Japan has made significant progress in its fight against global anime piracy, according to a recent report on the progress of the “Operation Animes“, an international collaboration with Brazilian authorities. The Overseas Content Distribution Association (CODA), responsible for combating piracy, published its most recent report on August 26, 2024, detailing the achievements of the second phase of this operation in Brazil. The first phase of the initiative resulted in the closure of 36 pirated anime websites.

Since September 2023, CODA has been implementing the second phase of the program, which has succeeded in closing 16 additional sites. Among the most notable achievements is the closure of three pirate websites following the filing of criminal charges by Toei Animation, Toho and Bandai Namco Filmworks. Since March 2024, CODA has been using a tactic known as “knock-and-talk”, which consists of carrying out raids and persuading operators of pirate sites to cease their activities and collaborate with the authorities. These actions resulted in the closure of 13 locations.

CODA reported that over the past three months, the 16 closed sites have accumulated an average of 21 million hits, which equates to approximately seven million monthly visits and more than 100 million in total. Of these, 11 sites were voluntarily handed over through negotiations, redirecting traffic to a CODA page with the message: “THIS SITE HAS BEEN CLOSED FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT.” Although the remaining five sites have also been shut down, CODA is still in negotiations with their operators to transfer control of the domains.

The report also provides updates on operations carried out by Brazilian police in April this year against anime piracy websites. During these operations, 11 search and seizure warrants were executed, and the Brazilian government confirmed that at least two websites were blocked or suspended. This number increased as negotiations progressed.

This year we have seen significant global efforts to reduce piracy. This week alone, more than 10 major pirated anime sites, including Aniwave, have been shut down, affecting sites with cumulative traffic of over 250 million monthly visits. On some of these sites, a message thanking fans for their support was displayed, along with an unexpected appeal to utilize legal services to consume anime.

Source: Content International Distribution Association（CODA）