Pirated anime site Animeflix has
unexpectedly closed , leaving millions of users
without access to its vast library of series and movies. Although the site's
operators have not cited a specific reason for the closure, they noted that the
decision was made after "careful deliberation."
Animeflix had gained widespread popularity, racking
up tens of millions of monthly views and boasting an active Discord community
of approximately 35,000 members . This community participated in
discussions, art competitions, and even a chess tournament. However, the site's
main business was illegal streaming of anime, which attracted considerable
legal pressure in recent months.
The site had been identified as one of the closure
targets by the anti-piracy coalition ACE last December. In May, rights
holders increased pressure through India's High Court, obtaining a broad
injunction that suspended Animeflix's main domain name, Animeflix.live. Although
the site moved to new domains, Animeflix.gg and Animeflix.li, the legal threat
persisted.
This week, Animeflix became unavailable, initially
displaying an error message from Cloudflare. This time, the problem was not the
domain, but a decision by the team to shut down the site without warning.
“ It is with great regret that we announce the closure of Animeflix.
After careful consideration, we have decided to close our service immediately.
We deeply appreciate your support and enthusiasm over the years. We hope that
the joy and excitement of anime continue to brighten your days across other
wonderful platforms ,” stated the Animeflix team.
Although no specific details have been provided
about the reasons for the closure, it is clear that keeping such a site online
comes with significant challenges, primarily related to copyright issues. Rights
holders were actively monitoring the site and looking for options to shut it
down, which likely influenced the final decision.
The closure of Animeflix is a common
fate for many pirate sites. Given the popularity of the
Animeflix brand, it is likely that the name will be reused by a new team
willing to fill the void left by its closure. While many users mourn the demise
of their favorite anime portal, rights holders could be celebrating before
focusing on other pirated anime sites that are still active.
Source: OfficialTwitter Account
