US Manga Publishers 2023 Market Share

I saw a post from @Wsstalkback about the US manga publishers market share from when he went to Comicon. I have always been interested in statistics and analytics, I decided to perk up the graph to make it more interesting for other manga nerds like myself. Now being an old reader of manga it’s interesting to see

US manga publisher @TOKYOPOP and@DarkHorseComics have such little market share, I remember seeing their books on shelves in library’s and normal bookshops the most. Viz Media is the oldest American publisher in its field, and it shows. They have captured most of the market share by being the first to market, as well as through strategic partnerships with Japan’s largest publishing houses, Shogakukan and Shueisha.

These partnerships provided access to a vast library of popular titles, including Naruto and One Piece. Viz Media embraced digital distribution early on, launching platforms like the @VIZMedia Manga app and the digital version of Shonen Jump.

@yenpress and@KODANSHA_EN are relative newcomers to manga publishing in the US entering the market in the 2000’s. Yen Press was founded in 2000. This partnership provided Yen Press with significant resources and access to a wide range of popular Japanese They also focused on light novels, a category that was underrepresented in the U.S. market. Titles like “Sword Art Online” and “The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya” attracted a dedicated readership.

Us manga publisher Kodansha Comics is the U.S. subsidiary of Kodansha, Japan’s largest publishing company. This connection provided Kodansha Comics with access to a vast catalog of popular and iconic series, such as “Attack on Titan,” “Fairy Tail,” and “Sailor Moon. Publishing and distributing their own titles in the U.S., rather than relying on licensing agreements with other publishers. Last but not least is

@SquareEnixBooks and @gomanga, Seven Seas has published a diverse range of titles, including shonen, shojo, seinen, josei, and LGBTQ+ genres. This variety helped attract a wide audience. Popular series include “Monster Musume,” “Made in Abyss,” “Bloom Into You,” and “Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Seven Seas was one of the first publishers to heavily invest in light novels and yuri (girls’ love) titles, which helped them tap into niche but passionate markets​.

Square Enix manga and books another popular us manga publisher is a subsidiary of Square Enix, a company with a strong foundation and reputation, along with access to popular franchises like “Final Fantasy” and “Kingdom Hearts Square Enix utilized effective marketing strategies, including leveraging their existing fanbase from video games and engaging in cross-promotions with their gaming content​.