HIDIVE

HIDIVE launched in June 2017 as the successor to Anime Network Online, a service that had limped along after the collapse of A.D. Vision in 2009. Sentai Filmworks, the Texas-based distributor behind hits like Food Wars! and Made in Abyss, built HIDIVE from the ground up with a specific philosophy: give fans a reason to watch together. From day one, the service offered live chat during streams, letting subscribers react in real time as new episodes dropped. That community-first approach became HIDIVE's calling card.

For a brief period starting in 2018, HIDIVE was available as a channel on Crunchyroll's VRV platform, giving it exposure to a wider audience. That partnership ended when Sony bought Crunchyroll in 2021 and began consolidating its anime properties. Later that same year, AMC Networks acquired HIDIVE along with Sentai Filmworks in a deal whose financial terms were never disclosed. The service now operates under AMC Global Media, a subsidiary of AMC Networks.

HIDIVE's library is smaller than Crunchyroll's, but it's carefully curated. The service specializes in uncensored streams of series like Interspecies Reviewers and High School DxD, which other platforms often edit. It also simulcasts around 10 to 15 new shows each season, including exclusives like Oshi no Ko and Eminence in Shadow. In December 2023, HIDIVE restricted its service to the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, cutting off viewers in other regions. Despite that, the service remains active in 2025, adding classic titles and new simulcasts each season.[edit]