In contrast, earlier this month Netflix announced a deal worth an estimated $1 billion to gain access to shows on the CW network. On Friday, Hulu struck a five-year deal worth significantly less to broadcast CW shows like “Gossip Girl” and “Vampire Diaries.”

Typically shown with subtitles and known for characters with wide glimmering eyes and elongated bodies, anime stands at the center of Hulu’s strategy to differentiate itself from TV watched the old-fashioned way. “Networks might be happy to get a show that 20 million people kind of like,” said Andy Forssell, Hulu’s senior vice president for content. “We’re more interested in finding a show that a million people love to death.”

In Japan, anime varies from children’s programming to sports, romantic comedies and even public service announcements and pornography. The shows that resonate in the United States tend to be action-driven, with lots of violence, as well as sexually provocative shows. The small but avid audience is made up of mostly male viewers aged 18 to 34. Distributors said comedies, sports shows and anything aimed at women tend to not work.

Hulu has 9,500 episodes of anime titles. Earlier this month it signed a deal with the anime distribution company FUNimation Entertainment to show five new subtitled series within 48 hours of their original broadcast in Japan. Netflix offers 4,000 anime episodes for streaming.

This month four of the top 40 titles on Hulu and its subscription service, Hulu Plus, are anime. “Naruto: Shippuden,” a continuation of the popular “Naruto,” which shows the young ninja leave his village to train, is the sixth most popular series on Hulu Plus, competing with episodes of “Family Guy” on Fox and “The Office” on NBC.