iaTV and Tokyopop enter anime partnership

iaTV, America’s only 24/7 television network for Asian pop culture, announced a program acquisition deal and strategic ad sales partnership with TOKYOPOP, the leading publisher and distributor of manga-oriented entertainment.

Through this agreement, iaTV’s ad sales team will represent the advertising sales activities for TOKYOPOP’s digital assets including www.TOKYOPOP.com, brand integration within original and user-generated video content, mobile advertising and other applications. TOKYOPOP.com averages over five million page views per month and over 400,000 unique visitors (according to Google Analytics), 70 percent of which are in the valuable tween and teenage demographics, and 60 percent of which are female.

Programming acquired by iaTV from TOKYOPOP includes two popular Japanese anime series – Initial D and Psychic Academy – and anime film Spring and Chaos have also been acquired, with Initial D being televised Monday through Friday, beginning September 1, at 5:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. PT and Psychic Academy joining the network’s Tuesday primetime A-Pop lineup at 10:30 p.m. PT on September 9. Also coming to iaTV are several short-form (three- to four-minute) ‘iManga’ series: bite-sized programs based on TOKYOPOP’s top manga titles, combining animation with still art, music and English voiceovers. In addition, iaTV has acquired the hardcore FMW Wrestling, which will air Fridays at 10 p.m. PT starting September 12, leading out of Pancrase: Legends of Mixed Martial Arts, and creating of a two-hour primetime block of male skewing sports entertainment.

Here's a clip of Initial D