Japan makes downloading pirated content a prison-worthy offense

[DonQuigleone]

Originally Posted by Random32

I wasn't intending 48kbps mp3 == FLAC, more like, its near impossible to tell the difference between higher quality lossy compressions (196kbps mp3) and lossless/uncompressed, without godly hearing and equipment.

Personally, I think you'd need to be a dog to hear the difference between 196kbps mp3 and flac, even with the best equipment.

And even if you can hear a difference, it's nigh impossible to pinpoint which is which, or which is better.

Of course, I wouldn't ever go so far as to say that you can't hear the difference at bitrates below 196kbps. At 48, you're committing a sin against sound.

[NinjaRealist]

Originally Posted by hyl

I have done those socalled tests when i was clicking on those for fun on head-fi and i wasn't wrong that much.

Also i am not a "cable" type of person, but someone tempers with settings on amps and compares music with multiple headphones that have different sound signatures

As someone who produces music I can say that the difference between the MP3 and the AIFF versions of my songs are quite noticeably different, though I often prefer the more compressed, distorted, sound of MP3s.

That is to say, when you listen to the AIFF, you can hear all the imperfections in the recording. If these imperfections are problematic then the MP3 will sound better.

[DonQuigleone]

An important thing to note is not necessarily if they sound different, but if you can pick out which one is which?

I often can hear small differences between my MP3s and the original recording, but I can't tell which is the compressed file, because at high bitrates the differences aren't very consistent. It's a tossup as to which sounds better or worse.

[NinjaRealist]

Originally Posted by DonQuigleone

An important thing to note is not necessarily if they sound different, but if you can pick out which one is which?

I often can hear small differences between my MP3s and the original recording, but I can't tell which is the compressed file, because at high bitrates the differences aren't very consistent. It's a tossup as to which sounds better or worse.

Hmm, but the difference is that you are listening to other people's recordings while I am listening to my own.

I think that if you were listening to your own recordings that you mixed yourself it would be very easy to tell the difference and to also know which was which.

But you are right that it is very hard to do with other people's recordings. That's why I never put my AIFF's on the web because 95% of people won't be able to tell the difference and I could host 35 MP3s in the same space as one AIFF.

[RRW]

Hideo Yoshida, a 46-year-old unemployed Tokyo man, was sentenced on Wednesday to 18 months in prison for using the Share file-sharing software to upload the 74th volume of the Case Closed manga without the copyright holders' permission. However, the judge in the case suspended Yoshida's sentence, giving him instead three years of probation. If Yoshida is not convicted of another crime in the next three years, he will not have to serve the 18-month prison sentence.

Tottori Prefectural Police had arrested Yoshida in Tokyo's Itabashi Ward on July 25 under suspicion of uploading the volume between May 3-8. The authorities then suspected that the man uploaded a total of over 1,800 manga volumes without the permission of copyright owners. At the time, Yoshida admitted his guilt, stating that he began uploading gradually because of his love of manga.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news...-share-program

[Dr. Casey]

They considered giving a guy a year and a half in prison for uploading a single volume from a manga? Oh, for fuck's sake... that is absolutely, inexcusably, if-you-disagree-with-me-you're-crazy-and-take-this-shit-way-too-seriously ridiculous.

(Unless the prison sentence was for uploading 1,800 volumes, which makes more sense, but the opening line makes it sound as though this was for Detective Conan volume 74 alone...)

[Nightbat®]

The trouble is that anime has the value of bubblegum
(along with anything in the media or software industry)

you chew on it as long as it tastes good, then spit it out

The whole problem is justifying $30 on a pack of bubblegum
Not the people buying, but the people selling

There has been such a surge in media production that it's more abundant than wheat or drinkwater
especially with the loss of 'tangible product' making copies as if they were reprinting money untill it's monetary value is the price of the paper its printed on
(or in this case: the cost of having a internet connection)


There is more anime released than there are waking hours in a year
Together with the fact that supply exceeds demand at an unthinkable scale for the 'product' itself

but ultimately it doesn't reflect the price



Then there is the story around the highest cost for producing an anime

Which oddly are not the productioncosts, but the broadcasting
(which not apply to the 'homevideo market')
and that works like this
Pay to get Anime aired - attracts viewers - attracts advertisements - attracts money - profit
Now if an anime doesn't attract enough viewers
-With the abundance at the rate its poured out means trying to get as much flies attracted to a very small piece of pie
(a slowly becoming a very unimaginitive piece I might add, and they're wondering why quantity doesn't attract enough fans)-
It won't pay its investments back

it might be possible to recuperate some money in apparel, or the homevideo release
But here, they're pricing things at such a price that a lot can't afford EVERYTHING that is released, and even toning down to one thing is an expensive hobby
(hurrah for complaining the market isn't growing!)
Injury to insult: For something seen for FREE 2 months ago
More insult: an anime often is an advertisement that was made to sell toys, posters etc. so they're trying to make money on the promotion as well

So, now after they killed any hope of a healthy industry in Japan, it piecemeal starts reaching our parts of the world
...months too late

Instead of trying to approach fans here fast through PPV internet broadcasting (slowly coming up, "Welcome to the digital age mediaproducers, we already knew about your new show a year ago!"),
they hastle with distributors, louzy-to-nonexistant-promotion, narrowminded networks
and the flooding of fansubs because they couldn't be arsed to try and outrun the internet translators

I'm not trying to make a point here, but I'm willing to bet there are a few things in there that may be very good reflection of the current situation onf anime (and much of it's media kin)

[relentlessflame]

Originally Posted by Nightbat®

and that works like this
Pay to get Anime aired - attracts viewers - attracts advertisements - attracts money - profit
Now if an anime doesn't attract enough viewers
-With the abundance at the rate its poured out means trying to get as much flies attracted to a very small piece of pie
(a slowly becoming a very unimaginitive piece I might add, and they're wondering why quantity doesn't attract enough fans)-
It won't pay its investments back

Actually, that isn't quite how it works. Late Night anime (that pay to be aired) aren't worried about attracting advertisers. The production committee member companies essentially *are* the advertisers in all the commercial breaks. So attracting viewership by the numbers/ratings actually doesn't matter, except that they want people to buy the merchandise that the member companies are selling. They don't expect to make any money back on the TV airing or directly through viewership. (Online viewership can earn a tiny bit through ads and subscriptions, but it still isn't anything significant.)

Originally Posted by Nightbat®

it might be possible to recuperate some money in apparel, or the homevideo release
But here, they're pricing things at such a price that a lot can't afford EVERYTHING that is released, and even toning down to one thing is an expensive hobby
(hurrah for complaining the market isn't growing!)
Injury to insult: For something seen for FREE 2 months ago
More insult: an anime often is an advertisement that was made to sell toys, posters etc. so they're trying to make money on the promotion as well

Considering they don't make any money on the viewership, they have to make money on merchandise. In today's "media mix" culture, anime is generally funded through a group of companies depending on multiple revenue streams to each earn back their own portion of the investment.

Affording "everything" that is released for all the anime that someone sees is not really the intention of the Japanese market (and is actually a funny notion introduced by Overseas licensors). There are different products at different price points aimed to capture different parts of the market. On the low-end of the market, there are books, magazines, CDs, and various character goods/toys. In the middle-tier you have games, figures, and more expensive character goods. And then, at the top-tier, you have the Blu-Ray/DVD releases. Most of the viewership is not expected to purchase the Blu-Rays/DVDs because they've already seen it, and in many cases they could just as easily rent it if they want to see it again. The home media market in Japan is really reserved for collectors who are willing to spend the money to own a keepsake for shows they really enjoyed.

Again, this is talking mostly about late night anime (the kind that pays for viewership). Mainstream shows that air in primetime or weekend morning slots have a different funding model, and very rarely see any significant sales of the higher-end products like Blu-Rays/DVDs.

Originally Posted by Nightbat®

So, now after they killed any hope of a healthy industry in Japan, it piecemeal starts reaching our parts of the world
...months too late

Instead of trying to approach fans here fast through PPV internet broadcasting (slowly coming up, "Welcome to the digital age mediaproducers, we already knew about your new show a year ago!"),
they hastle with distributors, louzy-to-nonexistant-promotion, narrowminded networks
and the flooding of fansubs because they couldn't be arsed to try and outrun the internet translators

Nowadays, the vast majority (nearly all) newly-airing anime is simulcast in English as it airs... so I'm not really sure that this point still applies to today's market. Maybe if you were talking five years ago? Then again, I recognize that there are still regional lockout issues that need to be worked out; this is a bit of a secondary issue.


All in all... I'm not exactly sure what you're proposing, but I'm not sure if I can follow your logic in terms of what the problems are, or what the solutions are that help address these problems.

[sa547]

Originally Posted by Dr. Casey

They considered giving a guy a year and a half in prison for uploading a single volume from a manga? Oh, for fuck's sake... that is absolutely, inexcusably, if-you-disagree-with-me-you're-crazy-and-take-this-shit-way-too-seriously ridiculous.

(Unless the prison sentence was for uploading 1,800 volumes, which makes more sense, but the opening line makes it sound as though this was for Detective Conan volume 74 alone...)

Makes me think about that with the new local anti-cybercrime law, a libelous comment on some idiot politician could land the poster a long prison sentence (up to 12 years).

In the next few weeks, we'll be seeing limited content, not just anime, but also music and live-action dramas, as the sources will have to hide their tracks and attempt to play dodgeball.

It's damn sad that not everyone has the privilege of access, as the majority of watchers here rely on streaming for their fix.

[Marcus H.]

Why haven't they considered piracy to be a civil offense like libel instead? No jail time involved, but still requires a hefty sum of cash. It's what those copyright guys want anyway.

[Sumeragi]

Originally Posted by Dr. Casey

(Unless the prison sentence was for uploading 1,800 volumes, which makes more sense, but the opening line makes it sound as though this was for Detective Conan volume 74 alone...)

That was what the sentence was about. In another case, a person in Wajima, Ishikawa was arrested for uploading the Crayon Shin-chan: Arashi o Yobu! Yūhi no Kasukabe Boys anime film, with having uploaded approximately 200 episodes of anime, downloaded via the Winny service.

[Triple_R]

So they are actually enforcing this.

Even if said enforcement is very random and sporadic, I do find that a bit worrisome. I hope it doesn't send too big a chill amongst those who regularly upload anime episodes.

[Random32]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

So they are actually enforcing this.

Even if said enforcement is very random and sporadic, I do find that a bit worrisome. I hope it doesn't send too big a chill amongst those who regularly upload anime episodes.

Uploading has been illegal for a while now.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Random32

Uploading has been illegal for a while now.

Yes, but it sounds like the whole prison-sentence thing is new.

There are things that people might risk a financial penalty for, but they wouldn't risk prison time for.

[Lord of Fire]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

So they are actually enforcing this.

Even if said enforcement is very random and sporadic, I do find that a bit worrisome. I hope it doesn't send too big a chill amongst those who regularly upload anime episodes.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

Yes, but it sounds like the whole prison-sentence thing is new.

A few things to take into account here:
1. The new law is about downloading of copyrighted material.
2. The guy was uploading manga, which has been illegal for quite some time.
3. The authorities had him in their sights for quite some time, before this new law came into effect. In fact, it's a direct follow-up to this story.

At the very least, this is the first publicized prison sentence that I know of. Whether or not it actually is the first reported case of an uploader getting a prison sentence remains to be seen.

There are things that people might risk a financial penalty for, but they wouldn't risk prison time for.

That only works if the chance of getting arrested for it is very high. In cases like this, with so many people committing the crime, it'll be hard for the police to catch them all.

[asaqe]

Originally Posted by Marcus H.

Why haven't they considered piracy to be a civil offense like libel instead? No jail time involved, but still requires a hefty sum of cash. It's what those copyright guys want anyway.

They want to send out a clear message. And it will only be a matter of time before they get the head of the snake.

and Japan does have one of the most effective and strictest enforcement of camrips in the theatre.

[larethian]

Originally Posted by NinjaRealist

Yes, Singapore is indeed a fascist, corporate, police state/hell-on-earth that seems more like a setting from an 80's action film than real place.

But seriously, five years in prison for the most victimless crime imaginable? That is absurd to me.

What if they gave people five years for drinking a beer?

Get your facts right. It's trafficking, not consumption, that gets the capital punishment. And only when it exceeds a certain amount of weight depending on the type of drug, and the weight is based on 100% purity. You don't get hanged from consuming.

P.S: these are objective factual statements not representing any views I may hold

[Dr. Casey]

Originally Posted by asaqe

They want to send out a clear message.

The message: "We are a bunch of jackasses that care more about looking tough than creating punishments which fit the crime, and our citizenry will be quite justified if they ever decide to protest against us for being this idiotic"

[asaqe]

Thing is Japan aint exactly the most socially progressive of the democracies in Asia (an understatement since even by civil right standards. Eastern Asians have on average don't have as much worker rights as the Western world had, given the lack of a social revolution during industrialization)

[speedyexpress48]

Originally Posted by asaqe

Thing is Japan aint exactly the most socially progressive of the democracies in Asia (an understatement since even by civil right standards. Eastern Asians have on average don't have as much worker rights as the Western world had, given the lack of a social revolution during industrialization)

Asian democracies are horribly conservative compared to most western democracies (even the US).