IDT Entertainment announced it has signed an agreement to acquire Manga Entertainment, taking over the rights to Manga's library of over 300 titles.
Manga Entertainment, which was originally formed in London, England, in 1991, has been producing, distributing and marketing a wide variety of Japanese animation titles for home video releases, as well as for theatrical and television airings.
The star of its line, Ghost in the Shell, was co-produced by Manga Entertainment, and became the first and only Japanese animated film to reach #1 on the Billboard Top Video Sales Charts.
The Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex TV series, jointly distributed by Manga and Bandai, will be released this fall (see 'Bandai & Manga Entertainment to Release Stand Alone Complex').
Manga Entertainment has had a rather quiet release schedule for much of this year, in large part due to the lengthy process involved in completing the acquisition. But now that the agreement has been concluded, pop culture retailers can look forward to a more steady flow of new releases.
IDT has been on a tear; this is its second acquisition announcement this week (see 'IDT Revives Spawn Animated Series').
