Japanese
productions are conquering the world at a rapid pace, but illegal consumption
remains an open wound that large corporations are no longer willing to ignore.
During a special meeting held in Japan's House of Representatives on April 3,
industry leaders sat down to discuss the future of the medium. It was in this
scenario that Toei Animation, the legendary studio responsible for
giants such as One Piece, Dragon Ball and Sailor
Moon, raised its voice to demand that the government intervene much more
aggressively and directly against international piracy.
A
millionaire problem in the international market
To
understand the magnitude of this demand, you have to look at the cold numbers.
Kiichiro Yamada, the studio's senior executive director, explained that
overseas anime sales have just exceeded thirteen billion dollars, managing for
the first time in history to generate more profits abroad than within Japanese
territory itself. However, these numbers could be exponentially higher. Last
year alone, Japan reported losses of more than thirty-eight billion dollars due
to illegal downloads of anime, manga and video games. With the industry aiming
for an ambitious global sales target by 2033, executives warned that free and
illegal distribution is the biggest obstacle to reaching those goals.
The
future of animation at play
Although
Japanese authorities have already begun to implement technological tools, such
as an artificial intelligence system designed to track stolen manga pages on
the internet, Toei Animation made it very clear that these
initial measures are insufficient. Yamada emphasized that much stricter
international cooperation is needed to enforce copyright laws. The producers
argue that each viewing on unofficial sites is a direct blow to fundraising,
money that is absolutely vital to improve the working conditions of animators
and guarantee the creation of new projects with the quality that the public
demands.
Protecting
creative rights globally has become a real race against time for Japanese
studios. Knowing that legal subscriptions to streaming services compete daily against
hundreds of unofficial platforms
