Konami Cross Media NY’s Mark Kirk looks at how FAST platforms drive engagement for Yu-Gi-Oh!

Great to connect Mark. We’re here to discuss Free Ad-supported Streaming TV – also known as FAST – because the Yu-Gi-Oh! FAST channel enjoyed a 368% increase in minutes viewed shortly after its expanded launch. What specific viewing behaviors are you seeing on FAST platforms compared to traditional SVOD?
What stands out most on FAST is how people watch longer and come back more often. On SVOD, viewing is typically deliberate, and fans press play to watch a specific season or story arc. On FAST, behaviour is more passive and based on dropping in, and viewers land on whatever is already playing, stay for extended sessions and return multiple times throughout the week. It functions more like modern cable, and audiences do not necessarily start at episode one, but once they discover the channel, they keep it on.

For a legacy franchise like Yu-Gi-Oh!, that always-on discoverability is especially effective for younger viewers and lapsed fans. It also reduces the ‘where do I start?’ problem that can happen with a deep library – where too much choice can discourage both new viewers and long-time fans from committing.

Yu-Gi-Oh! is now on Pluto TV, The Roku Channel, and LG Smart TVs. How do you decide which platform gets which specific series or movies?
We do not treat every FAST or streaming service as interchangeable shelf space, because each platform brings viewers in different ways. Some audiences arrive with clear intent and search for a title, while others discover content by browsing, channel surfing, or responding to on-platform promotion – and that difference shapes what we program where.

Our goal is to maximize both audience engagement and partner value, which means tailoring the content mix to each service’s strengths. We look closely at how users discover programming on that platform, how long they typically watch in a session and which demographics over-index there. From that, we decide how to present Yu-Gi-Oh! by choosing which series, which movies and how to package them. Then we continue refining based on the analytics available to ensure the strongest experience for that specific audience.

Yu-Gi-Oh! fans span multiple generations. How are you using FAST channels to reach younger Gen Alpha viewers?
FAST is particularly useful for reaching Gen Alpha because it mirrors how they already encounter entertainment through passive exposure, algorithmic placement and shared screens in the home. Instead of requiring a young viewer to know what to search for, FAST lets the franchise find them first – and that initial contact can spark curiosity.

We also support that discovery with an aggressive approach to short-form content, designed to act as an easy entry point into the world of Yu-Gi-Oh! without asking new viewers to commit to a full season immediately. In practice, a kid might first stumble onto the FAST channel, then explore YouTube clips, then move into trading cards, games or SVOD later. FAST is not the end of the journey – it’s a high-impact top-of-funnel that helps introduce the brand to a new generation.