Pokemon anime rights and licensing: who owns what
Pokemon's anime rights are deliberately centralized: one brand-management company, one long-running Japanese broadcast home, and a single US streaming premiere partner.
Published: 2026-08-19. Updated: 2026-08-19.
Short answer: The Pokemon anime's copyright line credits Nintendo, Creatures, Game Freak, TV Tokyo, ShoPro, and JR Kikaku, alongside The Pokemon Company. The Pokemon Company, established April 23, 1998 by the original copyright holders, manages the brand worldwide, with The Pokemon Company International handling the property outside Asia, including the animated TV series. The anime airs on the TV Tokyo network in Japan, and since June 2020 new seasons have premiered exclusively on Netflix in the United States.
Who owns the Pokemon anime?
The official anime page on pokemon.co.jp carries the copyright line: Nintendo, Creatures, Game Freak, TV Tokyo, ShoPro, and JR Kikaku, plus the Pokemon mark. That single line captures the structure: three game-side rights holders, the Japanese broadcaster, the licensing and production company ShoPro (Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions), and advertising agency JR Kikaku.
Day-to-day brand control sits with The Pokemon Company, which was established on April 23, 1998 by the original copyright holders to specialize in Pokemon content. Its stated business covers video games, the card game, videos and apps, license management, and official shops, and the group encompasses 15 companies worldwide.
Who handles Pokemon outside Asia?
The Pokemon Company International, a subsidiary of The Pokemon Company in Japan, manages the property outside Asia. Per its own press materials, its responsibilities include brand management, licensing and marketing, the trading card game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official website.
That makes TPCI the practical licensor for the anime in the Americas, Europe, and other non-Asian markets, while The Pokemon Company and its regional subsidiaries cover Asia through entities such as Pokemon Korea and Pokemon Taiwan. The corporate profile lists a group that also includes Pokemon Center for official shops and Millennium Print Group, keeping much of the commercial chain inside the group.
Documented Pokemon anime rights structure. Sources: pokemon.co.jp, The Pokemon Company, press.pokemon.com.| Party | Role | Rights layer |
|---|
| Nintendo / Creatures / Game Freak | Original copyright holders | Underlying Pokemon property |
| TV Tokyo / ShoPro / JR Kikaku | Broadcast, licensing production, advertising | Anime production-side rights |
| The Pokemon Company | Brand management (Japan) | Worldwide IP management, license management |
| The Pokemon Company International | Brand management (outside Asia) | Animated TV series, licensing, home entertainment |
| Netflix | US streaming licensee | Exclusive US premiere of new seasons since 2020 |
Where the anime airs and streams
In Japan, the current series airs Fridays at 6:55 pm on the TV Tokyo network, per the official anime site, which lists the animated series in continuous production from 1997 onward. TV Tokyo's official anime site carries the current season's episode schedule.
In the United States, The Pokemon Company International and Netflix announced on April 23, 2020 that upcoming seasons would premiere exclusively on Netflix, starting with the first 12 episodes of Pokemon Journeys: The Series on June 12, 2020, with further episodes added quarterly. The same announcement noted that a back catalog of past seasons was already on Netflix, and that the film Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution had debuted globally on the service in February 2020.
Why Pokemon's structure is unusual for anime
Most anime are licensed title by title through production committees. Pokemon instead runs through a single-purpose brand company with regional subsidiaries, which keeps broadcast, streaming, merchandise, and events under coordinated control.
The trade-off is opacity in the other direction: because one company manages everything, there are fewer public deal announcements, and the commercial terms of arrangements like the Netflix premiere are not disclosed.
What is not public about Pokemon's anime rights
The Pokemon Company does not publish a shareholder list on its corporate pages, so the exact ownership stakes of the original copyright holders are not officially stated there. The financial terms of the Netflix arrangement and of TV Tokyo's broadcast relationship are likewise undisclosed.
Older international broadcast and home video contracts from before the 2020 Netflix shift vary by territory and are not centrally documented, which is why historical Pokemon availability differs so much by country.
Ownership uncertainty note: Documented: the six-party credit line, The Pokemon Company's 1998 establishment by the original copyright holders, TPCI's non-Asian remit, and the US Netflix exclusivity from June 2020. Undocumented: equity splits among the copyright holders and the terms of any distribution contract.
Frequently asked questions
Who owns the anime rights to Pokemon?
The anime's copyright line credits Nintendo, Creatures, Game Freak, TV Tokyo, ShoPro, and JR Kikaku. The Pokemon Company, founded in 1998 by the original copyright holders, manages the brand and its licensing worldwide.
Who licenses the Pokemon anime in the US?
The Pokemon Company International manages the property outside Asia. Since June 12, 2020, new seasons of the anime have premiered exclusively on Netflix in the United States.
Where does the Pokemon anime air in Japan?
The current series airs Fridays at 6:55 pm on the TV Tokyo network, according to the official Pokemon anime site.
Is Pokemon owned by Nintendo?
Nintendo is one of the credited copyright holders alongside Creatures and Game Freak, but the anime credit line also includes TV Tokyo, ShoPro, and JR Kikaku. The Pokemon Company manages the property; its equity split is not published on its corporate pages.
Sources and methodology
- The Pokemon Company International and Netflix team up for US premiere of Pokemon Journeys, The Pokemon Company International. April 23, 2020 press release: exclusive US premieres on Netflix from June 12, 2020, and TPCI's role outside Asia.
- Company information, The Pokemon Company. Official corporate profile: established April 23, 1998, business lines including videos and license management, and group subsidiaries.
- Philosophy, The Pokemon Company. States the company was established by the original copyright holders in 1998 and that the group spans 15 companies worldwide.
- Pokemon anime official page, The Pokemon Company / pokemon.co.jp. Official anime page with the six-party copyright line, TV Tokyo network broadcast slot, and series list from 1997.