Hasbro is taking down the episodes on Youtube

[MyLittlePonyTales]

By now you all know my take on it: I think Hasbro should have at least part of the series avalible for free streaming on an official youtube stream like companies such as Funimation. (and while I prefer 1080p, of course, I couldn't blame them if they put the episodes up in 480i or even 240i (provided they weren't using subtitles for other countries) but really everyone needs a sample before they buy into a large series like this - 1 DVD, sure a 30-second preview is fine, but a series that will likely have a dozen or more DVDs? atleast 4-6 episodes!)

I'm pretty sure Hasbro keeps a few of the latest MLP episodes up on the Hub site. They don't stay forever, but they're up there for watching shortly after the episode airs. So they aren't completely removing MLP: FiM from the internet. I assume the site is available in every country.

Edit: This:

I also went on Hubworld and they had some clips online - http://www.hubworld.com/my-little-pony/shows/friendship-is-magic/videos

[CoderBrony]

Copyright is one of those things like trademarks that you have to vigorously defend, or you lose it. Given that, I think that the Hub and Hasbro are being pretty durn reasonable about things, since they could legally (if they wanted to) issue a DMCA takedown on:

1) Every site with audio remixed or mashups sources from show audio

2) Every site with a screen captured image from the show, or that 'shopped show images into new art

3) Every site that uses the character names for unauthorized fiction (and given some of the R34 stuff out there, they would be well in their rights to do so for some of it...)

4) Every person selling fan arts and crafts without licensing the characters

Given that, the fact that they are limiting themselves to full episodes on YouTube is pretty restrained. And if Hasbro *doesn't* know that bronies buy merch, they will once the State of the Herd comes out, because 40% of bronies report they have bought toys (that's a sneak peak at one of the results...), a number that I suspect dwarfs their target audience (in percentage, although probably not in absolute numbers...)

[PulseWave]

Yep, it's true that we European bronies are quite screwed. Or would be if Hasbro succeeded in clearing the Web of free episode downloads once and for all.

See, I'm not only a European, I also don't own any iOS device, and I want to watch MLP:FiM on whatever device I want with whatever operating system I want which the most frequently by far is Linux.

Here comes the catch: I can download all episodes I want. I know a place where I can get them. Yes, it's illegal. I can also watch them on YouTube. Yes, that's illegal, too. The recommended way is to buy them on iTunes. Let's ignore for a moment that that would require me to start up Windows for a change. I'd have to use a proxy and other tricks to pretend I'm an American customer just to buy these episodes. Which is illegal. Then I'd have to get rid of the DRM. Which is illegal yet again, at least according to US laws; I wouldn't be too sure about our domestic laws.

You read it right. If I went the officially recommended way to watch MLP:FiM like I want to watch it, I'd break the law twice.

And it wouldn't really be worth it anyway. Hasbro doesn't sell single copies of episodes via Apple, Hasbro sold Apple a license for an episode exactly once, they got money exactly once, and they don't earn a single cent from someone buying an episode. Instead, I'd support one of the nastiest corporations in existence (Apple v. Samsung in Germany, Apple v. Samsung in Australia, running OS X on non-Apple hardware is a crime...).

That said, I'm no-one who pirates stuff just because he doesn't want to pay for something he can get for free, legal or not. If Hasbro finally decided to support Shout Factory in producing whole-season DVD boxes (which they'd do right now if they had enough money to risk it), if they were released in the USA, and if I could buy one of these from someone who ships to here, I would absolutely buy them as soon as I can. Regardless of region code, I didn't have my DVD player switched code-free for nothing. Also, the German dub isn't worth the wait for a region 2 release anyway.