Crunchyroll agrees to pay $30,000 to eligible users in class-action lawsuit

Anime streaming service Crunchyroll has to pay $30,000 to eligible users after reaching a settlement in a class-action lawsuit.

The anime industry is in the midst of a major boom with Western audiences. Most recently, the One Piece live adaptation shattered records, hitting the first spot on Netflix’s Top 10 TV chart in 84 different countries. One Piece surpassed Wednesday and Stranger Things, earning a second-season renewal.

And anime streaming services only benefit from an increase in visibility. In August, One Piece became the first anime to crash Crunchyroll two weeks in a row. The streaming service has arguably established itself as the king of the medium but has recently found itself under fire.

In November 2022, an English voice actor called out Crunchyroll for lack of Jujutsu Kaizen residual payments. And this time around, the streaming service is being forced to pay users because of a user information privacy class action lawsuit.

Crunchyroll settles in user information privacy class action lawsuit

In September 2022, Crunchyroll allegedly released personally identifiable information from subscribers to several third-party companies like Facebook, which suit filers Salvador Beltran, Eli Gross, and others claimed violated the United States’ Video Privacy Protection Act.

According to the Kroll Settlement Administration, Crunchyroll will pay claimants an equal portion of a $30,000 settlement amount, with estimates suggesting that anyone submitting a claim form for the suit will likely receive up to $30.

There is no concrete information at this time about when eligible users who submit a claim form may receive payment, though the deadline for submission is Dec. 12. Eligible users should receive an email with information about the potential payout, and all eligible users can find the claim form on Kroll Settlement Administration’s official website.

For more, check out the rest of our anime coverage.