Since its introduction and usage on October 1st, the anti=piracy law in Japan has had a negative effect to the entertainment industry within the month. The law forbids downloading audio and video (including anime) and if found so, can be punishable with up to two years in jail and a 2 million yen (~250,000 USD) fine.
The law was passed in June after the Japanese music industry showed are serious the illegal download rate was. with only 1 in 10 downloads being legal. Since its effect, download sites have been less in effect and users are now more reluctant to click that download link. But how has the target on piracy ended up in less sales?
Recent surveys noted the amount of money spent on music each year, with each yearly survey having a larger percentage of people ticking the ‘0 yen’ box. Since the music industry’s slope, the thought of stopping piracy hoped to increase sales and revenue. Yet nothing has changed and sales continued to drop. The main reason could be due to the internet revolution, and how the consumers view on the music industry has changed. Audio and Video can now be instantly accessed through sharing sites without any purchase, such as NicoNico – the youtube equivalent in Japan.
Many users had complaints about their beloved music industry and why they wouldn’t purchase the content with their hard earned money (noting that Japan have harsh working hours)
“Bring the average price of a CD down and I might buy one…”
“I rarely actively listen to music now anyway – it’s just on in the background. For the price stores charge I wouldn’t buy an actual CD.”
“In terms of cost performance, CD albums are pretty poor.”
“This is how the Japanese music industry will die…”
“Since they got so strict about downloads I actually don’t feel like buying new music.”
“I usually buy about 100 songs a year, but more often than not I get them from foreign stores. Music here is too expensive.”
“Why pay? I can sing for free…”
Main reason are the prices of the tracks and the lack of interest that are turning consumers away. Though, only the music industry has suffered and despite strong sales so far. it won’t be long till the movie and anime industry show similar signs. What do you think of the new proposed law? Will this surely affect the anime industry? Let us know below.
Original story and quotes can be found on the article here.