Thirty Japanese animation studios have joined forces in order to launch Animelog. This will be a new YouTube channel that will allow users to stream various anime titles free of charge.
On August 6th, the first tweet from the official AnimeLog Twitter account announced the creation of the, “cross-rights animation YouTube channel “Anime Log”.”
According to the official channel description, AnimeLog will distribute series “officially licensed” from over 30 companies. With the aim to “carefully select and deliver family animations and nostalgic masterpiece animations.”
The channel currently holds licenses for content produced by Shin-ei Animation (Doraemon, Crayon Shin-chan), Tezuka Productions (Astro Boy, Black Jack), and Nippon Animation (Hunter x Hunter, Anne of the Green Gables).
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Going forward, AnimeLog will also host series from studios including Kodansha (Akira, Ghost in the Shell), Shogakukan Shueisha Productions (Case Closed, Pokemon), and Toei Animation (Dragon Ball, One Piece).
AnimeLog states that it will also be free of censorship. The channel notes, “some of the works may be expressively inappropriate,” the channel also intends to “respect the historical background of the work when it was announced, the historical value of the work, and have no discriminatory intention at all, so we are delivering it as it was.”
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Series currently available for streaming include the classics Black Jack, Future Boy Conan, and Lucy of the Southern Rainbow. By 2022, the channel does hope to have 3000 separate titles up for users to enjoy.
The channel’s uploads are currently region-restricted and available only to Japanese viewers. Though the channel does plan to provide English and Chinese-language subtitled content in the future.
Related: Pirate Anime Streaming Site KissAnime Shuts Down As Japan Cracks Down on Piracy
The announcement of AnimeLog’s creation is welcome news for fans. Many of which either live in areas where a series is not legally available or refuse to support the business practices of the Western Anime industry. The shut down of popular pirate anime streaming site KissAnime has left some anime fans worried about accessing their favorite series.
What do you think of the birth of AnimeLog? Does it really have a future on YouTube with its own history of censorship?