A quick lore drop, I have been an avid manga reader ever since I could read at the age of 5-6. At 13 years old, there was a popular manga reading app "MangaRock" 1, every chapter I read on the app have a "recruitment" page that was ignored. Until one day, I actually read these recruitment pages at the end or start (sometimes middle) of the chapter to realise that they are all different groups of people asking for assistance. I fell into a rabbit-hole of "scanlation groups"2, or groups of fans translating manga. At the age of 14-16, I was an active member in multiple fan groups helping the process of translating manga, manhua and manwhua (Japanese, Korean and Chinese comics) for other avid readers like myself.
I want to give brief history of why these fan translating group exist. Before anime and manga as mainstream, many people (who are often looked down as geeks) wanted to read more of their favourite Japanese media. The wait time for translation and publication was slow and almost non-existent, so fans take it upon themselves to translate for other fans to enjoy. People did not ask for money, they did it all for free. These fan-translated work are published online, free to read and there was sites that hosted them. Unfortunately, in the present time, many of these sites who host group uploaded fan-translated works are bought out or disappeared due to Copyright Laws (understandably)3.
TLDR: No The key reason why fan-translation exist in the first place is due to lack of access and official translations. However, since East Asian comics (Japanese, Korean and Chinese) have gained popularity, especially in the romance genre, there have been more access to official translated work. I also would like to provide an additional insight based on my experiences: fan-translated work is very time consuming with little to no momentary incentive4, so many volunteers eventually quit. With growing technology, many fan-translated groups no longer need a big team to maintain structure5, or fans can translate themselves (if people aren't doing the work, the bots are). In addition, even though there are more access to official translated work, it is more favourable towards the romance genre (money talks); other genre lovers (like horror and sci-fi), and non-English readers are left behind. So no, fan-translation is not dying.
I think people value proper fan-translated work in niche communities (like porn). I notice people are more than happy to pay a small subscription or commission for their favorite foreign media to be translated. You have direct access to the files you purchased, it feels like true ownership rather than time-limited viewership of a comic you paid for6. Translation matter a lot as well, I have read a few works with medieval English or country-dialect. Who knows, maybe these fan-translated works mention the commissioner's name or was translated to a certain language dialect. I do not see fan-translation dying anytime soon (sorry creators). Many creators hate fan-translation, is it justified? Or fan-translation provide creators more visibility outside of their local market?
Personally, I do not think fan-translation is making a noticeable negative impact for creators. If anything, it brings accessibility and revenue from international fans. Do you think fan-translation is bad?
MangaRock stole fan-translations and put in all in one site. It was shutdown because it was really popular, made profits and was an illegal app (unlawful distribution of official works).↩
Before manga could be read online, someone would buy physical copies of manga (mind you, could only be bought in person, in Japan) and scan them to obtain digital version.↩
Distribution and altercation of work is illegal. Even if the distributor make no money.↩
Scanlation groups mimic the professional translation industry. Despite earning little to no money, they (the group and readers) hold a strong standard of professionalism. This is the general roles: raw-provider, translator, proofreader, cleaner (most important because they remove ALL speech texts), typesetter and quality checker. I still remember taking a whole day trying to redraw a panel and getting told off for accidentally missing a lowercase i.↩
With AI, you no longer need a translator, proofreader or cleaner (ok cleaner is safe). This is a big deal because MANY volunteers will go quiet or quit. Scanlation groups have a short life-span considering all members are volunteers and the "leader" often micromanage.↩
Yes you read that right, capitalism have finessed consumers once again.↩
This is a discussion blog. Hopefully informative about this topic, along with personal anecdotes. Manga here is used quite generally, but it encompasses Asian comics!
Iâm making this blog because of the ignorance spreading around. Blogs posts made public promoting something I passionately dislike peeve me! There is a massive irony here that I will address later in this post.
Basically, Iâm here to inform in a hopefully entertaining and not-defamatory-or-rude manner since most readers here have the attention span of me after pulling an all-nighter to study for a subject I could never improve in.
So who am I to tell you where to read and what not to do?\ Good question, but it can apply to anyone, really. Iâm just a stranger on the Internet who happens to speak English and shares the same hobby as you: otaku stuff. What makes me different is that I used to scanlate manga and asian comics for three-ish years (volunteer work).
Scanlation is pretty much almost every manga you read online. The act itself is transformative because it removes original language texts and replace it with another language; basically, an unofficial translation. If a credit page doesnât match the manga or lead you to another webpage, you goddam bet itâs a scanlated work. Since my scanlation experience spans only three-ish years, I have yet to experience the full scope of the scanlation industry (or the professional translation industry, for that matter). Scanlation is what others may call: pirating. Awgrrrr matey now letâs get goinâ.
The whole scanlation or pirating business started when manga wasnât as popular. English readers who could not read Japanese or have the time to learn it (as the Japanese have three writing systems) but still wanted to read these manga that have not yet been translated. Hence started people who can read Japanese and are skilled enough to translate it for English readers. There has been a success story in which pirates can seek professional jobs in translating manga.
You may think there is no need for this anymore, but you are immensely wrong. Scanlation itself has become massive in the West or outside of Japan, as there is still a lack of official publishing and licensing in English. It takes a lot of time and reassurance to translate a manga series. If done wrong or poorly, the manga will, of course, flop. Think of âGhost Storyâ Dub if it were a manga.
Some mangaka express their anger towards the scanlation community as thieves and scumbags, which is understandable. However, if a series is small or unpopular, it may bring light to the work, and the opposite reaction sometimes happens. Mostly, fan-translation manga is regarded negatively because it is stealing intellectual and creative work. Regardless of the popularity it may bring, it does not usually mean the creator gets money for food from illegal readership overseas.
I worked on a series for which I asked permission from the creator and was allowed to translate. Most creators would get mad or simply ignore me. What stopped me from exposing the whole series is the actual lack of dialogue the creator comic possesses and explanatory images [2026 editor notes: not sure what this means]. When a start to scanlate a series, it often means the series is âclaimedâ, and no other scanlation group should continue to pick up the âclaimedâ series without permission. This brings me to my next point...
Scanlation is a complex system with unspoken rules that one must obey. The big irony here is that the work belongs to no one but the creator and their publishing company. Yet people are on each otherâs tails, claiming work that is not theirs.
I have been in a few situations where two scanlation groups (involved or onlookers) would throw dirt at each other because they are working on the same series. Readers are outraged that one person could swoop in and take the spotlight without permission. It is a mess.
The reason why the scanlator and the community in general fight for the respect and credit is due to the time spent. It is a passion project for many, and they want recognition (or fame). Readers do not understand that scanlation is not just about swapping a text in speech bubbles. It is also redrawing, checking, translating and then putting text on a page and further checking. What makes it even harder is the experience needed to join and scorn from readers and creators.
There are cases of scanlation groups begging readers not to post their work and linking them or the creator, as they have already been threatened. This, of course, is because of conflict, the irony being that the person reading a comic refuses to read or ignores disclaimers. Hence, it pushes piracy and scanlation groups to be more secretive as a means of protection from legal battles.
On the legal side of things, if a manga series blew into popularity and have their own official translation, a lawsuit can be applied. What prevents incarceration is different international laws on intellectual rights.
Piracy is illegal, but what hinders the lawsuit is different laws in each country. Moreover, the anonymity allowed in cyberspace are hard to detect who is actually responsible. Especially when it consists of many parties involved, such as the website hosts, groups and individuals that make fan-translated works. When you dig a hole, thereâs an opening [2026 editor note: no idea what this means, but itâs funny]. In most common cases, the lawsuit or cease and desist warnings are directed to website owners who host scanlation works or even the scanlation website itself. Especially now that the court is trying to regulate cyberspace internationally.
I have never been involved in a legal threat or formal warning. However, I have seen examples of them, and it does bring fear. Whether or not it is effective is debatable, but a warning should be taken seriously. I personally find it AT THE MOMENT (2019) not yet to be taken into action as law reform takes a long time, along with international laws of busting this blooming wave of scanlation.
Scanlators post their work in random places, and sometimes it is hard to catch their updates. To solve this, there are aggregator bots that steal the stolen work!
This is where a big inception comes in. Not only if you read the wrong sites, but you disadvantaging the fan community that volunteers to scanlate and the creators themselves. Now thereâs a new question: do you want to support the community that worked hard on the manga you are reading, or do you want to side with the convenience of reading everything in one place?
I am certain that you are reading manga on an aggregator's site. The most popular being mngfx and mngr**k [2026 editor note: these sites are DEAD LOL]. It takes works from creators of different sites and compiles them into its website. I remember when mngfx was popular, it had a disclaimer on every page of the manga claiming that it was their work. Laughable really. If you ever see your favourite Asian comic taken down, it is simply because they have been licensed and threatened with a lawsuit.
Aggregators are looked down upon by the scanlation community. This includes the readers, fans and pirates as they are stealing others' pirated works and monetising by themselves. What makes aggregators the scummiest is the monetisation. Most Scanlators do not earn money. They can host their own site and hope for big readers, but that would leave them vulnerable to lawsuits. Most of the income comes from donations to continue hosting their site or buying the comics to translate. I personally have never heard of pirates taking money and running with it. As noted previously, fan translation is a passion project, and the profit earned is not worth it.
At this point you may think... âYou have convinced me to buy manga physicallyâ âIâll just buy merchâ And yes, yes, that is a great solution. However, there are merchandise bootlegs and etc., etc. I digress. [2026 editor note: idk what I ate, but yes, directly supporting the originator is the best]
The main takeaway from this whole fiasco is... actually read! If you are already reading a manga or Asian comic. Read the actual whole thing! If you pushed a little to find the original source, you may be welcomed with a community with the same interest, whilst supporting the original creator by merchandise or purchasing the manga.
There are betrayals within the community, but at the same time, friendship can be made. Iâve met a few interesting people because of the scanlation group, and itâs interactive. It can be fun if you partake in it, but anger can spout from the perspective of morality to the original creator. However, if you choose to wait and purchase an official license, more problems can arise.
Who cares about your opinion, ew! Then skip this section.
This is biased, as I have participated in this pirating activity. I was a former pirate and helped some other smaller pirates.
I personally believe scanlation does not hinder the creator (aggregators do, as they are the ones exploring and profiting, while scanlation groups usually do not earn a single cent). As a wannabe artist myself, I would feel agitated that something I worked hard for is freely downloaded and shared without credit. But as a pirate, I am helping and passing on my gratitude to the readers who may be interested in reading. Piracy exists in all types of media, and despite the illegal laws and moral wrongs, the origin does not always hinder, as there are actually nice people on the internet who credit and read. Just like how you may be reading my blog right now!
On the other hand, it is becoming more apparent to me that more and more are being pirated and distributed along with the more aware readers. Pushing the scanlation or pirates further into the sea, and occasionally sails into a deserted land. Why? Because of the newer sharing platform, which allows readers and creators to connect despite the language barrier. Itâs easy to point fingers at one cause, but I believe it has to do with a lot of factors that are forever changing. Possibly in the future, there wouldnât be a chance of scanlators since the technology can substitute for pirates.