Hey now, don't forget providing an "anime weeb myspace" service for underaged kids to get groomed and harassed on. That was a crucial part of their rise above all the other fansub hosting sites.
Not to mention marketing themselves as the "legit" way to pay for anime streaming, skimming off most of the money for themselves and using the funds to launch their own shit-tier, CalArts anime instead of buying more series/paying creators.
yeah, all they had to do was just licence things set back and collect the money and maybe once in abit get something translated... instead they tried to sublimate anime with watever high gardian spoice was.
So this confuses me. They were a pirate site, and everyone knew they were pirate site, and then an investment company drops millions of dollars into them so they can go legit.
Doesn't that just expose the investment to lawsuits from all the companies whose content they were pirating? I mean, a studio may send a cease and desist letter but never pursue serious court action because there's no assets to take from a website that's run by a couple of college students. But once they get an influx if cash, now there's something worth suing over. Even if they stopped posting pirated content, shouldn't their previous acts still be subject to litigation?
Clearly that didn't happen, but I'm just wondering why.
There's probably some whack-ass reason involving a combination of Japanese IP laws, said Japanese companies not giving a fuck, with the added potential of 'It's free advertising' for said companies.
Japanese companies can do this thing that western companies seem to have forgotten how to do, think about the future. Why sue and get a one time payment, or maybe a small yearly payment, when you can take the deal, and make money from streaming for years and years to come and actually expand the audience paying for your content in an entirely new part of the world?
Is it really all that different than how pornhub strong-armed the porn industry into making them legit only after letting millions of people host illegally ripped movies, or how Youtube convinced the record labels to give them favorable terms after letting millions of people upload random songs on the platform for years? How about Spotify saturated the entire world in streaming music until the record companies finally realized that this was the new paradigm and signed deals with them? (Spotify did what Napster couldn't) Or how uber ignored local laws in some places that made private taxi services illegal until everyone saw how much better it was and forced politicians to look the other way? (becoming so ubiquitous that now the mere threat of removing uber from a city is enough to change the law) The first person who breaks the law gets to keep the jewels - then they help change the law so nobody else can do the same.
To answer your question directly, the business proposition led to more continuing profits than the lawsuit against the investors would have raised. An offer they couldn't refuse.
What always confused me though was why crunchroll remained dominant even after Japanese saw there was demand. Why couldn't another company convince them that it's time for a new business model, or start competing services? Vic Mignogna for example should have lots of contacts in Japan. The Japanese companies
themselves could simply stream their original content in a region-unlocked form and get subscribers from all over the world. Maybe let users upload subs the way YouTube used to do.
If you're in the US and have a Crunchyroll subscription, you can file a claim and get $30 for this in damages (which I know why bother but may as well)
Sony are idiots when they should just do the Amazon prime model of integrating Crunchyroll with PS+ instead of shady shit like this. Stick to the high seas as it's safer than trusting these idiots with your info.
If some organization actually offered real translations for legal distribution, non-crippled streaming capability, and some of my money would go back to the original studio, I absolutely would pay.
Use Japanese middleman services to buy franchise directly tied to specific anime.
Congratulations, by doing so and even buying as little as t-shirt you already supported the content creators of your thing more than having a Crunchyroll subscription for an entire year.
Unironically, if Japan cut out the middle men, set up a streaming service that every studio can use and the government takes 10%, it'd probably bring in more money than taxes.
This is basically what Gabe said about piracy when he was talking about Steam, it's a service issue and right now all the streaming services are shit.
Normies. It's normies who pay to watch anime. This is just another item in the pile of evidence for the importance of gatekeeping normies out of everything you care about.
This is my main point of contention. Communist jannies now translate your favorite anime, your favorite studio hardly sees a red cent, normies have flooded your hobby - what's more, what profit they do see makes them pander more to what they see as modern western values. To top it all off, Crunchyroll sold all your info. GG.
You're basically throwing your money away and the Japanese hate you just as much if you were to pirate their export, all while getting fucked. It isn't the morally superior option despite all the shoulda, coulda, woulda around the topic.
It's better to just pirate and then buy the merch.
Pretty much, even some of the scumiest Youtubers get more respect from me by warning others 'hey there's an issue with this company, your info is at risk' when the 'wholesome and friendly' ones stay silent.
Daily reminder that Crunchyroll got their business started by making money off of other people's fansubs of anime.
They're a piece of shit company. Don't give them money.
Hey now, don't forget providing an "anime weeb myspace" service for underaged kids to get groomed and harassed on. That was a crucial part of their rise above all the other fansub hosting sites.
Not to mention marketing themselves as the "legit" way to pay for anime streaming, skimming off most of the money for themselves and using the funds to launch their own shit-tier, CalArts anime instead of buying more series/paying creators.
yeah, all they had to do was just licence things set back and collect the money and maybe once in abit get something translated... instead they tried to sublimate anime with watever high gardian spoice was.
So this confuses me. They were a pirate site, and everyone knew they were pirate site, and then an investment company drops millions of dollars into them so they can go legit.
Doesn't that just expose the investment to lawsuits from all the companies whose content they were pirating? I mean, a studio may send a cease and desist letter but never pursue serious court action because there's no assets to take from a website that's run by a couple of college students. But once they get an influx if cash, now there's something worth suing over. Even if they stopped posting pirated content, shouldn't their previous acts still be subject to litigation?
Clearly that didn't happen, but I'm just wondering why.
There's probably some whack-ass reason involving a combination of Japanese IP laws, said Japanese companies not giving a fuck, with the added potential of 'It's free advertising' for said companies.
But I could be completely off.
Japanese companies can do this thing that western companies seem to have forgotten how to do, think about the future. Why sue and get a one time payment, or maybe a small yearly payment, when you can take the deal, and make money from streaming for years and years to come and actually expand the audience paying for your content in an entirely new part of the world?
Is it really all that different than how pornhub strong-armed the porn industry into making them legit only after letting millions of people host illegally ripped movies, or how Youtube convinced the record labels to give them favorable terms after letting millions of people upload random songs on the platform for years? How about Spotify saturated the entire world in streaming music until the record companies finally realized that this was the new paradigm and signed deals with them? (Spotify did what Napster couldn't) Or how uber ignored local laws in some places that made private taxi services illegal until everyone saw how much better it was and forced politicians to look the other way? (becoming so ubiquitous that now the mere threat of removing uber from a city is enough to change the law) The first person who breaks the law gets to keep the jewels - then they help change the law so nobody else can do the same.
To answer your question directly, the business proposition led to more continuing profits than the lawsuit against the investors would have raised. An offer they couldn't refuse.
What always confused me though was why crunchroll remained dominant even after Japanese saw there was demand. Why couldn't another company convince them that it's time for a new business model, or start competing services? Vic Mignogna for example should have lots of contacts in Japan. The Japanese companies themselves could simply stream their original content in a region-unlocked form and get subscribers from all over the world. Maybe let users upload subs the way YouTube used to do.
If you're in the US and have a Crunchyroll subscription, you can file a claim and get $30 for this in damages (which I know why bother but may as well)
Sony are idiots when they should just do the Amazon prime model of integrating Crunchyroll with PS+ instead of shady shit like this. Stick to the high seas as it's safer than trusting these idiots with your info.
Do bother. That money will sit in a central account for a few years and get eaten up by the lawyers and the government.
True, wonder if we can hit them using EU law too because for as shit they are, they seem the best at dealing massive fines to companies.
So free accounts weren't affected? Haven't logged into Crunchy in a long while and this is news to me.
I mean if you happen to be American, try to claim the $30 even if it is a free account, fuck'em.
Imagine paying to watch anime.
If some organization actually offered real translations for legal distribution, non-crippled streaming capability, and some of my money would go back to the original studio, I absolutely would pay.
Crunchyroll is not that organization.
Use Japanese middleman services to buy franchise directly tied to specific anime.
Congratulations, by doing so and even buying as little as t-shirt you already supported the content creators of your thing more than having a Crunchyroll subscription for an entire year.
Unironically, if Japan cut out the middle men, set up a streaming service that every studio can use and the government takes 10%, it'd probably bring in more money than taxes.
This is basically what Gabe said about piracy when he was talking about Steam, it's a service issue and right now all the streaming services are shit.
It wasn't a service issue in his case when he offered ridiculous control over our games to publishers.
WatchCartoonOnline ... exists.
Back in the VHS and early DVD days we didn't have much choice.
At least I still have the DVDs after paying for them one time.
Normies. It's normies who pay to watch anime. This is just another item in the pile of evidence for the importance of gatekeeping normies out of everything you care about.
This is my main point of contention. Communist jannies now translate your favorite anime, your favorite studio hardly sees a red cent, normies have flooded your hobby - what's more, what profit they do see makes them pander more to what they see as modern western values. To top it all off, Crunchyroll sold all your info. GG.
You're basically throwing your money away and the Japanese hate you just as much if you were to pirate their export, all while getting fucked. It isn't the morally superior option despite all the shoulda, coulda, woulda around the topic.
It's better to just pirate and then buy the merch.
Pretty much, even some of the scumiest Youtubers get more respect from me by warning others 'hey there's an issue with this company, your info is at risk' when the 'wholesome and friendly' ones stay silent.
Integrity is a rarity nowadays..
If you want to support your favorite anime, then you’re better off buying the OST, merch, or manga/light novel.
Pretty much, only problem is shipping and storage with that approach.