Hulu.com begins to steam LEGAL anime.

[RobinSena]

Free legal anime on Hulu.com

The video service Hulu.com has announced that it is launching a channel for free, legal streaming of anime in the United States today. The newly added anime include 20 English-subtitled episodes of Naruto, all 37 English-subtitled episodes of Death Note, and 12 English-dubbed episodes of Mushi-Shi.

The service promises to add more titles from the anime distributors Viz Media, Funimation, and Gong — such as Bleach, Basilisk, Black Blood Brothers, Kiddy Grade, MoonPhase, Peach Girl, and School Rumble. The site had already been streaming the Speed Racer (Mach Go Go Go) series and the 2003 Astro Boy series. The site requires no fees for its anime streams and supports itself with commercial breaks within the streams.

Update: Death Note has now been added to the website.

I just joined Hulu a few weeks ago, so I'm incredibly happy to hear this. I was about 21 episodes into watching Death Note on the AS site before I lost track.

[minakichan]

I read this. I am totally stoked. I actually never watched all of the Death Note anime, so this will be good, and I wouldn't mind watching School Rumble off and on.

Finally, we can get something legal AND relatively free, ad-sponsored. Why should Japanese and Asian people be able to watch original-language anime, ad-sponsored for the price of cable, and Americans be forced to pay $25 for every 4 episodes with such limited choice to view but not own?

[everdred12a]

Why should Japanese and Asian people be able to watch original-language anime, ad-sponsored for the price of cable, and Americans be forced to pay $25 for every 4 episodes with such limited choice to view but not own?

Because the anime industry is still technically a 'new' industry in America. Anime has its roots set in Japan as an established industry and probably garners much better ratings in Japan than it would in America. Despite the fact that anime has grown in popularity in America, you have to keep in mind that it's still largely a niche sort of thing here.

Besides, while we might pay 25 bucks for 4 episode DVD's, I remember reading that the Japanese pay more per DVD and only get 2 episodes per disc to boot. So consider yourself lucky.

[EricTheFred]

Because the anime industry is still technically a 'new' industry in America. Anime has its roots set in Japan as an established industry and probably garners much better ratings in Japan than it would in America. Despite the fact that anime has grown in popularity in America, you have to keep in mind that it's still largely a niche sort of thing here.

Besides, while we might pay 25 bucks for 4 episode DVD's, I remember reading that the Japanese pay more per DVD and only get 2 episodes per disc to boot. So consider yourself lucky.

Actually, more than anything we suffer from lack of imagination in our business leadership here. My wife pays a monthly fee ($16, if I remember correctly) to watch streaming Video-on-demand from ABS-CBN (the largest Filipino television network) on her computer. She's had this service for several years.

The Anime Network (aka ADV) has had a lovely website for years, but only recently began adding an online player to its site. Funimation and ImagineAsian TV have yet to follow suit AFAIK. So the emigrants from a third-world economy in Southeast Asia continue to be a more lucrative market than the teeming international hordes of Anime fans?

Somehow, given the preponderance of anime on Youutube, Veoh, etc., I have a feeling that it isn't actually true. What is happening instead, in my opinion, is that the US anime industry is stuck in the days before streaming video and have yet to figure it out.

The same industry that is being so vocal about pirated anime on the Internet could easily be using that same internet to provide a more attractive product than random fansubbers can produce , and get some bucks back in the bargain. Would I be willing to put up with ads and/or a subscription fee to get my episodes in a consistent quality and format, on a reliable basis? Is the ocean wet?

Actually, the Japanese are missing out on a bet, too. Animax and the others could hire some of these fansubbers to knock out half-decent subs of their current seasons, and then put these onto streaming video sites themselves. No more American or European middlemen, just a global marketplace to sell advertising time on.

[minakichan]

@everdred: I find it hard to disagree with you because your icon is Blue. Regardless, I suppose the question was more normative than positive-- on a conceptual level rather than a logistical one, more what "should be" than what "is."

As for the Japanese paying more per episode, I think this doesn't address the fact that the Japanese have two options-- to view and to own-- while North Americans generally only have one. The option to own is generally for a much more niche audience-- collectors-- whereas in America, in order to actually view anime LEGALLY, there is a huge cost threshold that in theory does not allow casual fans to participate. In this sense, the difference between "free" and "$25 for four episodes" isn't quite equivalent to comparing "$25 for four episodes" and "$40 for two episodes" because in the former case, they are essentially not the same product, but the American market forces to mold it as such.

I suppose a bad analogy I could make (I love bad analogies) is the idea of fine art-- generally, the cost of admission to an art gallery is minuscule compared to the value of the pieces themselves, but it makes sense; you're viewing the item and don't plan to be able to "consume" it in the long term and exclusively. (OK, granted, you generally can't buy pieces from the museum, but for the sake of analogy, art collectors might visit in order to get a better understanding of value or taste or whatnot.) The American market doesn't have these "museums" and instead only sells the artwork without any real ability to preview it, and then wonders why the number of buyers in America is so much smaller than the number of museum attendees in Japan, and how unauthorized fans can have the gall to show digital pictures of the item on the internet.

Something like this Hulu effort attempts to set things straight.

@EricTheFred: Ditto on all of that. One of my professors, who visited GONZO last year, explained that Japanese studios have just been so paranoid about YouTube, and I think that this paranoia begins to apply to Internet distribution of the media in general to the point that they aren't even willing to consider streaming as a possible channel. As for fansubbers, yeah, ditto again. Heck, I worked as a scanlator (admittedly for just a couple months), and while I may not be representative of all scanlators, I will say that if a Japanese company wanted to use the skills and end product of my group to distribute manga online with little or no compensation to my team, I would TOTALLY be up for it, as long as they charged consumers overseas the same amount (at least in purchasing power; or less, if ad-supported) that they charged their domestic audiences. This is pretty much the idea of MangaNovel, a relatively new service that allows users to scanlate manga and make a ridiculous low amount of money for it that surely isn't worth the effort (and therefore requires passion, not market incentives); why on earth can't this be applied to animation?

[everdred12a]

@everdred: I find it hard to disagree with you because your icon is Blue.

Took me like, two minutes to realize what you were talking about, lol.

In this sense, the difference between "free" and "$25 for four episodes" isn't quite equivalent to comparing "$25 for four episodes" and "$40 for two episodes" because in the former case, they are essentially not the same product, but the American market forces to mold it as such.

I think half of it is because of subbers, who often produce work that's just as good as the professionally-translated products and the other half is that they want to charge too much to begin with.

[quote]This is pretty much the idea of MangaNovel, a relatively new service that allows users to scanlate manga and make a ridiculous low amount of money for it that surely isn't worth the effort (and therefore requires passion, not market incentives)]
Why can't we apply it to animation? Because the anime companies are out for themselves. They're out to make a buck, and if the Japanese animation companies are making all the money on the backs of subbers and scanlators who are working for little or no money, then ADV goes out of business.

Plus, you can always just fall back on this idea:

Why pay for something when you can get something just as good for free? Is it wrong? Probably. But that's not going to really stop people.

[Roy Mustang]

On the topic of online streaming video and anime. Looks like someone else wants to be part of it.

Joost Streams Legal, Subbed Naruto, Death Note for Free

Also,

Crunchyroll to Premiere Time of Eve in English/French


[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[RobinSena]

On the topic of online streaming video and anime. Looks like someone else wants to be part of it.

Joost Streams Legal, Subbed Naruto, Death Note for Free

Also,

Crunchyroll to Premiere Time of Eve in English/French


[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

Yeah, I saw the article around Joost. Sadly, when I went to the site, it was blocked.. bah.

[Bobtheduck]

Hulu is awesome... Since I can't get VoD from DirectTV, it's the next best thing, even if the quality is youtube level... Speaking of which, I hang out at the hulu channel on Youtube because all the best family guy clips that got taken down in the sting against copyright violaters on youtube were put back up in that channel, and with family guy, individual clips are usually more palatable than entire episodes.

[blkmage]

I think iTunes is enough proof that digital distribution works. There are enough people out there that don't know how to use or don't want to deal with torrents or IRC and there are enough people who are willing to pay a reasonable price. This solution offers both.

For an example of digital distribution that does not, have a look at BONES' newest project, Xam'd: Lost Memories. It's exclusive to the PlayStation Network, meaning you need a PS3. Also, each episode is $3.99 for a 24 hour rental.

Anyway, digital distribution can also solve the problem of the months-long wait in between a localized version and offer a simultaneous or near-simultaneous broadcast.

I've always held the belief that the Internet can make distribution companies obsolete. They're not needed with digital distribution. We've seen the music industry threatened by iTunes and independent artists. We're seeing Steam take on gaming retail. I've learned that webcomics can bypass the traditional route of syndication. Now we're seeing anime studios remove the need for local distributors.

[Elycien]

I saw these yesterday on ANN and got so excited. If American TV networks can stream full episodes on their sites, legally and free, why can't American anime distributors do the same? And subbed, that's what really gets me - previously, it's seemed to me that all the legal online distribution is in dub.

[Bobtheduck]

I've always held the belief that the Internet can make distribution companies obsolete. They're not needed with digital distribution. We've seen the music industry threatened by iTunes and independent artists. We're seeing Steam take on gaming retail. I've learned that webcomics can bypass the traditional route of syndication. Now we're seeing anime studios remove the need for local distributors.

I don't agree with that... Not entirely, anyhow. For new games, nothing beats owning a disc and a box and instructions and being able to lend your games out... Even with movies, nothing beats being able to lend them out, particularly to those who don't have broadband...

I think it will be a sad day when all entertainment is given out in digi-distro... I really want to own a lot of anime some day, so I can bring it with me wherever I go and show it to people and let peopel borrow it, have bonus features like interviews... If it all resides on a harddrive, it really won't be the same... I'm certainly not gonna loan out my entire collection in one fell swoop. There are just a lot of problems with digi-distro that aren't a problem for music, but they are for movies and games.

[Roy Mustang]

If music and movies go to an all digital format and you can't buy them on dvd or cd, is the day that I stop watching movies or listen to music.


I'm not a fan at all of the all digital format. Yes, its great that we can see anime titles by online streaming, but I look at that as a way to see if you like it and you want to buy it.

It will not be the same to just have it on your computer and not have it in your hand.

[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[blkmage]

I would watch online streams of anime to watch anime. It's analogous to TV. I don't watch TV to decide what I want to buy, as much as I enjoy, The Office and Scrubs.

But yeah, obsolete probably isn't correct. Unnecessary is probably more accurate. After all, the Internet didn't destroy the recording industry and music is still being sold on CDs. What has changed is that the traditional methods of distribution and its limitations are no longer the only way to receive media.

A small anecdote, though: the day that I realized that physical media wasn't all that great was when I bought WoW and the expansion and it came on five CDs each, for a total of ten discs that I had to swap during install. I understand that they come on a single DVD now. But, after installing, I had to download about 3 gigs worth of patches anyway -_-

[KhakiBlueSocks]

Hulu.com begins to steam LEGAL anime.

[font="Trebuchet MS"][SIZE="4"][color="RoyalBlue"]I'll take my anime lightly starched and pressed, thank you very much. Helps prevent wrinkles. There's nothing worse than watching an episode of "Fruit Baskets" full of wrinkles.

Sorry, couldn't help myself.

I severly doubt I'll be streaming anime anytime soon...not only is my connection speed kinda slow, but I prefer DVD's that I can watch over and over again without sitting at my computer desk. [/color][/SIZE][/font]

[Roy Mustang]

Well, there is one thing that people should take in count for. Now I know that not every one is like this, but a good number of anime fans like to have dvd's.

The reason for this, they can take out the dvd covers out and get them sign at cons. There are a lot of fans that do this and one of the reasons why they still like to buy the dvds.

[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[Kaligraphic]

I've always* said that fansubs primarily compete against television viewership, with their effects on DVD sales being mostly a side-effect. Hopefully, someone will try this with a new series, and the results should prove my assertion.

Also, I note that distributing through an on-demand online ad-supported channel like Hulu could be very cost-effective for anime. Individual streams would have the same economic return as any other show, and even if a smaller anime market means fewer views, that really only costs them in storage, which is incredibly cheap these days. Broadcast overhead is one of the big killers of anime on TV.

* for various definitions of always

[whisperingloon]

I have to throw my 2 cents in saying this really excites me.

I've been using Hulu for a while now, discovering it last year as a way to watch Battlestar Galactica since I don't have cable. I know there are/were other ways to watch it that weren't legal, but as a personal choice I don't do that. To have this legal option was awesome, and feels better for me.

I'm now using it to stay on top of shows like Fringe and watch the first Bob Newhart sitcom series. Their Amine "channel" is also very exciting to me, since I don't have a big budget to buy series, nor do my local libraries have a good selection, but I enjoy watching them. (I made an exception for buying Escaflowne, based on a friend's recommendation; he also recommended Last Exile to me, but I'm actually having him send it to me via snail mail so I can watch his copy).

Mushi-shi (sp?) and Deathnote are both series I've been curious about, but again, not enough to actually buy.

~ Ben

[sainttailfan]

The video service Hulu.com has announced that it is launching a channel for free, legal streaming of anime in the United States

>.<

[RobinSena]

>.<

Care to elaborate?

[sainttailfan]

Care to elaborate?

I am not in the United States... I heard a while ago about this site (the same one, I think) streaming free episodes of various tv shows legally, only to discover I couldn't watch them...

[minakichan]

Augh, poor sainttailfan... that's retaaaaarded >O.

(coming in very late) As for the idea of digital media "making physical copies obsolete" and what that this might entail-- I think that this is only a continuation of the same cycle of history being repeated over and over: that a new medium arises and people nostalge for the good ol' days. But I think we can remember that with the initial rise of hard copies of music or film media like this, people back then were afraid that live performances would become obsolete and "It simply doesn't feel the same." Not quite a proper analogy, but I think for those old folks out there (XD), it'll probably be fine? By the time physical media dies out, you'll already be dead? I don't know XD

[Bobtheduck]

I am not in the United States... I heard a while ago about this site (the same one, I think) streaming free episodes of various tv shows legally, only to discover I couldn't watch them...

That's when you SET UP A BLIND PROXY IN THE US... Then, you can get a skype US account, call the whole world there for 10 bucks and use it absolutely anywhere you go, because skype will think you're doing it from the US...

Just so everyone knows, I'm not really advocating this, as I am nearly certain it's illegal, I just think that Skype's policies about travel are absurd, (they actually check your IP to make sure you're using it from the country you bought it... So much for it being the miracle alternative to using a phone...)

I understand why they (being services like Hulu) block ad based stuff in countries other than those it came from, but what I don't get is why they block stuff like those movies you get on the PS3... As if getting a new customer means they somehow LOSE money... Please... Hulu should just change their ad program to be more localized, offering ads relative to the person's IP location, and Sony should just be happy they're getting money from France...

[RobinSena]

Bumping to give an update:

Hulu currently has over 340 episodes of anime on the site. The titles include: Astro Boy, Black Blood Brothers, Bleach, Blue Gender, Death Note, Ikki Tousen, Kiddy Grade, Moon Phase, Mushi-shi, Naruto, Shikabane Hime, Speed Racer, and xxxHolic.

[rocklobster]

all right! I think I'll check out Kiddy Grade and Mushi-shi. I hear those are good. Am I right in what I hear?

[Roy Mustang]

Why is Funimation putting Blue Gender, Kiddy Grade and Mushi-shi on Hulu, when they are already on Funimation's youtube page anyway?


[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[Amzi Live]

Wow!
Hulu is officially perfect right now.

[blkmage]

Shikabane Hime is an interesting pick, particularly because it is airing this season, which started at the beginning of October.

[Roy Mustang]

Shikabane Hime is an interesting pick, particularly because it is airing this season, which started at the beginning of October.

Kind of, Funimation already has the rights to it and why they showing this already.


[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[djecliptik]

This is great news! I'm still waiting for my cable company to add the Funimation channel...this will work in the mean time. ^^