Crunchyroll Will Start Paywalling One Piece Anime Arcs Behind Premium Subscriptions

Earlier today, Crunchyroll announced that it volition soon beryllium paywalling circumstantial arcs of the megapopular One Piece anime arc connected the streamer for premium subscribers.

Crunchyroll issued the astonishment announcement today, December 2, connected its official X/Twitter account. In its tweet, Crunchyroll revealed that the show’s archetypal 206 episodes volition stay disposable to its ad-supported tier for Crunchyroll users “at nary cost.” However, to proceed watching the remaining 1,151 episodes of One Piece, subscribers indispensable upgrade their rank to Crunchyroll’s premium tier.

Later successful the post, Crunchyroll revealed the rollout phases of its One Piece update. Starting December 23, One Piece‘s Water 7 to Fishman Island arc volition necessitate a premium membership. Subsequently, fans indispensable person a premium rank connected January 20 to ticker Punk Hazard to Whole Cake Island arc (including its six specials). Lastly, February 17 volition beryllium the day erstwhile One Piece‘s Reverie, Wano Kuni, and Egghead Island arcs volition beryllium down a premium membership.

Crunchyroll’s premium rank is divided into 3 tiers, and the work raised the prices of each tier for the archetypal clip successful 5 years earlier this May. Here’s a breakdown of the monthly prices: Fan ($7.99); Mega Fan ($11.99); Ultimate Fan ($15.99).

When io9 contacted a Crunchyroll typical for remark asking what led the streamer to the determination to isolate One Piece arsenic an anime that would necessitate a premium subscription contempt being disposable done its different subscription tires until this point, they replied, “We person nary further accusation to stock oregon comments astatine this time.”

🚨 Heads up, One Piece fans!
Starting soon, immoderate One Piece arcs volition necessitate a Premium Membership. But the archetypal 206 episodes (East Blue to Sky Island) volition enactment free, truthful caller fans tin inactive commencement Luffy’s travel astatine nary cost.

Mark your calendars for each signifier of this update:
🔶…

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) December 2, 2024

While Crunchyroll isn’t the exclusive streaming location of One Piece, it does person the favoritism of being the lone 1 to location each of its episodes and movies. In opposition to Crunchyroll, competing streamers similar Hulu and Netflix lone person a acceptable magnitude of anime arcs connected their respective platforms. As of the clip of publication, Hulu’s One Piece catalog lone goes up to the Dressrosa arc. Likewise, Netflix has been dilatory backfilling anime arcs portion airing the show’s Egghead Island arc successful tandem with Crunchyroll, starring the streamer to lone spell up to the Punk Hazard arc earlier jumping into the newest episodes.

Seeing arsenic however One Piece is rising successful prominence, breaking into the mainstream with the assistance of Netflix’s live-action series and its upcoming anime remake connected the horizon, it’s hard not to work Crunchyroll waking up and choosing unit by paywalling the anime arsenic thing different than a capitalistic move. This determination is made each the much harrowing erstwhile you see that Crunchyroll proprietor Sony aims to further monopolize the anime manufacture by acquiring Kadokawa.

As 1 mightiness assume, Crunchyroll’s announcement was met with an uproar from viewers accusing the streamer of nickel-and-diming them to proceed viewing 1 of anime’s astir fashionable bid erstwhile they didn’t person to before. Rather than convincing viewers to hole to wage other currency for Eiichiro Oda’s magnum opus, Cruncyroll’s announcement has alternatively driven viewers to curse to instrumentality to the seas and commencement pirating the bid successful protest.

Crunchyroll’s 2024 has been mixed. In April, the streamer finalized its merger with Funimation, starring users to nary longer digitally ain contented connected the shuttered level aft merging their accounts. In tandem with the sunsetting of Funimation, Crunchyroll ushered successful aggregate profiles to the platform. While that summation was deemed a plus, putting the level connected par with competing streamers similar Hulu and Netflix, Crunchyroll drew ire from fans successful July erstwhile it announced the removal of its remark section. All this, positive complaints implicit Crunchyroll’s unreliable and often erroneous auto-closed captioning, has made the biggest anime level 1 of the astir loathed by fans.

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