Due to copyright infringement, Japanese Manga Publishers are taking down multiple manga spoiler websites. These actions came up recently as publishers began noticing a rise in spoiler sites. These sites often came with screenshots of the manga series and the story. Shogakuken is currently taking the lead in this hunt. They want to put an end to this practice. So what is really happening to these sites? Here is everything we know about these spoiler sites.
Spoiler sites are usually websites that put up shots and scenes from trending manga before the publishing companies actually release them. This gives spoilers to the fans who are waiting for the manga series’ next chapter. However, it ruins the excitement the manga series companies rely on for people to buy copies. Once fans see what happens in the next chapter on these spoiler sites, they often decide not to buy the next copy. This takes a negative hit on the publishing and it impacts the revenue. Moreover, these spoiler sites publish without permission from the artists. It then becomes a form of art theft.
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Manga Spoiler Websites: Why Taken Down?
Shogakukan filed charges against a company in Tokyo and its employee for uploading screenshots of the manga Kengan Omega. The Prefecture Police arrested the employee who had viewed chapters 60 and 62 on Manga ONE. They then took screenshots and published them on their spoiler website. The manga spoiler website’s name was “Manga-ru ~Muryō Manga Kansō Netabareview,” which means “Manga-ru ~Free Manga Impressions and SpoilerReviews.” The publishing company first requested the site to be shut down. Then they went on to ask for the identity of the site maintainers.
Earlier Events
In March 2021, the Tokyo District Court ruled that posting manga text without permission is also a copyright infringement. Their order helped Shogakuken to get the details of the site’s maintainers. After this, Kodansha started to take legal action against Manga Spoiler Websites. Illegal sites were spoiling the manga “Attack on Titan”. In fact, it was the last chapter. Although the publishing house took action to prevent this from happening, it still happened. Publishers have gotten behind illegal manga series hosting websites before. In addition, in 2010, a student was arrested for illegally distributing “One Piece”.
Manga Spoiler Websites: What We Can Do?
Shogakuken revealed that they had found more than 300 manga spoiler websites. They have asked for their deletion. The pandemic has given rise to these spoiler sites. Moreover, these sites seem to earn money with an advertisement stream. Authors and artists put in a lot of work for creating their works. It is unfair for any reader to try to enjoy them for free and take advantage. Supporting illegal activities such as copyright violations demeans the work of a manga author. Keep an eye on this space for more information about actions like this.
