Anime Show Targets Smartphones

The Corpse Princess has set her sights on smart phones.

The anime series of the same name is coming out on DVD September 14, and distributor FUNimation Entertainment is using the mobile advertising network iVdopia to get the word out. It’s all about engaging fans of anime, a genre of animation with roots in Japanese manga, or comics.

Something called the Viper Ad lets users swipe away an entire screen-takeover with a fingertip, unearthing the next image. With mobile social media, users will be able to share Corpse Princess videos with friends on sites like Facebook and Twitter. Fans will also be able to view multiple clips from the series on their phones.

The campaign for the DVD release of the show, titled Shikabane Hime in the original Japanese, is a natural progression for a business that has long understood–and even encouraged–fan sharing. For example, the Internet is rife with fan-translated chapters of popular manga long before they’re released in English–which copyright owners allow to remain out there, knowing that these translations increase consumers’ interest for a book’s official release. While other video content owners fear allowing copyrighted material to be viewed on mobiles, the anime/manga industry gets it.

“Mobile video viewing is on the rise and we want to offer the anime experience to the entertainment audience wherever they are,” Catherine Kim, Media Manager at FUNimation Entertainment, said in a release.

“This is a perfect opportunity to target a niche set of audiences on the go, and creatively combine the latest in video and mobile technology to reach and engage such consumers,”  added Saurabh Bhatia, Chief Business Officer at iVdopia.

The rabid nature of anime consumers makes them a natural target for mobile marketing and its “anytime, anywhere” nature.