One Piece Simulcast leaked online

Date: 2009 May 30 20:38

Posted by Eeeper

An episode of One Piece (Episode #403) intended for simulcast in America and Japan is leaked online. Funimation Entertainment announces that, for the foreseeable future, no episodes of One Piece will be available on their website for streaming.

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On May 14 American anime distributor and dubbing studio Funimation Entertainment had announced the simulcast streaming of the anime TV series One Piece with the authorisation of the series copyright holders. Funimation, which has the licence for the North American rights to the series, would have streamed the latest episode about an hour after the Japanese broadcast.

However on May 30, the day of the simulcast, it became known that someone had illegally accessed their servers and downloaded the video file of the relevant episode. Complete with English subtitles, the episode was then posted onto torrent sites where it was downloaded by users with the required software. The same day Funimation Entertainment issued a statement in regards to this incident:

"As anime fans know, FUNimation Entertainment had planned, with the authorization of Toei Animation, Fuji Television and Shueisha, for the first ever online simulcast of the series ‘One Piece’ tonight at 9:00 pm CDT., just one hour after its premiere on Japan’s Fuji Television. Unfortunately, in the last 24 hours we have determined that the FUNimation servers were compromised, even though we employ strict security standards. An unknown individual accessed and posted episode 403 online and as a direct result of this illegal act, all U.S. and Canadian fans will be deprived of access to this great anime series for the immediate future. We will make every effort to locate and prosecute the perpetrator(s) to the fullest extent of the law and will provide updates regarding this most serious matter."

Neither Toei Animation, Fuji Television or Shueisha Publishing Company have issued statements in regards to this incident.