Crunchyroll limits shop access to subscribers paying $14 monthly
Developed over time first seen 2 months ago
GamesRadar reports that Crunchyroll has restricted access to its online shop so that only subscribers on a higher paid tier can use it, requiring a monthly membership costing $14. The article presents the move as significant because it adds a paywall to buying anime merchandise and physical goods, potentially shutting out casual customers and making collecting more expensive. It also places the decision in the wider context of criticism of Sony, Crunchyroll’s parent company, over how it handles physical media and related products.
The central detail is that the store is no longer open to all users, with access tied to a subscription level priced at $14 per month. According to the article, this changes the membership from offering optional perks to acting as a basic gatekeeper for retail access. GamesRadar argues that the people most affected are collectors and frequent merchandise buyers, who now face an added recurring cost before they can even browse or purchase items.
- Crunchyroll now limits shop access to $14-a-month subscribers
- Fans must pay before browsing or buying merchandise
- Critics see it as another barrier to physical goods
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Crunchyroll is a streaming service best known for anime, the Japanese style of animation. It is owned by Sony and also sells related goods such as figures, clothing, Blu-rays and other merchandise through an online shop.
The service offers several paid membership levels, which usually provide benefits such as fewer adverts, earlier access to episodes or offline viewing. A $14-a-month tier is among its more expensive plans, so linking shop access to it makes the subscription relevant to people who may mainly want to buy physical products.
Anime collecting can involve limited-edition items and releases that are not always widely available elsewhere. Changes to how the shop operates therefore matter to fans who use it as a route to merchandise, as well as to the broader debate about Sony’s role in distributing anime and physical media.
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Originally published by GamesRadar+ as “Sony’s attack on physical goods spreads to Crunchyroll as it adds a $14 subscription requirement just to access its store”.