A bit late, but I had been wanting to write a post about this piece of news.
Basically, Nippon TV, one of the biggest TV broadcasters in Japan, has acquired (aka bought over) Studio Ghibli.
In his latest film The Boy and the Heron, director Miyazaki Hayao made it clear that his son Goro will not succeed him. Given that director Miyazaki Hayao made a film just to announce this fact to the world, I don't think Goro would ever be able to agree to take over the studio even if the studio's management had asked him to. It is like director Miyazaki Hayao saying, "Goro, you aren't fit to take over. I would rather sell the studio than let you have it."
At the same time, Nippon TV seems to be aiming to venture big into anime. It will soon be airing the anime adaptation of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (葬送のフリーレン), even going so far as to create a new anime time slot in its TV programming. Previously, anime such as That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime (which was rebroadcast on the network) aired in the middle of the night, around 1 a.m. This is hardly what can be called a prime time slot. However, Frieren's first episode will be on Friday night 9 p.m.'s prime time "Kin-yo Roadshow" slot that usually shows popular movies as well as Ghibli and Detective Conan movies (and Violet Evergarden series). Following episodes will air on Friday night too, at a time slot after this prime time slot (planned timing is 11 p.m., but depending on the length of the movie being show in the Kin-yo Roadshow slot, this could be pushed back a bit). This is a significant move by the broadcaster and hints that it plans to venture big into anime from here.
If so, acquiring Studio Ghibli means it gains the rights to the past movies (which it had been rebroadcasting quite often in the Kin-yo Roadshow slot), but also an established studio that can be used to produce future anime series or movies. For example, although Frieren is being produced by Mad House, the director is not an employee of Mad House, and future seasons may well be produced with the same core staff but at another studio (including Studio Ghibli).
Well, now that Studio Ghibli is under a different management, I think it also means that we will no longer be able to see new Miyazaki Hayao works, although they may still be people trying to imitate his style. He can finally retire, knowing that the studio he painstakingly built will be in better hands than those of Goro.
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