View Full Version : VCD legal
DjDeluxay
2003-12-29, 05:18
Are VCDs legal? I want to get some. But was wondering if someone had them can they sell them to me if that is legal?
NightWish
2003-12-29, 05:43
A VCD can be both legal or illegal. As with most media, its legality depends what is on it. Same applies to the sale of VCDs -- its the stuff on it that matters not the media itself (at least in every case I can think of)
If it's a licensed series, and you're in America, then no. Fansubs are fine, and I believe some VCDs are sold in Asia legally, but I wouldn't know much about that.
There isn't an anime series that has actually been released on VCD. If someone wants to sell you one, its bootleg, and illegal. Distributing fansubs is while ethical (for non licenced anime), it is illegal. Actually selling fansubs on the other hand, is not ethical and far more illegal. There's a big difference between distributing freely otherwise unavailable works, and gaining profit from it.
Doddler
Blue Siren
2003-12-29, 09:51
They are sold legally in Asia... but most of the series that make it over here on VCD are licenced... trust me I got VCD's to throw me out of my place!
I have yet to encounter a non licenced anime on original VCD format. Also A lot of people who sells them ( on Ebay or Yahoo) more than likely got them as free funsubs at some point, I myself convert Naruto and Get backers... and burn them to have on VCD.
I've seen Naruto a bunch of times on auction, Full Metal Panic, Chobits etc. A lot of my own VCD's say that is a free funsub, if you paid for it you were cheated and to stop distribution when it gets licenced.
In other words KNOW your source and if it is licenced buy the DVD's indtead. go to Ebay, they got DVD set boxes for mostly everything.
They are sold legally in Asia...
They ARE sold in asia... but 98.8% of the time, not legally. If you can show me an official licenced release on VCD, I'll be very, VERY suprised. Its like Sonmay, EverAnime, sure, they're identical to soundtracks actually released in japan, but they're sure as hell not legal. I'm sure most people don't even know. Be weary of cheap anime... there's a disturbing amount of dvd sets that *look* authentic, but really arn't (and in many cases, suck in terms of quality). A real easy rule of thumb when getting anime is if its in english, and not licensed, or not released by the licensee, its not legal. :P And there's only a very select handful of localized anime that has chinese subs (Metropolis is the only one I know of), if its got chinese & english subs, and is region free, its not legal.
Doddler
Blue Siren
2003-12-29, 10:38
They ARE sold in asia... but 98.8% of the time, not legally.
Doddler
I think their laws of infringement and such are different than ours... but you might be right mostly all their stuff are knock offs anyways.
There isn't an anime series that has actually been released on VCD. If someone wants to sell you one, its bootleg, and illegal. Distributing fansubs is while ethical (for non licenced anime), it is illegal. Actually selling fansubs on the other hand, is not ethical and far more illegal. There's a big difference between distributing freely otherwise unavailable works, and gaining profit from it.
Doddler
Back when Toshiba released the VCD standard in the mid 1990s, there were some Japanese anime that were released in VCD format in Japan.
One that is most famous is the Urusei Yatsura VCD boxset (x4), which cost close to 300,000 yen. This is quite possibly the main reason why Kitty Films went bankrupt.
They were doing a prescreening in LAOX Anime-store in Akihabara when the VCD format came out, but with the quality being crap, no one bought it. Besides, most anime fans, as well as me, already owned a LaserDisc - a much far superior format in video quality at the time. Why the heck would we want to spend $700 on a crappy quality VCD deck from Toshiba when we can shell out the same price to get a fairly decent LD deck from Pioneer? And there were far more anime out on the LD format anyway.
Well now, since the DVDs came out and most DVD decks can play VCDs, a lot of those grossly remaining legal Japanese anime VCD inventories found its way back onto the shelves of....used VHS and LD stores. Although it is rare to see them these days, but back when the DVD format came out and few anime DVDs existed, you could see many anime fans scouring the streets of used VHS/LD stores in Akihabara for these VCDs...now at a price of 3000 yen.
Esperchld
2003-12-29, 12:41
Actually there were anime VCDs released in the US, but not man, and it would be VERY hard to come across them now (they were released in the mid-late 90s IIRC). The chances that you have run across any of the like few titles is slim to none. For somereason I want to say they were Akira, Urotskuidoji, La Blue Girl, and Ninja Scroll.
They ARE sold in asia... but 98.8% of the time, not legally. If you can show me an official licenced release on VCD, I'll be very, VERY suprised.
Actually there are a lot of licensed VCD releases in Asia, at least in Taiwan where VCD is still a very popular format. Most of the licensed anime still have VCD release along with DVD release. I myself own a set of licensed VCD of sentimental journey and sakura taisen OVAs.
Actually there are a lot of licensed VCD releases in Asia, at least in Taiwan where VCD is still a very popular format. Most of the licensed anime still have VCD release along with DVD release. I myself own a set of licensed VCD of sentimental journey and sakura taisen OVAs.
I have yet to understand the non-Japanese mentality of watching something on a crappy and heavily-pixelated format such as a VCD. I've always wondered why these Asian countries would want to watch it on a VCD. Probably because they are cheap and easy to duplicate? I guess it's part of our national culture that we prefer quality over how cheap the stuff is.
Yeah, it's probably because you can burn a VideoCD using a CD-R, so it's really cheap to make and duplicate :/
I hardly ever do so, though. The quality really sucks.
FinFangFoom
2003-12-29, 21:31
Are VCDs legal? I want to get some. But was wondering if someone had them can they sell them to me if that is legal?
If you don't mind my asking, why do you want to buy VCD's rather than dvd's? Also if it's an issue of you not being able to download because of bandwith limitations, I noticed that you live in Seattle, I live in Redmond and could point out several stores, one in Seattle that has a very large selection of anime on DVD and VHS for rent, and a store in Redmond (about 20minutes from seattle in light traffic) that has an even bigger collection of anime for rent and for sale on DVD (at very affordable prices if you don't mind bootlege). Also a good but overpriced place in Bellevue for buy DVD's, anime soundtracks, and all kinds of import toys, wall scrolls and plushes from Japan.
DjDeluxay
2003-12-29, 21:47
welll i was originally planning on burning VCD and selling them to friends. But i guess i won't
Oh hm.. well i don't drive so i would need a ride. Pick me up? :thinker: hehe jp
hm... what about renting DVDs and burning them for personal use? Is that legal?
FinFangFoom
2003-12-29, 21:51
Oh hm.. well i don't drive so i would need a ride. Pick me up? :thinker: hehe jp
hm... what about renting DVDs and burning them for personal use? Is that legal?
That's what the bus is for. ;)
Copying movies you rent is illegal but impossible to be caught for, unless your selling them.
pianoanime
2003-12-30, 03:00
You guys are freaking lucky... you're on the Pacific coast, where there is much more call for anime than where I'm from (I've even heard that there are J-pop radio stations out there....darn you!!!). I'm stuck here in freakin Branson Missouri, home of hicks, rednecks, and the middle of nowhere, culturally speaking. There are less than 3 rental stores within 40 miles of my house that have any anime, and the most they usually have is a couple of Ranma tapes, maybe a Dirty Pair Flash episode tape, and a couple of Miazaki DVD's which I not only have seen, but that I have... with VCD, especially in conjunction with fansub, I have access to reasonable quality, FREE, accurately subbed anime, as opposed to high quality, expensive, sometimes censor-raped anime....this way, I get to see it as closely as possible to the way it was intended by the artists and studios that produced it. If I wasn't so broke, I'd buy LOTS of DVD's.............but for now, VCD and DivX will have to do...
www.geocities.com/pianoanime
__________________________________
Chiyo-chan for President!
Sure, sure, it's only because things are inconvenient that you steal what you claim to love. Keep telling yourself that, whore, maybe you’ll feel good about yourself.
Try getting things second-hand on eBay or Half.com. Most people take good care of DVDs so you're not much worse off then buying new, and if you’re patient and tolerant of failure and willing to wait a while to get some things at a good price, you can get lots of stuff for cheap without being a filthy rat bastard.
FinFangFoom
2003-12-30, 04:05
Sure, sure, it's only because things are inconvenient that you steal what you claim to love. Keep telling yourself that, whore, maybe you’ll feel good about yourself.
Try getting things second-hand on eBay or Half.com. Most people take good care of DVDs so you're not much worse off then buying new, and if you’re patient and tolerant of failure and willing to wait a while to get some things at a good price, you can get lots of stuff for cheap without being a filthy rat bastard.
What are you talking about?
I believe he's talking about downloading fansubs.
pianoanime
2003-12-30, 05:07
Indeed...I was talking about fansubs. I used to do mail-order of vcd's and avi files before my internet connection improved...now I just download any new series I can find so I can develop an opinion of it before I get the official copies.
To be honest, my post was more to complain about where my family has me stuck at, as opposed to complaining about how I need to steal to get my anime fix...if I had to steal, or even wanted to steal, for the sake of anime, then I would be quite the sad individual, would I not? I feel that I have a right to try something before I buy it, and every anime I have gotten fansubbed and enjoyed, I will eventually own on DVD...I'm just too broke to just go out and buy EVERYTHING I've ever watched... and having a 400+ hour fansub collection means that even if it's from ebay, it's still not gonna be cheap.
Ah, buggery, now I feel stupid.....also can not think of any other comment...
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