Obtaining anime for good Prices (legally)

You don’t always have to resort to piracy

Piracy is a prevalent force in the anime series, ensuring that the people who make anime get shorted on a great deal of the money they should be getting. Unfortunately, getting anime on the internet is insanely easy to do illegally, and telling people to pay for the outrageous prices on DVD’s is about as effective as telling teenagers to abstain from sex.

Fortunately, there are a lot of cheap and effective ways to obtain anime while still ensuring that the creators and translators get credit for their efforts. Here’s some that I’ve checked up on:

NETFLIX: GREAT option for anime fans, and movie fans in general. This costs 8.99 per month, and lets you rent one DVD at a time via mail. Another lovely feature is their video streaming service, available on a PC, XBOX360, PS3, or even on Wii. I’m sure you have a PC available to you though. The most important thing is they have a MASSIVE selection of anime to watch, from older stuff, to the latest releases. Even better,, they mail things out quickly, and receive them just as fast, ensuring that you get your anime fix as soon as possible,

YOUTUBE RENTALS: In an era where Red Boxes are killing off even the once mighty Blockbuster, Youtube decides they want their share of the bounty. Using Google checkout, you can legally buy episodes of Anime for about $.99 per episode. It should be noted that Funimation is also here, selling dubbed episodes (subbed episodes are free on their site) Selection has increased a great deal since the original rollout of the feature. It’s like a Red Box, but for anime titles.

FUNIMATION: These guys are just awesome. If illegal torrents and video streaming is piracy, these guys must be the privateers of the internet. In a world where translating a TV show and throwing it on the internet is running rampant, these guys, instead of complaining about the pirates, they instead translate the show, and release it with subtitles on their website, and make you watch commercials. Other than the commercials, it’s free. They still make money from the ad space. Clearly Funimation believes that fighting fire with fire is more effective than fighting fire with paperwork. Check out their site for free anime (good ones too.)

AMAZON: Hey, it’s those guys that sponsor me! Well, I put them on this site for a reason. If you want an old anime, these guys are very likely to have it for dirt cheap, since they are run by people on the internet trying to offload things they don’t want anymore. Fortunately maximum shipping price is 3.99 on DVD’s (even box sets) so chances are that won’t hurt you too badly. Also, beware of bootlegs. If you know how to spot them, you’ll be fine. Remember, if somebody sells you a bootleg, there is no reason that you shouldn’t be able to get your money back.

EBAY: Great place for new stuff, I don’t even know how some of these guys keep their prices. Trust me, I checked. Auctions allow you to fight another person, possibly netting you a better price than what a store will give you. More scammers here than Amazon, and a LOT more bootlegs. If you’re patient, and crafty, you may be able to get some great deals here.


DISCOUNT STORES: Sometimes you just want a DVD that is easy to show your friends. That, is where these guys come in. stores like Big Lots and Dollar General sometimes manage to get their hands on some nice DVD’s ranging from 3-6$. While this may thicken up your DVD shelf at home, this comes with two problems. 1.) Anime at Big Lots is uncommon. 2.) When you do find it there, there is no guarantee that you will find something useful. You might only find volume 5 out of 7 for a certain series. Unpredictable, but sometimes you get lucky shopping around these places.

Fortunately for the industry, NetFlix and Youtube ensure that they will be capable of obtaining a decent cash flow from NetFlix and Youtube. After stuff gets old, the rest of the world will find a great place to sell it.


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Running a store on Ebay, and what not to do

Well, most people who know me know that I once ran an anime shop on eBay that shared a name with this website. I think it might be fun to talk about my experiences attempting to run a local anime corner store, despite failing miserable\y from it. Perhaps I could enlighten people on what kind of mistakes can be made, and how to carve their way to eBay fame if they feel that they have the hard-broiled determination it takes.

First and foremost, running a store on eBay isn’t easy. You are trying to fight a bunch of people attempting to do the same thing, who will undercut you, and somehow manage to get better prices than you. I do not actually know how some of these people were able to make their prices, but a LOT of eBay merchants manage to get their product to cost less than what wholesale shippers charge (Hey, if you’re looking to buy, eBay is great) Another issue is fighting the evil bootleggers that plague the website. They aren’t as active due to public awareness these days, but they still exist. These guys LOOK like their selling a 50$ boxset for 10$ but it’s really something I could make on my DVD burner. And if you’re trying to sell a DVD, that may cut into YOUR profits.

HOW TO DO IT: From my failure to PROPERLY run a local anime shop, I did learn some things that don’t work. REMEMBER! Making a living on eBay is a full time job. You can hear stories of people making millions selling from their attic, but that is BULL****. There is no way to make sustainable income from eBay without giving it 100%. I tried to run an eBay store alongside working a lot and going to school, and it just collapsed. Other people managed to get more fame than me, undercut me, then ruin my sales, leaving me with unsaleable product.

PUBLICITY: Yeah, to actually make you going to need to have people’s trust. To get trust, you need recognition and a lot of positive feedback. Now then, where does feedback come from? You need to do a lot of sales. And to get these sales up, you have to freaking promote your ass off. Like a blog, everybody you know and their mother NEEDS to know you have a store. You need to go to forums, listing sites, and anywhere you can. Not knowing about your store will become a crime in your book. As everybody around you knows you have a store, customers will have an easier time finding you. I believe this to be my largest failing, since I did not spend nearly as much time promoting as I should have.

GETTING PRODUCT: This one is difficult. Going to wholesale distributers like AAA Anime are a good start. Alas, it should be noted that distributors are only a good source for new stuff. Other than that, they are no good, because their prices don’t go down as fast as eBay’s demand. So only order what you know you can sell immediately, or you’re screwed. I suggest you give up on stuff after it’s a month old and mark it down. That’s just how eBay marketing works. After that period of time, you’re never getting full retail again (A real store might still be able to, but not on the internet.) Internet marketing is fast, and not keeping up will result in you getting left behind.

RISK FACTOR: Well, I failed at running ye local anime shop on eBay. That doesn’t mean you can’t run your own shop. There is a LOT of risk. Product doesn’t come from nowhere, so you’ll need a loan or investors. Then you have to be knowledgeable enough in the field to actually know what will sell. Knowledge of the internet is important so you can get the word out. Time is of the essence, because you should spend more time publicizing than actually managing your store (yes, publicity is THAT important.) This is a full time job we’re talking about. Willpower is important to. If you lack the hotblooded energy to punch through the crowd and have your store noticed, you might be able to get somewhere. But if you can’t give it your all, don’t even bother trying.

Yes, running an anime shop demands that you do things hotbloodedly, like Lord Kamina. Or maybe you should acquire reality altering powers like Haruhi. Alas, the biggest problem with online sales is that getting started and getting established.

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Also, if you’re interested in running a store on eBay, why not try doing some research the old fashioned way?