The war on piracy in the anime industry is more prevalent now than ever before, asNaver Webtoon, popular online webtoon website, has just achieved a hard-won victory in the battle. On Tuesday, November 26, the company revealed that a subpoena they had requested resulted inthe shutdown of 70 websites that illegally posted webtoons,a major success for those fighting against this widespread piracy.
The Recent Court Order Caused the Shutdown of Over 70 Illegal Piracy Websites
An article posted byKorea Bizwirediscusses the details of the court order obtained by Naver Webtoon and how it will affect the websites that are illegally distributing these comics, manga, and manhwa. These offending websites violated the DMCA, or Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which sets strict rules and regulations regarding copyright laws and online theft of the intellectual property of others. The court order itself gave Naver Webtoon access to the websites' personal information to pursue further legal action, andafter the order was issued, over 70 of these illegal webtoons websites simply shut downfor good.
Naver Webtoon also released an official statement on behalf of their company, with Vice President, Kim Kyoo-nam, stating “We will continue our relentless fight against illegal webtoon and web novel sites worldwide, maintaining a strict zero-tolerance policy. Naver Webtoon will spare no effort or investment in safeguarding the creative ecosystem.” Kyoo-nam’s words clarify why animepiracy is such a crucial problemthat the company has no qualms about cracking down on, because it can affect the original creators of these webtoons and web novels bystealing their content without permission, as well as violating multiple copyright laws.
Other Companies in the Anime Industry Are Pursuing Legal Action Against Piracy Too
VIZ Media Alone Filed 304,581,116 URL Removal Requests
Naver Webtoon is not the only company pursuing legal action against illegal piracy websites, VIZ MEDIA took similar actions recently. VIZ, the platform that hosts Shonen Jump manga giants likeOne Piece, Jujutsu Kaisen, My Hero AcademiaandChainsaw Man,went after Google in an attempt to shut down websites illegally distributing their manga series.Just this one company alone filed 304,581,116 URL removal requests, a staggering number that elucidates just how many manga piracy websites currently exist. Four other massive companies in the industry, Toei Animation, Japan Creative Contents Alliance, Funimation, and Aniplex, also requested large quantities of URL removals.
The over 70 websites targeted by Naver Webtoon’s court orderamassed a whopping 1.3 billion visits every year, irrefutable proof of just how common piracy is becoming. Many people do not see the harm in accessing their favorite movies, anime, webtoons, and other forms of media through illegal formats, but this practice can cause consequences for both creators and websites that do follow the rules to properly host this content on their platforms.Anime piracy is definitely not a new issue, but it is becoming more common in an increasingly digital age that is more reliant on technology than ever before.
“It’s Important that Manga Are Read”: Kodansha’s Editor Has a Surprising Opinion on Pirated Manga
While piracy presents an existential threat to the manga industry, however, one manga editor believes that the illicit practice has some benefits.
There are a variety of differing perspectives on piracy, with some creators expressing indifference, while others are strongly against fans reading their work through illegal means. Apart from any personal opinions, it is becoming increasingly clear that the most successful and well knowncompanies in the anime industry are not afraid to take legal action against piracy.Companies like VIZ Media andNaver Webtoonare more dedicated to handling the issue than ever before, evidenced by the enormous numbers of URL removal requests they have filed, and more recent court orders that have been requested in increasing measure.
