It was launched on December 31, 2015, replacing Funimation Channel, after Funimation ended their partnership with Olympusat. Tristan Leostar is the content aggregator for the network.
The Funimation Channel launched on September 29, 2005, as a joint venture between Funimation and Olympusat, it became the second 24-hour anime digital cable network in North America (the first being A.D. Vision's Anime Network).[3][4] Olympusat was the exclusive distributor of the channel.[4]
On May 1, 2008, Funimation Channel became a 24-hour English-dubbed anime subscription network; the second of its kind in North America (following A.D. Vision's Anime Network).[5] Olympusat was chosen as the exclusive distributor of Funimation Channel.[6] The service originally was available to a few cities via digital terrestrial television and was temporary-only as the channel was trying to gain a foothold in the already-crowded pay television landscape.
In May 2009, Funimation Channel continued its expansion on subscription providers launching on Comcast's VOD platform [7] and offering two services - Free on demand and PPV on demand. The PPV VOD offers viewers a chance to watch titles prior to their DVD release.[8]
As of September 27, 2010, Funimation launched an HD feed alongside existing VOD services.[9] On February 16, 2012, Verizon announced that it will drop Funimation Channel from its Verizon FiOS service "on, or after March 15" due to "very low viewership".[10] In response to reaction from its customers, Verizon returned Funimation Channel via VOD.[11] Channel 262 remains on the FiOS system operated by Frontier Communications in some ex-Verizon territories.[12]Cablevision's Optimum TV recently launched[13] FUNimation Channel On Demand in the NY/NJ/CT Tri-State area. Adding this MSO increased FUNimation Channel's footprint to over 40 million households nationwide.
On December 8, 2015, it was reported that the channel would change its name to Toku on December 31, 2015, and would start broadcasting live-action, grindhouse and independent East Asian movies.[14][15] It was subsequently announced, on December 15, 2015, that Funimation would end its partnership with Olympusat, and announced plans to relaunch Funimation Channel in 2016.[16]
On March 14, 2016, Olympusat announced a localized version of Toku in Latin America, named Toku Español.[17] However, as of 2022, the channel is yet to be launched in the region.
On July 25, 2016, it was announced that Toku was going to be launched in the FlixFling streaming service by early 2017, but to date, that never happened.[18] On June 8, 2017, it was announced that Toku is available on Amazon Channels as a streaming service for members of Amazon Prime, offering channel content on demand for US$4.00 per month, after a 7-day free trial.[19][20]
On May 22, 2018, Toku launches a beta version of its new streaming service WatchTOKU.com for the United States and Canada, which includes channel content and future releases, as well as embedded forums. The service, powered by Vimeo, costs either US$4.00 per month or US$40.00 per year. This is Toku's official debut outside the United States, being available for the first time in Canada.[22]
The channel is available in streaming through its WatchToku.com streaming service, as well as its Amazon Prime channel. It was formerly available on Go90.
