Ethos

Since I got my toy (ahhh, NDA be damned), I've been looking for stuff to put on it. So far? Vast majority is anime, and of that most are fansubs. So, now's a good time to talk about how I feel about fansubs.

They are illegal. Not for profit? Check. Not available in English? Check. Doesn't matter. It's still illegal. You can justify it any way you want, as long as you're sending around video, it's illegal.

That said, it happens and trading happens and woe happens to companies that try to stop it. I mean, when was the last time a Media Factory Inc. property was licensed? I mean, it's usually in their [financial] interest to get licensed in other regions, but, if they really can't be bothered with it it's their prerogative.

My beliefs in a nutshell:
1) The original material is above all else.
2) Soft-subs are possible today and, therefore, the most desirable.
3) Stop distributing after release date is ANNOUNCED. This is different from just announcing that it's licensed. Fall '09 doesn't count either. Tell me what Tuesday the first volume comes out. This is to keep companies from licensing a series and holding onto it for ages as a legal grounding to get people to stop distributing.
4) If the release date slips more than 3 times, keep distributing until the actual release date arrives. Nobody likes liars.
5) If the release is censored, continue to release fansubs. See #1. Licensing company loses money? Too f'in' bad. They go out of business? No big loss. In the economic scheme of things, companies that do undesirable things should go out of business.
6) If the official translation is wrong or lousy, release the fanscripts but not the videos. Compromise, sir. Note if there has been censoring and editing the timings won't match up. Then, see #1 and #5.
7) If you got it and liked it, buy the series. If you didn't like it, don't worry about it. Reward those who do what you like and there's no need to be obligated to those you don't like.

That is all. This is me, stepping OFF of my high horse.