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Otakon 2008 mentioned in Variety Japan


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Can anyone translate Japanese on here?

I just found this article from Variety Japan that mentions Otakon 2008 and has some pictures: http://www.varietyjapan.com/news/animation...00000a94f7.html

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It mostly seems to be talking about "pirating" anime. It starts off by talking about Otakon and how it's growing to be the biggest con in the US, talks a bit about the congoers and then goes into how we get our anime so soon after it's aired in Japan, how it's "hurting" their earnings, etc. That's all I could get from google translate's Engrishy website translation.

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It mostly seems to be talking about "pirating" anime. It starts off by talking about Otakon and how it's growing to be the biggest con in the US, talks a bit about the congoers and then goes into how we get our anime so soon after it's aired in Japan, how it's "hurting" their earnings, etc. That's all I could get from google translate's Engrishy website translation.
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I'll try a rough translation...

"The curtain falls on the US-East Coast Cosplay extravaganza 'Otakon'"

The prevention of fans' uploads to the internet is the topic at hand.

Celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, the East Coast's largest anime convention "Otakon 2008 - Convention of Otaku Generation (Otakon)" concluded on the 10th. In three days, last year's record of 22,852 was exceeded by over 3,000 more attendees, setting a record high attendance number.

Japanese anime fandom in the US is certainly incresing, and according to Otakon Public Relations Chair Amanda Tai (Sp?): "A culture that was unknown ten years ago, "Japanese Anime" has become mainstream over the years, to the point where it's not so unthinkable to be a fan in today's society."

Many guests are welcomed to Otakon each year, but for the 15th anniversary, guests such as seiyuu Kappei Yamaguchi (famous for shows such as "Ranma 1/2") and the Kano Sisters, models starring in the new anime "Abunai Sisters - Koko and Mika" , participated. Mr. Shinji Sekizawa (sp?) of the company that is distributing the Kano Sisters' anime (Pony Canyon) made fans aware of the long-awaited release of the DVD and also is contemplating future distribution methods. Currently, a streaming site is offering three minute shorts, similar to the style that the actual anime will be distributed in. Furthermore, taking into consideration the borderless nature of the internet, an English version with Japanese subtitles has been in the works from the beginning. (link to an article on 8/10)

On one hand, people within the (anime) industry are lamenting the recent decline in proceeds from Japanese anime DVD sales. The cause is "fansubs", which are obtained through downloading or streaming. With "fansubs", anime are given English subtitles and uploaded to the internet within 24 hours of their broadcast.

Many fans who visited panels held by companies such as Bandai Entertainment's, Kadokawa Pictures USA's, or Toho's seemed to already be aware of information that had not been announced yet. When asked where they learned this information, they would hesitate a bit and then respond with the internet.

"It's just a way for fans to quickly get the content and not pay money. It's a way of getting things almost at the same time as the Japanese do, so the influx of fans to bootleg sites can't really be stopped. " says Scott Vanskilling, the manager of a popular anime blog site.

In order to stop the leaking of contents to the web by fans, many in the North American anime industry are offering legal internet distribution services. (link to an article from 8/9) Whether the proliferation of legal sites is to pull fans away from illegal sites or to boost profits a little, Vanskilling says of the core young adult anime fanbase; "Fans won't buy unless the price fits. For example, something that's only a dollar or has ads with it."

(Sorry everyone, I know I screwed up some names and quotes and the last few sentences were a little rough, but I hope this helped a bit...)

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It is true that the US is fansubbing anime. But why pin it mostly otakon. The most popular is AnimeExpo yet otakon is gettin the blame. I know Otakon is getting bigger, but to mention us con goers...

There has been alot of fansubbing. You have the major anime's like bleach and naruto. They have characters so far from being relesed in the U.S and yet they are being cosplayed as.

I am no person to try an fix the problem, yet i am concerend. I used to read/watch fansub's. Im trying to stop. I am glad that the major industry's are trying to put a stop to it and offer an alternate another solution.

(I probably made no sense!)

Edited by coolerninjathanu
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