What I want to see from the anime industry

Hey everyone,

I keep hearing that the anime industry is doing poorly because of fan subbers. I sometimes hear what they plan on doing about it but I never see anything implemented and if it is implemented its not very innovative. I mean they have way more resources at their hands than fansubbers do, but they are held up over licensing all the time. I mean look anime comes to the US much later than it comes out in Japan. If its popular it’ll come out faster, if not…it could be a long wait.

People online like watching things as they come out in Japan and are often not looking for high quality. I problem I have with the anime industry is that they expect you to want to add to a collection and no just watch it once and get over it. Also, they think you want to hear the dub, which is usually not true. Granted dubbing (if its good) has allowed some anime like Pokemon and Dragonball Z to become mainstream, but most anime is not going to become mainstream. I’m sure the industry is smart enough to be able to tell which ones have a chance of going mainstream or being watching by people who are not “otaku.” I think dubbing may increase the cost of the DVDs (although I’m not completely sure) because the actors have to be paid too. The cost of those DVDs are ridiculous sometimes. I mean $35 for four episodes. They could continue to dub, but sell one without a dub maybe for a limited time to see if its viable at first.

Although the Anime Network for TV failed it doesn’t mean that something like that for the internet wouldn’t work. If they did that with subs that were notablely good and the quality of art showed through I think a considerable amount of people would watch them even if they came out later than the fansubbers. I wonder how many people watch the anime on Cartoon Network’s Jetstream and adultswim.com in comparison to on the TV. It’s a good idea that is limited by the amound of anime that CN has access to.

I know I’m dreaming now, but if the different companies got together they could form a really nice website.

If the industry is really doing as poorly as I hear then innovation and revamping is necessary. Whether or not they revamp I think their will be a shift in the type of jobs available there, so some people are bound to lose their jobs. And at this time in the US considering we’re at the beginnning of a recession its not going to be easy for anyone to buy things or get new jobs.

Kagehime

PS. I just learned that some companies are becoming smarter. Gonzo for example is now beginning to work with Crunchyroll.com, which is a website that allows people to watch fansubbed anime and dramas.