/yr), and though the growth reached the level of the 4th animation boom. The stagnation of the domestic market
Overseas, which recorded a significant increase (¥767.6 billion, 131.6% yr/yr). Overseas, which took the was due to unsuccessful transition of distribution channels; the switch from existing channels shrinking
No.1 place in the previous year, further expanded, leaving Merchandising, the 2nd by a narrow margin in (TV, Videogram, Pachinko, and Merchandising) to new channels growing (Movie*, Internet Distribution,
the previous year, far behind. It could be said that the overseas sales supported the overall growth of the and Live Entertainment) did not go well. The growth of those new channels was not enough to make up
industry. for the decline of the existing channels. (*Movie, the oldest channel, has grown recently thanks to new
business models brought by theatrical digitalization.)
[Figure 1] Revenues of Japanese Animation Industry 
2000.9 〈Video Distribution and Chinese Business〉 
2000
The most active movements in the animation business in 2016 would be video distribution and Chinese
1900 1820.7
power.
1800
In terms of video distribution, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, the two U.S. platforms proactive toward
1700 1629.9
Japanese animations, stood out. Netflix especially attracted attention by announcing its investment in a
1600
1470.9 dozen animation works, including works based on famous Japanese manga, such as “DEVILMAN
1500
1349.9 1379.8 crybaby”, “Baki”, and “Saint Seiya” at Netflix Anime Slate 2017. Netflix positively collaborated with major
1400 1303.2 1313.9 1313.1 1329.5 1333.3
1300 1254.2 Japanese animation studios such as Toei Animation and Toms Entertainment for those works.
1220.8
1200 Meanwhile, Hulu, a domestic video distribution platform, was involved in the production of animation
1094.8 1118.7
1100 works such as “Soutaisekai”, “Enshen to Maho no Tablet”, and “Pig ‐ Okanoue no Dam Keeper” (Pig was
1000 mainly intended for international distribution). Furthermore, Hulu attracted attention by distributing
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Infini‐T Force via the Internet ahead of TV broadcasting by taking advantage of its position as an affiliate
of a major TV station.
Based on the survey conducted by The Association of Japanese Animations 
Abema TV, a platform co‐capitalized by Cyber Agent and TV Asahi, also drew attention with its free
video‐streaming business model. The platform, sensational not only within the animation industry but
also among all Japanese Internet distribution services, increased subscribers by gaining popularity with 〈What Production Minutes Indicated: The Main Audience was Adults. Short Animations
its unique programs such as “Kameda Koki ni Kattara 1000 Man!” Even so, the most popular programs Emerged〉
among them were animations. The platform made efforts to gain popularity by distributing some The share of late‐night animations took over that of day‐time animations in 2015, and the difference
animation programs ahead of their TV broadcast; however, there is no doubt its strongest appeal was increased in 2016 (Fig. 3). This, as mentioned in the previous report, too, was quite unique in Japan, and
the free distribution service. It is worth keeping an eye on whether or not Abema TV becomes a threat to was not seen in any other countries where animations aimed at children dominated (or where no
existing pay distribution services in Japan. animations other than animations for children existed). In 2018, the first OTAKU generation (such as Mr.
Another topic in 2017 was Chinese power. It was just three to four years ago when China began a Toshio Okada) will reach the age of 60, which means a wide range of generations, from babies less than
shopping spree for Japanese animations for Chinese major platforms. In 2016, some Chinese companies one year old to adults aged 60, watch animations in Japan. In other words, Japan, the leading country in
started investing in Japanese animation production committees; furthermore, they began outsourcing animation, enjoys a monopoly over the adult animation market which can develop much further.
animation production for their own IP projects to Japanese studios. Since 2015, the Chinese government Another feature was the rise of short animations. The number of short animation works increased from
has lifted a ban on Japanese theatrical animations, which also had economic spillover effects, boosting 275 to 356 in the last four years while the production minutes remained almost the same (110,000
overseas sales of Japanese animation. min‐plus. per year in the last 4 years). This was because the number of short animation works within 10
The Chinese market, however, has a great risk of fluctuation since politics always prevail in China. As can min. increased. The phenomenon, generated thanks to the speeding up of daily life rhythms and the
be seen from the past cases, such as the broadcasting ban on foreign animations in 2006 and sanctions growth of individual digital creators, is expected to continue along with the effect of Internet media,
against South Korea after the deployment of THAAD, there is a risk of a sudden shrinking of the market which requires no fixed timeframes.
due to the political climate. Actually, some are holding off buying Japanese animations in response to a
notice requesting to give priority to Chinese IP. We should keep in mind that there is a possibility that [Figure 3] Production Minutes of TV animation (daytime/late night)(unit: min.) 

the market may return to the size it was before the time of the shopping spree if a full‐fledged ban is 80,000

applied to Internet distribution as has been done to TV broadcasting. 70,000

60,000
<Change in Theatrical Animation Trends> 
50,000
The year 2016 will be remembered as the year movies changed. Thanks to the success of “Shin Godzilla”,
40,000
“Your Name.”, and “In This Corner of the World” (release date order), manga, anime and special effects,
the genres which used to be categorized as “subculture,”emerged prominently. They were no longer 30,000

“sub”. As seen in Fig. 2, it is obvious that theatrical animations have increased their presence since the 20,000

2000s; however, the phenomenon was more prominent in 2016. (The year 2001 stood out due to the 10,000
release of “Spirited Away”.) Theatrical animations and special effects movies, which were sometimes
0
considered less important, came to be acclaimed. Actually, those three works received 91% of the major 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Daytime 66,840 68,625 76,234 75,426 67,752 65,995 77,326 70,222 62,724 58,342 55,782 53,338 62,282 61,694 62,094 54,733 50,775
domestic film awards: the Japan Academy Awards, Kinema Junpo Best 10, Blue Ribbon Awards* and
Late night 8,120 16,814 16,490 23,261 38,583 43,464 59,081 54,426 47,323 49,577 34,663 41,761 42,788 50,476 57,868 60,800 65,030
Mainichi Film Awards for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay* (*no Best Screenplay for Blue
Based on the survey conducted by The Association of Japanese Animations 
Ribbon Awards). The works also occupied 80% of the awards for staff. It iss indeed a notable feat. Note1:Broadcast of MX TV and BS 11 etc. after 21:00 was incorporated into the late‐night anime. 
Animation and special effects, which used to be considered “subculture,” became recognized as
mainstream in film culture in 2016. 〈Driving Force of Anime Business Growth〉
Application games developed mainly for smart phones have a great potential to make the animation
[Figure 2] Share of Anime Box Office in Overall Japanese Film Box Office  industry market leap further. “Fate/stay night”, the great hit game/animation series, was developed
70.0% 63.0% mainly in the Japanese and Chinese markets while “Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle”, also a huge hit, was
60.0% localized for the Chinese market. The genre of those application games has not been recognized as one
43.7% 44.3%
50.0% 40.8% 42.0% independent window as of yet, but it has great potential as a driver of animation business growth like
37.6% 36.0%
40.0% 27.7%
29.0% 27.9% 29.0%
32.2% Pachinko (newly established as an independent window in 2008). Although some have concerns about
26.2% 24.1% 26.0%
30.0% 35.1% the “chicken or the egg” relationship between anime and those application games, they may need to see
29.1%
20.0% them as one unified IP or content. In any case, it’s certain that application games have become more and
10.0% more important for the animation industry.
0.0%
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Based on the survey conducted by The Association of Japanese Animations 
 Trends in Japanese Animation Market (2017 version)  

Structural Transition Along with the 4th Anime Boom 
Production minutes of TV animation (2000-2016) Box office revenue of theatrical animations (2000-2016) Number of theatrical animation works and their production minutes
■Production minutes of TV animation ■Box office revenue
*All theatrical animations released not only via ordinary distribution routes but also independently are included.*All
(2000-2016)
*Production minutes of TV animation in 2011 increased as the result of recalculation.*Production minutes of TV animation in 
theatrical animations released not only via ordinary distribution routes but also independently are included.
2011 increased as the result of recalculation. The number of theatrical animation works increased continuously thanks to
Production minutes of TV animation remained high. "Your Name." exceeded ¥25 billion. Theatrical animations made a big leap.  the active market.
Production minutes of TV animation broadcasts in 2016 was 115,805 minutes, surpassing Since the mid‐90’s, the box office for theatrical animations was pushed up by Ghibli works. In In 2016, 81 theatrical animation works were released. This was a slight decrease compared to 86 in
115,533 minutes in 2015. The production minutes have remained high since 2015 thanks to 2015, however, the box office recorded ¥47.7 billion without the release of any works by Ghibli, 2015, but the second‐most in history. On the other hand, the production minutes in 2016 increased
an increase in animation investments from newcomers as well as from existing studios which gave the animation industry an optimistic outlook that it could somehow do well without slightly (6097 minutes in 2015 when the production minutes first exceeded 6000 minutes). This was
which have positive investment policies. Accordingly, animation production boomed while Ghibli. Just then, the thing no one ever expected happened: the arrival of "Your Name.". It had because of the continuous success of regular animation series such as "Detective Conan" and
some problems, such as delays or suspensions in production, occurred. This was because been thought that the box office records established by Hayao Miyazaki were unbreakable; "Doraemon" as well as the boom of small‐ and mid‐sized movies. Then the mega‐hit "Your Name."
cultivation of staff did not catch up with the demand on‐site. Although the demand for new nevertheless, "Your Name." recorded the 2nd largest box office records among all Japanese arrived. It is not hard to imagine the success of that work stimulating creative desires in the industry.
animation works is still high in the market, the current production minutes might be the movies. It is indeed a miracle considering the box office of the director’s previous work only That’s the way the world goes. The theatrical animation market will be active from now on.
maximum for Japanese animation studios mainly relying on traditional hand drawn reached an estimated ¥150 million. The hit absolutely drew attention to theatrical animation
animation. businesses, and the box office of theatrical animations will probably stay strong for a while. Production minuets Number of works 86
81
(title)
150,000 (billion yen) 66.3 (minute) 90
136,407 73
(minute) 119,962 6,000 80
124,648 115,805 60 63
109,459 110,046 112,169 115,533 59
120,000 50.5
47.0 47.7 5,000 55 54 70
106,335 107,919 105,070 50 51
98,687 95,098 40.9 41.7 46 45 46 60
92,724 90,445 40.2 4,000
90,000 85,439 40
75,890 34.8
31.1
33.7 33 36 50
28.9 31 31 31
30 28.5 3,000 25 6,046 6,097 40
60,000 21.8
19.2 19.1 18.8
21.6 4,713 4,782 4,764 30
20 2,000 3,728 3,739 4,000 3,581
30,000 2,730 3,041 2,586 20
10 1,000 1,900 2,035 2,249 2,254
1,728 10
0 0 0 0
00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Edited based on the data by Motion Picture Association of Japan, Kinema Jumpo and Bunkatsushinsha
Based on the survey conducted by AJA Based on the survey conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations
(Edited by Mindbase Inc. from 2000 to 2008 and by the Association of Japanese Animations from 2009 to 2016)

Data & Topics of Japanese Animation Industry 2017 ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Number of TV animation programs (1963-2016) Animation videograms (2000-2016) Merchandising related to animations (2000-2016)
*Revenues of the top 100 Japanese animation character sale rankings were tallied.
■Revenues of Animation Videograms  *Revenues arising from the use of characters in advertisements, promotions and Pachinko/Pachinko‐slot were not included. 
350
■ TV animation program newly released in the year *Revenues of animation videograms are the total amount of genres aimed towards both *Totals from 2007 to 2013 were recalculated in 2014.
■ TV animation program broadcast/serialized continuously from the previous year adults and children among all Japanese animations in the report by Japan Video Software Themarketsizeshrunkduetotheshiftfromrealproductstodigitalproducts.
*TV animation programs, animation inserted in other TV programs, TV animation combined with live-action programs are all included. Association. The size of the Japanese merchandising market related to animation characters shrunk to
*The data has been closely examined in the Nenkan Perfect Data since 2014. ¥562.7 billion, which was 97.1% of its size in the previous year. This was because digital
The animation videogram market deteriorated products (especially application games) were not included in the data. Actually, the overall
300
(title) market size (i.e. the revenues of animation studios) increased significantly. Surely consumers
New entries from China and the Game Industry increased. into a full‐scale slump. are losing their appetites for real products along with the shift to digital products. From now on,
IIn 2016, a total of 356 TV animation programs were broadcast (90 continuing, 266 The size of the animation videogram market in 2016 was 78.3 it is essential for character merchandising businesses to build a new business scheme
billion yen, decreasing for three consecutive years, by 15.1% from incorporating digital products.
new), which was another increase from the figure in 2015. New programs increased
significantly by 33 while programs broadcast/serialized continuously decreased by 18. the previous year. Actually, many of the industry participants 600

250 This was because late‐night animation programs broadcast mainly for one season mentioned the market slowdown in recent years, as confirmed by (billion yen)

increased while daytime animation programs decreased. There was a stream of new the data here indicating that the animation videograms market 400

entries, especially from companies engaged in application games for smartphones, to 233266 has reached a big turning point. How the other media take the 570.0 597.4 627.4 594.3
573.2 598.5
655.2
579.4 562.7
504.9 530.5 536.4 559.7
animation businesses. Actually, the number of animation programs based on such videogram market now on a full‐scale slump is an urgent issue for 200 435.0 433.7 461.7

200 application games was on an increasing trend, reflecting increasing interest in 232 the industry.
animation businesses. It could be said that those game application companies had an 0
appetite for business expansion by means of diversification including character 195 150.0 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
193
merchandising. Regarding China, an increasing demand for Japanese animations whose 159 138.8
135.8
Calculated by the Association of Japanese Animations based on the data from “CharaBiz DATA” (2001‐2017) 
distribution officially started on a full scale in China pushed up license fees in the (million) 129.4 127.8
150 155
market. Under such circumstances, some of the Chinese Internet distributors
152 159 120.0 117.6 115.3 Animation distribution via the Internet (2002-2016)
111.3 108.5 105.9
participated in production as investors in order to secure the license in China. 136 164
139 107.6 The animation distribution market grew continuously in a mutual complementary
123 135 103.1 105.2 102.1 relationship with the videograms market.
93.3 92.8 In 2016, the size of the Japanese animation distribution market via the Internet was ¥47.6
128 90.0 78.8 billion, increasing by 9% over the previous year. Some thought the market, growing
100 103
103 77.3 continuously through the 2000s, would take over the animation videograms market; however,
92 it is more practical to see that the videograms market remains parallel with the distribution
67
60.0 market, just like analog records did. Animation works via Internet distribution are mainly
43 48 50 targeted to a general audience while those in the videograms market are targeted to anime fan
41 53 48 49 54
50 42 43 35 108 communities, though the market shrinkage is unavoidable. Thanks to those differences, the
40 50
37 39 45 24 37 33 84 91 90 90 Japanese animation market has been diversified.
25 72 76 78 30.0
30 66 64 66 60
56 63 (billion  yen) 40.8 43.7 47.8
20 21 22 46 42 39 51 50
34.0
15 15 19 16 16 16 18 32 32 37 31 26 28 30 27
42 37 41 35
33 39 36 32 40 27.2
6 3 14 12
40
20 27 26 22 24 30 14.9 16.0
0 1 6 5 11 12 13 11 12 15 13 10 14 14 15 0.0 20 8.4 9.8 10.2 12.3
0.2 1.0 1.8 4.1
10
63 ● 65 ● ● ● ● 70 ● ● ● ● 75 ● ● ● ● 80 ● ● ● ● 85 ● ● ● ● 90 ● ● ● ● 95 ● ● ● ● 00 ● ● ● ● 05 ● ● ● ● 10 ● ● ● ● 15 16 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 0
02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Based on the survey conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations  Based on the report conducted by Japan Video Software Association 
Based on the survey conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations
 
 
 
The market size exceeded 2 trillion yen for the first time! 
All the necessary information is in this report! 

Anime Industry 2017 
We, the Association of Japanese Animations, are engaged in research, surveyance, and analysis of markets in connection 
with  the  Japanese  animation  industry.  We  have  also  published  the  “Anime  Industry  Report”  since  2009  in  order  to 
disseminate information about the industry to the world.   
As the result of the survey for this report, the market size reached 2.009 trillion, increasing by 9.9% yearly over last year and 
recording the largest result consecutively for the past four years.     
The main trends were the growth of Movies (up 41.1%), Overseas (up 31.6%)and Live Entertainment (up 29.5%). Internet 
Distribution and Music also increased by approximately 10%.   
The “Anime Industry Report 2017” is the report for trends in the Japanese animation industry, including that of respective 
media, in 2016, and is issued with “All Animation Works Perfect Data” as an appendix. So far, this reliable data has been 
adapted as the basis for official materials such as the Media Fine Arts Database by the Agency for Cultural Affairs. 
 
■Outline 
【Title】    Anime Industry 2017 
【Publisher】  The Association of Japanese Animations 
【Release day】  October 24, 2017 
【Size/Pages】  A4 / 80P (the report), 80P (appendix) + 4 chart sheets inserted 
【Price】   6,000 yen  （tax excluded） 
【Index】 
1. Overview of the Japanese animation industry in 2016 
*Overall market trends, domestic industrial movements and notable trends 
2. Trends in respective media 
*Animation  distribution  market  (TV  animation,  theatrical  animation,  videogram,  Internet  distribution),  secondary  use 
(including merchandising), advertisement/promotion, music and live entertainment 
3. Trends in Overseas Markets 
*Japanese animation in the global market, Japanese animation production 

Appendix: All Animation Works Perfect Data in 2015 
*TV, Theatrical and OVA 
Chart 
*Trends  in  the  Japanese  Animation  Market,  Recent  Movements  of  the  Japanese  Animation  Industry  and  Market, 
Development of Japanese Animation in the Overseas Market, and Distribution Map of Japanese Animation Studios 
 
Available at the following: 
Order via SPI Information website   
    【Downloadable version】  http://www.spi‐information.com/report/17362.html 
    【Physical book】    http://www.spi‐information.com/report/17361.html 
Physical Stores: 
AKIBA INFO. × TOKYO ATOM ‐ INFORMATION & SHOP ‐ 
Akihabara UDX 2F, Sotokanda 4-14-1, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan 
Kyoto International Manga Museum   
Karasuma‐Oike, Nagakyo‐ku, Kyoto Japan    *The site of the former Kagoike Elementary School   
※The back issues (2009 version  –  2015 version) are also available at the stores above. 
SPI Information’s web site：http://www.spi‐information.com/

The Association of Japanese Animations Address: Akihabara UDX 4F, 4-14-1 Sotokanda, Chiyoda‐ku, Tokyo 
URL: http://aja.gr.jp/ E‐mail: office@aja.gr.jp Phone: +81-3-5298-7501 Fax: +81-3-5298-0041