“Netflix economic crisis would affect anime productions”: Japanese press

In times of storm, changes are necessary, and Netflix is ​​analyzing making a total readjustment in terms of its programming priorities, harming anime releases. This is pointed out by an article in a media outlet in Japan. According to, Toyo Keizai Onlinethe streaming service company, would be losing interest in the production of anime projects in Japan, given the few results that it would be offering in subscribers.

“Netflix is ​​facing headwinds. Uncomfortable voices are heard in Japan’s production companies about the production of original anime. “In 2022, we don’t have any original animation projects,” said an executive of a production company that has participated in several Netflix animation productions, the article notes.

Red numbers for Netflix

Since the beginning of the year, the streaming platform has reported that for the first quarter of 2022 it has lost 200,000 subscribers, impacting the value of its shares and in turn anticipating its worst drop since 2004.

The great competitions that were born two years ago with Disney +, HBO Max, Hulu, Star +, among others, are having an impact on the results of the platform.

As the number of cancellations has generally grown, Information reports that new users are making up a smaller share of them, another indicator that Netflix is ​​struggling to retain users for longer periods. In the second quarter of 2021, people surveyed who subscribed to the platform for less than a year accounted for 70% of cancellations, while long-term subscribers accounted for six percent. 60% of cancellations were made by new subscribers last quarter.

This has forced the platform to devise new subscription packages and to include advertising within its monetization models.

Regarding the content, no production cuts or the stoppage of some projects have yet been known.

However, the Japanese media could shed light on the first decisions that the company would be making regarding animated content in that country.

“The timing of the drop in subscribers has also led to the widespread belief that the company is cutting animation production to cut costs,” says Toyo Keizai Online.