[Saecryd]

First, here's the article. Be advised the that this site is generally considered NSFW.

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As you can see, this is the latest installment of a series of reports that Sankaku has been running concerning the decline of the anime and manga industry in it's homeland Japan. Sankaku provides no comment on the possible decline in other countries, so it's safe to assume that they haven't looked into it or that the problem is restricted to Japan itself.

The reliability of a site like Sankaku Complex is certainly questionable and a fair point, but this has been reported elsewhere as well in the past by other more trustworthy sites like the more factually-driven and less porn obsessed resource the Anime News Network. In fact, ANN was writing about this as far back as 2007 as you can see in this article here:

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Reasons for this decline are unclear. Sankaku has put forward several theories, including a lack of new blood in the manga industry, an old an inefficient infrastructure, and even the onslaught of moe. Suffice it to say there is likely more going on than any one problem and any action(s) required to get the manga industry out of this slump would require careful examination, planning, and execution.

[GodsDragon]

I am sorry manga artists but it is just so much more convenient to just get the manga online. I mean I used to get Shonen Jump but that is a massive book and can take up lots of room after you build up a collection.

[Saecryd]

That ties in to the whole "old, inefficient infrastructure" thing I mentioned. Manga distributors could very easily offer their wares online for the world with professional translations within hours of or at the same time as their domestic release. They simply don't do it, which kind of boggles the mind because they could easily increase their profits this way.

I don't know about you but I would totally purchase access to the latest chapters of manga I enjoy online if I could and they were as new as they could possibley be.

[the space cadet]

I don't read manga, but if I did, why would I buy it when I can download it all for free?

[Saecryd]

Originally Posted by the space cadet

I don't read manga, but if I did, why would I buy it when I can download it all for free?

The biggest reason would be to support the people producing the material that you enjoy and encouraging them to make more. The production value of the big manga out there exceeds what an artist can do on their lonesome and that production costs money.

Basically, if everyone downloaded manga for free rather than purchased it you wouldn't see manga like you do today.

[evereternal7]

Nowadays it's not just a problem with manga but even worse with movies, series, music, games, software, etcetera.

[Saecryd]

Originally Posted by evereternal7

Nowadays it's not just a problem with manga but even worse with movies, series, music, games, software, etcetera.

That's definitely a good point, this isn't the only industry taking a beating from piracy. But a good question to ask would be, How could companies encourage people to support them with their money?

I would never claim that someone who pirates manga is less of a fan than someone who buys it or vice versa but it's pretty much inarguable that one of them is doing more to show their support than the other.

[Darkchao45]

This is sad but there really are too many crappy manga out there nowadays, this doesnt motivate people like me to buy them like i used to. And the good ones rarely sell because they are stuck in the back of the crappy ones which means people like me just walk past the manga section because they are discontinued. People look at tits and ignore the rest....

Also, it is obvious online manga reading is the #1 killer.

[the space cadet]

If people are actually buying anime and manga, it's for two reasons:

1. You have a favorite that you hold onto like a trophy
2. You don't know you can get it all for free

[Darkchao45]

Thats true but i know i can get it for free and still decide to buy it, mainly because im a collector ans sometimes read on the road.