But at the same time, there are also people who only watch shows once, and have no inclination to buy them ever again. I know that there are numerous shows I watched on CR/Hulu that I would never pay for actual DVDs/BDs for, simply because I only am interested in seeing them once, and I am sure I'm not alone. (To contrast, I also own so many anime DVDs, that I'm running out of storage space for). Forwarding it to video sales would push buying on potential interest and marketing push, and could actually lead to more sales. Kind of like the video game model.
Or to even be crazy, go reverse: to video first, and then months later, air it on TV to get new viewers.
I am quite aware of the history of late-night viewing, but the anime market today is hardly the anime market of yesteryear. As for related merchandise, they can still roll them out either before the first video hits stores, or simultaneously with each volume release. The videos and CMs and word of mouth will spread the buzz.
Because I feel there is no real need for companies to pander to fans anymore. They seem to always find what they want, when they want, without needing to be shown or told what to do. It's the causal viewers who probably have the sales potential, and it seems more likely for such a viewer to see an interesting video at the store and pick it up than wait up until 2-3AM in the morning to watch a string of anime.
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