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| Sony's building an anime empire was halted due to the Ministry of Justice |
After the US Department of Justice expanded its antitrust review of Sony proposal to acquire Crunchyroll from AT&T for $ 1.175 billion, Sony's hopes of creating an animation empire were fulfilled.
The information indicates that the purpose of the review is to determine whether this transaction gives Sony control over the transmission of the animation. Verification can delay the transaction by several months and ruin everything.
Lawyers for the US Department of Justice are examining the deal to see if Japanese animation studios have fewer opportunities to distribute the programs in the United States.
The information adds that the review may take six months or more and that if the department does not approve the merger, it can take legal measures to prevent the merger.
In December, Crunchyroll announced the acquisition of Crunchyroll by global group Funimation.
Sony said the purchase price is $ 1.175 billion and will be paid in cash once the transaction is completed pending regulatory approval and other terms.
AT&T and Sony told the DOJ: Crunchyroll and Sony's thriving anime empire are just two of the many ways animators can get their shows out of Japan.
In the context of US animation streaming services, controlling Funimation and Crunchyroll means one thing, but for all the other things Crunchyroll does with Crunchyroll, the company can wield a great deal of control over the entire industry.
Nikkei Asian Review reported in October that Sony was in the final stages of negotiations to acquire Crunchyroll, at which point the newspaper reported that Sony could end up spending more than 100 billion yen ($ 957 million).
August news showed AT&T Sony was offering Crunchyroll for $ 1.5 billion, and Sony had lowered the price, effectively costing the streaming service $ 500 per subscriber.
A few days later, AT&T had set a price of at least $ 1 billion to sell the Crunchyroll service, and AT&T committed to selling the service to many potential buyers outside of Sony.
Crunchyroll started as a streaming service in 2006 and offers entertainment without permission. The company raised $ 4.05 million in its first round of financing and began licensing in 2008.
The Chernin Group acquired a majority stake in Crunchyroll in December 2013, and the Chernin Group and AT&T formed a joint venture Otter Media in 2014.
In November 2015 Otter Media invested an additional $ 22 million in Crunchyroll's parent company Ellation. In August 2018, AT&T announced that it had acquired Otter Media.
The service reached more than 1 million subscribers in February 2017, more than 2 million subscribers in October 2018, more than 3 million subscribers in July 2020 and more than 4 million subscribers in February.