The Fight Against Anime Piracy Continues

The constant fight against anime and manga piracy has regained steam. Japanese anti-piracy group CODA has renewed its partnership with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPA) for two more years, pledging to continue its efforts to deter pirates. According to a report, the Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA) has extended its ten-year partnership with the MPA for another two years.

This alliance will continue to see both groups work together to "develop new solutions to the problem of online copyright infringement globally and strengthen joint activities for its protection." CODA reports that since they first signed the agreement in 2014, and in the five subsequent renewals, they have achieved "great results, including the implementation of numerous anti-piracy measures in Asia-Pacific and beyond, resulting in tens of thousands of operations."

According to the official site, in cooperation with the MPA and local law enforcement agencies in countries such as China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, they have tried more than 17,000 cases, seizing 6,992,467 storage units and 16,159 data files, leading to 3,812 arrests. The report highlights that since Disney's sales are 16 times higher than those of major CODA members such as Toei, TOHO, Shochiku, and KADOKAWA combined, the MPA's collaboration becomes indispensable.

The full list of CODA members includes names familiar to anime/manga fans, such as Aniplex, Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., Kodansha, Shueisha, Toei Animation, Bandai Co., Ltd., among others. MPA members include major Hollywood studios such as Netflix, Disney, Paramount, Sony Pictures, Universal and Warner Bros.

Recent efforts by CODA, the MPA, and Chinese law enforcement have met with unprecedented success with Japan's first conviction of a foreign operator of an anime piracy site. The renewal of CODA and the MPA is especially important considering that nearly half of the revenue generated by the Japanese anime industry comes from overseas, according to the 2023 Anime Industry Report.

In addition, MUSO statistics reveal that eight of the ten most pirated TV series in the world are anime, including titles such as "Jujutsu Kaisen," "My Hero Academia," and "Vinland Saga." Fighting copyright infringement remains challenging, with CODA highlighting how easy it is to evade detection. This was seen last month when the world's largest anime piracy site was shut down, allegedly due to a court order in India, before quickly moving to a new site.

The prevalence of torrent sites and piracy distribution methods means that once something is leaked, it becomes impossible to suppress, as seen with the leaks of several Crunchyroll anime from Spring-2024 (March-June). In some regions, fans face difficulties legally accessing certain series due to licensing restrictions or because licenses have expired in the region. This opens up a debate about the validity of piracy, but it all comes crashing down for those who support it when it is pointed out that "anime is not a basic need."

Source: TorrentFreak