End of manga scanlation?


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franzoir

-the smooth, the suave, and the shrewd
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I was looking for the new Gantz chapter which should be out around this time and i found this:

QUOTE From Anime News Network and Anime Vice: In a move that surprised many manga fans and industry watchers last week, the editors of the Japanese edition of Weekly Shonen Jump posted an open letter to fans in their April 26, 2010 issue. The letter  tells readers that posting scans of pages from Weekly Shonen Jump magazine, even if done without malicious or criminal intent, is not only illegal, it is against the wishes of the manga  creators, and it is "hurting manga culture."

The message also goes on to say that Shueisha (the publisher of Shonen Jump manga) will deal with these illegal scans posted on the Internet "severely." The letter ends with the wish that fans will respect their wishes and continue to support Shonen Jump manga.

The online reaction to this development was swift and dramatic. Raw-Paradise.com, a site that hosted many "raw" (untranslated) scans of manga from Japan shut down operations. Meanwhile, on the Manga Helpers forums, commentary ranged from "it's the beginning of the end" to "it doesn't apply to U.S. fans who scan/post/read scanlations, only Japanese readers." Some felt that Shueisha was being "unreasonable" and that they couldn't possibly stop scanlations worldwide, while other posters remarked that Shueisha was reaching out to fans to protect their rights, and their manga creators' intellectual property rights.

What makes this letter especially noteworthy is that it is, to my knowledge, the first time that a Japanese publisher has reached out directly to fans to explicitly say that both they and the manga creators who are featured in their magazine are not happy to see their comics scanned in and posted on the Internet for anyone and everyone to read for free. So what happens next? Who knows? But this we know for sure -- it's bound to get interesting.

ANN link here

I dont know what to make of it. Its only one magazine but it might have a domino effect. It kinda sucks.

I cant help but feel this was spurred by the Bleach/Incarnate plagarism thing a while back. Oh well it was a good run.

Whatdya think?
 
Few things:
1) The letter to the fans did NOT say that Shueisha will deal with illegal cans "severely".
Here is what the letter said:
QUOTE To our readers,
The Internet is now overflowing with illegal copies of manga. All of these illegal copies run counter to the wishes of mangaka. They also ignore the wishes of the creator as to how the manga should be read.
It may be done without much thought, but in reality it hurts the mangaka who pour their creative talents into these works, and it is also against the law.
When we discover such illegal copies, we discuss possible measures with the mangaka concerned and try to tackle the problem, but there are so many heartless people around that it is just impossible for us to tackle them all.
This is a plea to our readers. Illicit copies of manga harm manga culture, infringe the rights of mangaka, and most importantly of all they deeply wound the souls of mangaka. Please also understand that it is illegal.
From now on Shueisha will, in collaboration with mangaka, deal more harshly with any illegal copies circulating on the Internet.
We hope we can count on the unchanging support of all our readers in this endeavour.
The Weekly Shonen Jump Editorial Staff

E.g. they will deal with them 'more harshly' - this does not actually mean anything. Knowing the way this usually goes, all it means is that they'll start sending letters C&D letters to scanlators, but nothing more.

2) This will likely have little effect on anything, just like anime producers saying they were going to start dealing with fansubs more harshly led to practically no change other than a couple groups dropping out.


As far as your opinion that it was spurred by the Bleach/Incarnate plagiarism, I can't imagine how. They're two entirely separate things, completely unrelated. Some mangaka probably saw or heard that his manga was online and threw a fit or something.
 
I'm actually feeling this may actually backfire on them in ways they can't even imagine. Without new chapters being released through scanlation teams, there is no real push for someone to wait till it gets released in their countries of origin. What this means for those starving editors is that less manga will be bought, causing them even more lost revenue.

Basically the publication companies are shooting themselves in the feet. The mangaka's as far as I can tell aren't the ones that are bitching and moaning about it. People are fed up with having to wait for years until the newest chapters are released in their native languages. That does include whether or not that certain manga actually heads to that country.
 
QUOTE (destroyah @ Apr 20 2010, 08:11 PM) I'm actually feeling this may actually backfire on them in ways they can't even imagine. Without new chapters being released through scanlation teams, there is no real push for someone to wait till it gets released in their countries of origin. What this means for those starving editors is that less manga will be bought, causing them even more lost revenue.

Basically the publication companies are shooting themselves in the feet. The mangaka's as far as I can tell aren't the ones that are bitching and moaning about it. People are fed up with having to wait for years until the newest chapters are released in their native languages. That does include whether or not that certain manga actually heads to that country.
This actually brings up another point. If you notice from the letter, they never mention ANYTHING about how scanlation affects sales. They don't claim that it hurts sales or anything of the sort. The only thing they say is that it's bad for the 'manga culture' and that several mangaka (again, note that they don't say all - because several mangaka have in the past SUPPORTED scanlations) don't appreciate it.
All the more reason you'll be unlikely to see any real legal action being taken.
 
You can interpret the letter anyway you want. All i know is it is definitely having a real impact on scanlations that are meant to be out by right now.

It also calls into question the legality of scanlations which has always been a grey area. If they start sending out C&D letters and closing down japanese raw providers, anyone who pursues scanlations on a international scene will definitely open themselves up to legal challenges.

If Shuiesha, wants to deal with manga piiracy domestically then it is inescapable that they will also have to try to stop it worldwide.

The emphasis of the letter is more on the fact that mangakas themselves support this action. Its less a stern letter of action but more a call of morality if you 'truly' appreciate manga. And I think it is striking a chord as well.
 
QUOTE This actually brings up another point. If you notice from the letter, they never mention ANYTHING about how scanlation affects sales.

They always have the same argument which is "potential" sales/profit.


QUOTE This is pretty funny ----> http://www.raw-paradise.com/ -----> Shueisha literally took over the site and made it their own.....WOW!!

lol... Well at least they seem to be true to their word...
 
QUOTE (JCDRANZER @ Apr 21 2010, 10:43 AM) This is pretty funny ----> http://www.raw-paradise.com/ -----> Shueisha literally took over the site and made it their own.....WOW!!
ohmy.gif

lmao Shueisha do move fast. Maybe its all part of a bid to take over Japan?


QUOTE (dchaosblade @ Apr 21 2010, 01:05 AM)most importantly of all they deeply wound the souls of mangaka.

Now that comment really did make my laugh, just the phrasing of it lol

Now regarding this. personaly all i see it being for now just been smoke, and just mainly to scare scanlators into stop what there doing, but it could evolve into C&D.

But the arugement about scannign being wrong is the same as subbing anime, fans wil say its for the good, otherwise people say its for the bad.
 
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