Viz Media Tabs Gagan Singh to Head New Viz Labs Tech Unit

Continuing to expand its digital distribution technology, manga and anime publisher/distributor Viz Media, is launching Viz Labs, a new division at the company that will consolidate its engineering and digital business platforms into a single unit. Gagan Singh, formerly CEO of West Side Labs, a Viz Media technology partner, has been appointed executive v-p and CTO of Viz Lab and will direct the new technology division.

Gagan, who also founded West Side Labs, has advanced tech degrees from Harvard, MIT and UC Berkeley and while CEO of West Side Labs partnered with Viz Media to develop the digital technology implemented through out Viz Media, including VizManga.com, Viz’s online manga for displaying and buying new manga content, and VizAnime.com, a portal that streams anime online.

“Innovation in distribution is an integral part of VIZ Media’s future,” said Ken Sasaki, recently promoted president and CEO of Viz Media. “As a long-time partner of the company, Gagan helped us shape our digital content strategy, and we’re delighted to have him join our team full time.”

While many Japanese manga publishers have been criticized for dragging their feet on developing digital distribution of their content, over the last two to three years Viz has challenged that notion, offering streaming anime online, Viz Manga apps for mobile devices offering hundreds of volumes of manga content at reasonable prices and shut down its popular monthly print anthology Weekly Shonen Jump and replaced it with Weekly Shonen Jump Alpha, a weekly digital anthology offering near-simultaneous English translation of its originally Japanese language manga content. Viz also has variety of content deals with online content hubs like Hulu, Netflix and Apple.

Singh said, “With all Viz Media has already accomplished in building a digital content platform, there is still phenomenal opportunity and growth potential for the company. Viz Labs will be the tip of the spear to drive the innovation that brings the manga & anime our fans love through their preferred digital platform.”