The Dragon Ball Rights Dispute: Shueisha, Capsule Corp Tokyo, and the Toriyama Estate

[Rinsankajugin]

Hey you! Yes, you reading this, and you linking this! You haven't been linked to the best source!

Kanzenshuu's own translation of this article (by people who actually know Japanese!) can be found over in our "Translations" section-

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https://www.kanzenshuu.com/translations/weekly-toyo-keizai-article-dragon-ball-rights-dispute/

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That link above is the page on our actual website that you want to link to, instead!

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Supposedly, a recent magazine article has stated that there seems to be some sort of dispute for the rights of the Dragon Ball franchise.


It seems that a handful of parties, including Shueisha (publisher of the manga) and Capsule Corp Tokyo (current holder of the anime and game license). It's also says that the wishes of Toriyama's family are most important, which makes sense. A lot of people are speculating that this might be a possible reason as to why Dragon Ball Daima's marketing has been pretty scant as of recent, and why none of the manga material past the Tournament of Power hasn't been used outside of it.

Still though, I do hope all parties involved get everything settled, especially Toriyama's family. I can't imagine the stress this situation this is putting them through.

[VegettoEX]

"Latest Magazine"... ugh, so goddamn frustrating. Which magazine? Which issue?! Who's the reporter that wrote it?!?

*insert Thanos I'll do it myself gif here*

https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0D73JC586

It's the July 13th-dated issue of Weekly Toyo Keizai, a business/finance magazine. I threw a copy in with my V-Jump order, so I'll get it next week unless Julian picks it up locally before then, and we can have an actual translator take a look at it.

[Cure Dragon 255]

Supposedly, a recent magazine article has stated that there seems to be some sort of dispute for the rights of the Dragon Ball franchise.


It seems that a handful of parties, including Shueisha (publisher of the manga) and Capsule Corp Tokyo (current holder of the anime and game license). It's also says that the wishes of Toriyama's family are most important, which makes sense. A lot of people are speculating that this might be a possible reason as to why Dragon Ball Daima's marketing has been pretty scant as of recent, and why none of the manga material past the Tournament of Power hasn't been used outside of it.

Still though, I do hope all parties involved get everything settled, especially Toriyama's family. I can't imagine the stress this situation this is putting them through.

I know this is an extremely ridiculous thing to fear but I hope Dragon Ball wont end up like Candy Candy, never allowed to air anywhere or have new shows.

[Rinsankajugin]

"Latest Magazine"... ugh, so goddamn frustrating. Which magazine? Which issue?! Who's the reporter that wrote it?!?

*insert Thanos I'll do it myself gif here*

https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0D73JC586

It's the July 13th-dated issue of Weekly Toyo Keizai, a business/finance magazine. I threw a copy in with my V-Jump order, so I'll get it next week unless Julian picks it up locally before then, and we can have an actual translator take a look at it.

Yeah, I was actually wondering that myself when I saw the tweet. Thanks for clearing that up, and for picking up a copy!

[Rafa Fast]

Yeah those 2023 rumous about Akio Iyoku were all correct as I expected. If it was already complicated when Toriyama was still around, then imagine now. I wonder if this is affecting the manga too? Could it be one of the reasons behind the break?

Also, I already noticed before that Capsule Corp Tokyo still wasn't mentioned anywhere in any kind of official media so far (correct me if I'm wrong), which is weird given how the process was already finalized back in January. Didn't quite get it?

Just really hope things end positively.

[JulieYBM]

My assumption—if we take these details are correctly reported and factual—is that there's some sort of conflict going on between the two parties. It's my understanding that the original creator—in this case, Toriyama Akira—is the de facto law of the land for all adaptions of their propety, but since comic creators are usually too busy making comics to be involved in the production of an anime, Toriyama and his peers would basically let the staff of animated adaptions do as they please. What I'm curious about now is how this would change post-death? My assumption would be that the spouse of the original creator would be involved in overseeing the property now, but with CCT involved I'm curious if Iyoku Akio convinced Toriyama to sign away his rights somehow?

I believe that it was Ajay—and please correct me if my memory is faulty here—who said that Dragon Ball Daima's marketing is up to Shueisha, rather than Toei Animation. This makes me wonder if Shueisha's haphazzard marketing is based on knowledge that Toriyama was potentially passing away soon and/or influenced by Toriyama having passed away now and therefore coming into conflict with Iyoku himself for how he jumped ship from Shueisha and made rights issues more of a headache to serve his own needs?

Jesus, somebody make a movie out of this lol

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

I know this is an extremely ridiculous thing to fear but I hope Dragon Ball wont end up like Candy Candy, never allowed to air anywhere or have new shows.

Personally I don't think it will come to that.

I think given all the different license holders Dragon Ball had, even in its home country of Japan this kind of thing was inevitable, although there are of course valid reasons for concern as it's natural to not have full trust in the other parties besides the artist in question's estate to honour their legacy.

Hopefully Shueisha, Capsule Corp Tokyo and Toriyama's family do come to a mutually satisfactory resolution, and this doesn't end up like the dispute between J.R.R Tolkien's estate and Warner Brothers where the former felt the latter caused "irreparable harm" by using his IP in ways they felt were disrespectful (although thankfully as the article says the former won).

[JulieYBM]

I know this is an extremely ridiculous thing to fear but I hope Dragon Ball wont end up like Candy Candy, never allowed to air anywhere or have new shows.

Personally I don't think it will come to that.

I think given all the different license holders Dragon Ball had, even in its home country of Japan this kind of thing was inevitable, although there are of course valid reasons for concern as it's natural to not have full trust in the other parties besides the artist in question's estate to honour their legacy.

Hopefully Shueisha, Capsule Corp Tokyo and Toriyama's family do come to a mutually satisfactory resolution, and this doesn't end up like the dispute between J.R.R Tolkien's estate and Warner Brothers where the former felt the latter caused "irreparable harm" by using his IP in ways they felt were disrespectful (although thankfully as the article says the former won).

Oh gosh, this is so melodramatic of them lol.

They claimed the studio had gone beyond the deal by using Tolkien's characters in digital form - including in online gambling games and casino slot machines - which the family said caused irreparable harm to the author's legacy and reputation.

The slot machines! They're going to ruin the lolly that Daddy left me!

No work is too sacred to be adapted into something else by someone else.

I do wonder if this is a similar situation to what's going on with Dragon Ball, though. I'm loath to see Iyoku Akio get any sort of exclusive control over Dragon Ball, mostly because I just really dislike the vibes that he puts out.

[dragonmagico]

Such a weird fight but if it stops new half assed content like super and it's related millennials who refuse to admit were adults now and need to force the next generation to like what we did as kids do they can cling to the corpse of there youth slop from being made it'll be for the best.

[Cure Dragon 255]

Such a weird fight but if it stops new half assed content like super and it's related millennials who refuse to admit were adults now and need to force the next generation to like what we did as kids do they can cling to the corpse of there youth slop from being made it'll be for the best.

Hate to break it to you but that wont stop them from it, they will just jump onto whatever else they liked other than Dragon Ball. And keep in mind I agree with you.

[Rinsankajugin]

Looks like SupaChronicles translated the article, there's a LOT to unpack here...

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

So for anyone in need of a TL;DR

• Among Dragon Ball's greatest successes are:
  • Two Dragon Ball mobile games including 'Dokkan Battle' surpassing $5 yen in profits globally (as determined by app research company Sensor Tower)
  • Dragon Ball Super : Super Hero earning $13 billion yen worldwide
  • Saudi Arabia's planned Dragon Ball theme park to be similar in size to Disneyland Tokyo
• Bandai Namco insider determines based on reported universal fan accounts the franchises greatest appeal is its simplicity
• Akio Iyoku moves up the ranks from Editor-In-Chief at V Jump to head of Dragon Ball Room in 2016 before setting up Capsule Corp Tokyo in May 2023
  • Which led to the uproar, which is at the heart of this matter
• Akira Toriyama had complete trust in Akio Iyoku and likewise Iyoku always believed himself to be honouring Toriyama
• Nonetheless the anime side (including production companies and TV channels) were unhappy with Iyoku's decision to adapt Sand Land
• Anime side of the Dragon Ball brand perceived Iyoku as being condescending
• Metaverse was in progress but with some setbacks, including the anticipated role of AI technology
• Iyoku being moved to a new business department became the "trigger", leading to his decision to become independent
• Shueshia were at risk of losing their Dragon Ball rights due to Iyoku taking over from Toriyama's spokesperson
• Toriyama wasn't happy with Iyoku's removal because he trusted him the most
• Marue Horiuchi went to Toriyama's home but he couldn't persuade him to stay
• Iyoku going independent left Bandai Namco in a tricky situation because it was unclear who to consult regarding the source material because Shueshia owned the rights to the manga, but no longer had Toriyama's right-hand man in-house
• Dragon Ball meetings not given clear planning
• Iyoku and Shueshia representatives being in attendance made coordination efforts stressful
• Toriyama passed away as these rights were being fought for
• Discussions continued after Toriyama's passing and as-of-yet remain unresolved
• Certain industry reps are hoping for a resolution that involves Toriyama's family
• It is unsure who will lead the franchise going forward
• The dispute is not benefitting the manga

[JulieYBM]

This is so fucking funny. This is so fucking funny, oh my god.

(I wouldn't trust Iyoku simply because he apparently had Toriyama's trust, because we shouldn't blindly trust Toriyama to know what's best).

[FortuneSSJ]

LMAO, Iyoku deciding by himself to adapt Sand Land is such a boss move! Sometimes the world just needs mad people like that.
I guess he wanted to do it because Daima will explore the Demon World and Beelzebub may have a cameo.

Regardless of his behavior, he does seem to care more about Dragon Ball than Shueisha and feels like he's the one pushing for more anime content. If that's true I'm on his side.

[Neo-Makaiōshin]

Lmao, "Iyoku cares more about DB", what narrative is that? He's doing nothing different than Shueisha, still milking decades long concluded series.

[Rinsankajugin]

Honestly speaking, I more worried about the aspect of Shueisha wanting to use AI on a franchise like Dragon Ball, especially now that Toriyama is gone. Really feels like a spit in the face towards all of Toriyama's creations. And with a company as big as Shueisha, you just KNOW they won't stop at just Dragon Ball. I kinda want to know what the other mangaka and editors think of this.

[JulieYBM]

I'd be so pissed if I was a creator working for Shueisha. AI isn't the answer, more pay and more time off is!

[Cure Dragon 255]

I'd be so pissed if I was a creator working for Shueisha. AI isn't the answer, more pay and more time off is!

Ai is the answer, it can cure many diseases, and prolong Human Life spans and not in a "Better off dead" way.

[Rinsankajugin]

Oy, this guy. When we're talking about AI, we mean GENERATIVE AI that companies want to use to kick out artists and editors from their jobs so they can save money. We know it's not the same as the AI used other labor intensive fields. That's the point, AI should be used for LABOR, NOT CREATIVITY. We humans should be the ones to create art and stories, NOT GENERATIVE AI.

Do you WANT Shueisha to kick out the likes of Oda, Kubo, Araki, Togashi, and many others just to save a quick buck?

[TechExpert2021]

I'd be so pissed if I was a creator working for Shueisha. AI isn't the answer, more pay and more time off is!

Ai is the answer, it can cure many diseases, and prolong Human Life spans and not in a "Better off dead" way.

IMO AI should NOT be used for future Dragon Ball material. Generative AI poses a threat to, not only art and creativity but also human jobs.