For decades now, anime has been unable to shake the grip of piracy. It seems like every entertainment industry has some beef to squash with pirates whether we’re talking music, film, or television. For anime, global piracy has always been a challenge as old-school fans really relied on piracy to watch shows when licensed content wasn’t around. However, anime has come a long way over the decades, and the industry’s most recent push against piracy just shut down a slew of high-profile sites.
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The news surfaced over night as dozens of anime piracy sites shut down without any warning. From AnimeSuga to AnimeWave and 123Anime, some of the top-visited piracy sites online are now closed. Few is any sites posted notices about their closure, but it isn’t hard to figure out why the service shuttered.
In the past decade, anime has shed its reputation as a niche interest and is now entirely mainstream. From Gen Z to Gen Alpha, anime is one of the fastest-growing forms of media in the world. Big corporations are putting stock into anime as streamers from Netflix to Amazon and Disney are vying for anime content. Of course, anime-centric services like Crunchyroll are booming thanks to the industry’s rise, and manga publishers like Viz Media are seeing similar gains.
With all of this success on hand, well – studios in Japan have become more aggressive in confronting piracy operations. In Japan, a wave of arrests have made headlines in recent years, and distributors are not limiting their legal battles. From China to the United States, companies like Aniplex and Kadokawa are pursuing piracy operators wherever they might be. This direct pushback is what sparked this latest round of site shutdowns, but now a big question remains. When one site closes, the fandom expects two more to take its place. Taking down anime piracy platforms is like playing a game of whack-a-mole, and it seems the studios won the round today.
These days, there are plenty of ways to watch anime legally as companies across the board are licensing titles. Of course, the top streamers are Netflix, Crunchyroll, Hulu, HIDIVE, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+. Plus, there are other free-to-watch services and fast channels available for anime fans through Tubi, Freevee, and more.
What do you make of this latest pushback against anime piracy? Let us know what you think over on Twitter and Instagram. You can also hit me up @MeganPetersCB to share your take!
