Crunchyroll, a popular anime streaming service, has recently addressed rumors about a potential price change for its subscribers. The company stated that it currently has ‘no announcements about a price change at this time.’ However, it clarified that some customers may experience price changes if they were switching from a Funimation-only subscription to Crunchyroll.
This announcement comes in the wake of Funimation’s closure and the subsequent migration of its subscribers to Crunchyroll. Funimation, which had previously offered lower subscription prices to legacy subscribers, will now be implementing price changes for those transitioning to Crunchyroll. Additionally, subscribers in Canada will face a currency change in their subscription.
As part of the consolidation process following the merger of Funimation and Crunchyroll, the Funimation app is set to shut down on April 2. Subscribers have the option to migrate their accounts to Crunchyroll, including their watch history and queue, or merge their Funimation account with an existing Crunchyroll account.
Funimation had previously increased its prices in August 2022 as it transitioned to a unified subscription service with Crunchyroll. The prices for its Premium and Premium Plus plans were raised from US$5.99 to US$7.99 and from US$7.99 to US$9.99, respectively.
On the other hand, Crunchyroll had implemented its first major price increase in 2019 and introduced multi-tier subscription offerings in 2020. The current U.S. member tier prices are US$7.99 per month for the Fan tier, US$9.99 per month for Mega Fan, and US$14.99 per month for Ultimate Fan.
Furthermore, in March 2022, Crunchyroll announced that it would no longer offer free ad-supported viewing and would require a subscription to access new and continuing simulcasts. These changes reflect the evolving landscape of anime streaming services and the shifting preferences of viewers.