AT&T has been preparing for something of a fire sale this year, of which DirecTV has been the main talking point, but even seemingly strong content assets are not safe – with anime-focused OTT platform Crunchyroll getting the chop after months of hearsay. It might appear to contradict AT&T’s video streaming strategy, yet Crunchyroll is an expendable part of the empire and the US operator’s long-term masterplan. With Crunchyroll clocking in some impressive figures, now seems like a good time to sell up. But for all Crunchyroll’s content clout and subscriber growth metrics, what has brought the freemium streaming service to the fore of Faultline’s coverage this year is its forward-thinking technological outlook. With an on-demand catalog dating back 10…