Is Funimation Shutting Down Following the Crunchyroll Merger?

The anime landscape was changed forever when Crunchyroll and Funimation officially announced their long-expected merger. Around a year on, there are still many questions as fans wonder if and when Funimation will shut down.

We’re going to look at answering that and more in this article dedicated to Funimation subscribers.

Funimation and Crunchyroll Merger News

It was announced on March 1st, 2022, that Funimation’s content will be moving over to Crunchyroll to create “the world’s largest anime library.”

Funimation subscribers were officially told to get a Crunchyroll account “as soon as possible”.

More: Funimation and Crunchyroll Merge: All You Need to Know

Is Funimation Shutting Down?

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So far, there has been no official word stating that Funimation will be shut down. However, it’s only a matter of time following the Crunchyroll merger.

Sony's attention is now on Crunchyroll. While Funimation is online for now, there have not been any major updates since the announcement, while Crunchyroll has undergone numerous changes.

Some of the lists on Funimation's website, such as its simuldubs, are also out of date as the platform winds down.

When Will Funimation Shut Down?

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Despite the Funimation anime library moving over to Crunchyroll, it’s still a massive task to migrate both internal systems and external users.

Funimation continues to add some continuing series to its library, so it's clear that they expect Funimation to still be used for a while.

Ultimately, in the same way the initial announcement caught everyone by surprise, we won't know when Funimation will shut down until there's an official announcement. So far, nothing has been indicated by Funimation.

It's important to note, though, that it's very unlikely Funimation will suddenly disappear when the time does come.

Usually, tech companies publicly announce a winding-down period, which can be anything from a few weeks to a year or more. So, Funimation subscribers should have at least some warning before the service closes.

Is Funimation Still Adding New Anime?

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Currently, Funimation is only adding sequels to anime that were previously simulcast on Funimation, while encouraging users to head to Crunchyroll to watch the new seasonal anime.

When the Crunchyroll merger was announced, the statement said that any new series, from Spring 2022, would only be available on Crunchyroll. In the end, some new series during that season were also on Funimation, but for Spring 2023, that's not the case.

So far in 2023, Funimation has hosted sequels, such as the second season of Bofuri and the Attack on Titan Final Season Final Chapters special. However, it has not hosted popular new anime, such as NieR: Automata and Tomo-chan is a Girl.

So, if you want to watch the latest new anime, you won't find them on Funimation any more.

Can I Get a Refund on My Funimation Subscription Now it’s Merged with Crunchyroll?

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Funimation is not offering monetary refunds following the Crunchyroll move. However, you are allowed to transfer any remaining time on your Funimation subscription into your Crunchyroll account.

This question is arguably the most important, but Funimation’s initial answers were unclear. Ultimately, it appears to depend on whether you are a new or existing subscriber to Crunchyroll.

If you have both Funimation and Crunchyroll accounts, you can transfer any time you paid for on Funimation onto a new or existing Crunchyroll account. You will need to speak to Funimation customer support which is handling this.

If you have a Funimation subscription but don’t yet have a Crunchyroll account you were initially offered a 60-day free trial of Crunchyroll. It's unclear whether that offer is still in place a year after the initial announcement.

It was also reported that annual Funimation subscribers are allowed to carry over any remaining time on their subscription into a new Crunchyroll account. Again, you should contact Funimation support to discuss this option.

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Should I Cancel My Funimation Subscription?

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Funimation is asking its subscribers to cancel their Funimation accounts and move to Crunchyroll “as soon as possible”. With the Funimation library mostly moved across now, this is the best option for most subscribers (along with the refund points above).

However, there are some reasons why you might not want to cancel Funimation just yet.

The majority of the Funimation library is now on Crunchyroll, but not everything has been transferred due to licensing issues. So, if there’s a Funimation show you’re watching that hasn’t moved, you might want to binge that first.

If you’re worried about losing your favourites and watchlists, Funimation and Crunchyroll stated that they are looking into a solution to transfer this data to Crunchyroll accounts. However, with no word on this since the announcement last year, it's questionable whether this will ever be an option.

When you are ready to move to Crunchyroll and cancel your Funimation subscription, you may not want to completely delete your Funimation account. Instead, you may wish to keep it alive on a free plan so some details can potentially be transferred in future.

How Do I Transfer My Funimation Account to Crunchyroll?

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For many fans, keeping track of their favourites and watchlists is why they’ve not changed their streaming platform for years.

Crunchyroll has mentioned that it wants to allow Funimation subscribers to transfer their bookmarks and watch history onto their Crunchyroll account. However, they are yet to confirm how that will happen.

As the layouts of both platforms are slightly different, especially in how they present subs and dubs, it will likely take a lot of technical work to ensure everything is transferred correctly.

For now, Funimation subscribers have two options.

If your shows are on Crunchyroll and you want to move over straight away, your best bet in terms of your watchlist is to just make a note for yourself and start again from scratch.

Long-term, Funimation will likely come up with a solution for transferring watchlists, so depending on your subscription, you may wish to keep your Funimation account alive on a free plan until the transfer is ready.

However, a solution still feels a long way away, so we wouldn't bank on this happening anytime soon.

Hopefully, this article has answered some of your questions regarding Funimation. We will be watching for any new developments, so make sure you follow us on Twitter @epicstreamanime or Facebook for the latest news.

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