On November, 26, a new online service was launched called BOST TV. The service is owned and operated by Tokyo based BOST Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. What is the goal of BOST TV? BOST Digital Enterainment’s President, Aaron Lai, commented about this on the BOST TV’s About Page:

“We want to bring you anime more quickly than before and titles that see little chance of a DVD release.

We are all anime fans here at BOST and we have all lived overseas. We know how hard it is to get anime outside Japan. We know there’s a lot of cool stuff here and we want to bring a piece of the action as best we can – Direct from the Source.”

BOST TV has signed licensing agreements with Pony Canyon and Milky Cartoon. They will offer titles for rent and for free. These shows will be subbed (English only). There are no plans to offer dubbed versions. Currently, they have three titles (synopses from BOST TV):

• Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora (Looking Up at the Half-Moon):

Yuuichi is unexpectedly hospitalised for hepatitis at Wakaba Hospital in the winter of his junior year in high school. As he recovers, Yuuichi constantly escapes from his hospital room and is scolded daily by Nurse Akiko. Then one day, Yuuichi meets Rika, a girl his age, who is hospitalised in the adjoining wing. He is instantly attracted to the beautiful Rika, but discovers she is insufferably spoiled.

Yuuichi is confused by her unreasonable behaviour, but is drawn to her nevertheless. But when Rika confides in Yuuichi about her illness, he understands the reason for her wilful behaviour. Rika doesn’t have long to live.

• Ballad of a Shinigami: momo the girl god of death:

Momo, a girl dressed in white. In her hand is a scythe, glowing dimly. By her side is Daniel, a winged black cat.

She is a “shinigami” — a god of death — who carries the souls of humans to the other side.

Every time a human heart is touched by the white shinigami, the world is filled with kindness, and sadness…

• Keitai Shoujo:

Hiro Aida is a second-year high school student. Christmas is approaching, and he is uneasy since he cannot seem to get a girlfriend. Out of boredom, he visits a web site on his cell phone called “Gal☆Mode” and downloads a wallpaper for his phone.

The instant the download is finished, his phone emits a bright light, and transforms into a little girl the size of his palm.

“My name is Rin. What’s yours?”
“The fact that you were able to download me must mean that you don’t have a girlfriend… Am I right?”
“It’ll be a bit of a problem for me if you don’t become happy by Christmas. To put it simply…”

…If Hiro does not get a girlfriend by Christmas, Rin — and Hiro’s phone — will vanish, and Rin will be unable to return to her world.

The first two have been available for rent since Nov. 26 and the third was made available for free (through Feb. 26, 2008) on Dec. 3.

The only major caveat is that due to licensing issues, there are geographical limitations for the availablility of the titles. Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora and Ballad of a Shinigami are currently available to Australia and New Zealand, while Keitai Shoujo is available to North America, Oceania, and the United Kingdom.

The recommended requirements for viewing include Windows (2000 or newer), Mac OS X (10.3 or newer), Linux (only Fedora distribution tested), Flash Player 8, modern browser (e.g., Firefox 2 or Safari 3), Fast internet connection (500 kb/s or faster), and a screen resolution of at least 1024 x 768.

Anime Anime Article (via Katana Xtreme translation):
BOST TV launches for direct on-line anime delivery from Japan to abroad

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RightStuf! will be streaming (via IGN.com), for a limited time, the first episode of Ninja Nonsense, which will allow fans a chance to sample the series. The Ninja Nonsense Complete DVD Collection – Limited Edition will be released on December 4. Here is a synopsis from RightStuf!:

“Take one totally cute (and naive) ninja-girl trainee, add a ninja horde under the tutelage of a perverse headmaster – a strange, yellow, spherical, pudgy… creature… named Onsokumaru – and you get the kind of ’super-explosive ninja insanity’ that can only be found in what’s been called ‘the runaway nuclear reactor’ of anime comedies!”

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A.D. Vision’s 24-hour anime channel, The Anime Network, has started streaming episodes from 12 different series. There are advertisements which appear before, during, and after each episode, but the player will allow you to jump around within the episode. There are 3 episodes for each series that are currently being shown. New episodes will be added every Thursday and each episode will be available for 28 days. The current crop of titles:

• Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy
• Air Gear
• BASToF Syndrome
• Chance Pop Session
• Comic Party: Revolution
• Gilgamesh
• Jinki:Extend
• Kurau: Phantom Memory
• Magical Play
• Pani Poni Dash!
• Saiyuki
• Utawarerumono

Requirements are a fast internet connection and Adobe Flash 9. The only major caveat is that this is a regional service. It is good only for the US and Canada.

ANN Story:
The Anime Network Streams Episodes Online for Free

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This next piece is not a freebie or a sale. It does involve A.D. Vision again. ADV Films has just announced that they are dropping the prices on their video downloads. The standard downloads (with a resolution of 320 x 240) are priced at $1.99/episode. You can also get the episodes in premium resolution (632 x 480) for $3.99/episode. Their original service offered episodes at $4.99 each and feature length works at $19.99 each.

Two caveats…downloads are limited to US residents and they require Windows (2000 or XP) with Windows Media Player 10 or higher.

ANN Story:
ADVFilms.com Lowers Prices on Episode Downloads

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AnimeOnDVD is sponsoring two contests. First, they have a daily contest called the 44 Days of Christmas. They will be giving away a prize a day for 44 days. Since the prizes are different each day and a new prize is announced as the old one has been won, I cannot give you a list of what is available. You will just have to visit their contest page and see. The first 3 days featured Hellsing Ultimate, Vol. 2, Zegapain Vol. #1 w/box, and Tekkaman Blade Collection 3.

Second, AnimeOnDVD is partnering with ADV Films on a contest called Magic, Mayhem and Pretty Boys from ADV Films. The winner will receive Vol. 1 of three series…Magikano, Tokyo Majin, and The Wallflower. This contest runs until 8am, Monday, December 24.

Both contests are random drawings. Check their site for rules and details.

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Publisher Dark Horse has a contest. The prize is the complete trade set of Blade of the Immortal (Vol. 1 – 17). This contest will be more of a challenge than the one above. It is an essay contest. From their contest page:

We’ve drummed up a great essay contest with some sweet prizes–all you have to do is tell us how the popular manga series Blade of the Immortal has affected YOU. Tell us your story. Who’s your favorite character and why? How has studying Hiroaki Samura’s techniques changed your own work? In short: tell us how Blade of the Immortal has made an impression on you in 400 words or less. The top four selected essay winners will receive our grand prize–complete trade sets of Blade of the Immortal (Vol. 1 – 17). So read the fine print, put on your thinking caps, and have fun writing. Good luck!

Submissions must be made by midnight (PST) on Dec. 20, 2007. Go to their contest page for the full rules.

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Now on to the sales:

Rightstuf! has a new sale called 12 Days of Anime. From December 3rd through December 25th, RightStuf will be posting a list of holdiay bargains…adding one item to the list each day. This will actually be 12+ days of savings on DVDs, box sets, and bundles.

The first day features an Eureka Seven DVD bundle. You can get Volumes 1 – 10 for $89.99 which is 63% off the retail price of $249.80. Here is a synopsis from RightStuf!:

“Eureka Seven tells the story of a young boy named Renton, whose life just plain sucks. That is, until a giant robot crashes into his house. Piloted by a girl named Eureka, this encounter will lead Renton to be pursued by the military and pulled into a web of drama, intrigue, and non-stop action. Renton’s time to daydream is over.”

They have made things even easier this time. There are no coupon codes needed for this sale. Sale ends December 25, 2007 at 11:59pm CST.

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AnimeNation is no longer running their Holiday Studio Sales. But, they do have a new sale called the Red Hot Holiday Overstock Sale.

For a limited time, you can save up to 60% off a select list of items.

Plus, AnimeNation is offering a couple of coupons as added incentive:

• Get free economy shipping on orders over $49. The coupon code is SHIPPING49.
• Get 10% off any order over %99. The coupon code is ANHOLIDAYS.

Also, AnimeNation will be having a Holiday Giveaway:

All through the holidays, when you take advantage of the great deals and specials at AnimeNation, and place an order on our website, you’ll be automatically entered in a contest to win 1 of 5 complete AN Entertainment collections! That’s 16 discs in all, a $369.00 value! Get Risky Safety, Miami Guns, and of course the Hare+Guu TV and OVA series!

Winners will be selected on December 30th.

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Robert’s Anime Corner Store has a Holiday Specials List which offers up to 50% off the MSRP on select DVDs and figures. You may also be able to get additional discounts if there are any sale coupon offers running…the Holiday Madness Sale is an example (though it ends Dec. 4).

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Finally, here are a couple of coupon offers:

Barnes & Noble.com has one coupon. You can take 25% off any 1 item. The coupon code is T4N3B6W and it expires on December 10.

Target.com is offering one coupon. You can get 10% off any purchase (no minimum). The coupon code is TCTARGETWELC. It expires on December 31.

Freebies

Yahoo! Comics Japan has recently launched a free online manga magazine called Flex Comix Flare. The target audience for the magazine is women. Here is the lineup, from ANN’s translation:

• Starting October 18: Kanashi no Homura: Yume Maboroshi no Gotoku by Eri Motomura is an historical epic set in Japan’s feudal era, and Nariyuki Mystery Club by Makoto Hasebe is a high school slapstick comedy.
• Starting October 25: Sayonara Boku no RyÅ« (Farewell, My Dragon) by Koh Karakemi is a story about a mountain village boy and his half-dragon.
• Starting November 1: Riegienda Monogatari (The Story of Riegienda) by Naoko Moto is a fantasy of a magical tea shop — literally named "Magical" — in the town of Riegienda.
• Starting November 8: Motonomoto no Ana no Naka by Taka Amano is a Japanese-style fantasy about a boy’s encounter with a mysterious figure in a library.

Of course, there are some caveats. The manga will be in raw form so there will be no translation; you will need to be able to read Japanese to fully enjoy the manga. The software requirements are any recent version of Windows (except for Windows XP Professional x64 Edition) and Internet Explorer 5 or higher.

ANN Story:
Yahoo! Comics Japan Launches Free Net Manga for Women

Japanese Source:
Ultimatum

Contests

If you are a reader from the UK, then you can enter two contests running on AnimeOnDVD.

First, they will be giving away two sets of Noein: Complete Series Box Set. Here is a synopsis from RightStuf!:

"In the near future, a violent battle takes place between the dimension La’cryma (protector of humanity) and the dimension Shangri-La, bent on the annihilation of all space-time. A group known as the Dragon Calvary is dispatched through space and time, searching for the only thing that can stop the invasion: the Dragon’s Torque.

In the present, twelve-year-old Haruka and her friend Yuu are contemplating running away from home when they meet a member of the Dragon Calvary named Karasu. He believes that Haruka possesses the Dragon’s Torque – and claims to be Yuu from fifteen years in the future…"

Second, they will be giving away two sets (not sure about this as their page for this contest has some incorrect information) of Robotech: The Complete Saga. Here is a synopsis from Wikipedia:

• The First Robotech War (The Macross Saga) concerns humanity’s battle against the Zentraedi, a race of giant warriors who are sent to earth to retrieve the flagship of the Robotech Master Zor. The ship contains the last known source of Protoculture in the universe.
• The Second Robotech War (The Masters) begins when the creators of the Zentraedi, the Robotech Masters, attempt to take up where the Zentraedi left off, and capture the protoculture held within the remains of the SDF-1.
• The Third Robotech War (The New Generation) occurs after the alien Invid have been alerted to the existence of Protoculture on Earth by events that transpired at the end of the Second Robotech War. The planet is conquered, then enslaved, and it is up to the Robotech Expeditionary Force to retake their ancestral homeland.

Both contests are random drawings. Here are the contest information pages for Noein and for Robotech. Both contests are open until 8am on Friday, November 16. Again, these contests are open to UK residents only.

If you are a resident of the US or Canada, then here are a couple of contests for you. RightStuf! has two prize packages.

First, there is the Gackt package. Here is RightStuf!’s description of the contest:

"J-rock fans rejoice! Viz is bringing the video collections of one of the genre’s most popular artists to North American fans with the release of TWO Gackt video collections! To celebrate, they’ve put together a prize pack that includes both Gackt: The Greatest Filmography 1999-2006 Red and Blue DVDs, plus a coffin cell phone charm, a copy of the Shojo Beat music issue with an article on the superstar, and a “Gackt” black vinyl totebag to carry it all!"

Then there is the Ping Pong package. This includes the DVD of the live-action movie plus an extra-large T-shirt and an athletic towel. Here is a synopsis of the movie from RighStuf!:

"Best friends Peco and Smile have been playing ping pong since they were little kids. While the unique and brazen Peco plays to win and loves the sport, the quiet and introverted Smile thinks of it as just a way to kill time with friends, and plays only because he looks up to Peco as his hero. Though Smile is the more talented player, he frequently and intentionally loses to Peco out of a misguided sense of friendship.

However, after Peco is badly beaten by his old pal Demon in an important inter-high school tournament and quits the game, Smile becomes the newest celebrity of ping pong. Smile begins training for the next championship, waiting for the return of his hero, whom he is destined to meet in one last match."

The contests are open to anyone 13 years or older. Check RightStuf!’s contest page for official rules and entry form. Both contests are open until December 6, 2007.

Sales

Here are three sales updates:

First, RightStuf!’s new sale is called "Book It" which naturally refers to a sale on graphic novels and books…in this case, from Tokyopop. You can take 33% off of the retail price of novels, manga, and art books. The sale also includes pre-orders. The coupon code is bookit. The sale ends November 18 at 11:59 CST.

AnimeNation has several sales going on under the umbrella title of Holiday Studio Sales:

• ADV Sale…you can take 40% off of any ADV release including pre-orders
• FUNimation Sale…you can take 35% off all current titles
• Nozomi Sale…you can take 40% off their titles through the end of November
• Hentai DVD Sale…you can take 40% off of titles from ASM, Critical Mass, and JapanAnime

Plus, you can use the coupon code ANHOLIDAYS to save an additional 10% on orders over $99.

Robert’s Anime Corner Store also has a holiday themed sale…"Gobble Up the Savings". Take up to 7% off any item in the store (excluding the deal of the day). This includes existing sale items. Here are the coupon codes:

• Save 3% off any order over $99 – GOBBLEUP3
• Save 5% off any order over $199 – GOBBLEUP5
• Save 7% off any order over $299 – GOBBLEUP7

Coupons are valid until midnight (EST), November 15.

Also, figure and toy purchases qualify for an additional 10% off.