KADOKAWA CEO Takeshi Natsuno says that while it may cause controversy, there are too many anime companies & the number of new entrants is harming profitability.
TBF I have a couple of manga in both English and Japanese and the English copies are larger and nicer. Also, they have to pay translators. Still wish it were as cheap as it is in Japan, but at least they aren’t throwing all of the price difference into stockholder pockets.
As for the merch, 90%+ what I buy is Gunpla and fortunately that’s only a little more expensive in the US. It is more expensive though, and it’s not like they’re sending us higher quality kits. I guess international shipping isn’t free. My condolences if you’re into the stuff that actually is overpriced though; I don’t want to give the impression I don’t think some things actually just cost too much. And an even bigger problem is availability; there’s tons of stuff that’s only available to buy in Japan, sometimes in-person.
Edit: I also think the manga thing is at least partially economy of scale; I’ve seen some of the more popular manga like Demon Slayer going for closer to $5/volume in a box set.
I would love to buy merch from the stuff I like, but it simply isn’t affordable to pack my room with models and posters like you can do in Japan. I wouldn’t mind the low quality stuff if it is cheaper.
Box sets are definitely the way to go, if the series you have your eyes on is fortunate enough to get one.
TBF I have a couple of manga in both English and Japanese and the English copies are larger and nicer. Also, they have to pay translators. Still wish it were as cheap as it is in Japan, but at least they aren’t throwing all of the price difference into stockholder pockets.
As for the merch, 90%+ what I buy is Gunpla and fortunately that’s only a little more expensive in the US. It is more expensive though, and it’s not like they’re sending us higher quality kits. I guess international shipping isn’t free. My condolences if you’re into the stuff that actually is overpriced though; I don’t want to give the impression I don’t think some things actually just cost too much. And an even bigger problem is availability; there’s tons of stuff that’s only available to buy in Japan, sometimes in-person.
Edit: I also think the manga thing is at least partially economy of scale; I’ve seen some of the more popular manga like Demon Slayer going for closer to $5/volume in a box set.
All valid comments.
I would love to buy merch from the stuff I like, but it simply isn’t affordable to pack my room with models and posters like you can do in Japan. I wouldn’t mind the low quality stuff if it is cheaper.
Box sets are definitely the way to go, if the series you have your eyes on is fortunate enough to get one.