Manga Scanlation

I suddenly find myself in the world of manga scanlation.  It is a world I never intended to walk into because I feel torn about the copyright issues.   However, I feel something needs to change with the way that manga is distributed.  Manga online seems natural to me.  Because it is good online and there are people like me who can put out and English version of a manga online, it seems like it should be done.  The problem is the original authors and artists of the manga need to be paid for their work.  I, too, would like to get paid for my work, but currently their is no mechanism in place to facilitate this.  Instead, we, in the US particularly, have to wait about 6 months for the manga to come over here.  For the most part the mangas are localized for whatever the publishers think a typical teenager would like and then compiled into volumes, usually ~200-pgs in length, that are priced from $8 – 11 each, making them out of reach for most teenagers.  This is why there is fan scanlation.  But, also, in a sense, those of us who can pay for the paperback books are subsidizing those that read online and those that read the book in the store but never make a purchase.  This ends up going badly because the publishers find themselves unable to make money and end up dropping a manga mid-series.  This also limits the number of series that make it to the US because it’s a huge investment to run a batch of books.

I like the operating model of Netcomics.  They work on a micropayment system in which the user is charged 25-cents per chapter for 2-day access to read the chapter.  The manga and manwha are released simultaneously online in their native language and English, so the users always have the latest updates to their favorite stories.  I understand that this may still be too much for teenagers and this is still a barrier to teens because most folks under 18 don’t have a credit card.  Beyond that, not everyone who reads manga in English is in the US.  Actually, I get people from all over the world reading my blog.  I can’t say these people have credit cards, nor can I say that 25-cents US is trivial in all countries.

There’s also the example of Crunchyroll in the anime world.  They went legit after many years of illegally distributing anime for profit.  They use a subscription model.  They are now partnered up with the producers of anime series like “Naruto” and fan translators to bring viewers nearly simultaneous Japanese and English releases of some very popular anime series.  The TV producers have decided to cooperate with the fansubbers rather than fight them.  All they ask is that fansubbers hold off on distributing the episodes for a week.  During that week, folks that have a Crunchyroll subscription can watch the show.  After the week, it’s a fansubbers free for all.  I think, though, the transition for Crunchyroll was quite simple because they had the subscription and the distribution infrastructure in place.  I salute Crunchyroll and the TV producers for coming to a happy win-win-win solution.

I often thought about how to make this a win-win-win solution for everyone with respect to manga.  I like both what Netcomics and Crunchyroll has done.  I also like manga online because paper-based manga is a huge tree hog.  The monthly and bi-monthly manga magazines I buy are like phonebooks!  They quickly accumulate and eat vast amounts of space.  The little paperback volumes can accumulate quickly too because there are usually 10+ volumes for each manga series.  TokyoPop and Viz have made small efforts to put some of their manga online, but for the most part they are short teasers to hook customers into buying the paperback volumes.  Also, I find both publishers website extremely difficult to use.  Then I think about what’s nice about the aggegator sites.  Here’s a short list:

• They have built-in readers to view and navigate quickly through the manga series
• They have drop dead easy to use uploaders so people can upload scanlations
• They have wonderful and engaging forums for fans to discuss the manga
• They have VAST libraries of manga to explore , which,  of course, means they have easy to use and effective search built in

What these sites don’t have is a payment infrastructure.  Again, the problem is that the Internet requires credits of some sort and most people under 18 only have access to cash.  Which brings to mind an idea:  Why doesn’t Paypal sell debit cards at grocery, convenience, and discount dept stores like Target and Walmart?

Well, I’ve rambled enough.  I’m sorry if I don’t have a coherant thought yet about this beyond the need for readily available debit cards for those who may not have a credit card or a bank acount and the need to put manga online rather than on paper.   I would like to see the manga publishers work with some of the fan groups to get more manga out, quickly, to fans.  I would love to see the artists get some money from their worldwide audience.  I would love to see the translators earn a some from their hard work.  The problem is now that people, myself included, are used to free manga, what it going to make them pay for it and how much can be charged — what’s the pain point?

Google Stalking: Your on Online Identity is Your Brand

After reading this editorial, I did something I haven’t done for a while, I Googled myself.

Michael Eisner — Online Video Believer

This blog entry from CNET highlights some of the recent things Michael Eisner has said as a strong advocate of and investor in online video. I really like how he has taken a strong leadership position on this and has put his money where his mouth is. No doubt he’s positioning himself to be one of the early kings of the mainstream digital revolution. I also think, eventually, his faith and investments will pay him handsomely once we figure out this world of online entertainment.

I personally love the idea of enabling content providers to be able to distribute content (TV, movies, music, books, magazine, and what not) internationally — translated into many different languages, and localized for many different cultures. This could spawn new business models for content delivery and empower fans to translate and localize to their heart’s content, while getting paid via a micro-payment system or whatever other creative scheme we could come up with. More than anything, I think something like this would expand everyone’s entertainment choices and make the world “smaller” by exposing everyone to cultures outside of their own. I don’t know if this would lead to world peace though understanding, but I do know that this would change the world by breaking down barriers and expanding the entertainment creative space. Can you imagine the wonderful things that could come about as different cultures influence one another on a larger, faster, and more connected scale? There would truly be international stars who may not necessarily be American. I get all teary eyed just thinking about the possibilities and the MONEY. I want this soooo very much!