Getfresh chats with ANN on fansubs.

[getfresh]

Originally Posted by Heibi

I'm glad LOGH got mentioned in the interview.

You did a great job Getfresh. I could see how you had to try and maintain your temper.

lol, at a certain point I just started drinking ^^;

Also I couldn't really blame them for being misinformed as to the way things really are since the majority of information on fansubbing has been written up by ppl who have no clue about it themselves. It will take time to clear up the misconceptions people have but the only way we can do so is by being diligent and not flipping out on them as we attempt to get our point across since that will close their minds further.

[JediNight]

Anime is definitely well known nowadays, but I wouldn't call it mainstream. Just look at the decline in Adult Swim over the past couple years as evidence. The anime has always had lower ratings than their other shows, as terrible as we may think they are. They keep pushing back the anime later and later to the point that I really don't think they're going to push very hard to get good licenses anymore.

Granted, it could be the fact that they push their home-grown stoner shows, so the audience that watches Adult Swim has migrated away from anime.

CR has shown that there IS potential in same-day English streams, but at the same time you have fragmentation issues to worry about. CR only has a licensing agreement with a handful of parties. Then if Joost has some of it, and Funimation streams some, etc etc. It becomes increasingly difficult to keep track of where everything actually is that you can watch. Especially when none of it is really advertised at all.

The same issues are true of anime on TV now -- The Funimation Channel and Anime Network are only available in select regions. Then there are a number of smaller networks and premium extra channels that also have 1-2 titles. It gets to be a real mess. TBH though -- there are always going to be cheap bastards, that there will be a "market" for ripping streams like Naruto.

I've considered getting a CR subscription to just support the business model and say "hey guys, this really is a step in the right direction, keep going!" to the Japanese companies. But currently the selection is very small, the CR player is buggy for me, and I don't like the fact that CR was profitting off of fansubs for years now suddenly go "legit" and we're all supposed to throw in behind him. I'm also worried about Gonzo or TV Tokyo pulling out, and then I'm left with a subscription I paid and no content I want to watch.

[zero1328]

Originally Posted by JediNight

, and I don't like the fact that CR was profitting off of fansubs for years now suddenly go "legit" and we're all supposed to throw in behind him.

This could very well be considered as another one of the misconceptions, though I admit that it is still debatable as to what actually occurs, and will probably remain as an issue for quite some time. I can't tell you what to believe, but just know that the other viewpoint says that the money goes entirely to server upkeep, and there was no foul play.

[Dansickle]

Profit or not, the perception is that they were still making people pay for what was being done as a free service, without the consent of those providing the service.

Now, I'm not going to say anything about the legitimacy of what fansubbers do, because that's a whole different can of worms. I can see how it would be hypocritical for a fansubber to complain about taking someone's work without permission and using it to his/her own devices. That being said, I believe the forced money exchange is the main complaint.

[npcomplete]

Originally Posted by zero1328

This could very well be considered as another one of the misconceptions, though I admit that it is still debatable as to what actually occurs, and will probably remain as an issue for quite some time. I can't tell you what to believe, but just know that the other viewpoint says that the money goes entirely to server upkeep, and there was no foul play.

I guess I never understood why CR is singled out. It seems like they lost money more than anything maintaining such a large operation that I doubt many opted to pay for. If many folks were content with youtube quality at the time I'd assume most would be as well for CR's free LQ streams. There were many other sites that also charged money for fansubs (one of which I used) and none offered a "free" version. I'm not sure how this is really all that different from paying--and asking money--for distro.

[cyth]

Most fansubbers with good intentions don't make downloaders pay anything. Why we like to point fingers at (the old) CR or other archive DDL sites is because they offer their services for profit, hurting the anime industry in a way. The sad thing is that there are always free alternatives available, and people don't know it.

[504NOSON]

Originally Posted by JediNight

CR has shown that there IS potential in same-day English streams, but at the same time you have fragmentation issues to worry about. CR only has a licensing agreement with a handful of parties. Then if Joost has some of it, and Funimation streams some, etc etc. It becomes increasingly difficult to keep track of where everything actually is that you can watch. Especially when none of it is really advertised at all.

Not really. CR, Joost, Hulu, YouTube(which leecher's have been using since it's inception). It's not really a lot to keep up with. Especially if you're actually trying to find the shows.

[npcomplete]

Originally Posted by Toua

Most fansubbers with good intentions don't make downloaders pay anything. Why we like to point fingers at (the old) CR or other archive DDL sites is because they offer their services for profit, hurting the anime industry in a way. The sad thing is that there are always free alternatives available, and people don't know it.

Ok I see what you mean... the difference between charity work or asking for donations, and being obliged to pay.

Steering this back a little on topic, I'm signed up because I don't feel it much of a burden and think of it as my contribution. But I still download the subs (and raws) for archiving which was why in this poll thread I asked for an option of "both". This goes back to the need for hardcopies (or equivalently downloadable versions) mentioned in the interview.

[JediNight]

Originally Posted by 504NOSON

Not really. CR, Joost, Hulu, YouTube(which leecher's have been using since it's inception). It's not really a lot to keep up with. Especially if you're actually trying to find the shows.

I'm speaking from the POV of if it takes off from here and more companies start putting stuff up. And from the POV of the average anime fan trying to track it all down online.

[cyth]

Originally Posted by JediNight

I'm speaking from the POV of if it takes off from here and more companies start putting stuff up. And from the POV of the average anime fan trying to track it all down online.

I'm pretty sure someone is already aggregating all new English streaming/DTO releases, kind of like AnimeSuki, except that all indexed releases are legal. The site is still beta though.

[Ayanami9870]

Originally Posted by getfresh

lol, at a certain point I just started drinking ^^;

Also I couldn't really blame them for being misinformed as to the way things really are since the majority of information on fansubbing has been written up by ppl who have no clue about it themselves. It will take time to clear up the misconceptions people have but the only way we can do so is by being diligent and not flipping out on them as we attempt to get our point across since that will close their minds further.

Considering that this was an abridged gmail-based discussion, I'd say you managed well. They had the freedom to edit it anyway they wanted to afterwards. And you're right about misconceptions. It's going to take more than just adlib interviews from you and Tofu for the folks in the industry to fully grasp what goes on down here. I think that for anyone who speaks with them, keeping it civil and providing different yet consistent perspectives is the least we can do.

[tenkenX6]

Nice and rather interesting interview, getfresh. I think you did a good job.