MVM Entertainment
UK anime distribution company
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
MVM Entertainment, also known as MVM or MVM Films, is a British entertainment company focused on licensing, publishing, distributing, and retailing Japanese animation and related niche-market products. The business is headquartered in Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales, and operates within the broader MVM Group, which has included wholesale and retail activities alongside the company’s home-entertainment distribution work. The company began in 1990 as a mail-order operation and retail shop serving specialist audiences. During the 1990s, growing British interest in Japanese animation and manga created an opportunity for MVM to move beyond retail and begin acquiring rights to anime for the United Kingdom. It started licensing anime series for the UK market in 1998, becoming one of the principal specialist distributors serving audiences that were not always covered by larger general-entertainment companies. MVM’s business has involved both direct licensing from Japanese rights holders and sub-licensing arrangements with North American anime companies that lacked a substantial UK distribution operation. Partners and rights sources mentioned in connection with its catalogue have included Media Blasters, Geneon, Nozomi Entertainment, Urban Vision, AnimEigo, and US Manga Corps. The company has released television series and films primarily through home-entertainment formats, historically including Region 2 DVD releases. Some editions were jointly mastered or prepared with Australian distributors such as Madman Entertainment and Hanabee, allowing production costs to be shared and creating releases compatible with both Region 2 and Region 4 markets. Its catalogue has covered major Japanese franchises and a broad range of genres, including action, fantasy, science fiction, comedy, romance, and slice-of-life animation. Recognized properties associated with its licensing and distribution activity include the Monogatari series, the Fate franchise, Girls und Panzer, Berserk, Samurai Champloo, Tenchi Muyo!, No Game No Life, Land of the Lustrous, Flip Flappers, Toradora!, The Garden of Sinners, and Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai. The company has listed more than 250 titles on its official website, although catalogue size and availability change as rights expire, are renewed, or move between distributors. MVM’s market position has been shaped by changes in the UK anime-distribution landscape. Until late 2006, it distributed Funimation titles in the United Kingdom, but Funimation moved its British distribution arrangement to Revelation Films from early 2007. That change was associated with Funimation’s acquisition by Navarre Corporation, which already had distribution links with Revelation. Losing access to several prominent titles affected MVM’s market share, although the company retained or later reacquired selected properties where rights were obtained directly from Japanese licensors or became available again. Examples include titles connected with GONZO and later re-licensing activity involving Chobits, Fruits Basket, and Kiddy Grade. The company also responded to structural pressures affecting physical media. In 2018, owner Tony Allen explained that MVM would begin removing DVD from new acquisitions, following similar decisions by industry partners. The policy was driven by the economics of maintaining multiple physical formats: minimum manufacturing runs divided sales between formats, while warehousing unsold and slow-moving inventory became increasingly expensive. The transition away from DVD for new acquisitions formally began in the fourth quarter of 2018. MVM has received recognition from specialist anime media. It won Neo Magazine’s Best Anime Distributor award in 2006 and again in 2009, competing in a UK market that included distributors such as Beez and Manga Entertainment UK. Today, MVM remains principally associated with specialist anime licensing and distribution in the UK, supported by the wider MVM Group’s wholesale, retail, and merchandise activities.
History
MVM Entertainment was established in 1990 as a mail-order business and retail shop serving specialist and niche-market customers. Its early activities were connected with products such as anime, manga, and related merchandise, at a time when Japanese popular culture was gaining a more visible following in the United Kingdom. As demand grew during the 1990s, MVM expanded from retail into rights licensing and began licensing anime series for the UK market in 1998. The company developed as a specialist alternative to larger entertainment distributors. Its catalogue combined titles licensed directly from Japanese producers and rights holders with sub-licensed properties sourced from North American companies that did not maintain a substantial UK presence. Such arrangements allowed MVM to bring additional anime series and films to British audiences through home-entertainment releases. The company historically concentrated on Region 2 DVD distribution, while some titles were developed jointly with Australian businesses including Madman Entertainment and Hanabee. These shared releases could serve both Region 2 and Region 4 territories and helped distribute production costs across multiple markets. MVM’s catalogue has included well-known and specialist titles from a number of Japanese studios, publishers, and rights owners. Properties associated with its activities include the Monogatari series, the Fate franchise, Girls und Panzer, Berserk, Samurai Champloo, Tenchi Muyo!, No Game No Life, Land of the Lustrous, Flip Flappers, Toradora!, The Garden of Sinners, and Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai. The catalogue has exceeded 250 listed titles at points in the company’s development, covering television animation, films, and related products. A major change came through MVM’s relationship with Funimation. Until November 2006, MVM distributed Funimation titles in the United Kingdom. Funimation subsequently appointed Revelation Films as its UK distributor from early 2007. The move was widely associated with Funimation’s acquisition by Navarre Corporation, which already had a distribution relationship with Revelation. MVM consequently lost access to some high-profile titles, including properties such as Fruits Basket and Fullmetal Alchemist. It nevertheless preserved access to selected titles where rights were held or obtained directly from Japanese companies, including GONZO-related properties such as Samurai 7 and Burst Angel. MVM later re-licensed several previously unavailable titles, including Chobits, Fruits Basket, and Kiddy Grade, as rights became available. The company received recognition from specialist anime publication Neo Magazine. It won the magazine’s Best Anime Distributor award in 2006 and again in 2009, competing in a market that included Beez and Manga Entertainment UK. These awards reflected MVM’s continuing visibility among UK anime consumers and retailers. By the late 2010s, the economics of physical media had become a central strategic issue. In a 2018 interview, owner Tony Allen explained that MVM planned to stop including DVD in new acquisitions. The company faced minimum production quantities on multiple formats, sales being divided between those formats, and rising warehouse costs for unsold or slow-moving stock. The formal change began in the fourth quarter of 2018 and aligned MVM with similar format decisions by partners such as Sentai Filmworks and Madman Entertainment. MVM operates as part of the MVM Group, whose activities have included wholesale and retail operations in addition to licensing and distribution. Its present identity remains that of a specialist British anime business: a rights licensor and distributor with a catalogue spanning Japanese television animation, films, manga-related products, and merchandise, and with a market role shaped by licensing availability, format changes, and the economics of specialist physical-media publishing.
- 2018
Transition away from DVD for new acquisitions
[1]MVM announced that new acquisitions would begin to exclude DVD, with the transition starting in the fourth quarter.
- 2009
Second Neo Magazine distributor award
[1]MVM received Neo Magazine’s Best Anime Distributor award for a second time.
- 2007
Funimation changes UK distributor
[1]Funimation shifted its UK distribution arrangement from MVM to Revelation Films.
- 2006
First Neo Magazine distributor award
[1]MVM won Neo Magazine’s Best Anime Distributor award.
- 1998
MVM enters UK anime licensing
[1]The company began licensing anime series for the United Kingdom as demand for Japanese animation and manga expanded.
- 1990
MVM begins as a specialist mail-order and retail business
[1]MVM was established as a mail-order operation and retail shop serving niche-market customers.
Products and positioning
A specialist UK anime licensor, distributor, and retailer serving niche audiences through Japanese animation, manga, physical and home-entertainment releases, and related merchandise.
Licensed animation · 1998
Anime television series
MVM’s core catalogue consists of licensed Japanese animated television series. Its releases have covered both established franchises and newer titles across action, fantasy, science fiction, romance, comedy, and slice-of-life categories. Associated properties include the Monogatari series, Fate, Girls und Panzer, Toradora!, No Game No Life, Land of the Lustrous, Flip Flappers, and Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai.
Film distribution
Anime films
The company has licensed and distributed Japanese animated films alongside television series. Its film activity forms part of a broader specialist anime catalogue and has historically been delivered through physical home-entertainment products and related rights arrangements.
Home entertainment · 1998
Anime home-entertainment releases
MVM has historically issued anime titles on Region 2 DVD, with some jointly produced releases also compatible with Region 4 markets. In response to manufacturing and warehousing pressures, the company announced that DVD would be removed from new acquisitions beginning in the fourth quarter of 2018.
Specialist retail · 1990
Manga and anime merchandise
MVM’s wider group activities include retail and wholesale operations specializing in manga, anime-related goods, and merchandise. These products complement the company’s licensing and home-entertainment catalogue and reflect its origins as a niche mail-order and retail business.
Brand decisions
2018
Remove DVD from new acquisitionsStrategyBackground
MVM faced minimum manufacturing runs for multiple physical formats, divided demand between DVD and other formats, and increasing storage costs for unsold or slow-moving stock.
Action taken
The company decided to stop including DVD in new acquisitions, beginning the transition in the fourth quarter of 2018.
Aftermath
The decision aligned MVM with format changes by partners including Sentai Filmworks and Madman Entertainment and represented a shift in its physical-media strategy.
Recent events
- 2018
MVM announces a move away from DVD for new acquisitions[1]
Product generation
Owner Tony Allen stated that MVM would begin dropping DVD from new acquisitions because of manufacturing minimums, divided demand between formats, and rising storage costs. The change began in the fourth quarter of 2018.
- 2009
MVM wins Neo Magazine distributor award again[1]
Other
MVM was again named Best Anime Distributor by Neo Magazine amid competition from other UK anime distributors.
- 2007
MVM changes UK distribution arrangements after Funimation move[1]
Other
Funimation moved its United Kingdom distribution relationship from MVM to Revelation Films. The change reduced MVM’s access to a number of prominent Funimation properties, although MVM retained selected titles licensed directly from Japanese rights holders.
- 2006
MVM wins Neo Magazine Best Anime Distributor award[1]
Other
MVM received Neo Magazine’s Best Anime Distributor award, recognizing its role in the UK anime market.
Sources2 sources
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