The year was 2007. It was one day before Singapore celebrated its National Day. It was also the day that I received the foreboding letter that everyone has come to know of.
The one letter that forever defined my viewpoints of the world
(I decided to make public what happened in the three years between then and now, for it shall be known that I was that person who decided to stand his ground. The rest of the Internet populace will discard this piece as frivolous nonsense coming from an unknown blogger; those who had known me – both in real life and those who knew me through IRC and/or frequent exchanges via blogs – will no less be surprised by my revelation. If people decided to hate me, that will be fine: I have since am serene in this matter, and it will not matter to anyone anyway.)
Before the letter arrived, it was a momentous affair. Tsubaki (of Anime Desho Desho?) posted up a seemingly veiled warning 3 months before, but got subsequently edited, citing confidentiality reasons. Whatever it was, the community were duly informed, and traffic on the new P2P platform from Singapore subsequently dwindled. For me, my interests in anime waned long before the matter became public, hence there’s nothing to indict me with. (Besides, I have since moved on to streaming – take that! – and I have acquired quite a collection of anime DVDs to enjoy.)
I’ve been following the news in the US, where the so called “copyright wars” have been waged on both fronts: the copyright owners and the consumers, who have turned to ever-faster releases of shows and music off the P2P platform. I shan’t be linking anymore stuff — because this debate has been forever beaten, like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which I may/may not touch some time in the future —, but I refer to Ars Technica and TorrentFreak for readers to explore and ponder.
So it was: HardwareZone, VR-Zone, SGCafe and other local forums are talking rumours of a witch-hunt against downloaders. Theoretical arguments and endless debates have arisen: even the forums in international websites such as AnimeSuki and Anime News Network are discussing the merits and legal definitions of a copyright infringement.
On August 8, while I was resting at home (I was serving National Service at that time, and had a time off), a SingPost mailman rang the doorbell in front of my house. He asked me to sign an acknowledgement form to receive a mail. That mail had that particular company’s logo on it. I knew that it was time.
There was pandemonium from those who received the letter. Forums are alive with people who knew the letter-ed “victims.” Newspaper reports have circulated the event. I could guess that out of desparation, some have paid up to the company, thinking that this will absolve them from future threats.
For me, it was a hazy moment. I knew that the letter meant nothing because they have to contest the manner in which they gather the evidence, and that has been thoroughly debated in the US, with some cases dismissed or withdrawn. Yet, there was a need to find a place for me to find out more about how to defend my case, and to rally with other like-minded people, to find a discourse to fight the case. It was then, that I discovered Xedo Defense.
The forum was set up by an anonymous person to rally like-minded individuals — both activists and victims — to help each other out and discuss ways to analyze and subsequently defend themselves against the company’s litigation attempts. There, I met people who has helped me in calming myself against a swelling emotion of fear, uncertainty and doubt. Other members contributed by linking to various articles on the Internet, to provide information to victims of the various processes and procedures of a litigation and how to go about defending their case.
To cut things short, there is a Wikipedia article chronicling the events that has happened from that time.
I have stuck with Xedo Defense from time to time, mentoring the victims, discussing the arguments against the need for litigation, and basically hanging around the forums, helping out whenever necessary. After the ruling of January 29, it was made clear that the company had overreached its “crusade” against downloaders.
When things seemed all but over, around the same time as I had been hit – this time, in 2008, a different wave of letters was sent to several more individuals, with at least a few individuals receiving the Writ of Summons. The core difference is that these unlucky individuals are now being asked to be present in court for action against them, instead of the usual letters of demand. The stigma in Singapore is that to fight, one must have lots of deep pockets to run a litigation suit, considering that this is a civil, not a criminal, suit.
Thinking that this is an affront of common sense – considering what had been discussed in the Xedo Defense forums points out to straight-out injustice –, I return to active duty in the forums, helping out and meet up individuals who remain active for the past year, and seek out the new victims of this latest wave. What culminated was the appointment of a lawyer to help with our cause.
Since then, however, the movement began a slow and quiet death. Without divulging on too many details, I realized that nothing has been done to set up a proper fund to aid the victims. The public has already put the issue behind already, when the company reached out to its bruised customers by simultaneously broadcasting new shows the same time as Japan. The argument against the company slowly became irrelevant. At that period of time, my interests in anime was low enough to warrant a diversion, against what I see as a conspiracy to make my life difficult (getting that Tatsushiro Satou vibe here).
My experience throughout the episode has been a long a bitter lesson for me. Many would have laughed at me for getting caught – [serves you right, a***hole] –. I could only shrugged and move on, because if there’s one thing I learn about this episode, it’s about achieving serenity in difficult situations, and learning to move on.
The entertainment industry, ultimately, is disposable. Regardless of how moving a picture is, how films bring a new level to storytelling, how books should be enjoyed, it is ultimately a disposable entity. Without it, people could still live on. While entertainment as a culture can never truly die (for the basis of humanity itself requires the need and use of expressions to convey a message through creative means), the industry that controls how a culture be made is.
In my opinion, the industry has sat on the ivory tower for far too long. It has become irrelevant in the face of newer and more disruptive technologies. It took almost a decade for the industry to react to the aftershocks of P2P. Being a powerful lobby, they have been successful in legislating laws around the world to bend them to their will – I need only to mention the ACTA to invoke this image – so it’s only a matter of time before laws make it hard for people to express their freedom of speech. That said, they have already make concessions to providing entertainment online and making it accessible on-the-go. (Go search for Hulu or Crunchyroll.)
In the near future, I don’t expect myself to be weaned off anime, for I still find some joy in it, as it has always been a uniting factor for people with like minds to enjoy. But I will not expect to chase after new shows and what not.
Also, delving into the Warhammer 40,000 fiction solidified my increasing cynicism towards life in general.
FOR THE GLORY OF THE EMPEROR AND CADIA!
Life, as they say, will find a way. Happy birthday, Singapore. If only you lay your head low in humility instead of trumpeting your horns instead.
P.S.: This is a scheduled post. I may not be able to reply to most replies since I’ll be spending my time in the kampong to escape from the National Day fever.
Of blogs of further interest:
1. Tears to Tiara: Does Simulcasting Help Prevent Downloading? | Armchair Theorist (that proves it: the company has had a hand with Animax.)
Tags: 2007, Anime, Odex, odex saga
Entries (RSS)
[...] sentiments 3 years back. I guess this isn’t the straw that broke the camel’s back (or was there one?), but I am increasingly frustrated with either the subculture or the industry. I once joked that [...]
[...] because I have a deep-sated anger towards the establishment, with what not my involvement in that ugly saga of 2007. What made the anger more poignant was the date in which the whole mess started, which is an [...]