Anime NYC is already one of the biggest anime fan events in North America, and it’s increasingly becoming a business destination for an array of global companies in the anime/manga content business.
Now organizers are bumping it up a notch by partnering with X Tracks Licensing for a co-located licensing summit, described as “the First Executive Forum Devoted Anime, Manga, Gaming, and Asian Pop Culture Licensing.”
The Anime NYC and X Tracks Licensing Summit will be invite-only and held Thursday August 20, 2026 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York, NY.
X Tracks is a company that puts on executive -level licensing summits, and has already partnered with the Toy Association, the Bentonville Film Festival, and the Fashion Institute of Technology for other events.
The Anime/manga sector is certainly a strong place to explore business opportunities. The global anime industry already does $25 billion in business, with some estimates putting it at $77 billion by 2032.
The Licensing Summit will address all of that:
Programming will include presentations and panels featuring major players in the Anime world including VIZ Media, Kodansha, Striker Entertainment, Patencio Development, BioWorld, and Mad Engine to name a few. Additionally, there will be VIP discussions and networking opportunities.
The Anime NYC X Tracks Licensing Summit will tap into some of the following topics:
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- The Global Rise of Anime & Manga Licensing
- Gaming IP: From Console to Consumer Products
- The Korean Wave
- From Fandom to Retail
- The Power of Collectibles & Kidult Culture
“Anime is now one of the fastest-growing sectors in global licensing,” stated MK Goodwin, VP at LeftField Media, the events company that organizes Anime NYC. “The core market of anime and manga is nearly a 50 billion dollar industry, and is projected to grow to over 120 billion dollars by 2033. The licensing aspects tied to anime and manga are expected to outpace the core content market. It’s time we addressed this business, and what better place than at Anime NYC.”
Steven Ekstract, Co-Founder of X Tracks Licensing Summits, added, “We’re thrilled to partner with Leftfield Media and Anime NYC to launch a dedicated X Tracks Licensing Summit focused on the explosive growth of Asian entertainment and its impact on global licensing and retail. Since our founding in 2022, anime and manga have been cornerstone topics at X Tracks—now, for the first time, we’re dedicating an entire day to the fandom-driven forces reshaping the business.”
Interested parties can apply to attend here.
