[News] Popular Boyband Arashi posts concert videos on Facebook, violates copyright laws

[barbosa2007.livejournal.com]

Edited to add (23/04/2013): the Facebook group was moved to another URL, will update links when I receive them.

Edited to add (24/04/2013): The creator of the page got in touch, you can view her comments here. At her request, I've removed the picture of her profile.

In an unprecedented move by Japanese national idols Arashi, videos of their latest Tokyo Dome concert were posted online onto a Facebook group website "iL0v3AraShI". Industry experts, fans and JE staff were flabbergasted; why would Arashi blatantly violate anti-piracy laws, especially when the music industry was already reporting losses in Japan?

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The Worrysome Situation regarding the iL0v3AraShI Facebook page

On to the serious stuff, and because it affects you as a member of this fandom and this LJ.

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What this means for you and me

I am not sure about how you feel as you're reading this, but as a fan who wants sources to stay viable for as long as possible, I am very much turned off by this childish and ignorant behavior. This is also why translators and subbers hardly move to Tumblr or Facebook, rules are almost never respected in those social media, it's all too easy and tempting to break them without suffering from any consequences.

As I've mentioned in a previous post, actions by a few ignorant fans can really harm the fandom. In this case, the Weibo user who shared her Popcorn video is no longer going to upload anymore videos, and I have started to keep selected translations locked.

In a show of fandom solidarity, I am going to do the following:

- Delete links to existing videos here at Transitions101
- Close the community indefinitely to future applicants

What you can do as a fan

- Ask the moderators of iL0v3AraShI to take down material which they have not posted with permission or properly credited.
- Report this group to Facebook. Click HERE to find out how.

Unless fandom as a whole takes a stand against certain outrageous behaviors, I don't see how I want to be a part of this anymore. It's been a horrid week for the world in general with shootings, earthquakes and bombings, the last thing I need to come home to is to find that 2 or 4 teenage girls can't be bothered to keep proper internet etiquette.


GIF: ohshianno@tumblr

Please note that the contents of this post are my personal opinion and does not necessarily represent the views of Arashi fans in general. I welcome people who would like to engage in the content of this post. I will admit that I'm not the most informed in this matter, so I greatly appreciate any other information on this issue which any one of you might offer.

Credits: screencaps taken from iL0v3AraShI's Facebook page