Abstract
The rapid advancement of technology has made computer animation available to
the masses and the animation industry is one of the fastest growing
industries. The demand for animated entertainment has expanded with the
increase in broadcasting hours by cable and satellite TV along with the
growing popularity of the Internet. In the past, animation series were aimed
at children aged nine and below. In recent years however, TV stations have
been producing animation series for teenagers, adults and the whole family.
Animation series like The Simpsons and King of the Hill have been successfully
aired on primetime TV. The major markets include the United States, Canada,
Japan, France, Britain and Germany. Licensing operations for T-shirts, caps
and other items have also been a major source of revenue for animation
companies. In Japan, several successful computer games have crossed over and
have become animated series like Pokemon, Monster Farm, Power Stone and
Detective Conan. More broadly speaking, animation is increasingly used in
video games, and movies are also increasingly reliant on animation and
computer graphic special effects.
Another key trend we are witnessing is the outsourcing of animation content to
Asia. This market is increasingly being tapped by North American film and
television program producers. The major factor behind this shift of computer
animation production to the Asia/Pacific region continues to be the
availability of low cost, powerful computer animation platforms and much lower
labour rates in the Asian and Pacific Rim countries compared to North America
and Europe. The bulk of the outsourcing happens for 2D animation content with
some amount of 3D content.
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