Thoughts on Bilibili Comics' Shutdown, Legal Digital Comic Platforms, and Digital Media
On January 24, Bilibili Comics (international), which legally hosted and translated Chinese comics (manhua) from Chinese to English, announced that it's shutting down on February 29. The link is from Twitter because the announcement only appeared on the website's desktop version, while its official Twitter account has been inactive for a while. This announcement came as a shock to everyone.
I don't read a lot of manhua there, but I'm also shocked and saddened by this announcement. I have plenty of thoughts about it: how this is a HUGE blow to the accessibility of legal digital comic platforms to deter piracy, and the transient nature of digital media nowadays, with an example of how one of my favorite manhua vanished from Bilibili Comics.