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SPJA, Nonlinear World Present White Paper on N. American Manga Industry
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) released its first white paper on the state of the manga industry in North America last Friday in conjunction with Nonlinear World. SPJA producer Dallas Middaugh — who has previously worked for Crunchyroll, Penguin Random House, Seven Seas, and Viz Media — assembled the report.
Observations noted in the paper include the growth of manga sales year-on-year since 2013 (while still not returning to the sales peak of 2006-2007), the gross revenue of manga rising by 7.24% from 2017 to 2018, and the continued popularity of the shōnen category. The paper noted that an anime adaptation is still the strongest driver for sales in North America.
According to the report, manga represented roughly 25% of the graphic novel market in the United States in 2018, with manga responsible for 26.94% of units sold and 23.01% of gross revenue in the industry. The first volume of Kōhei Horikoshi's My Hero Academia manga was the 28th highest selling graphic novel in the United States in 2018. Viz Media's releases claimed 47 places in the top 50 highest selling manga volumes in terms of units sold in 2018, and claimed 46 places in the top 50 highest selling manga volumes in terms of gross revenue in 2018.
SPJA is the California-based non-profit organization behind Anime Expo.
Sources: SPJA, Nonlinear World's white paper, press release
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