![[origami shapes, cranes, happi coats, pinwheels]](images/origami70.jpg)
rec.arts.anime.* survey
From: ru.igarashi@usask.ca (ru.igarashi@usask.ca)
Subject: [announce] 4th annual "What are we like?" Questionaire
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.misc, rec.arts.anime.music, rec.arts.anime.models,
rec.arts.anime.games, rec.arts.anime.fandom
Date: 2001-07-25 16:13:56 PST
Over the few years that I've been a fan, there has been many
an occasion where a question popped up about some aspect of our
interest in anime. Many of those times it would have been nice
if we had numbers to work from. After a while, one gets really
curious about just how many of us do different things. So since
the late summer of 1997 until this year, I've been putting out
a semi-annual questionaire in the rec.arts.anime news group
hierarchy, simply for the sake of satisfying curiousity, and for
some statistics we can throw around in some of our discussions.
Sometimes, the changes over the past few surveys are also
interesting (sometimes more relevant than results from just one
survey). This year, I've had to cut back to an annual survey
because of time constraints, but also because the trends I
was most interested in have pretty much slowed down. I'm also
cutting the duration from 4 weeks to 3 weeks.
Note, this questionaire is concerned more or less with fans using
news groups. One day, I may set up a similar periodic web based
questionaire.
Right after this message, I'll be posting the actual questionnaire.
Some of the questions may infringe on what you would consider
personal information. Feel free to leave any unanswered (even
a totally blank questionaire has meaning). If you have participated
in this survey in the past, by all means please do so this time;
I'm tracking changes in results (or lack of changes) from past
surveys and it helps to have returning participants, and I keep
adding new questions. Oh ya, this thing is REALLY LONG. It's
really a list of questions I wished I had numbers for, and I've
had a long time to build it up. If you have any questions about
the questionnaire, feel free to e-mail me or post to
rec.arts.anime.misc. Here we go...
ru
The results.
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.misc
rec.arts.anime.fandom
rec.arts.anime.music
rec.arts.anime.models
rec.arts.anime.games
Followup-To: rec.arts.anime.misc
Subject: [RESULTS] What are we like? survey
From:
Date: 17 Aug 2001 06:36:00 GMT
Organization: University of Saskatchewan
User-Agent: tin/pre-1.4-19990517 ("Psychonaut") (UNIX) (Linux/2.2.12-20 (i686))
The 4th annual "What are we like?" survey closed late Wednesday
night, with 71 returns. This follows the downward trend from
the past few surveys.
Anyways, here are some highlights (which will be followed by the
full set of compiled results below) in comparison to last year's
results, or are new information:
- there's been a slight shift towards less anime video watching time.
It isn't old age (ok, maturity of this crowd) because there is also
a slight shift to a newer fandom. Also, the non-anime watching
time hasn't shifted significantly. The actual age group hasn't
changed either.
- it looks like fewer folks are reading fan magazines or are reading
fewer. Is that because there are fewer available? Unfortunately,
this is the first year I asked about number of online news sites,
so I can't tell if that's where folks are going.
- slightly fewer folks here read manga
- fewer seem to go to cons or attend fewer. That may have someting
to do with the slight shift in age group.
- there are a few of us here that don't know what "cosplay" is. For
those of you, it's basically dressing in anime character costume
for show (posing for cameras, walking runways, costume events).
It's kind of wierd when you think about the fact that the characters
are just brush and paint, but there are some darn good ones out
there nonetheless.
- we're still a subtitle-prefering crowd
- half of us consider the audio part of a video or film equal in
importance to the visual. Not surprising for a sub-prefering
crowd.
- finally, I can lay some of my DVD questions to rest or update them.
This year we broke the 80% DVD media ownership mark. It was up
20% from last year, which is exactly on track from previous
surveys. That rate should start to flatten out now, as the "wish"
level is about 85% (which is up less than 10%). I estimate the
ownership level to be about 90% next year.
- the tape market has nosedived accordingly.
- as a group, we are buying slightly more than we used to. Given
the slightly reduced viewing time, either we are starting to
build up a backlog, or we aren't repeating old stuff as often :)
- here's a few for the companies (pretty much the same as last year):
- we don't want the credits cut,
- we don't want the eyecatches cut,
- we prefer most of the previews after the main feature,
- we prefer 3 or more previews (after the main feature)
- we like actor interviews as bonuses
- most want to see the Japanese cast (with a sub crowd this is obvious)
- we want to see creditless versions of opening or ending sequences
as bonuses
- we want to see picture and sketch galleries as bonuses.
- most of us watch fansubs, though for the majority less than 20%
of anime we watch are fansubs
- (non)recordability of DVDs is no longer an issue. Obvious.
- anime DVD rentals haven't quite made the scene yet. Retailing is
a bit better but there's quite a way to go yet.
- in general, the disappearance of VHS has little to do with
adoption of DVD by the industry
- a little less than 2/3 of us avoid pirated or bootleg anime-related
products. About a quarter sometimes does. For those who didn't
know about these things, check the FAQs that get posted near
the beginning of the month (for CDs, check my r.a.a.music FAQ).
- there's a similar situation regarding the selling of bootlegs
at cons (many cons do allow it, including the huge Anime Expo).
- not many of us belong to an anime club this year, and the ones
we do belong to are generall smaller.
- folks are reading the rec.arts.anime news groups less frequently
but they post more as a group. The lurkers are way down
(in response - maybe they aren't even doing the survey anymore).
Maybe it's because we spend 2 or more hours per day web browsing :)
- even more folks don't like reading spoilers and more are undecided.
So please watch for spoilers in your postings, and please use
some sort of warning. Most prefered warnings are a tag on the
Subject line (e.g. [SPOILERS]) and putting in lots of blank
lines before the spoiler. A little less than half of use wouldn't
mind the use of ROT13 encoding of spoilers, but a quarter of
us don't even know what that is, so be prepared for the questions
or flames for a while if you try it. Some news readers do this
decryption (which is basically shifting each letter by letters),
not sure about encryption.
- HTML encoded postings are even less acceptable than ever here
- 2/3 of us still don't want to see FA/FS/FT postings in all but
r.a.a.marketplace. Those of you wanting to sell stuff, be aware
of that and be prepared for complaints. And please, if you have
more than one item, put them all in one posting.
- more of us are paying for internet accounts, but still manage to
have free web space.
- and the thing that doesn't sound right (unless, we are generally
dying off as fans :) ) is that 50% of us have participated in
this survey before. Ok, chances are that half the folks simply
don't want to bother with this survey more than once.
Hmf. That was long. Ok, here are the actual compiled results...
For each question, I've tabulated the raw count and the percentage
of total returns for each of the possible responses. I've added
a "blank" entry to round out the totals. Some questions had
multiple responses, so don't expect all tallies to come to 100%.
Enjoy.
ru
-----
Number of returns: 71
A1. How long have you been a fan of anime?
0 0% I was just introduced this month
1 1% less than 6 months
2 3% 6 months to 1 year
9 13% 1 to 2 years
23 32% 3 to 5 years
21 30% 6 to 10 years
15 21% more than 10 years
0 0% blank
A2. How were you introduced to anime when you became a
fan?
19 27% A friend or family member showed me some anime
3 4% A club showing
29 41% TV broadcast
3 4% Video rental or loan (eg. out of curiosity)
1 1% A public (other than club) showing (eg. theatre)
7 10% Saw some material from WWW sites/newsgroups/internet.
0 0% Saw a demo at a store or rental shop
0 0% At a convention/conference
2 3% Purchase without preview (eg. out of curiousity)
0 0% Saw a demo in other media
2 3% Through video games (either based on anime or in anime style)
2 3% download off internet (eg. WWW site, newsgroup)
3 4% other
0 0% blank
A3. How do you USUALLY get a FIRST full length viewing of an
anime title?
12 17% At home on TV broadcasts
29 41% At home with borrowed or rented media
44 62% At home on your own video media
0 0% At a friend's or relative's home on TV broadcasts
4 6% At a friend's or relative's home with borrowed or rented media
10 14% At a friend's or relative's home on his/her own video media
12 17% At an anime club
9 13% At a convention/conference
3 4% At movie theatres
2 3% At stores that show demos
12 17% download off internet (eg. WWW site, newsgroup)
0 0% blank
A4. How many anime TITLES (a series counts as one title)
do you estimate you have watched?
4 6% 10 or less
12 17% 11 to 20
17 24% 21 to 40
16 23% 41 to 80
8 11% 81 to 120
3 4% 121 to 160
4 6% 161 to 200
1 1% 201 to 240
6 8% more than 240
0 0% blank
A5. How much anime video do you watch?
9 13% up to 2 hours a month
9 13% up to 2 hours every 2 weeks
14 20% up to 2 hours a week
21 30% up to 2 hours every 3 days (or 5 hours a week)
13 18% up to 2 hours a day
4 6% more than 2 hours a day
1 1% blank
A6. How much non-anime video (eg. TV, rentals) do you watch?
3 4% never
7 10% up to 2 hours a month
4 6% up to 2 hours every 2 weeks
10 14% up to 2 hours a week
17 24% up to 2 hours every 3 days (or 5 hours a week)
18 25% up to 2 hours a day
11 15% more than 2 hours a day
1 1% blank
A7. How many anime fans do you personally have frequent
face-to-face contact with (outside of a club)?
21 30% none
26 37% 1 to 2
17 24% 3 to 5
5 7% 6 to 10
2 3% 11 to 20
0 0% more than 20
0 0% blank
A8. What percentage of your acquaintances (eg. people at work,
folks at the grocery store you are on first name basis with) would
you guess are what you consider anime fans?
20 28% none of them
42 59% 1 to 10% of them
5 7% 11 to 30% of them
3 4% 31 to 50% of them
1 1% 51 to 70% of them
0 0% 71 to 90% of them
0 0% all of them
0 0% blank
A9. How many different hardcopy anime fan magazine titles do you
regularly buy, read, look through, or subscribe to?
40 56% none
22 31% one
4 6% two
5 7% 3 to 5
0 0% more than 5
0 0% blank
A10. How many different anime fan web magazine titles do you
regularly read, look through, or subscribe to?
45 63% none
10 14% one
7 10% two
6 8% 3 to 5
3 4% more than 5
0 0% blank
A11. How many different anime web news sites do you regularly
read or browse?
12 17% none
18 25% one
18 25% two
13 18% 3 to 5
10 14% more than 5
0 0% blank
A12. Do you read Manga (Japanese or translated)?
56 79% yes
15 21% no
0 0% blank
A13. How many anime conventions per year do you usually attend?
38 54% none
23 32% one
6 8% two
3 4% 3 to 5
1 1% more than 5
0 0% blank
A14. Do you write anime fanfics?
15 21% yes
55 77% no
1 1% blank
A15. Do you make graphical fan anime art (eg. drawings)
17 24% yes
54 76% no
0 0% blank
A16. Do you make music videos?
5 7% yes
66 93% no
0 0% blank
A17. Do you publish (eg. in news groups, web sites) some of your
fan art (fiction or graphics)?
14 20% yes
57 80% no
0 0% blank
A18. Have you participated in Cosplay?
10 14% yes
59 83% no
2 3% what is Cosplay?
0 0% blank
B1. How fluent are you in understanding spoken Japanese?
1 1% As if it were your native language (or, is your native language)
9 13% Enough to survive alone in Japan
26 37% You can understand a few words and phrases of FORMAL conversation
32 45% You only know a few words
2 3% Not a word.
1 1% blank
B2. How fluent are you in speaking Japanese?
1 1% As if it were your native language (or, is your native language)
11 15% Enough to survive alone in Japan
20 28% You can speak a few words and phrases of FORMAL conversation
36 51% You only know a few words
3 4% Not a word
0 0% blank
B3. How fluent are you in reading Japanese (kanji, hiragana, or
katakana)?
1 1% As if it were your native language (or, is your native language)
8 11% Enough to survive alone in Japan
13 18% You can read a few hundred different characters
15 21% You can read a few words and phrases
13 18% You only know a few words
21 30% Not a word.
0 0% blank
B4. Which Japanese script are you most fluent in?
as appropriate)
13 18% kanji
36 51% hiragana
27 38% katakana
25 35% blank
B5. What language do you generally watch anime in?
0 0% untranslated only
3 4% mostly untranslated
15 21% some untranslated, some translated (dub or sub)
27 38% mostly translated (dub or sub)
26 37% translated (dub or sub) only
0 0% blank
B6. Have you taken courses (eg. in classes or in home study)
in Japanese?
33 46% yes
37 52% no
1 1% blank
B7. If you have taken courses, were any of the following
components in the course?
32 45% verbal or audio
31 44% text (kanji, katakana, or hiragana)
26 37% romanized grammar text
35 49% blank
B8. Regarding your fluency in Japanese, which best characterizes
the influence of your interest in anime?
0 0% was already fluent in Japanese when got interested
2 3% was already trying to increase fluency when got interested
38 54% interest in anime started interest in improving fluency
13 18% interest in fluency and in anime were (nearly) simultaneous
3 4% interest in fluency started interest in anime
2 3% there is no influence of one on the other
8 11% have no interest in fluency
5 7% blank
B9. Do you own a Japanese-English dictionary?
38 54% yes
33 46% no
0 0% blank
B10. Do you own a Kanji dictionary?
27 38% yes
44 62% no
0 0% blank
B11. Do you use online Japanese dictionaries?
42 59% yes
28 39% no
1 1% blank
C1. When you BORROW, RENT, or otherwise VIEW translated anime,
what is your translation preference?
13 18% demand sub only
40 56% tolerate dubs but prefer subs
12 17% have no preferance
3 4% tolerate subs but prefer dubs
0 0% demand dub only
3 4% blank
C2. If you OWN translated anime, what is your translation
preference?
33 46% get sub only
24 34% sometimes get dubs, but mostly get subs
7 10% have no preference
5 7% sometimes get subs, but mostly get dubs
1 1% get dub only
0 0% don't own any anime
1 1% blank
C3. What translation preference do you usually find at places
you BORROW or RENT translated anime from?
5 7% subs only
11 15% some dubs, mostly subs
19 27% roughly same amount of subs and dubs (e.g. mostly DVD)
19 27% some subs, mostly dubs
9 13% dubs only
8 11% blank
C4. What translation preference do you usually find at places
you BUY translated anime from?
3 4% subs only
3 4% some dubs, mostly subs
45 63% roughly same amount of subs and dubs (e.g. mostly DVD)
17 24% some subs, mostly dubs
0 0% dubs only
3 4% blank
C5. How would you characterize the degree of contribution of
the visual and audio to the artistry of a video or film?
1 1% video 100% audio 0%
30 42% video 75% audio 25%
36 51% video 50% audio 50%
2 3% video 25% audio 75%
0 0% video 0% audio 100%
2 3% blank
D1. What video format do you own anime in?
66 93% Tape
22 31% VCD (incl. XVCD and SVCD)
16 23% LaserDisc
59 83% DVD
12 17% other
0 0% None
0 0% blank
D2. If you own anime, what video format do you choose the
most often (eg. due to budget constraints) to collect anime in?
14 20% Tape
2 3% VCD (incl. XVCD and SVCD)
3 4% LaserDisc
49 69% DVD
3 4% other
0 0% blank
D3. If you own anime, what video format, of the various formats
you own, do you prefer (not wish) the most to collect anime in?
9 13% Tape
3 4% VCD (incl. XVCD and SVCD)
3 4% LaserDisc
55 77% DVD
1 1% other
0 0% blank
D4. If you own anime, what video format do you wish to collect
anime in if you could afford it?
2 3% Tape
1 1% VCD (incl. XVCD and SVCD)
4 6% LaserDisc
61 86% DVD
0 0% other
3 4% blank
D5. If you don't own anime but wish to, what video format
would you prefer to collect anime in?
1 1% Tape
1 1% VCD (incl. XVCD and SVCD)
0 0% LaserDisc
16 23% DVD
0 0% other
53 75% blank
D6. Which formats does the equipment you own, or share, play?
70 99% Tape
46 65% VCD (incl. XVCD and SVCD)
14 20% LaserDisc
61 86% DVD
14 20% other
0 0% blank
D7. If you collect anime, is your decision to buy one unit of
your prefered format (eg. one LD) in a series dependent on the
distributer releasing the full series in your prefered format?
26 37% yes
11 15% no
32 45% sometimes
2 3% blank
D8. Which release version of anime do you collect?
35 49% only non-Japanese (eg. English version, French version)
24 34% mostly non-Japanese, some Japanese domestic
4 6% some non-Japanese, some Japanese domestic
7 10% some non-Japanese, mostly Japanese domestic
1 1% only Japanese domestic
0 0% blank
D9. If you have Japanese domestic releases, do you try to also
get the non-japanese version when available?
9 13% yes
12 17% no
18 25% sometimes
32 45% blank
D10. If you collect translated anime, on average in a year,
how many individual units (eg. tapes, LDs, count each tape
in a box set separately) do you buy per month.
21 30% less frequently than one a month
12 17% one
15 21% two
12 17% three or four
7 10% five to eight
3 4% more than eight
1 1% blank
D11. If you collect Japanese domestic anime, on average
how many individual units (eg. tapes, LDs, count each tape
in a box set separately) do you buy per month.
31 44% less frequently than one a month
4 6% one
0 0% two
1 1% three or four
2 3% five to eight
1 1% more than eight
32 45% blank
D12. On releases with more than one episode per unit (e.g. tape,
disc), the ending and opening credits between episodes are
sometimes cut and put at the very end of the unit. Which way
do you prefer for credits?
53 75% leave credits alone
3 4% cut out intermediate credits and put at end
2 3% cut out intermediate credits altogether
10 14% don't care
3 4% undecided
0 0% blank
D13. Some anime have supershort animated sequences, unrelated to
the story at hand, in the middle (e.g. just before and/or after a
commercial), called "eyecatches". Do you prefer that these be kept
on the video version?
63 89% yes
1 1% no
7 10% doesn't matter
0 0% undecided
0 0% blank
D14. Along with the main feature, some video distributers usually
put in previews of other titles in their catalog. Relative to the
main feature, where do you prefer seeing these previews?
12 17% all before the main feature
4 6% some before and some after the main feature
36 51% all after the main feature
6 8% none at all
12 17% undecided
1 1% blank
D15. If you like seeing these previews, how many at a time do you
feel is acceptable (summary, rundown, or slideshow presentations
count as one)?
5 7% 1
7 10% 2
30 42% 3
15 21% more than 3
14 20% blank
D16. For signs and similar Japanese text graphics in anime,
what do you prefer the translating company do?
37 52% show translation nearby (eg. below or beside sign)
0 0% overlay translation (ie. block out original text)
26 37% it depends on the situation
4 6% use "liner notes" (eg. notes on paper)
1 1% don't translate at all
2 3% undecided, still thinking about it
1 1% it doesn't matter to me
0 0% blank
D17. How much of the anime you view are comprised of fan subtitled
or dubbed videos (e.g. at a club or convention)?
3 4% 81-100%
8 11% 61-80%
11 15% 41-60%
10 14% 21-40%
21 30% 1-20%
16 23% 0%
2 3% blank
D18. Sometimes an anime company will include interviews with
the voice actors. Do you like these bonuses?
50 70% yes
3 4% no
17 24% undecided or don't care
1 1% blank
D19. Do you find it strange seeing the real people behind the
animated characters?
12 17% yes
36 51% no
23 32% sometimes
0 0% blank
D20. Would you rather see the English dub cast or the original
Japanese cast in these bonuses?
33 46% Japanese cast
3 4% English cast
31 44% both
4 6% blank
D21. Sometimes an anime company includes the creditless (textless)
version of the opening or ending sequence. Do you like these
bonuses?
50 70% yes
3 4% no
7 10% sometimes
11 15% don't care or undecided
0 0% blank
D22. Sometimes an anime company includes picture and sketch
galleries. Do you like these bonuses?
55 77% yes
1 1% no
9 13% sometimes
6 8% don't care or undecided
0 0% blank
E1. Would anime be, or was anime, an issue in your decision to
buy (or not to buy) a DVD player?
48 68% yes
18 25% no
5 7% blank
E2. Suppose DVD became well established. What video quality
would you tolerate if you wanted to collect anime on DVD?
0 0% even if poorer than VHS
13 18% even if only similar to VHS
15 21% even if better than VHS but poorer than LD
13 18% even if similar to LD
11 15% only if better than LD
11 15% regardless of the video quality
7 10% undecided
1 1% blank
E3. Suppose the video quality is sufficient for you. Would you
collect anime on DVD
1 1% only if DVD is recordable
64 90% even if DVD is not recordable
3 4% undecided
3 4% blank
E4. Suppose DVD meets the above requirements. Would you collect
anime on DVD if anime DVD manufacturers predominantly used the
region lock (for example, a lock code for Japan's region would
prevent you from playing the DVD on a US player)?
49 69% yes
11 15% no
9 13% undecided
2 3% blank
E5. At your regular local anime rental outlets, what percentage
of their anime inventory (all together) seems to be in DVD format?
9 13% none
22 31% 1 - 20%
15 21% 21 - 40%
4 6% 41 - 60%
1 1% 61 - 80%
1 1% 81 - 100%
19 27% blank
E6. At your regular local anime store, what percentage of their
anime inventory (all together) seems to be in DVD format?
1 1% none
12 17% 1 - 20%
13 18% 21 - 40%
19 27% 41 - 60%
5 7% 61 - 80%
7 10% 81 - 100%
14 20% blank
E7. If you collect anime in DVD format, is this because you
find anime on other formats are no longer available to you?
7 10% yes
51 72% no
8 11% don't collect in DVD
5 7% blank
F1. Do you also typically buy products associated with anime?
2 3% you don't buy any associated products
53 75% manga
56 79% music CDs (and other audio media)
32 45% toys (excluding model kits)
29 41% model kits
13 18% games
29 41% books
26 37% magazines
32 45% posters
27 38% wall scrolls
23 32% calendars
14 20% cels
11 15% trading cards
7 10% decorations
6 8% office products (eg. erasers, pens)
2 3% phone cards
12 17% computer products (eg. screen savers, mouse pads)
28 39% clothes (eg. T-shirts)
1 1% linens (eg. towels, pillow cases)
12 17% other
0 0% blank
F2. What are your most common sources of Anime products?
26 37% off the shelf at local anime store
9 13% special order from local anime store
29 41% mail order from non-local anime store
20 28% off the shelf at local non-anime store
6 8% special order from local non-anime store
15 21% mail order from non-local non-anime store
4 6% off the shelf at non-local non-anime store
6 8% ordered through friends or family living in or visiting Japan
1 1% gifts from friends or family living in or visiting Japan
27 38% vendors at conventions
23 32% auctions and similar trade venues (eg. online auctions)
1 1% blank
F3. If you collect anime CDs, do you also collect J-Pop?
29 41% yes
35 49% no
7 10% blank
F4. Do you avoid purchasing pirated or bootlegged anime-related
products (e.g. Son May CDs, wall scrolls, Ben Di plastic models,
T-shirts are common bootlegs)?
45 63% yes
16 23% sometimes
7 10% no
3 4% I didn't know about bootleg products
0 0% blank
F5. Do you think anime fan conventions should allow bootleg
products to be sold in their exhibition or dealer halls?
5 7% yes
45 63% no
8 11% don't care
13 18% undecided
0 0% blank
G1. How many anime clubs are you aware of that are what you
consider reasonably accessible?
26 37% none
25 35% one
15 21% two
4 6% 3 to 5
1 1% more than 5
0 0% blank
G2. How many anime clubs do you belong to?
55 77% none
11 15% one
3 4% two
0 0% 3 to 5
0 0% more than 5
2 3% blank
G3. How many people are in the largest anime club you belong to?
0 0% 2 to 5
3 4% 6 to 10
6 8% 11 to 20
7 10% more than 20
55 77% blank
G4. If you belong to more than one anime club, how many people are
in the smallest anime club you belong to?
1 1% 2 to 5
2 3% 6 to 10
1 1% 11 to 20
2 3% more than 20
65 92% blank
G5. How many video rental shops are accessible to you in your
geographical area?
1 1% none
7 10% one
8 11% two
4 6% three
43 61% more than three
8 11% don't know
0 0% blank
G6. How many of those video rental shops have any anime?
8 11% none
11 15% one
9 13% two
7 10% three
30 42% more than three
6 8% blank
G7. How many of those video rental shops have a section devoted
to animation (general or anime specifically)?
12 17% none
15 21% one
10 14% two
6 8% three
21 30% more than three
7 10% blank
G8. What is the size of the largest anime inventory (number of
tapes, or equivalent media, discounting multiple copies) at those
video rental shops?
9 13% less than 6
3 4% 6 to 10
8 11% 10 to 20
11 15% 20 to 30
10 14% 30 to 50
17 24% more than 50
13 18% blank
G9. How many anime stores (dedicated to anime and/or manga/comics)
are accessible to you in your geographical area?
17 24% none
21 30% one
9 13% two
4 6% three
13 18% more than three
5 7% don't know
2 3% blank
G10. What are the most common sources of your Anime video (any
medium) purchases (not gifts)?
19 27% off the shelf at local anime store
34 48% off the shelf at local non-anime retailer
3 4% special order from local anime store
2 3% special orders from local video retailer
2 3% special orders from local video rental shop
1 1% special order from local anime club
22 31% mail order from non-local anime store
30 42% mail order from non-local video retailer
1 1% mail order from non-local anime club
10 14% mail order from domestic distributer
4 6% mail order from Japanese distributer
8 11% trading with friends or other fans.
14 20% vendors at conventions
10 14% auctions and similar trade venues (eg. online auctions)
3 4% blank
G11. How often do you research or get information about a title
(e.g. criticisms, recommendations, descriptions, synopses, reviews,
renting/borrowing) before buying?
2 3% never
3 4% hardly ever
13 18% sometimes
21 30% most of the time
15 21% almost always
17 24% always
0 0% blank
G12. Where do you usually get information about specific anime
titles?
25 35% anime-specific magazines
3 4% non-anime magazines (eg. game, comic)
52 73% usenet
63 89% World Wide Web
37 52% word of mouth (e.g. friends, family, club members)
3 4% club resources
14 20% store (e.g. comic shop, anime store, video store)
35 49% viewing (e.g. rental, loan, club showing)
2 3% other
0 0% blank
G13. Which type of information do you find the most useful in
deciding on buying an anime title?
8 11% synopses / descriptions
6 8% recommendations
13 18% reviews / criticisms
0 0% trailers or previews included with other anime
27 38% seeing it for yourself
0 0% none (I'll buy any anime)
3 4% other
14 20% blank
G14. Which type of information do you find the most useful in
deciding to watch an anime title that you have not seen before?
15 21% synopses / descriptions
20 28% recommendations
12 17% reviews / criticisms
6 8% trailers or previews included with other anime
7 10% none (I'll watch any anime)
1 1% other
10 14% blank
G15. How often do you research or get information about related
anime products (e.g. criticisms, recommendations, descriptions,
reviews, renting/borrowing) before buying?
2 3% never
16 23% hardly ever
23 32% sometimes
14 20% most of the time
6 8% almost always
7 10% always
3 4% blank
G16. Where do you usually get information about specific related
anime products?
17 24% anime-specific magazines
5 7% non-anime magazines (eg. game, comic)
41 58% usenet
56 79% World Wide Web
28 39% word of mouth (e.g. friends, family, club members)
2 3% club resources
20 28% store (e.g. comic shop, anime store, video store)
3 4% other
5 7% blank
H1. Approximately how often do you at least READ rec.arts.anime
news groups?
2 3% never
1 1% once a year
0 0% once every 2 to 4 months
0 0% once a month
2 3% once every 2 weeks
1 1% once a week
5 7% once every 2 days
29 41% once a day
11 15% twice a day
20 28% more than twice a day
0 0% blank
H2. In approximately how many reading sessions do you POST to
rec.arts.anime news groups?
4 6% never
5 7% once a year
14 20% once every 2 to 4 months
4 6% once a month
5 7% once every 2 weeks
11 15% once a week
11 15% once every 2 days
6 8% once a day
4 6% twice a day
6 8% more than twice a day
1 1% blank
H3. Which rec.arts.anime news groups do you USUALLY
check out?
15 21% rec.arts.anime.info
17 24% rec.arts.anime.music
51 72% rec.arts.anime.misc
14 20% rec.arts.anime.models
17 24% rec.arts.anime.fandom
7 10% rec.arts.anime.games
9 13% rec.arts.anime.marketplace
18 25% rec.arts.anime.creative
2 3% blank
H4. Which rec.arts.anime news groups do you OCCASIONALLY
check out?
10 14% rec.arts.anime.info
5 7% rec.arts.anime.music
10 14% rec.arts.anime.misc
5 7% rec.arts.anime.models
7 10% rec.arts.anime.fandom
6 8% rec.arts.anime.games
9 13% rec.arts.anime.marketplace
4 6% rec.arts.anime.creative
37 52% blank
H5. Do you read rec.arts.anime news groups from a local server?
39 55% yes
12 17% no
17 24% don't know
3 4% blank
H6. Of the fans from your geographical area and which you are
personally acquainted with, approximately how many are you aware
of that at least READ rec.arts.anime news groups?
36 51% none of them
4 6% all of them
2 3% 80% of them
1 1% 60% of them
1 1% 40% of them
4 6% 20% of them
13 18% less than 20% of them
10 14% blank
H7. Of the fans from your geographical area and which you are
personally acquainted with, approximately how many are you aware
of that POST to rec.arts.anime news groups?
41 58% none of them
3 4% all of them
0 0% 80% of them
2 3% 60% of them
1 1% 40% of them
4 6% 20% of them
8 11% less than 20% of them
12 17% blank
H8. Do you read anime news groups other than the ones in the
rec.arts.anime.* hierarchy (eg. in alt.*, japan.*)?
43 61% yes
26 37% no
2 3% blank
H9. Do you like to read spoilers (messages that give away plot
surprises, or other important plot elements)?
13 18% yes
41 58% no
17 24% undecided
0 0% blank
H10. Do you prefer advance warning of spoilers (eg. spoiler tag
in subject line or spoiler warnings in text)?
70 99% yes
0 0% no
1 1% undecided
0 0% blank
H11. If you like to be warned of spoilers, which types of warnings
would you like to see?
57 80% tag or warning in subject line (eg. [SPOILER]...)
24 34% warning in text just before spoiler
52 73% warning in text with lots of blank lines just before spoiler
0 0% blank
H12. Do you prefer to give advance warning of spoilers in your
messages?
65 92% yes
0 0% no
3 4% undecided
3 4% blank
H13. Would applying ROT13 encoding of spoilers be acceptable to you?
29 41% yes
6 8% no
7 10% undecided
9 13% don't care
19 27% what is ROT13?
1 1% blank
H14. Are HTML encoded messages in the rec.arts.anime.* news groups
acceptable to you?
6 8% yes
57 80% no
2 3% don't care
6 8% undecided or don't know
0 0% blank
H15. When responding to a news group posting, some people like to
e-mail a copy of their response (sometimes called a "courtesy copy").
If someone responds to your posting, would you find this practice
acceptable?
20 28% yes
16 23% no
27 38% don't care
7 10% undecided or don't know
1 1% blank
H16. Technically, auction and "for sale/auction/trade" postings
are off-topic in all rec.arts.anime.* news groups except
rec.arts.anime.marketplace. Where would you prefer to see
these postings?
48 68% only in r.a.a.marketplace, keep out everywhere else.
9 13% in any r.a.a news groups
13 18% don't care
1 1% undecided or don't know
0 0% blank
H17. Have you used rec.arts.anime.marketplace (either as
buyer or seller)?
21 30% yes
50 70% no
0 0% blank
H18. Which single group seems to have the most useful market
postings for you?
3 4% rec.arts.anime.music
7 10% rec.arts.anime.misc
9 13% rec.arts.anime.models
0 0% rec.arts.anime.fandom
0 0% rec.arts.anime.games
24 34% rec.arts.anime.marketplace
28 39% blank
H19. For FS/FT/FA postings with multiple items, which do
you prefer to see?
4 6% one posting per item
45 63% all items listed in a single posting
12 17% no preference
10 14% blank
I1. Do you have a publicly accessible Anime WWW site?
23 32% yes
48 68% no
0 0% blank
I2. Do you pay for your web space?
10 14% yes
27 38% no
28 39% I don't have a web page
6 8% blank
I3. How often do you do anime related Web browsing (that is, not
usenet/news groups)?
0 0% never
1 1% once every 6 months
3 4% once a month
4 6% once every 2 weeks
9 13% once a week
10 14% once every 2 days
19 27% once a day
7 10% twice a day
17 24% more than twice a day
1 1% blank
I4. How long do you browse once you start?
0 0% never
22 31% up to an hour
30 42% up to 2 hours
12 17% up to 4 hours
4 6% up to 8 hours
1 1% more than 8 hours
2 3% blank
J1. How old are you?
0 0% less than 11 years
3 4% 12 to 15 years
8 11% 16 to 18 years
42 59% 19 to 30 years
11 15% 31 to 40 years
5 7% 41 to 60 years
0 0% over 60 years
2 3% blank
J2. What geographical region do you live in?
1 1% East Asia (eg. Japan, India)
0 0% West Asia (eg. Turkey, Iran)
1 1% Southern Pacific (eg. Australia, Indonesia)
10 14% Europe (eg. Germany)
0 0% Africa (eg. Kenya)
59 83% North America (eg. Canada)
0 0% South America (eg. Brazil)
0 0% Antarctica (eg. ...)
0 0% blank
J3. Do you have more than one internet accessible account that you
use often?
36 51% yes
33 46% no
2 3% blank
J4. Do you pay directly for any of your internet accounts or access?
55 77% yes
13 18% no
3 4% blank
J5. Do you participate in anime mailing lists?
38 54% yes
31 44% no
2 3% blank
J6. Have you participated in past "What are we like?" questionaires
(eg. Aug 1997, Feb 1998, July 1998, Mar 1999, Aug 1999)?
29 41% yes
38 54% no
4 6% I'm not sure
0 0% blank
J7. Where did you get this copy of this questionaire?
70 99% a news group
0 0% mailing list
1 1% someone e-mailed me a copy
0 0% hardcopy that I re-entered manually (or by OCR)
0 0% web page (note: I'd rather it didn't appear on a web page)
0 0% someone dictated it to me
0 0% blank
--
Ru Igarashi
Maintainer of the "Welcome to REC.ARTS.ANIME.MUSIC" FAQ
ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet-by-hierarchy/rec/arts/anime/music
Ru Igarashi is still running this survey. More recent results can be found at:
http://www.geocities.com/ruigarashi/Surveys/fans/results.html
What are we like? survey
Anime Ethics and Legality FAQ 2.01
rec.arts.anime.misc faq list
Impress Female Anime Fans
Impress Male Anime Fans
Memoirs
This page was first online: August 2001
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