Funimation recently made waves with the announcement that the anime company would be acquiring the streaming service of Crunchyroll, but it has, unfortunately, hit the news for a completely different reason as a legally blind person has brought forth an accessibility lawsuit against them. The lawsuit in question was filed with regard to Funimation‘s website which, according to the suit, “failed to design, construct, maintain, and operate its website to be fully accessible to and independently usable by [Angeles] and other blind or visually-impaired people”.
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Funimation was first formed in 1994 with the express intent of licensing the rights of the Dragon Ball franchise to North America. Of course, this move was far more successful than the founders of the company could have ever imagined, eventually elevating the company’s status as one of the major movers and shakers within the world of anime. Since gaining a massive footing following Dragon Ball’s popularity increasing in North America, Funimation has dived further into the world of anime and is currently selling itself as a streaming service with a collection of some of the most well-known series.
The lawsuit in question, filed by Jenisa Angeles, states that Funimation’s website violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, noting that the Funimation Shop part of the site specifically had created the violation with the structure of their layout.
The law in the Southern District of New York states the following in relation to the alleged discrimination:
“No individual shall be discriminated against on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of any place of public accommodation by any person who owns, leases (or leases to), or operates a place of public accommodation.”
Last year, Funimation had to roll with the punches when the coronavirus pandemic had put a monkey wrench into live conventions, releasing their Funimation Con in which they revealed news bites regarding some of their biggest anime franchises. Though plans for this year’s convention are still unknown, we would imagine that it will take place virtually once again considering the success of the original event.
What do you think of this lawsuit filed against Funimation? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime.
