Online video service Viewster will launch Omakase, its new subscription box/streaming service with an exclusive gold-foil hardcover edition of the Kill la Kill manga.  With Omakase, inspired by “chef’s choice,” Viewster is employing a clever new twist on the subscription box phenomenon by bundling a bi-monthly box of unique merchandise with an online subscription to ad-free Viewster video content.   Exclusive digital content will also be added, including min-EP albums featuring new music from popular artists and original comics by well-known creators. 

’Omakase,’ a term seen on sushi menus, “is when you let the chef make a selection of sushi for you, and that’s what Omakase by Viewster is all about,” Viewster USA CEO Rob Pereyda explained.  “Everything together – the video, the merchandise, and the digital goodies – makes up Omakase.  Just like a patron to a nice sushi restaurant would trust the chef, we hope that fans will ‘leave it to us’ in the same way.”     

The theme of the first box, scheduled for this fall, is Kill la Kill, anchored by the exclusive gold-foil manga volume.  Future boxes may be anchored around single IPs, or general themes, such as “back to school.”

The initial launch, with the two-month subscription priced at $25 plus shipping and handling, will be for customers in the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom. 

Pereyda is no stranger to inventive business models; prior to Viewster, Pereyda ran ShiftyLook, a Namco Bandai site where webcomics tied to vintage video game properties were used to test new ideas and get reactions (see “Namco Bandai Cultivates IP”).  Pereyda is also familiar with streaming video; he was VP-licensing at Crunchyroll prior to his role at Shiftylook. 

“We believe that anyone who joins Omakase will get to experience something really unique,” Pereyda said of the new service.  “There will be lots of merchandise they can’t get anywhere else, cool video, and some really amazing things with comics and music we’re excited to talk about in the coming weeks.”