A China-based manga piracy network led by Bato.to, one of the world’s largest scanlation platforms, has been forced to shut down after a criminal complaint was filed with Chinese authorities, according to multiple reports.
Japan’s anti-piracy group, the Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA), said it worked with cybersecurity experts to identify the operator behind Bato.to and around 60 related domains, including xbato.com and mangapark.io. The sites allegedly hosted illegally uploaded Japanese manga in nearly 50 languages.
CODA claims the network attracted up to 350 million visits per month, generating more than 400,000 yuan (about $57,000) in peak monthly advertising revenue. The operator was arrested on suspicion of copyright infringement, later released on bail, and is expected to be formally indicted.
The coalition warned that manga piracy is worsening globally, partly due to AI making translation easier. CODA’s representative director, Goto Takero, said the group will continue cracking down on piracy as Japanese manga gains worldwide popularity.
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