Anime Type

Anime types represent the medium for which an anime was first released.

unknown

Anime that has no type set yet. Generally for anime that hasn't been released yet.

TV Series

Anime that is first released as a series on TV.

OVA

Original Video Animations (OVA) are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats (e.g. VHS, DVD, BluRay).

Original Animation Discs (OAD) are animated films and series made specially for release as an item bundled with something else, such as a manga, light novel, visual novel, etc.

Movie

Anime that is first released as a movie in theatres.

Other

Anime that doesn't fall into any other category.

Web

Anime that is first released as streaming media.

Original Net Animations (ONA) fall into the Web category, rather than the OVA category as the name may otherwise suggest.

TV Special

Anime that is first released as a one-off, (generally) non-recurring episode/movie on TV. A TV special can have multiple episodes.
A notable differentiation from a normal TV series is that TV specials generally are not serialized. Further, if Japan/China/Korea specifies that it is a TV special, it is probably a TV special.

Music Video

We classify anime as the Music Video (MV) type in the following situations:

Scenario	Description	Outcome
1	MVs not related to any existing and/or newly announced anime	By default, add to AniDB as an MV type anime unless there's a reason not to do so.
2	MVs related to an existing and/or newly announced anime, and are sold/distributed separately, e.g. with a CD single	By default, add to AniDB as an MV type anime unless there's a reason not to do so.
3	MVs related to an existing and/or newly announced anime, and are not sold/distributed separately	Assess on a case-by-case basis using moderator discretion. Decision criteria could include, but is not limited to, the following considerations. This list is not exhaustive and not prescriptive. Even if some criteria are met or not met, moderator discretion should be exercised on a case-by-case basis. Airing time gap between the MV and the related anime: the longer the gap, the more likely the MV is a standalone anime Whether the MV covers the whole song: if it does not, it more likely is not a standalone anime. Relation between the distribution channel of the MV and the anime: if the MV was first published by a record label or a company credited as doing "music work" in the related anime, the MV more likely is a standalone anime. If the MV does not meet the definition of an MV anime entry, it should be added to the related anime's entry as an S episode instead.