In a bit of interesting news, Manga Plus editor Yūta Momiyama talks about how the MANGA Plus data is used for determining which titles get anime adaptations
According to Momiyama by ANN,
the role of a manga magazine is to “deliver new and interesting manga to the world.” To achieve this, Weekly Shonen Jump makes extensive use of polls and reader feedback. With the data from MANGA Plus, the editorial department can now keep track of the international reception from a very early stage of serialization. Also, because the international market is so important for the anime industry, MANGA Plus data is already being used to help decide which titles get anime adaptations.
Momiyama also predicted that the overseas manga market will become even more important in the future. MANGA Plus currently has 5 million monthly active users. He also pointed to a Kodansha report stating that roughly 20% of manga sales currently come from overseas. At Shueisha, he has heard that overseas manga sales have apparently doubled in 2021 compared to the previous year. He highlighted the popularity of Kaiju No. 8 in particular, the first volume of which sold 250,000 copies in France alone despite the higher unit price for manga volumes compared to Japan. Momiyama predicted that the ratio of domestic-to-overseas sales will be equal in 10 years’ time.
Yūta Momiyama’s note
So the best way to ensure that your new favorite manga gets an anime is to read it on the official app and of course, if you can buy the volumes too! This is such an interesting bit of information and I’m glad that he shared that with us. It highlights the importance of trying your best to support the official version of the manga. Then again, there may be a bit of a lie to this as The Hunters Guild: Red Hood was a very popular manga in the international market but was axed because the Japanese base did not care for it. So to me, it feels like, they still cater to the Japanese market but want us the West to keep reading for financial support. We’ll have to wait and see if his word is a hint for changes to come!
