Bato (website)
Bato (also Bato.to, Batoto and Mangapark) was a website that hosted manga, manhwa and manhua (Japanese, Korean and Chinese comics) for free. For a time it was the world's largest manga piracy website, with an estimated 350 million visits in May 2025.[1][2][3] It was launched in 2014,[4] operated from China and shut down in late January 2026.[1][2][5][6]
It hosted works translated into more than 50 languages, including numerous user-uploaded scanlations. The website did not allow access from users in China to prevent drawing attention from local authorities.[3][4] Because of the illegal nature of the operation, the website was targeted by organizations such as Japan's Content Overseas Distribution Association and Korea's Kakao Entertainment.[1][2][7] The site's operator is facing criminal charges, and cease-and-desist letters were sent to community members such as social media administrators associated with the website in order to produce a chilling effect and discourage use of the website.[2][7][8][3]
See also
[edit]- Nyaa Torrents – File sharing website focused on East Asian media
- MangaDex – Manga aggregation website
- Mangamura – Japanese manga piracy website
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Fox, Jacob (2026-02-02). "The world's largest Manga piracy site has been shut down". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 2026-03-09. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- 1 2 3 4 Hodgkins, Crystalyn (2026-01-31). "Major Manga, Manhwa Pirate Site Bato.to Shuts Down; Chinese Man Suspected as Operator Detained". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- 1 2 3 Van der Sar, Ernesto (January 29, 2026). "Operator of Bato.to Criminally Investigated in China Following CODA Piracy Complaint * TorrentFreak". torrentfreak.com. Archived from the original on 2026-03-15. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- 1 2 "Operator of the World's Largest Manga Piracy Site BATO.TO Criminally Investigated in China – Content Overseas Distribution Association（CODA）" (in Japanese). 2026-01-29. Archived from the original on 2026-03-09. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- ↑ Van der Sar, Ernesto (January 23, 2026). "Kakao Entertainment Adds Pressure to Bato.to Piracy Crackdown, Operator Identified (updated) * TorrentFreak". torrentfreak.com. Archived from the original on 2026-03-26. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- ↑ Weatherbed, Jess (2026-01-30). "One of the biggest manga piracy networks has been shut down". The Verge. Archived from the original on 2026-03-09. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- 1 2 Nazru, Ami (2026-01-23). "Solo Leveling Publisher Named Following 2026's Biggest Manga Site Shutdown". CBR. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
- ↑ Maxwell, Andy (May 25, 2025). "P.CoK Webtoon Piracy Fighters Display Plumage as Unorthodox Tactics Pay Off * TorrentFreak". torrentfreak.com. Archived from the original on 2026-01-23. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
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