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The story
A thread on 5ch’s Hardware/Industry board (known as “Geha”) blew up after a Japanese post arguing “If there’s no legal way to play it, just give up — piracy is a crime” drew pushback from overseas users saying “what are you even talking about.” In the thread, many posters mocked the pro-piracy side as “thieves” or “righteous bandits,” while others posted official rules from publishers like Shueisha, Shogakukan, and Kodansha explicitly banning derivative works and unauthorized reposting. At the same time, some pointed out that illegal fansubs contributed to spreading Japanese anime overseas, and opinions split less over whether piracy itself is right or wrong than over where to draw the line on “how much deference should be shown to rights holders.”
What people said
You guys are the thieves here, right?
At least a thief knows he's a thief.
These guys call themselves "righteous bandits," so there's no getting through to them.
they think "committing an illegal act" counts as never giving up?
Seriously, what did you even learn from anime?
the annoying kind who mistakenly believe they're the good guys.
Play it on the sly.
And if the rights holder complains, accept it.
The only difference is whether you're open about it — people still illegally download stuff today.
The issue is those guys are being brazen about it, acting like it's some kind of entitled right.
This isn't a "both sides are equally bad" thing.
It's more like "the thief has some nerve."
So am I allowed to say it since I've never pirated anything or used Manga-Mura? Don't do it.
That's really just about not wanting to get caught yourself.
Honestly, it'd be more consistent to openly argue "what I'm doing is illegal right now, but that's because the law is wrong — what I'm doing isn't actually bad" and do it out in the open.
That's exactly what shows up as the gap in IP between Japan and other countries.
For good works to flourish, you need a good audience that respects them.
And if you're going to talk about "protecting creators," used sales should be made illegal too — and it's fair to point out that even when it's not illegal, you never buy anything used anyway.
In the end, all you're left with is the feelings-based argument: "doing it openly is bad, do it secretly instead."
Doujinshi only exist because rights holders turn a blind eye (o-mekoboshi) — if they're told to stop, they accept it.
When Japanese otaku were told not to draw adult art of Uma Musume, they accepted that too.
the poor's "effort" and "never-give-up action."
You can buy from sellers worldwide on eBay.
Don't give up on the effort to actually play the game.
This is genuinely incomprehensible.
If you go digging for the absolute bottom-tier crowd overseas, this is what you get.
Slums are smelly and dirty no matter what country you're in.
This isn't even at the level of being up for debate.
All the publishers state outright on their official sites that it's prohibited.
https://faq.shueisha.co.jp/faq/show/30?site_domain=default
> We do not grant individuals permission to use our characters or works.
https://www.shogakukan.co.jp/picture
> Summarizing and posting copyrighted works from publications or our site, or adapting those works into manga, novels, etc. and posting or distributing them.
https://www.kodansha.co.jp/inquiry/individual/copyright
> Using or altering images, manga, characters, etc. from publications or our website to create and post your own illustrations, parodies, images, etc.
https://www.bn-pictures.co.jp/contact/copyright.html
> Even novels or illustrations you created yourself based on Bandai Namco Pictures works may not be used online unless we have granted permission.
It's written right there — are you a foreigner who can't read Japanese?
Why are they acting so bold about it?
Italy's apparently especially strict about it — a YouTuber who showed off an emulator console got arrested there.
No good — they'll just get cocky.
Shutting them up with regional restrictions ("this-country-only" blocks) is basically Steam's way of teaching a lesson.
It's only because those people got absolutely hammered with criticism that things are the way they are now.
That's often said, but at least on Geha, both piracy and the "must-buy-everything" crowd were harshly rejected.
That's why Sony's "we don't care about piracy" comment during the PSP era got slammed, and why people cheered when pirated copies of Dragon Quest V got stuck unable to reach Vista Port (an anti-piracy measure built into the game).
So to foreigners, spreading piracy feels like a Robin Hood-style act.
That's a story about the poor, though.
And that tracks if you look at the riots and looting that piggyback on protests.
It boils down to a mindset where, regardless of crime or law, whatever's good for me is justice.
This Chinese guy was pretty cool about it.
Basically his point is: "Anime has been giving modern France's negative image a boost and spreading it in a positive light — don't you feel any gratitude for that?"
Now that you mention it, you'd have to go all the way back to the Osomatsu-kun era to find a time France was praised unreservedly. Come to think of it, Japanese anime has played kind of an influencer role, for better and worse.
Background and Key Points of the Debate
Under copyright law, reproducing and distributing pirated material is, as a rule, illegal both in Japan and abroad, and the publishers’ bans on derivative use cited in the thread are grounded in that same principle. On the other hand, the view that “illegal fansubs were one factor in spreading Japanese anime overseas” is a narrative often repeated in overseas fandoms, but it’s worth noting that how much it actually boosted legitimate distribution is hard to verify, and it doesn’t excuse illegal activity. What split opinion in the thread wasn’t the rightness or wrongness of piracy itself, but where to draw the line on attitude — whether you should quietly accept it when rights holders object, and whether openly declaring and justifying it is the real problem. Some also questioned the consistency with doujinshi culture, but doujinshi exist on the basis of rights holders’ de facto tolerance (so-called “turning a blind eye”), which puts them in a different legal position from piracy.
※This article is compiled as an excerpt and summary of the 5ch (Hardware/Industry, “Geha”) thread “[Sad News] Japanese people: “If there’s no way to play it, give up! Piracy is a crime” Foreigners: “What are these guys even saying…😰”“.
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