MANILA, Philippines – Sony Pictures announced Tuesday, August 1, that it is in the process of acquiring a 95% stake in anime distributor Funimation. 

In a statement, Sony said it was buying the majority stake in Funimation at $143 million, putting the anime distributor at an approximate value of $150 million.

Gen Fukunaga, Funimation’s CEO, will remain CEO of Funimation and retain a minority stake in the business.

Funimation and Sony previously partnered for the FunimationNOW anime streaming service. The acquisition of Funimation will put Sony firmly on the radar against other anime streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon.

Sony also has its own anime cable channel, called ANIMAX. 

Andy Kaplan, president of Worldwide Networks for Sony Pictures Television, said, “With the acquisition of Funimation, the combined IP (intellectual property) of ANIMAX, KIDS STATION and Funimation allows us to deliver the best anime to fans across all screens and platforms.”

Whether this leads Sony expanding Funimation worldwide remains to be seen, however, but here’s to hoping anime fans in the future can experience Funimation’s catalog outside of the US and Canada. – Rappler.com