FUNimation Claims Nearly One-Third of American Anime Market

ICv2 reports that during the first half of 2008, VideoScan data shows FUNimation responsible for 32.7% of all American anime DVD sales followed by Viz in second place at 15.9%, ADV third at 10.5%, Bandai fourth at 7.7%, and Media Blasters fifth at 5%. VideoScan numbers do not include Wal-Mart, which may sell as much as 30-40% of all anime in the U.S.. If Wal-Mart were included, it’s likely that the market shares of both FUNimation and Viz, which have numerous titles in Wal-Mart video departments, would be larger than those listed.

FUNimation was the only anime distributor with sales up over the same period in 2007. While Viz held steady, unit sales by all of the other anime producers were down, some precipitously.