Given the growing popularity of streaming platforms, it was only a matter of time before specialized services of this type would pop up. The latest entrance into the space is the newly unveiled "ANiUTa".
The company, whose name is made up of Ani - for anime - and Uta - Japanese for song - was launched in Japan on March 24. ANiUTa describes itself as "the world"s first anime music specialized paid subscription", and was established due to the "rise of demand for anime and anime music concerts outside of Japan".
Established by Shiro Sasaki and Shunji Inoue (CEOs of FlyingDog and Lantis Co., respectively) in February of 2017, the platform already has support from over 30 music music labels and studios. Its library comprises over 50,000 songs, 20,000 of which are available exclusively on the platform. ANiUTa"s lineup includes music from "anime, games, superhero productions and vocaloid", the latter of which allows users to synthesize "singing" via input of melody and lyrics.
There is a free version available, which allows for searching by title of anime, display or lyrics, use of the library and the ability to save up to 20 songs, but only allows for 30 seconds of listening. The premium offering comes in at 600 yen / month (around $5) and allows you to save up to 1000 songs, gives access to high quality 320kbps tracks in full and advanced ticket reservation for anime music concerts.
Regarding its future plans, ANiUTa states in the official press release:
ANiUTa plans to provide exclusive original services such as pre-release streaming during anime airing season and collaborations between voice actors / actresses. Services based on anime music, such as exclusive concert ticked application and exclusive merchandise online shopping will also be launched within the service.
An overview video, including some of the featured anime, is available (in Japanese) below:
The official app can be found in the Google Play Store (Japanese) and App Store (Japanse). A full list of supported devices can be checked out on the official website.
The service is aiming for a worldwide launch by the end of this year.
Thanks to Angie Vasquez in the forums for the tip!