Crunchyroll, TV TOKYO, Shueisha and Pierrot Announce Addition of Bleach Simulcast to Crunchyroll's Anime Lineup

Blockbuster anime adaptation of Tite Kubo's manga global sensation coming to world's leading Asian media destination Crunchyroll.com on June 8, 2010

San Francisco, Calif. (June 2, 2010) - Crunchyroll Inc., in conjunction with TV TOKYO, Shueisha, and Pierrot, announced today the addition of long-awaited anime series BLEACH to the Crunchyroll Anime lineup of Naruto Shippuden, REBORN!, Durarara!!, Fairy Tail, HEROMAN, Gintama, and other popular titles.

BLEACH, the worldwide anime hit, is based on the manga by Tite Kubo of the same name, and originally published in Shonen Jump. Animated by the legendary Studio Pierrot, the title will continue to be subtitled by North American licensor Viz Media. BLEACH will become available each week exclusively via Crunchyroll's premium subscription in high definition within one hour of first airing in Japan on TV TOKYO and for free in standard definition with advertisements one week later on Crunchyroll.com. More information is on the official BLEACH series page on Crunchyroll: http://www.Crunchyroll.com/bleach.

Crunchyroll CEO Kun Gao said: "BLEACH is one of the most popular titles of all time, and while it has already been licensed in North America, we are proud to bring BLEACH to all fans of anime within one hour of Japan TV broadcast. With BLEACH and our expanding licensing partnerships with TV TOKYO, Shueisha, and Pierrot, we have solidified our network as the most attractive destination online for fans of Japanese anime in the United States and the English-speaking world. Fans can enjoy the best in anime such as BLEACH and Naruto Shippūden through Crunchyroll.com, our iPhone app, set top box applications, our thousands of embedding affiliates partner sites, and now our new iPad application. It's a historic time to be an anime fan, and we are proud to help pioneer the future of the anime viewing experience with our Japanese partners."

TV TOKYO General Manager of Animation Yukio Kawasaki said: "Crunchyroll continues to be our most important digital platform on a worldwide basis. By simulcasting Naruto Shippūden and now BLEACH on Crunchyroll, we are combating piracy by offering fans a compelling place to view the anime they are passionate about while generating revenue that can be channeled back into the industry to fund the creation of anime for years to come.

BLEACH will be available on Crunchyroll starting June 8, 2010 in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. On June 8th, the latest arc beginning with episodes 266 to 273, and the latest simulcast episode 274 will be available to premium viewers. Tentatively on June 15th, episodes 266 to 274 will be free for all viewers, with the simulcast of episode 275 available to premium members. Thereafter, new episodes will be added at 2:30am PST every Tuesday, with simulcasts available for premium members and the previous week's episode being available to all viewers. Catch up of older episodes are planned and additional info will be provided at a later date.

A live update of Crunchyroll's April 2010 lineup of simulcasts can be viewed at http://www.Crunchyroll.com/lineup .

BLEACH follows the story of Ichigo Kurosaki. For as long as he can remember, Ichigo Kurosaki has been able to see ghosts. But when he meets Rukia, a Soul Reaper who battles evil spirits known as Hollows, he finds his life is changed forever. Now, with a newfound wealth of spiritual energy, Ichigo discovers his true calling: to protect the living and the dead from evil. And when he vows to defend Rukia from the ruthless justice of the Soul Society, he and his friends must cross over and do battle in the spirit world...

About TV TOKYO

TV TOKYO Corporation is a leading Japanese content producer and broadcaster with particular strength in animation, high-concept infotainment and business news. Many of its programs are licensed by TV Tokyo Medianet Inc. (its distribution arm) to non-affiliate local stations as well as overseas broadcasters and distributors. TV TOKYO has been the home of the hit animation series such as "Naruto", "Yu-Gi-Oh!", "Shaman King", "Pokémon", "Sonic X" and "Beyblade". To learn more, please visit http://www.TV Tokyo.co.jp.

About Shueisha

Shueisha, Inc., founded in 1926, is Japan's top sales publisher and publishes 40 magazines including comic magazine, women's, men's, sports, literary, etc. as well as trade books. Its most successful comic magazine, "Shonen Jump", is printed 3 million copies weekly in Japan alone and many animations such as "Naruto", "Yu-Gi-Oh!", "Dragon Ball" and "Shaman King" are based on Shonen Jump. Beyond publishing, Shueisha strategically works with other media and carries out many activities such as producing animation and merchandising for its strong properties. To learn more, please visit http://www.Shueisha.co.jp/.

About Pierrot

Established in 1979, Pierrot Co., Ltd. has produced numerous successful high quality animation productions including world famous fairy tales like "The Wonderful Adventures of Nils [Nils no Fushigi na Tabi]" (1980), popular comics like "Gens?maden Saiyuki" (2000), "Hikaru no Go" (2002), "The Twelve Kingdoms [Jūni Kokuki]" (2002), "NARUTO" (2002), "BLEACH" (2004) and original stories such as "Magical Girl Series" (1983-1985). With its 30-years of experience, Pierrot has firmly established itself as one of Japan's most versatile, dependable, and creative production companies. To learn more, please visit http://www.Pierrot.jp/.

About Crunchyroll, Inc.

Crunchyroll, the home of legal streaming anime and Asian live action, is a leading global lifestyle and entertainment brand centered around all things Asian media and operator of the largest online community, video site and network of sites, services and devices for Japanese anime and Asian drama in the world. For $6.95 per month or $59.95 per year, Crunchyroll subscribers get unlimited access to anime simulcasts as soon as one hour after broadcast in Japan and a catalog of thousands of episodes. Through the Crunchyroll network of sites, services and devices, Crunchyroll has over 6 million monthly unique visitors. Content on Crunchyroll is licensed by leading media companies across Asia and the world.

Crunchyroll was founded in June 2006 and has offices in both San Francisco and Tokyo. Crunchyroll is a pioneer and innovator in the Japanese content business and the only video service in the world to offer hit programs Naruto Shippūden, Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee and many others within one hour of their first Japanese broadcasts. Crunchyroll is a member of the Association of Japanese Animations (AJA) and Licensing International Merchandisers' Association (LIMA) and is funded by leading venture capital firm, Venrock, Japanese entertainment giant TV TOKYO, and a group of angel investors representing some of the brightest and most successful minds and entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley.

Crunchyroll acquires content from leading Asian media companies including TV TOKYO, Fuji Television, NHK Enterprises (NEP), Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation (YTV), Seoul Broadcasting System(SBS), Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), Shueisha, Kadokawa Pictures, Aniplex, avex entertainment, King Records, Happinet, d-rights, Bandai Channel, Toei Animation, Tai Seng and many others. More information can be found at http://www.Crunchyroll.com .

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