Why is it that I have to be rich to watch anime?

[Garylisk]

http://www.bestprices.com has the Eva box set for under 100 bucks.

And if you don't wanna pay for anime, you probably shouldn't be watching. It's actually NOT expensive at all. In fact, even on a low salary, paying rent and buiying food and needs, my room mate and I can both buy anime as well. It's not expensive at all. I don't understand where people get the idea that paying 25 or 30 bucks for a DVD is expensive. It's NOT. 30 bucks is NOTHING! Even at $5.25 an hour, working 30 hours a week, your paycheck, if you get paid bi-weekly, should be over 300 dollars. That's a lot of anime, especially if you still live with your parents. Sheesh.

And about cable TV prices... and satellite TV prices.. yeah.. they're a bit higher in Japan. I think tha'ts what he meant, dude.

Even here.. I have Digital cable plus cable internet. It's not too cheap, but it's affordable.. but it's still more expensive than buying anime.

One last thing.. I am about $3,000 in debt. You know what? That's not all that much money either.

[Nappy]

we can watch shows like X-files, Star Trek, Etc. but we still have to pay 100+ for a dvd boxset of the series. Plus we get alot of deals compared to Japan on anime, they pay like $30 for a single ova episode we pay $20 for a hybrid dvd with alot of episodes on them, and often extras. I'm sure their dvd boxsets for anime tv series are equal if not more than what we pay here.

[Dannywilson]

IT'S COMING!!!! soon you will be able to watch it on cable!

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/article.php?id=2784

[FurryCurry]

The undisclosed TRUTH!!!!

They all have tiny dicks.

You, (and or I) have bigger ones,so THE MAN (ADV;)) only lets us have anime late, so they's don't feel bad, tiny peckers & all.

Really.That's the truuthe, sorta

[CaTaClYsM]

THEY get it BROADCAST for FREE in theri county. And I have LITERALY gotten DVD movies in my CERIAL BOX so they don't need to by charnging hundres of dollars for this crap, hell the broadcasts probably cost them more. And it isn't just that I think paying these rediculus prices it wrong, but when the people in JAPAN get to watch it FREE, it's like saying," Well, this isn't japan and you wont see it on TV, so you either pay what I tell you to pay, or no anime."

Now things like anime movies I will pay for, the people in japan had to pay, and I will gladly, but if I REFUSE to pay for a show that was NATIONALY BRAODCAST ACROSS JAPAN!

[Tsuji Mania]

Well if you didn't notice, there was the recent announcement of a US anime channel.

But furthermore, why do you need to be rich? There's always fansubs and digital subs.

[MCWagner]

Hmm, perhaps it should be pointed out that:
A) The cost of living in Japan where the shows are broadcast is much, much higher than here in the US? So, in a way, you do have to pay for them.
B) We do have anime broadcast on the TV here. If it's not the shows you want, tough luck. It's not like the Anime fans in Japan have any more control on which shows are shown than we do. And considering the fast approach of this anime cable network, I have trouble sympathizing.
C) Do you speak Japanese? No? Then they aren't getting the same thing. We have to get it translated for us.
D) The cost of the DVDs isn't in the materials (except for the initial master copies that are buko $$$) but in the licensing, advertizements, voice actors, etc. That, and it's what the market will support. If you have a little patience, you can start picking up series for much cheaper. You're paying for the high quality, and getting it quickly.
E) Check e-bay. Especially if you're hunting for Eva.

[paizuri]

Now things like anime movies I will pay for, the people in japan had to pay, and I will gladly, but if I REFUSE to pay for a show that was NATIONALY BRAODCAST ACROSS JAPAN!

That's great that you feel the need to BROADCAST your refusal to help the US economy by re-circulating your (possibly, but most likely not) hard-earned money. Everyone's entitled to do what they want.

But keep in mind that the anime DVD prices we pay here are a hell of a lot less than what the japanese pay for their DVDs. Prices there seem to run (judging from CD Japan's prices) from about $50 to $80 for a typical DVD in Japan. And it's not uncommon to have only 1 or 2 (3 if you're lucky) episodes contained on each whereas here, you're much more likely to get at least 3 and usually 4 episodes on any given DVD for $30.

Not to mention the fact that for when anime is released here, the companies have to translate the shows and subtitle and dub them (one or the other, if not both). And since there are such things as copyright laws, the US anime companies have to PAY the japanese companies for the rights to distribute anime here and still try to turn a little profit in order to stay afloat.

Is it wrong for the US companies to pass these costs along to the consumer? Not if they're reasonably priced, and I think for the amount of material we get nowadays on DVDs, I think they are quite reasonable. The money the US companies (and other foreign companies) get from us, can then be used to obtain even more licenses for shows. This extra money that the japanese companies receive allows them to make more of the anime that we know and love. And so on and so forth.

So you don't like paying for anime? That's fine. You can choose to stop watching anime except for what's shown on TV then. Or you can move to Japan. Or you can borrow/rent anime from friends and stores. Or you can get bootlegs and fansubs to watch and be a parasite. There's nothing stopping you.

[The HentaiMaster]

Why is it that if you want to watch anime in japan you only have to turn on your TV and BOOM, its there in your face, but if you want to watch it HERE you have to pay 130 bucks for the box set of one season of a show you realy didn't like in the first place, but sicne buying it is the only ETHICAL way to watch anime, you have to. My question is basicaly,

"IF THEY DON'T HAVE TO PAY, WHY DO I?"

Cose they make it and when it's made in the same country it baerly costs annything but here sinse ::somme ppl::: wanna make more cash they just abuse of ppl and make em play for what somme have for free.

Asow my dear cat i have to say that it is life. You have to somme how to deal with it.

In that case do like me don't buy it my buddget is rei, zero, nothing, but i still manige to watch all that, just download it from kazza, winmx, imesh, all of those have them (not every single anime but most of them)

[belkram23]

ha ha. i'm a parasite and proud of it. i d/l and watch em, and if i like em i'll buy em. simple as that. its stupid to buy something you've only heard stuff about.