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Point vs. Counterpoint
 January 2003 Debate Topic:
Should people keep distrobuting fansubbed anime, even when the series is licensed?
With more and more anime fans coming online, it's become much easier to find and swap fansubbed anime episodes. Fansubs are a great way to watch new anime, but what about when the series in question gets licensed? Many people continue to distrobute the fansubs, even when a series has already been commercially released. It's true that people should support anime by buying the commercial released anime, but all too often the quality is less than perfect and prices for a single anime DVD can be quite pricey. In a generation where you can find everything for free online, why would anyone pay $50 for a DVD, if they can get it for free somewhere on IRC?
But when people distrobute fansubs, after the series has been licensed, it's illegal. They're pirating episodes, and they're hurting the efforts of many other fans, who support anime being licensed and commercially released in other countries.
So, which is it? Should people cease the distrobution of fansubs after licensing, or (even though it's illegal) should they keep on doing it, because the commercial releases are too expensive, or may have bad quality?
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May 18, 2003 |
Chiaki says ...
This brings me back to an arguement I had with a friend earlier. With the advent of TV anime making anime more popular, we have a whole new generation of fans. Most of them are the illiterate twelve year olds who type in 'plz' and would rather get anime 'free' off the internet than pay and support the industry.
Have you people forgotten what fansubs were for in the first place? I've been an anime fan since I was in elementary school, and got fansubs back when (shock!) they were passed by tape and mail. The point of fansubs is to bring anime that isn't licensensed, to gather INTEREST for the point of BUYING the series when it is licensed. I remember waiting months for a single episode of a series, and now fans are spoiled by getting an episode a few days after it has aired.
True, the DVDs are expensive. And I personally won't by half the DVDs of series I download. In fact, half the time I delete them off my computer after deciding they are crap. The companies have high DVD prices because - downloading fans from the internet, high licensing fees, dubbing fees, marketing fees, and all those little nuicances. It costs allot of money to bring that anime we love out to the world. And the price of a DVD is actually CHEAPER than what the price of anime used to be.
What? Cheaper?! Yes. Back when anime was released on VHS (that old format?!) it cost about $30 for a sub tape and $20-25 for a dubbed tape. (That's not even including extras!) If fans wanted both, they had to spend allot of money. So when anime companies started releasing DVDs with SUB and DUB with EXTRAS, we rejoiced. It was cheaper, and we all were happy.
I'm no more rich then most of you here. I SAVE for months sometimes, skipping meals, skipping friend dates, not buying new clothes (actually I usually thrift, so that's no problem ^^;;) ect. to support the industry. I have an anime addiction, and I have a greater manga addiction that drives me to buy both Japanese and English versions of my favorite manga.
Err.. in other words, fansub distrobution should be stopped after licensing.
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March 30, 2003 |
Alex says ...
I think this is a hard question for many reasons. Just because a series is liscensed doesn't mean that people know about it. I just recently became interested in anime a little over a year ago, and one of the first series I watched was Cowboy Bebop. It was liscensed, but it's still very easy to find online. After finishing the series, I purchased the whole thing because I liked it a lot. I even purchased the manga and three artbooks. If it wasn't available to download online, I would have never bought any of that merchandise.
I think it'd be nice if all animes were still distributed fter liscensing, but unfortunately many people take advantage of this and don't buy the series that they enjoy. I personally perfer to support the creators by buying the series, but I guess not everyone feels that it's necessary, and that kind of ruins it for the rest of us that play fair.
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March 30, 2003 |
Alice says ...
I really don't really do neither, I buy mine bootlegged lol. The quality is pretty much the same as if you buy it, but even better because it's not editted, and subbed. And it really doesn't cost much especially if you get it from H.K. or Taiwan.
I mean both selling and buying bootlegged stuff is kinda illegal, but honestly which one of you who happens to be Asain has never ever brought a bootlegged CD, VCD, or DVD before? I think most of you have.
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February 12, 2003 |
Saka says ...
Anime DVDs are ridiculously way more expensive than a regular American movie DVD, so downloading episodes are obviously an answer, but fansubs should stop after liscensing since it can interfere with the liscencing company's profits. It's bad for the fansubbers because they're minus one project, but for the downloaders there's always ways to get around that; just because their country has liscenced an anime doesn't mean other countries haven't, they could find an IRC server located in other countries and download legally there. (downloading is legal but uploading is not, ironically) Fansubbers could still continue the project just for themselves (I would if any manga projects I'm working on be picked up here), but distributing them would just be wrong.
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February 12, 2003 |
Tasuki says ...
Just because I have a computer and an internet connection and live in a house doesn't mean that I can afford $300 CND for 26 episodes of whatever series. I'm not kidding either, it's at least $300 CND to buy the entire set of Trigun, which is absolutely rediculous. I want to buy the DVDs but I simply can't afford that kind of money. They're not kidding when they say that drugs are cheaper than anime!
I think saying that if you can afford to buy a computer, you can afford to buy DVDs is a poor assumption. I didn't pay for my computer, my parents did. Even so, whenever we upgrade, it's my dad scrimping and saving behind my mother's back to pay for the various parts. Even if I had a job, I wouldn't be making enough to buy more than two DVDs for every paycheck I got and as much as I love anime, I don't want to blow every penny I get on the stuff.
Supporting North American translating companies is generally a good thing -- depending on the company. I particularly don't want to support companies like FUNimation who have poor quality dubs and I'd be more inclined to support Pioneer if their prices weren't so bloody rediculous. Other companies, like TokyoPop, are companies that I would support because they put geniune effort into their products for reasonable prices.
I guess what I'm trying to say here is that if you really can't afford to buy the DVDs, owning the fansubs is alright. No matter how illegal it may be, the police aren't about to come into your house and inspect your computer for these things. Like Asakyu said, it's more of a morality issue than anything. On the other hand, if you do have the money, you probably should buy the DVDs. I know I would. T_T;
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February 4, 2003 |
daimira says ...
Generally, I swear at companies that license series (^^;) but I know that they're bringing anime to people who wouldn't be able to appreciate them otherwise. While I would agree that fansubs should not be distributed after licensing out of principle, I'd agree a lot more wholeheartedly if the quality of dubs were decent. Right now, I only get the dubs at all if they're easier to find than the fansubbed versions.
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February 2, 2003 |
doink-chan says ...
doinkies thinks that fansubs should stop being distributed after the series is licensed. Otherwise, that would be bootlegging and that's wrong. If you could buy a computer and get DSL you could certainly save up for a DVD. doinkies has downloaded and enjoyed many unlicensed titles like Full Moon wo Sagashite, Azumanga Daioh and Tokyo Mew Mew, but if a series gets licensed, doinkies will buy the DVDs and support the industry.
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January 29, 2003 |
blink says ...
I agree that most fansubs should stop being distributed when commercial ones are available but there should be an exception for some. Some commercial translations are so horrible that I'd rather not watch it at all than buy it. Maybe to sort of fix that you could get the fansub but also but the commercial version but then I think that if your going to put such a horrible translation out you deserve for it not to be successful.
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January 28, 2003 |
Asakyu says ...
Legal wise, it's illegal to distribute fansubs fullstop. Remember, it's still lisecnsed in Japan. But this is a question of morality, not legality. As the very pictures we use on sites are illegal, but it doesn't hurt the companies in anyway, it infact promotes the series.
Also, once the series has been liscensed, doesn't mean it's going to get released anytime soon. Take Viz, they currently sit on at least 5 titles, that have been liscensed for quite a while. So, I'd also put if they're going to be released soon, as to whether or not fansubs should stop circulating.
But I think once it is released, fansubs should stop, because it does make a difference. Most DVDs and videos are expensive, just because you can download them online, doesn't mean you should. If you have enough money for an internet connection to download them on, or a computer to see it on, then you can save up a little while and buy a DVD, they rest of us have to! And there are very few DVDs that are worse than fansubs standard, with all the compression and everything.
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