The California-based entertainment company known for having “the world's largest collection of anime,” Crunchyroll , has agreed to pay a staggering $16 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging digital privacy violations . According to the settlement administrator's website, this action has been taken due to accusations of sharing users' personal viewing information with third-party sites, including Facebook and Google, without their knowledge , which would constitute a violation of the Protection Law. of Video Privacy.
The lawsuit, filed in September 2022, focused on the conduct of the parent company, Sony Corporation. Although Crunchyroll has denied any wrongdoing in the case, the matter is still developing. McClatchy News contacted the company on October 10 for comment and is awaiting a response. The deadline for subscribers to submit their claims ends on December 12.
Who can file a claim? Residents of the United States who have been registered users of any website, mobile application or video-on-demand service owned or operated by Crunchyroll between September 8, 2020 and September 23, 2023, as well as those who have viewed videos on such platforms during the same period, meet the requirements to do so.Eligible Crunchyroll users can submit a claim form online, according to the administrator's website. A class member ID, included in an email sent by the administrator, is required to complete the form. Although paper claim forms are also accepted, online submission is highly recommended. The deadline to submit claims is December 12.
Eligible users who submit a valid claim form may receive compensation up to US$30 , although the amount may vary depending on the number of claims submitted, as reported on the administrator's website. The final hearing to approve the terms of the agreement is scheduled for Tuesday, December 19, administrators have indicated. If approved, eligible Crunchyroll users will receive their payments 90 days after potential appeals are resolved.
Of course, the news did not go unnoticed by Internet users:
- « I will accept it, but I hope in a 10,000 million dollars that the dues will go up 2.50 dollars a month (that is, 30 dollars a year) in a short time. It is impossible for Sony not to absorb all the money they are going to lose again .
- " Oh yeah, I can't wait to get my dime after another company lost or sold my information illegally, again ."
- « Imagine selling users' information, but not being able to offer a good service .»
- « They are selling user information and still cannot offer a good service. The money should be invested in that .
- « So I guess selling user information outside of the United States is okay? ».
- " Fuck them, at this point it's better to resort to piracy ."
- « I assume this was a result of what was presented last year regarding hidden tracking pixels. Those in the United States should keep an eye on their inbox, because this complaint has been filed against a lot of websites, and it appears that some of them remain, such as Crunchyroll and FloSports, a sports streaming service .
- « I guess anime monopoly can't be built from nothing .»
- " I still don't understand how a streaming service anywhere in the Middle East works better than a multi-billion dollar company like Crunchyroll ."
Source: The Sacramento Bee
