The Rundown: Why anime is having a marketing moment in 2024

After languishing for years as a niche interest for basement-dwelling nerds, anime has made its way into the mainstream — and in 2024, marketers have gotten the memo. This year, major brands such as McDonald’s are investing in anime to build goodwill among its diverse and growing Gen Z audience.

To today’s youngsters, the idea that anime was ever anything but wildly popular might come as a surprise. Thanks to the growth of dedicated streaming services such as Crunchryoll, Japanese animation is now more accessible than ever before. But no cultural force truly hits the mainstream until brands and advertisers get involved. And in 2024, they are getting involved.

“2024 is the start of brands having dedicated global strategies for the anime space, in a way that they might have for the sports industry, music industry, gaming industry, et cetera,” said Tatiana Tacca, the founder of Oni Vision, a consulting practice dedicated to the anime and gaming space. “We have not necessarily seen that on a global scale until recently.”

Continue reading this article on digiday.com. Sign up for Digiday newsletters to get the latest on media, marketing and the future of TV.