HIDIVE and Mainichi Broadcasting System Sign Largest Anime Output Deal Yet
HIDIVE has signed a new multi-year exclusive anime output deal with Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS), locking in the streaming platform's largest content programming agreement to date. The deal means HIDIVE will exclusively simulcast MBS's upcoming slate of anime series — that is, stream each episode shortly after its Japanese broadcast — as titles roll out over coming seasons, according to Variety.
The agreement expands a partnership that began in 2023, under which HIDIVE already held exclusive worldwide rights to distribute select MBS anime outside Asia. That earlier alliance brought HIDIVE titles including My Gift Lvl 9999 Unlimited Gacha, I Parry Everything, The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior, and Hell Mode: The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World With Garbage Balancing.
Under the new terms, the MBS series will be available to HIDIVE subscribers in six territories: the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Ireland.
The deal's first title is Nia Liston: The Merciless Maiden, a fantasy action series adapted from the light novel by Minamino Umikaze, with illustrations by Katana Canata and Jishaku. The show debuts stateside on 21 August 2026 during Anime NYC, ahead of joining HIDIVE's Fall 2026 Simulcast Season lineup when it premieres in Japan in October. A trailer was unveiled alongside the deal announcement. A special screening of the first three episodes is also scheduled for 22 September 2026, per Crunchyroll News.
Nakanishi Motoki directs, with Segi Haruta as assistant director, series composition by Ichikawa Gigaemon, and production by Konami Animation. Inoue Honoka stars as the protagonist Nia Liston.
On the HIDIVE side, president John Ledford oversees the platform. Representing MBS is director Shibata Mihoko. Mainichi Broadcasting System, headquartered in Osaka, began radio broadcasts in 1951 and terrestrial television in 1959. Over more than 50 years, the broadcaster has co-produced and aired anime with credits including Attack on Titan, Full Metal Alchemist, Jujutsu Kaisen, Dan Da Dan, and Akira.
For anime fans outside Asia, the practical effect is straightforward: a pipeline of MBS-produced series will land on HIDIVE as exclusive simulcasts, season after season, rather than being split across competing platforms or licensed market by market. The first test of that pipeline arrives in three weeks, when Nia Liston screens at Anime NYC.
