Mediaset/RTI Picks Up VIZ Media’s Blue Dragon

PARIS, October 31: VIZ
Media Europe has granted Mediaset/RTI the Italian broadcast, DVD and
merchandising rights for its Blue Dragon anime property.

VIZ Media holds the
licensing rights for the television, home video and non-video-game
merchandising for Blue Dragon in
the Americas, Europe and Oceania.

Produced by Studio
Pierrot, the anime series Blue Dragon debuted in Japan on TV Tokyo in April 2007. It is based on a popular
Xbox 360 role-playing game.

“We are extremely excited
to acquire the terrestrial broadcast and DVD rights to Blue Dragon,” said Francesco Mozzetti, Mediaset acquisition
director for children’s programming. “Italian audiences have a long established
love for anime going back to the 1970s and we are happy to strengthen our
business relationship with VIZ Media and VIZ Media Europe following our
previous license of the MIRMO
anime series. The convergence of anime and gaming is well represented by Blue
Dragon and the series will be a
centerpiece of our future anime offerings.”

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski