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MCM Event List for 2016

Date: 2016 January 30 14:25 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

As 2016 has just started it's time to plan ahead for those geek events. We've got a list of the MCM Comic Cons for 2016.

The MCM Event Calendar kicks off on 13th February with the MCM Midlands Comic Con. There's plenty more to follow throughout the year. The events always have something good to offer for anime fans too and often feature a guest or two from the anime and manga industry. The schedule is as follows:

13 February: MCM Midlands Comic Con
12-13 March: MCM Liverpool Comic Con
19-20 March: MCM Birmingham Comic Con
27-29 May: MCM London Comic Con
25-26 June: MCM Belfast Comic Con
2-3 July: MCM Ireland Comic Con (Dublin)
30-31 July: MCM Manchester Comic Con
23-24 September: MCM Scotland Comic Con (Glasgow)
28-30 October: MCM London Comic Con
19-20 November: MCM Birmingham Comic Con

The folks at MCM have also sent us details of two new events in Germany and Brussels. MCM Hannover Comic Con coming to Hannover Messe on 4-5 June 2016 and MCM Belgium Comic Con taking place at Brussels Expo on 11-12 June.

Also don't forget Comic Con Copenhagen 24-25 September 2016 and Comic Con Stockholm on 4-6 November 2016,

As always we've also updated the Otaku Calendar with details of these events.

Naruto Storm 4 and EDF Deals at Rice Digital

Date: 2016 January 18 16:56 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Gaming

The nice people over at Rice Digital have sent details of a 10% discount they're offering on Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 and Earth Defense Force 4.1 – The Shadow of New Despair.

Use the discount code STORM10 for Naruto and EDF10 for Earth Defense Force. The offer ends Monday 25th January 2016.

The company offer free UK shipping and will also ship worldwide. Personally, we're interested in the Steins;Gate stuff they've got on sale.

Viewster Launch Omakase Streaming and Merchandise Service

Date: 2015 October 17 08:48 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Streaming Service Viewster have just launched a new package aimed at anime fans. Omakase includes a subscription to their HD Ad-free service, plus a bimonthly box of goodies, including merchandise, music and comics. The boxes will feature limited edition and exclusive stuff. Their launch box will feature exclusive Kill la Kill merchandise.

The Omakase service will be available in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

A subscription currently costs $29 (USD) for 2 months, plus shipping and handling.

Animax Weekly Highlights for 14th September 2015

Date: 2015 September 14 15:43 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from UK Anime streaming service Animax have sent us details of their weekly highlights.

The company have just launched iOS and Android Apps too.

Every Friday evening of the month the site will also launch a new movie, this Friday HAL will join the Animax site.

Other highlights include Tiger & Bunny The Movie: The Beginning, Tiger & Bunny The Movie: The Rising. Bleach: Memories of Nobody, Mardock Scramble: The First Compression. Plus Simulcasts Rampo Kitan and Overlord.

AmeCon 2016 Registration Filled in Under an Hour

Date: 2015 August 31 17:04 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Fandom

We've already mentioned earlier that AmeCon registration went live today. The fan run anime convention's registration was filled in under 40 minutes, with all 1,000 spaces booked by 19:38.

Anyone wanting to attend the 2016 event now will have to be added to the wait list and hope that someone else gives up their space for the ever popular event.

Souce: AmeCon

AmeCon 2016 Registration Reminder

Date: 2015 August 26 16:56 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

UK Anime fans planning ahead for the big fan run summer convention in 2016 will already be aware of AmeCon. The event is set to return from Friday 29th to Sunday 31st July 2016. AmeCon will be running for the first time at the Warwick Arts Centre, the venue favoured by AyaCon.

Registrations for Amecon 2016 will be opening on Bank Holiday Monday 31st August at 7pm. This year the convention are introducing two tiers of membership. Standard that costs £48, and premium that costs £85, this gives you many bonus items in your conpack, plus earlier access to the dealers, plus reserved seating at keynote events (along with other privileges).

Generally with fan run events like this, once they're booked out, that's it. They don't sell tickets on the door. So make some time on Monday evening to register.

Uniqlo Launch Manga T-shirt Collections

Date: 2015 June 01 14:38 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

Fans of anime and manga who like to declare their fandom on t-shirts will be pleased to hear about Uniqlo UK's latest range of Manga T-shirt Collections.

The global Japanese fashion retailer have designs from Ghost In the Shell Arise, Taiyou Matsumoto + Nicolas de Crécy and Osamu Tezuka.

Win a Trip to Tokyo with Viewster

Date: 2015 May 27 17:42 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Streaming Service Viewster are currently running a competition for users to win a trip to Tokyo. They're offering the chance for the ultimate fan (and one of their friends) an all expenses paid trip to Tokyo. For a chance to win you have to show them you're the ultimate fan of Japan. The competition closes on Sunday 31st May 2015, so get thinking and get posting on social media!

Souce: Viewster

Hello Kinmoza Simulcast and License Details

Date: 2015 April 07 15:19 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The Second Season of Kinmoza is now airing. No sooner than the first episode of season 2 was simulcast on Crunchyroll, US anime firm Sentai Filmworks announced that they have the US rights to the second season.

The second season is called Hello!! Kinmoza, and appears to more of the same moe anime as the first season. The show follows the gentle everyday adventures of Alice a British schoolgirl living in Japan with her best friend Shino. They go to school and talk about how blonde Alice's hair is. The show is based of a 4 panel manga.

We must admit that the Otaku News Team have a soft spot for the show. While it's light and fluffy content wise, the animation studio did it's research in the UK and found a location suitable for Alice's house. Otaku News had the world exclusive revealing the British location for Kinmoza as B&B Fosse Farm.

Kinmoza Season 1 is available to buy from Amazon.com on DVD and Blu-ray.

Readers (include those in the UK) can watch Kinmoza season 1 and 2 on Crunchyroll.

More Anime on Viewster

Date: 2015 April 03 15:50 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks at Anime Limited have sent us details of their latest streaming partnership. They've teamed up with Viewster to simulcast 3 anime titles - The Heroic Legend of Arslan, Plastic Memories and Seraph of the End.

All 3 titles will be available in the UK and Ireland, while The Heroic Legend of Arslan and Seraph of the End will be Viewster exclusives and have a wider reach simulcasting in United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Liechtenstein, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg

Seraph of the End UK Simulcasting Coming April 2015

Date: 2015 March 18 16:40 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from UK Anime company Anime Limited have sent us details of their latest acquisition. They'll be simulcasting Seraph of the End. They have the rights for the UK, Republic of Ireland, Isle of Man, France, Benelux, Monaco, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland and Norway.

The show is from WIT Studio, the studio behind Attack on Titan and HAL. The show will be directed by Daisuke Toku (who also directed Attack on Titan).

It'll be available for simulcast from April 2015. More details will be revealed by Anime Limited Next week. You can find the English subtitled trailer here.

Otaku News caught up with WIT Studio at the MCM London Comic Con a few years ago.

More Anime on Netflix UK

Date: 2015 February 01 13:00 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

UK anime fans wanting to catch some decent anime will be pleased to hear about Anime Limited's latest tweet that reveals Space Dandy Season 2, Tokyo Ghoul and Terror In Resonance are now on Netflix UK.

We interviewed Shinichiro Watanabe the director of Space Dandy and Terror In Resonance at the MCM London Comic Con in October 2014. We were able to ask him about both shows.

Souce: Anime Limited

Genki Gear January 2015 Clearance Sale

Date: 2015 January 10 12:05 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

The good folks from Genki Gear have got in touch with us to tell us about their January clearance sale. The UK based t-shirt company will also be selling their 2014 MCM Tour t-shirt. You can get a further 15% off the price of this MCM t-shirt by using discount code MCMTOUR14 on the Genki Gear Website.

Prices start at just £3.99 and the sale covers a whole range of Men's, Women's and Kid's t-shirts plus Women's vest tops and hoodies.

Souce: Genki Gear

AmeChibi Sells Out In 6 Hours

Date: 2014 August 25 14:51 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

UK anime fans will not be surprised to hear that Mini Anime Convention AmeChibi 2015 has hit it's registration limit of 500 people in 6 hours of opening their website for registration. The website enabled registration at midday on 25th August 2014, and by 6pm on the same day the limit had been reached.

We did say to book early to avoid disappointment. Those who have not yet registered can be added to the wait list, and put in the queue for any cancelled registrations.

The convention is going to be a smaller less crowded affair, with the event highlighting "the smaller size means a cosier venue, with less of that pesky walking around".

Souce: AmeCon Website

Howl's Moving Castle Today's Google Doodle

Date: 2014 August 16 07:55 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Fans of Ghibli will be pleased to note that today's Google Doodle in the UK is Diana Wynne Jones, the author of Howl's Moving Castle. The doodle celebrates what would be her 80th birthday. The doodle features Micheal, Calcifer and Sophie sitting around the fireplace. As square on the door rotates, and the door opens and closes changing location.

Souce: Google UK

AmeChibi 2015 Registration Details

Date: 2014 August 16 07:21 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

UK based anime fans will be pleased to hear the news sent to us from the good folks from AmeCon. They've already announced that AmeChibi will be running from Friday 10th to Sunday 12th April 2015 in Nottingham. Now they've just revealed when registration will be open/

On Monday 25th of August 2014 at midday, they'll accept registrations. So get ready, as with events like this once they've sold out, that's it. We advise on booking early to avoid disappointment.

Update: AmeCon have confirmed the mini con will be limited to 500 places. So do book early.

The Daiwa Scholarship - Spend 19 Months in Japan

Date: 2014 July 28 15:45 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Culture

UK readers will be very interested in a scholarship offered by the Daiwa Anglo Japanese Foundation.

"The Daiwa Scholarship is a unique 19-month programme of language study, work placement and homestay in Japan. Daiwa Scholarships offer young and talented UK citizens with strong leadership potential the opportunity to acquire Japanese language skills and to access expertise and knowledge relevant to their career goals. No previous experience of Japan or Japanese is necessary."

So if you're a British Citizen about to graduate, or have graduated and are aged between 21 and 35 years of age as of 1 September 2015 you should investigate further!

Souce: The Daiwa Scholarship

Hyper Japan Event Reminder - July 2014

Date: 2014 July 24 17:04 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

Fans of Japan looking for something to do this weekend will want to head over to Earl's Court for Hyper Japan. The Japanese Culture event is set to run in London from Friday 25th to Sunday 27th July 2014. As we've mentioned before, there's lots to see and do this weekend.

Souce: Hyper Japan

Anime Limited launch Kickstarter campaign for Patema Inverted UK Definitive Edition

Date: 2014 April 28 14:44 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from Anime Limited have sent us details of their soon to run Kickstarter. This is to enable the company to produce a definitive edition of the movie for UK home release.

The film will be hitting select UK cinemas from Friday 2nd May 2014.

Producing an ultimate edition like this with so many awesome extras can be risky, as it can be hard to gauge the demand for this kind of release. Launching a Kickstarter is a sensible way to figure out the demand. Anime Limited are not new to Kickstarter. They recently ran a hugely successful campaign for Mai Mai Miracle, that smashed stretch goal after stretch goal.

Anime Limited Announce Space Dandy Season 2 for July 2014

Date: 2014 March 24 17:59 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime company Anime Limited have just announced that the second season of Space Dandy will be broadcast from July 2014. Details of the series including episode count are yet to be confirmed. What is confirmed that it will be streamed, dubbed and subbed in in July via Wakanim.co.uk.

Mai Mai Miracle UK and US Release Kickstarter Update

Date: 2014 February 08 15:24 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The big news in anime circles this week has been from Anime Limited and their Kickstarter campaign to bring Mai Mai Miracle to home video.

Within the first 18 hours the Kickstarter hit it's $30K (USD) funding goal. So now they're going for a stretch goal. If they hit the goal of $60K, they'll be able to fund a dub. At the time of writing (with 26 days left on the Kickstarter), they have reached just over $54K. You can keep up to date with news about the Kickstarter here or check out Anime Limited's own website.

Souce: Mai Mai Miracle Kickstarter

Space Dandy streams for free on Wakanim

Date: 2014 January 07 15:43 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

UK based anime fans wanting to see the new sci-fi space comedy Space Dandy should head over to Wakanim now to enjoy it. The show has just started to stream with both the sub and dubbed versions available on-line. The show is directed by Shinichiro Watanabe who also directed Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo and Kids on the Slope. We caught up with him at the May MCM London Comic Con where he mentioned the show.

Souce: WakAnim

London Anime and Manga Shopping Guide Updated

Date: 2013 December 03 17:17 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

From the feedback we've been getting a fair few of our readers are planning on heading into London over Christmas. With this in mind we've just updated the London Anime and Manga Shopping Guide with details of updated shops. We hope this will you help you get a bit of real world otaku retail therapy!

Regardless of where you do go shopping, we always suggest some caution. There are some retailers around that are less than honest and will sell pirate goods. To help you avoid getting ripped off we suggest you read the Pirate Anime FAQ.

Souce: Otaku News

Animax Launches in the UK

Date: 2013 October 25 17:43 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The first day of the MCM London Comic Con has just ended, we know people are partying into the night, but we're stopping to tell you the latest news from the event.

A new UK streaming / video on demand service has just launched Animax UK. The division of Sony are showing anime on a model similar to BBC iPlayer. The shows are simulcast for everyone to watch for free for 2 weeks. After that they go into the archive where paid subscribers can access the shows. Subscriptions cost £5.99 a month, and will also remove ads from any shows.

Depending on how much anime you watch a month, this could be a good way of catching up with titles without paying for a boxset.

What makes them a bit different, is apart from offering simulcasts they also have movies for paid subscribers, and also offer viewers the choice to watch shows dubbed in English where available, or in Japanese with English subtitles.

If you're going to the MCM London Comic Con this weekend (Friday 25th to Sunday 27th October 2013), you should pop over to their stall for a chance to win a big Sony TV.

It seems along with other legal streaming services Wakanim.co.uk and Crunchyroll, there are lots of ways to watch anime on-line now.

New UK streaming service announces Kill La Kill for UK/Ireland

Date: 2013 October 04 09:37 | Posted By: Eeeper

Category > Anime

Anime Limited announces UK branch of French based anime streaming service, also announces Kill La Kill as first title.

Anime Cels for sale and free Otaku News Postcards at the MCM London Comic Con May 2013

Date: 2013 May 22 15:36 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

The good folks at the Japanese Gallery have sent us news that they'll be at the MCM London Comic Con from Friday 24th to Sunday 26th May 2013. They'll be there with cels from anime for sale. They've got cels from Hunter x Hunter, Dragon Ball Z, Transformers, Pokemon, and 2 from Studio Ghibli films!

They've also got some free Otaku News Postcards to give away at their stall. We normally only give these out at anime conventions so they're rare and hard to get. Just head over to their stall and ask for one! If you can't get to the comic con, you can always download our wallpaper which features designs from our postcards.

Update: The details in the Comic Con book aren't exactly clear. The Japanese Gallery can be found at booth 302.

Osamu Tezuka's The Crater goes live on Kickstarter

Date: 2013 May 19 10:28 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from the Kansai Club have sent us details of their Kickstarter to get Osamu Tezuka's The Crater published in English. They intend to publish it as a limited edition run of 2,000 high quality copies.

This is not the first of Tezuka's works to be crowd funded for an English release. Last year DMP ran a successful Kickstarter to get Unico funded.

Johnnys' World: Top of the J-Pops

Date: 2013 January 25 15:36 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Culture

J-Pop fans who can access NHK World will want to tune in for Johnnys' World: Top of the J-Pops.

The documentary focuses on Johnny Kitagawa of talent agency Johnny's Entertainment. The talent agency represents Tsuyoshi Domoto of Kinki Kids and Hey! Say! Jump!.

It'll be broadcast on NHK World on:
Saturday 26th January 2013 - 23:10 (UTC)
Sunday 27th January 2013 - 3:10/ 7:10/ 11:10/ 15:10/ 19:10 (UTC)

NHK World broadcasts content in English and is free to access. It's available in many countries.

In the UK if you have Sky you can access NHK World on Channel 507. If you've got FreeSat you can access it on channel 209.

Failing that, you can also watch the show on-line on the NHK Website, JIB TV, or on the NHK World App on iOS Devices (iPhone, iPad, etc) and Android Devices.

Souce: NHK World

Play.com to end first party retail sales

Date: 2013 January 10 16:58 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

We've just heard that popular on-line retailer Play.com will stop "first party retail sales" by the end of March 2013. They intend to focus on it's Marketplace business. Play.com were sold to the Rakuten Group in 2011 for £25m. With the price reflecting the close of the tax loophole that allowed them to sell their DVDs from the Channel Islands, without paying VAT.

This basically means they will not directly distribute goods, but instead act as a market place to allow third party companies to sell stuff.

GEN Manga Issue 16 out now

Date: 2012 November 27 13:04 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from GEN Manga have just release their latest Issue GEN 16.

This issue continues the instalments of Psycho, Android Angels, Stones of Power, Anomal and Alive.

Read More... | Souce: GEN Manga

NHK World at Hyper Japan Christmas 2012

Date: 2012 November 19 17:42 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

It's getting closer to Hyper Japan Christmas 2012, which is set to run from Friday 23rd November to Sunday 26th November 2012.

The international arm of Japanese broadcaster NHK will be there to promote their international channel NHK World.

The station broadcasts content in English and is free to access. If you have Sky you can access NHK World on Channel 507. If you've got FreeSat you can access it on channel 209.

Failing that, you can also watch the show on-line on the NHK Website, JIB TV, or on the NHK World App on iOS Devices (iPhone, iPad, etc) and Android Devices.

Fans of Kawaii will be pleased to hear that the station will be looking for people wearing Kawaii Fashion at Hyper Japan for their Kawaii International show. Some stylish attendees to Hyper Japan might be added to the show's Facebook page, or even featured on the show itself!

At the NHK World booth (C6 at Hyper Japan), they'll also be showing Itadakimasu! Dining with the Chef, so you can learn about Japanese cooking techniques.

So if you're going to Hyper Japan this weekend, swing by the NHK World World booth C6.

Anime and Manga event for Japanese Language Learners in London and Edinburgh

Date: 2012 September 12 17:49 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Culture

Readers who are in London or Edinburgh and are keen to learn Japanese will be interested in the Japan Foundation's new initiative. They've just launched a new website using Anime and Manga in Japanese to help you get to grips with the language.

They'll be running special workshops on the subject -

"This workshop, hosted by Ms Nanae Kumano (Developer of the Japanese in Anime & Manga website and Language Education Specialist at Japan Foundation Madrid), will introduce learners to the Japanese in Anime & Manga website, and explore how the site can be used to enhance your own Japanese language studies and enjoyment of Japanese culture."

On Thursday 4th October 2012 from 4pm to 6pm at the University of Edinburgh.

Levels: Basic – Advanced (JLPT N5 – N1/Level 1); English explanations will be given. This event is supported by the University of Edinburgh and is free for all participants. The event is free, but you do have to register in advance in order to attend.

On Friday 5th October 2012 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at The Japan Foundation - Russell Square London.

Levels: Intermediate to Advanced (JLPT N3/Level 3 – N1/Level 1); The workshop will be in Japanese.

Fee: £3.00 (to paid on arrival on the day, cash only accepted)
Limited to 40 participants – First come, first served. Click here to register.

Souce: The Japan Foundation

GEN Manga Issue 14 out now

Date: 2012 August 21 16:02 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from GEN Manga have just release their latest Issue GEN 14.

This issue continues the instalments of Psycho, Android Angels, One is Enough, Stones of Power, Anomal and Alive.

GEN will be giving away a short preview version of GEN 14 for free this month.

Read More... | Souce: GEN Manga

GEN Manga releases Kamen Volume 1

Date: 2012 March 14 16:58 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

We've just been sent details from the good folk at GEN Manga about their latest release - Kamen Volume 1. The title will be available across the US through all good Diamond Comic Distributors and on Graphicly. You can also download the title from the GEN Manga Website.

Fans of comic books will be interested to hear that Marvel artist Harvey Tolibao did the cover for Kamen.

Read More... | Souce: GEN Manga

JManga.com celebrates going global with a second sign-up promotion

Date: 2012 March 09 16:20 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good people from JManga.com have just gone international. To celebrate the on-line manga service have launched a sign up promotion for new members.

From the Thursday 8th March 2012 to Wednesday 14th March 2012 if you sign up for a paid subscription you'll receive 5 books worth of bonus points with a $25 monthly subscription and 2 books worth of points a $10 subscription.

Hyper Japan - Cosplay Christmas Competition

Date: 2011 December 21 16:08 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

Cosplayers looking for some fun and games this Christmas will want to enter London's Hyper Japan's Christmas Cosplay Competition. To enter all you have to do is upload a photo of you cosplaying to the Hyper Japan Cosplay HQ Facebook page between 9th December 2011 an 15th January 2012. The 3 photos with the most likes on Facebook will make it through to the Hyper Japan Cosplay Team. The team will judge the photos and select a winner.

The winner gets a load of goodies from Tofu Cute, worth £50 along with 2 tickets to Hyper Japan Spring 2012 (for all 3 days). The 2 runners up will also get tickets for all 3 days at Hyper Japan Spring 2012.

United Publications November 2011 Sale

Date: 2011 November 04 16:41 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

Popular anime, manga and related merchandise retailer United Publications have sent us details of their explosive 5th of November clearance sale. There are many bargains to be had, with up to 80% off some Manga/Anime books, DVD and figures! We've asked and they've confirmed they're not going mad. It's to clear out their inventory to make room for new stock for the new year. They've got some hard to find items up on the listing too.

Also if you're looking for something exclusive, remember a while ago we interviewed Japanese figure sculptor Momiji? Well the good folks at United Publications are now selling his exclusive Ms Fan Stand figure.

Play.com sold to Japanese group Rakuten

Date: 2011 September 21 16:55 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

Popular UK on-line DVD retailer Play.com have been bought by Japanese group Rakuten. Play.com is the UK's biggest seller of DVDs online with estimated annual sales of about £500m. It has 14 million registered users and a staff of 500.

It was sold to Rakuten for £25m. Play.com have been successful due to a tax loop-hole that allows purchases under £18 to be VAT free when shipped from the Channel Islands to the UK mainland thanks to EU rules drafted almost 30 years ago. In November 2011, the government will reduce the amount for VAT free purchases to £15 and intend close this loop-hole totally by March 2012. The sales tax issues along with declining DVD sales is why Play.com was sold for £25m and not considerably more. The Guardian article states that DVD UK sales dipped 6% last year, while downloading and streaming rose 18%.

Play.com is popular with the UK anime fans and is often the first port of call along with Amazon.co.uk when buying DVDs and Blu-rays.

Rakuten are keen to increase their global presence, which is why they've purchases Play.com along with the French site PriceMinister and German site Tradoria.de.

Souce: The Guardian

AmeCon 2012 UK registration opens Sunday 25th September 2011

Date: 2011 September 10 07:02 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

The UK Summer Convention season is coming to an end, but fear not as AmeCon will be opening their 2012 registration on Sunday 25th September 2011.

AmeCon 2012 is set to run 10th - 12th August 2012, at Keele University, Newcastle-under-lyme. Registration will be on-line using the standard first come first served basis.

GEN Manga Issue 4 out now, plus download free indie manga

Date: 2011 August 15 15:55 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

GEN Manga the company bringing us indie manga from the Tokyo underground have sent us reminder that issue 4 is out today.

They've also released issue 2 for free. They're even extending their subscribers discount. What makes GEN Manga interesting is that each issue is published on PDF, so you can download it and read it on any device that'll handle PDF documents. There's no nasty DRM to worry about, or installing extra naggy software, just one file per issue.

Read More... | Souce: GEN Manga

Emma: Victorian Romance streams on-line for free

Date: 2011 August 10 16:55 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The excellent folks from Right Stuf/Nozomi are now streaming the anime Emma: A Victorian Romance on YouTube. They'll be showing one new episode of Emma per week for the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. They're showing the episodes subtitled. So if you fancy an anime series set in Victorian England, now's your chance to watch it for free.

You can get Series 1 and Series 2 from Amazon.com. You can also pre-order The Complete Series Limited Edition Bundle, which features Season 1 and Season 2, it's out on September 13th 2011.

Souce: Right Stuf

Anime on Demand to simulcast [C] - Control - The Money and Soul of Possibility

Date: 2011 April 19 15:48 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks at legitimate anime streaming service Anime On Demand have sent us details about there latest stream to hit the UK. [C] - Control - The Money and Soul of Possibility. The show will start streaming Thursday 21st April 2011 at 17:45 BST (British Summer Time), just one week after it's Japanese debut. Each week a new episode will be added to the site in the future.

AmeCon seek Events Officer

Date: 2011 March 02 17:54 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Fandom

The great folks at UK convention AmeCon have sent us details of a volunteer role that needs filling. They're looking for a new Events Officer.

Apart from being able to pay something back to anime fandom, this is a great opportunity to participate in a large UK convention, see it's inner workings and meet others who are passionate about anime, manga and all other things otaku love.

Hyper Japan 2011 Details

Date: 2011 February 28 16:33 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

The good folks from Hyper Japan have sent us the details for their 2011 event in London. It's set to run from Friday 22nd July to Sunday 24th July 2011 at Olympia Two.

Multi-National Manga Anti-Piracy Coalition Formed

Date: 2010 June 08 16:47 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

Multi-National Manga Anti-Piracy Coalition Formed

We've received some very interesting details from VIZ Media about the formation of a Multi-National Manga Anti-Piracy Coalition.It seems that the industry has grown tired of Scanlations - manga scanned into a digital format and distributed without the copyright holders consent. The coalition include the 36 members of Japan's Digital Comic Association, Square Enix, VIZ Media, TOKYOPOP and Yen Press.

Originally scanlations were manga translated by fans into their native language from Japanese. This can be seen as the manga equivalent of anime fansubs. Some scanlation sites branched out to scans of manga that was already official translated and licensed outside of Japan.

This has cost the manga publishing industry significant amounts of money, not just in lost book sales, but lost opportunities in the relatively new market of eBooks and mobile devices.

The coalition intend to target scanlation sites and aggregators of scanlation sites. They've drawn up a list of 30 sites to targeted for action. First they will ask the sites to cease distributing scanlations. If the sites fail to cease distributing further action will be taken depending on the jurisdiction of each site. Actions include legal injunctions against the sites, reporting the sites to governmental anti-piracy units of law enforcement, including the US Justice Department, local law enforcement agencies and the FBI.

Fans curious about piracy in the anime and manga industry should read the Pirate Anime FAQ.

This is not the first time the anime and manga industry has attempted to stop piracy in the industry, but this is the biggest and most coordinated international effort so far. With many companies in the industry forced to make cut backs, closing down offices, laying off staff, we wonder if this is the start of a new approach? Will more companies pursue legal options? Are fansubbers next?

Crunchyroll streams Haruhi

Date: 2010 April 09 19:44 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks at Crunchyroll have sent us details of their latest streaming deal. They've started to show The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Fans looking for aliens, time travelers, and ESPers will be most pleased to hear that they intend to stream the second series later this year too. Crunchyroll's licence covers the Americas, the British Isles, Scandinavia, the Middle East and Africa.

Preview the first 7 minutes of Gundam Unicorn

Date: 2010 March 02 15:20 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > DVD

The good folks from Beez have sent us details about the upcoming release of Gundam Unicorn on Friday 12th 2010 on Blu-ray disc. The release will be worldwide simultaneously in the 7 territorial areas of Japan, US, Canada, UK, France, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

You can view the first 7 minutes of the OAV on the Beez Website.

Bandai Entertainment launches new manga website

Date: 2010 February 16 21:31 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks at Bandai Entertainment have sent us details about their new manga website.

NHK World TV in the UK

Date: 2009 September 20 16:11 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > TV

UK based readers who are keen to watch Japanese TV in English, will be pleased to hear that NHK World broadcasts on Satellite. Viewers should tune into Sky Channel 516 or Freesat Channel 209. The channel is included in all Sky Packages.

The channel includes Japanese News, TV shows about Japanese Culture, Business Shows, Tokyo Fashion and lots of other arts.

The full schedule can be found on the NHK World TV Website.

Anime Network Launches Video-on-Demand in UK

Date: 2009 August 06 12:57 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > TV

We've got some exciting news from the folks behind The Anime Network. They've just launched a UK beta version of their site. So now anime fans in the UK can watch anime streamed to their PC. For less than a fiver a month you can watch a great selection of ADV titles.

They also offer a yearly subscription too.

Invent your own ending to Guyver

Date: 2007 June 03 16:09 | Posted By: Voxie

Category > Anime

For anime fans with the animator in them, the online community site Bebo are inviting users to invent the ending to a volume of Guyver, the clip can be seen on thewir website.

Souce: Bebo \'U DIRECT\' Guyver Competition

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