Crunchyroll Takes Anime to Brand-New U.S. Platform
Crunchyroll is set to make anime an even more accessible experience thanks to its newest partnership with Luminopia, Inc. It will bring Crunhyroll’s extensive library of content to VR headsets that are being used as treatment for pediatric lazy eye patients through Luminopia’s platform.
Per Crunchyroll’s press release, the collaboration sees the anime streaming giant joining Luminopia’s growing roster of content partners, which includes Nickelodeon, PBS Kids and Sesame Workshop. A recent partnership with Pokémon also brought hundreds of episodes of the original animated series to its platform. It was not specified which Crunchyroll series or episodes would be available as part of the new platform launch. The content is available through an FDA-approved and doctor-prescribed VR as treatment for children with amblyopia (lazy eye).
Crunchyroll Collaborates With Luminopia to Make Anime More Accessible
Crunchyroll and Luminopia’s partnership helps bring content children truly enjoy into their lives as part of their therapy. By making anime more accessible, Crunchyroll hopes to make therapy a more enjoyable experience for young patients, noting that 59% of U.S. teens identify as anime fans — and giving Crunchyroll the perfect opportunity to drive real impact through health innovation.
Luminopia shares that lazy eye affects about one million pediatric patients nationwide and is the leading cause of vision loss in children. Luminopia’s FDA-cleared therapy allows patients to watch TV with a VR headset for an hour a day, six days a week as treatment, revolutionizing the approach to therapy. For decades, children have used eye-patching therapy, forcing them to cover up their ‘good eye’ to help strengthen the ‘lazy’ one. Luminopia’s approach via VR encourages the brain to use both eyes together.
“Our mission has always been to transform lazy eye treatment into something children are actually excited about,” Scott Xiao, Co-Founder and CEO of Luminopia said in the press release announcing the partnership between Luminopia and Crunchyroll. “By bringing anime content from Crunchyroll’s catalog into our library, we’re giving patients more shows to choose from, with the goal of making therapy as engaging as possible for every single child.”
Crunchyroll’s EVP of Global Commerce, Mitchel Berger, agrees. “Anime takes viewers on incredible adventures, and now with Luminopia, we’re glad anime can help kids’ treatment journeys feel more like fun.”
Crunchyroll has the world’s largest dedicated anime library, and its new partnership with Luminopia has the potential to bring with it some of the most beloved anime series of all time. Crunchyroll has several exclusives on its platform, including Tower of God, Wistoria: Wand and Sword and the record-breaking Solo Leveling. The company’s mission has been to fuel fans’ love of anime and make it a bigger part of pop culture, more easily available whether it’s on mobile, gaming consoles or big-screen devices at home. With the new Luminopia partnership, Crunchyroll continues its mission and makes anime content more accessible than ever, especially for young kids with amblyopia.
Parents and guardians of children with amblyopia can ask their eye doctors about Luminopia today. More information is also available at www.luminopia.com.
