R.i.p. fan channels

General Discussion
1

It is the end of an era at Viki. Fan channels are going to have all their videos REMOVED this summer 2017. Fan channel managers received the following message from Viki staff:

Hello,

We’re reaching out to you as you’re currently a Channel Manager for at least one of our Fan Channels. Due to a variety of issues regarding embedded videos, including unforeseen incompatibility of third-party videos with our tools as well as legal compliance, starting this summer, Viki will no longer be supporting future embeds nor subtitling on current Fan Channels. Currently embedded videos will be removed from the channel, but the team’s contribution counts will still be reflected on each user’s respective profiles. We sincerely apologize regarding the related issues concerning these videos.

We greatly appreciate all of your and your team’s contributions for these titles and would like to offer you the option to receive the subtitle files (.SRTs) that have been created. If you’d like to receive the subtitle files for a channel you’ve managed, please fill out the form below by April 21, 2017 (PDT):

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc-Xjv1k7sIhYo4TfZmlEXwOIGTH7FFMaf03CqWawwBdbb1nA/viewform

Thank you for your understanding.

Best,
The Viki Team

FAN CHANNEL MANAGERS
(Updated) Fan channel managers, the form to request subtitles closed on April 21, 2017. :frowning: Please share your experiences here. Were you able request the subtitles in time? How many of your fan channels were affected?

FANS
Fans please do us a favor and request that fan channels be licensed before it’s too late! Also watch whatever fan channels you want to before the videos get removed.

Request form link: https://vikiinc.wufoo.com/forms/z1ovcsxe011lqq2/

List of fan channels to request to be licensed: (and watch while you still can)
If you have any channels to add, please comment with the name of the channel and the country they are from. This is not a complete list. There are many more fan channels that will be affected that are not listed below.

Chinese dramas

Legend of Zhen Huan
Arrows on the Bowstring
Battle of Changsha
Best Time
Border Town Prodigal
Bounty Hunter
Crazy for Palace
Cruel Romance
Demon Girl
Destined to Love You
Fall in Love
Fianceé
Fifteen Years of Waiting for Migratory Birds
Go Princess Go
Gong III
Hot Mom!
The Holy Pearl
Jade Palace Lock Heart
Let’s Watch the Meteor Shower
Luan Shi Ren
Love is the Best
Mulan
The Myth
My Bratty Princess
New My Fair Princess
Novoland: The Castle in the Sky
The Patriot Yue Fei
The Princess
Princess Jieyou
The Romance of the Condor Heroes 2014
The Queen of SOP 1
The Queen of SOP 2
Rent a Girlfriend Back Home for New Year
Schemes of a Beauty
Shang Shu Fang (The Princes Study)
Sunny Happiness
Swordsman
Tiny Times 1.0
Too Late to Say I Love You
World’s Finest (Tian Xia Di Yi)
Wuxin Monster Killer

Taiwanese dramas
Black & White
Calling for Love
Chocolat
Constellation Woman Series: Capricorn
Devil beside you
Drama Go Go Go
Endless Love
Falling
Fondant Garden
Happy Michelin Kitchen
Hi, My Sweetheart
I Do?
I love u love u love u
I Love You So Much
It Started With a Kiss
Love in Time
Love SOS
Mars
Meteor Garden
Once More Heartbeat
Real Love Please Press the Bell Twice
Secret
Starlit
Sunshine Angel
They Kiss Again
When Love Walked In
You Light Up My Star

Turkish
Gulbeyaz

Indian
The vast majority of Indian fan channels will be affected according to @mahoula

Banoo Main Teru Dulhann
Bharat Ka Veer Putra
Dekha Ek Khwab
Dill Mill Gayye (Hearts Have Met)
Idhu Kadhalla
For You
Geet has become an outsider
Humsafars
I Accept (Season 2)
Kaisa Yeh Pyar Hai
Kitani Mohabbat Hai 2
Love Marriage Ya Arranged Marriage
Love Ne Mila Di Jodi
Love U Zindagi
Main Naa Bhoolungi
Miley Jab Hum Tum
Rishta.com
Sadda Haq-My Life My Choice
Son-in-law

Edits
edit 1: List updated with more dramas added
edit 2: Added more Taiwanese dramas to list
edit 3: added some Indian fan channels to list. Updated to show that deadline to fill out form has passed.

9 Likes
2

@anon20195650 I am wondering about that message. You informed us about the deletion of our hard work, but you mention only the CM. how about the language moderators other than english? Have you stopped to think about them even a little? We spent valuable hours of our lives to translate these dramas to our respective languages and now what our work will vanish to thin air?
Please consider to let us all ask for the srt files of our respective languages as soon as possible before its too late. Thank you in advance for your help

14 Likes
3

I think the form tells the CM to specify what language subtitles the CM wants, but yeah it might be more effective to give OL Moderators the chance to request it themselves.

4 Likes
4

Is it only chinese and Taiwanese Fan channels been removed?

I just don’t get it some of this are great dramas.

They leave so many junks up here not worth watching and they want to take out the good stuff you guys worked so hard?

So unfair…:(:scream:

5

Historically only Chinese and Taiwanese Fan Channels used third-party videos to segment and translate episodes. Viki is probably taking down the uploading feature for legal purposes. There have been many occasions where videos or entire channels have been deleted after receiving copyright complaints. It’s unfortunate but the best bet volunteers have of retaining and sharing their hard work is to ask Viki to get a license for these dramas.

3 Likes
6

That is not true, all fan channels used third party sources, if they linked videos to the channels. The Thai fan channel have already been removed. There are a lot of Fan Channel from all around the world, dramas, movies, music channels …
I do not know, if they will all be gone with this action.

From the Chinese dramas I only recall RENT A GIRLFRIEND BACK HOME FOR NEW YEAR.
A fan channel as well, but video links are already not working for me, I guess it was back then when Tudou was used. Anyway a loss. GULBEYAZ one of my first Turkish dramas will probably have the same fate.
French channels, aso …
But as I said I do not know, if they got a note as well.

4 Likes
7

Yes we got it. I am the channel manager in a couple of Greek fan channels

1 Like
8

I have posted a comment in some of the channels in order for the fans to know what is happening and to help up by requesting the licences. I hope it would do us some good

4 Likes
9

You can also post the titles here if you like.

10

All fan channels’ videos will be removed, not just Chinese and Taiwanese. I listed some of the fan channels above but I couldn’t list them all.

2 Likes
11

I was trying to watch some of them but all I see is the black screen. Do you think requesting the license will definitely bring them back?

12

One of the most popular Taiwan drama prodution should be

It Started With a Kiss
They Kiss Again
Mars (did not even get fully subbed)
Black and White (one of my favorites back then)
Sunny Happiness

As for Korean Drama

The Return of Iljimae - I am puzzled, as the one channel licensed has hard sub, while the other channel is segmented and subbed as it seems???

3 Likes
13

@lutra RoI was one of the soompi dramas they got when they bought it. so they just uploaded the hardsubbed version in a new channel and haven’t used the existing channel and upload the videos there. Its a mystery for me as well

2 Likes
14

@angelight313_168 There aren’t any guarranties just hope.

2 Likes
15

Forget about the fan channel, as I just “saw” that there is only one episode left … :frowning:

16

Requesting a license will not guarantee that it is obtained. However it is the only way to keep up a channel and get licensed videos.

I’ve also been experiencing the black screen issue. I think the problem might be because video sources’ links are broken…but we can’t update the links because Viki removed that ability a while ago.

3 Likes
17

I understand now so it’s worth the try.

18

some more taiwanese fan channels:

I love you so much
Secret
Calling for Love
Once more heartbeat
Hi, My Sweetheart
Happy Michelin Kitchen
Real love, please press the bell
Sunshine Angel
Drama Go Go Go
I Do?
I love u love u love u
Endless Love
Devil beside you
Love SOS
When Love Walked In
Constellation Woman Series
Fondant Garden
Love in Time

3 Likes
19

so many, no :crying_cat_face:

20

Thanks, I added them to the list.