Recently, I was looking for places where I could read the Your Name manga online. I came upon one of the most famous manga sites and manga apps in the world, Manga Rock. Unfortunately, the company has closed down. Manga Rock online and the Manga Rock APK on the android and iOS app stores have been taken down.

Like me, you’re probably wondering why and the answer is piracy.

"There’s no excuse for the negative impact aggregator sites like ourselves have created for the comic industry and creators," says Manga Rock.

The company has admitted their faults in full and genuinely wants to right their wrongs.

Only, they are not simply taking down their site and app, they are completely rebranding and recreating their company from the ground up.

Via their new brand, MR Comics, the company plans to create a new platform. This platform aims to make comics accessible to fans all over the world.

With over 10 years of experience building tech and catering to manga fans, the company shows great promise. Numerous Youtube commentators have already expressed their support.

Creating a Netflix for Manga

Everyone loves manga, but are people willing to pay for it? The answer seems to be yes.

One user named Adishnu asks "Can’t you make it like a Netflix for manga? One [fee] and unlimited reading, but like affordable? [Because] I wouldn’t mind paying that small amount, as long as I [can] keep reading."

Adishnu brings up a good point, one that I’ve been wondering for a long time. Why doesn’t someone come out with a Netflix for manga? After all, streaming services like Netflix have significantly cut down movie and television piracy. It’s easy to believe that a similar platform would do the same thing for manga.

Youtube commentators have shown almost universal support for such a platform. However, it’s likely easier said than done. There are copyright laws in place that may be different per country or per company.

One huge benefit MR Comics advertises is tools for creators. The company plans to provide creators and publishers with AI-assisted tools to help them with their work.

Until the platform takes off, however, we will have to read manga the standard way: buying them in stores or online.