Yasuo Matsuo, the founder of former U.S.-based licensing agency Cloverway, is back with a new global production outfit called IP Bay — and this one is aiming straight at the international adaptation game.
The new studio is focused on turning Japanese literature into productions for global audiences. IP Bay has offices in Hyogo, Tokyo, New York, and Los Angeles, giving it one foot in Japan’s publishing world and another in the Hollywood production system. The company is making its first market appearance at the Cannes Film Market, which runs from May 12 to May 20, and it has also launched its official website.
For fans in Malaysia and SEA, this is worth keeping an eye on because the next big Japanese adaptation may not only come from the usual anime or manga pipeline. If IP Bay does its job well, we could see more Japanese novels and literary IP being packaged for international film, TV, or streaming projects — the kind of stuff that eventually lands on Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, local cinema releases, or festival circuits around the region.
What IP Bay actually does
IP Bay is positioning itself as a bridge between Japanese rights holders and global producers. Its work includes introducing Japanese intellectual property across different genres to producers and studios overseas, representing rights holders, connecting properties with creative teams, and setting up co-development relationships across territories.
The company also plans to help foreign producers enter the Japanese market, build structured production partnerships, and directly produce adaptations itself. Basically, IP Bay wants to make the adaptation process less messy for both sides: Japanese publishers and authors on one end, global studios and financiers on the other.
Its Japan-based team will work directly with publishers and authors, while the Hollywood side handles packaging, financing, and production partnerships. One key industry hook here is Japan’s 50% production cash rebate, which IP Bay says it can open up to its Hollywood partners. That kind of incentive can be a big deal when studios are deciding where and how to produce a project.
The people behind the studio
Yasuo Matsuo will serve as Chairman of IP Bay. His son, Jun Matsuo, is taking the CEO role, where he will handle publisher engagement, title curation, legal operations, and connections with Japan’s major publishers.
New York-based film producer Frankie Seratch is also on board as Co-Founder and will lead U.S. operations from New York and Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Shinji Sakamoto joins as Japan Operations Advisor. He is a registered member of the Cool Japan Initiative and has direct ties to the Osaka Film Commission and the prefectural government.
That mix of publishing access, U.S. production experience, and government/film commission links tells you the ambition: IP Bay is not just trying to license titles casually. It wants to structure serious cross-border productions.
Why older anime fans may recognise Matsuo’s name
Matsuo’s Cloverway played a major role in distributing anime like Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, Saint Seiya, Slam Dunk, and more in Latin America. Cloverway also produced the English adaptations of Sailor Moon S and Sailor Moon Super S in the U.S.
Beyond Cloverway, Matsuo has served as Toei Animation’s official representative in the Americas and has worked with major Japanese companies including Shueisha, Shogakukan, Nippon Animation, and Tezuka Productions.
That history matters. SEA fans know how powerful Japanese IP can become once it travels properly — from anime airing on TV back in the day to modern simulcasts, cinema releases, and global streaming drops. If IP Bay can unlock more Japanese stories for international production without losing their core identity, this could quietly become an important new player in the adaptation scene.
For now, it’s early days. But with Cannes as its launchpad and offices across Japan and the U.S., IP Bay is clearly entering the market with global ambitions.
Source: Anime News Network