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Sentai's Licensing Binge




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Sentai's Licensing Binge? Good, bad, or what?
Spambot Filter
1%
 1%  [ 1 ]
They're doomed! Doooooooomed!
3%
 3%  [ 2 ]
This is probably gonna end badly for them.
16%
 16%  [ 11 ]
It's certainly risky. Might hurt them. Might not.
31%
 31%  [ 21 ]
There's risk but they'll probably be fine.
31%
 31%  [ 21 ]
This is a non-issue. There's little danger in what they're doing.
15%
 15%  [ 10 ]
Total Votes : 66

Author Message
ikillchicken



Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 7272
Location: Vancouver
PostPosted: Mon Jul 02, 2012 6:31 pm Reply with quote
So if you've been following the anime news lately you've probably noticed that Sentai has been licensing a ridiculous number of shows. Now it goes without saying that in the short term this is great for fans. It means we're seeing a ton of shows released. However, it's getting to the point where some people are getting worried. The more shows you license, the bigger the risk (although the potential reward is also greater). Especially given the industry's rather questionable history of flooding the market with titles there wasn't a market for I can see where these people are coming from. Of course, that was years ago. The industry has changed drastically since then. But still, I'm seeing a lot of comments telling Sentai to slow down.

So what do you think?
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Polycell



Joined: 16 Jan 2012
Posts: 4623
PostPosted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 3:01 am Reply with quote
It depends on the exact details of the contracts - if the vast majority of the minimum guarantee isn't payable until they put out a physical release(the articles about licensing mentioned the split offhandedly, but never delved into it, so I'm not sure how realistic this is), they'll almost certainly be fine.
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Animegomaniac



Joined: 16 Feb 2012
Posts: 4070
PostPosted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 3:35 am Reply with quote
It seems obvious to me that part of the contract, of the unwatched simulcast, is having to release a DVD of said product in the following year.

But:

DVD only. Why? It automatically creates zero competition for the Japanese BD market. Because that's where anime market is going, or was going in America...

Whether the company wants to release it or not after viewing the entire work, they have to do it.

It's been awhile since we've seen "shovel-ware" anime and I believe this is a job for Sentai's "Maiden Japan" line.

To explain it as simple as possible, simulcasting and physical release combo contracts are a bad idea. Especially, especially if most of your money is coming from selling physical media. The first rule of capitalism is: Know what you're selling....
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Saffire



Joined: 25 Nov 2007
Posts: 1255
Location: Iowa, USA
PostPosted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 8:11 am Reply with quote
The spambot issue was fixed a while ago, you know. :p

I have to assume Sentai has some sort of protection that covers them licensing all of this, so for now I'm going to assume they're mostly safe. The aspect that bothers me most is that Sentai insists on announcing each title individually, despite most of them not being especially newsworthy. It's a pretty lame marketing tactic. Just look at the front page of ANN right now, about a third of the entries for the last few days are Sentai licenses.
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Spastic Minnow
Bargain Hunter
Exempt from Grammar Rules


Joined: 02 May 2006
Posts: 4595
Location: Gainesville, FL
PostPosted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 11:09 am Reply with quote
The thing is, we really don't know. I haven't gotten the impression that anyone who has commented on this really knows what's going on.

Although it seems reckless, these guys did the same sort of thing when they were ADV and as far as I know, over-extending their purchasing wasn't what actually killed them- it was their business partnership.

So, I think they know what's going on. No, we're not in the anime bubble years but I have to figure purchasing prices have adjusted down so it also doesn't cost them as much to purchase so much.

Bring it on... then bring back the days of selling your overstock at ridiculously low prices. Oh how I loved those old ADV megas sales. I believe I bought the Excel Saga Imperfect Collection for $10 from one of those and a few other goodies as well.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23669
PostPosted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 12:51 pm Reply with quote
Until I see some actual observable evidence of a problem, I will be optimistic that the only thing Sentai's licensing spree portends is that we, the fans, have more choice than otherwise would have been the case. I get the concern. We know our beloved anime industry is a niche enterprise and we've seen companies come and go. Skittishness is not surprising.

One of the frustrations I have with R1 distribs is that, as private companies, we fans have zero idea of what kind of financial health they are in unless a) an insider spills the beans (which never seems to happen) or b) the signs of distress are so obvious that anyone can tell something bad is going down (hi, Media Blasters).
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Soundmonkey44



Joined: 25 May 2010
Posts: 1243
PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 7:18 am Reply with quote
Hate to be a Negative Nelly. But I'm gonna go with the "There Doomed!" option. I just have this sinking feeling picking up all these shows will come back to bite them down the line. I will however be overjoyed if wrong.
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OldCharlieStoletheHandle



Joined: 12 Dec 2009
Posts: 1288
Location: Mastic Beach, NY
PostPosted: Fri Jul 06, 2012 3:47 pm Reply with quote
I went with the "might hurt them, might not" option.

I don't think it's the volume of shows they are licensing as much as their recent penchant for licensing shows before they even start broadcasting in Japan. I recall some time ago there was an ANNCast with a former Geneon executive who noted one of the problems they had is they had paid large up-front fees for shows in development, then the market changed and there was no way to make their money back. Maybe Sentai is getting better deals on the up-front cost by getting in early, but if not I feel this is a tremendous risk. While it is always difficult to predict how well a show will do, in this case they really have little info with which to make any kind of prediction.

I hope it works out for them. No one wants to see another R1 licensor go away.
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Mesonoxian Eve



Joined: 10 Jan 2012
Posts: 1858
PostPosted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 10:35 am Reply with quote
I chose "Spambot filter", because of all the options, this one is the most reasonable.

The rest are nothing more than options chosen by emotion, because we lack basic information to make a more reasoned choice.

Then again, I can easily see how the lack of information allowed for the poll to be created. Panic and fear seems to get people to do questionable things.

Some things to think about:
-Are all these titles to be released on DVD?

-Are they going to be released within a single year or over time?

-Will the stream, if any, come before the physical product?

Those are three off the top of my head which allowed me the choice of the best option on the list.
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ikillchicken



Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 7272
Location: Vancouver
PostPosted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 3:31 pm Reply with quote
Hmm...Personally, I couldn't really choose an option. A lot will depend on how they handle these shows and whether they release them on DVD. I just don't think I can really come to any sort of conclusion based on the limited information available to us right now.

...

Hey look! I just said literally everything Mesonoxian Eve did without being an ass about it. Who'd have thought that was possible!
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Mesonoxian Eve



Joined: 10 Jan 2012
Posts: 1858
PostPosted: Wed Jul 11, 2012 6:45 am Reply with quote
ikillchicken wrote:
Hey look! I just said literally everything Mesonoxian Eve did without being an ass about it.

Except... you are an ass about it.

You rarely buy titles, so this news is pointless to you as well as any feedback related to it. I didn't see anything Sentai announced that would be entering your collection, given how strict you are when it comes to anime.

This isn't a bad thing, because it is your time and money, but stop pretending you care what we have to say on the matter because it's a waste of our time.

Call me the ass if it'll make you feel better. I don't mind, because when it comes to you, it's probably the nicest I'll be to you and this poll should start to give you a reason to understand why (it won't, but there's always hope).

Tell you what. I'll apologize if you can provide us with a reasonable answer to this question: Why do you care how people feel about Sentai's releases in the market you're not even a significant part of?

Because your "My Anime" list leaves little doubt this company's business model has no impact on you and I'm not feeling any love any answer I would have (really) provided would have mattered to you.

It's only when you thought I was an ass you responded.

Funny how that works, isn't it.
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Keonyn
Subscriber



Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 5567
Location: Coon Rapids, MN
PostPosted: Wed Jul 11, 2012 7:28 pm Reply with quote
As a fan of anime overall he still has the right to not only have an opinion on these news items but still voice those opinions on the forums. Just because he doesn't buy their material doesn't mean he has no opinion on them; on the contrary, someone who avoids a company and/or their releases likely has a legitimate reason for doing so.

I don't know what the personal history is behind your always finding ways to pull ikill in the crosshairs but knock it off. Leave the grudges to personal channels and let's stop trying to turn the forums in to an avenue to air out ones personal grievances towards another poster. If he has an opinion on the matter then he has an opinion. Refute it, counter his points; whatever, but leave the personal jabs off the public forums.
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ikillchicken



Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 7272
Location: Vancouver
PostPosted: Wed Jul 11, 2012 8:05 pm Reply with quote
Keonyn wrote:
Just because he doesn't buy their material doesn't mean he has no opinion on them; on the contrary, someone who avoids a company and/or their releases likely has a legitimate reason for doing so.


Just as a point of clarification, I don't avoid Sentai at all. I own several of their shows and I plan to buy several of their recent licenses.
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moonie92



Joined: 15 Nov 2011
Posts: 167
PostPosted: Sun Jul 15, 2012 1:15 pm Reply with quote
I picked "it's certainly risky. Might hurt them. Might not."

I see them as picking up more titles than I could ever possibly purchase from them, and this was in just one weekend. What if they have more in the pipe for Otakon? I'm not interested in 75 percent of these titles but even if I was there would be no way I could buy them all. I just don't have that kind of cash lying around, especially if I still want to buy titles from Media Blasters, Funimation, Rightstuf, and Aniplex of America. Not to mention the old Bandai, CPM, ADV, and Geneon titles that are OOP that I need to snatch up. And maybe NIS will put something out that I want. Who knows.

If they were the only player in the game this would be different, but they aren't. They aren't even the biggest player I don't think.
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RogerSterling



Joined: 30 Apr 2012
Posts: 69
PostPosted: Fri Jul 27, 2012 5:09 am Reply with quote
I want to go on the record saying that I am impressed as hell that Sentai (old ADV) even came back at all!

I think they cater to the more "Otaku" elements in Anime. I like how they handle 80% of their dubs. There's a number of titles over the years (since the implosion) that I've often said - dam, I wish ADV was still around, I wonder what they would've done with this.

They seem to be as excited about Anime as I am- where as FUNimation I think just sees $$ signs. I don't think FUNI skimps on production or slaps things together (if anything they polish TOO MUCH and to Long!).

I imagine Sentai as this patch-work of companies that all do a little bit of the process and they all scrape together for the love of the show. I like that they take risks - I honestly don't like probably 50% of the stuff they License (recently) but when they get hold of one my Favs - I am far less concerned than I would be if it was Media Blasters or FUNI.

If they can swing deals with CrunchyRoll & get shows at cost or take risks and hit a "home run" - I think they deserve their success. I sincerely hope they don't burn themselves out but if they did atleast I know they knew what they were getting into.
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