We Just Lost a Source of Purchase from Japan

/ Homicidol Maniac

This is a really weird situation, and possibly kind of a fluid one, so bear with me.

First:

This is true. I don’t know if I’m allowed to share the message itself, so I won’t, but a fan who wanted to buy BiSH’s Less Than Sex tour final DVD via Amazon Japan found that they couldn’t; upon contacting the company, they were informed (in English!) that “the item is only available for domestic orders due to the restrictions of the music production company that sells this DVD.”

That’s talking about Avex, and Avex seems to have a problem with sales abroad.

Obviously, if you use TENSO or any of the fine additional services listed here, that won’t be a problem (so use them, basically). I also didn’t seem to have a problem buying the DVD via CD Japan, though I didn’t complete the order because, you know, I’m just testing. Essentially, your mileage may vary.

Also, this is a PSA more than anything else, and it could be about something like royalty payments back to the label and therefore a problem that can be solved — it might even be solved by the time you see this! Let’s just keep our eyes and ears open and share information about viable purchasing options with each other.

Update: For all you crazy doubters in the comments, why are you denying the words of Amazon’s own customer service? I think that’s pretty unimpeachable. However, to bring us full circle because Garry is very mad about this:

V-Day update, from CDJapan:

Additional update, clarifying just what exactly it is that Avex is blocking:

35 thoughts on “We Just Lost a Source of Purchase from Japan”

  1. Wait nevermind, this is the saddest graduation of 2017. RIP.

    Luckily, it seems that you can still use CD Japan for Avex purchases. And of course, the good old proxy service.

    I wonder if this has anything to do with the recent rule Oricon put in place that says overseas sales don’t count for a chart ranking? That said, Avex has been iffy about overseas production for a while. Good luck finding anything by Avex on iTunes.

  2. It’s not just avex, many items from different labels, and not even just cd dvd items. I simply thought Amazon JP did not allow overseas at all until a previous discussion we had last month when a few people said they had no problems with AmazonJP and in fact preferred it. But it came up because people are having problems getting what they want. Just further proves my theory we all find different groups worth spending money on, until this BiSH comes along, no one really noticed I guess.

  3. Avex is iffy in general about this sort of stuff anyway I believe? I’m more surprised that they were selling through Amazonjp in the first place.

  4. This information is INCORRECT- the reason you cant ship these overseas is Amazon.jp doesn’t have them in stock and they are only available from third parties with Amazon store accounts- Amazon is not like using a proxy, the third parties ship directly and most don’t ship international. Trust me, I live and breath Amazon and I have all of this BiSH merchandise shipped from Amazon-

  6. I’m calling BS on this.

    Yes there are items by THIRD-PARTY SELLERS that can’t be shipped overseas, I’ve never seen any items sold by Amazon themselves that couldn’t be shipped.

    This whole thing seems to be an overreaction.

  7. To everyone saying this is BS, go try to pre-order the new BiSH single that’s coming out in March and let me know how you get on with that.

    • I’m still calling BS, sure you can’t order it right now, but somehow making conclusions from that is way too early.

  8. I’m not denying that message pops up, it’s a default message though.

    Making conclusions based on an item that isn’t released for 2 months is just too hasty in my opinion.

  10. Ok, I’ve seen the examples – but it’s odd that it’s not all avex titles then!
    like BiS – Idol is dead (B008S04DJS) cannot be shipped but the version with DVD (B008S04EGK) can!

    • I mean, I don’t encourage piracy (for lots of reasons), but I understand why people do it; it’s literally sometimes the only option. I figure, especially with idols, it roughly evens out if you buy merch or use the music to spread the word a bit and get others interested. There’s very little return to the artists on music sales (unless truly indie or, like, Kanye).

      • It’s when your fandom reaches the limits of good sense. I really dig the design of the deep girl shirt I came across while scouting the web but to get one over here after all the fees and whatnot I’m staring down a $100 t-shirt.

        That’s kinda nuts. I get that it is equally unrealistic to expect these lesser known groups to have any international distribution set up as they arent big in Japan to begin with. That said, a $100 t shirt means I may buy one item from that group in a year while other domestic bands will see me spend twice or three times as much to purchase many items simply because of ease of purchase.

        It’s one thing to end up paying 3-4x an item’s value due to import fees and getting it here but when you add the crazy complications it takes to get these items ON TOP of the crazy prices, it’s a lot of money left on the table.

        I’ll be happy to stand corrected by others but it isn’t always like this, when I was big into collecting vinyl records I would buy them from people all over the world, including Japan, and never had hassles ordering or felt I was paying absurdly high shipping costs.

    • Why don’t you use CDJapan or HMV or a proxy service before you just go pirating stuff. There are other options.

  12. Well- this is getting funny- When Koutei Camera Girl Zwei was announced for pre order I clicked yes, my order was cancelled right before release date even though Amazon showed 1 in stock- I tried to buy that one CD and got the item cant be shipped message- so clicked on the seller and it was a third party.

    • I had that too! I think someone at Amazon made a mistake in listing it for pre-order though as their releases have always been Tower exclusives. I kind of expected it to be cancelled.

  13. ok- I contacted Amazon support and it wasn’t helpful at all, LOL- enjoy-

    Me: I am trying to pre order プロミスザスター(DVD付)(-LIVE盤-) Single, CD+DVD I get the message that this cant be shipped to my address. can you explain?
    You are now connected to Yamashiro from Amazon.co.jp
    Yamashiro: Good morning
    Thank you for contacting to us at Amazon.co.jp. My name is Yamashiro.
    Me: Hello Yamashiro
    Yamashiro: I’m happy to help you with that. Can you please give me the product page?
    Me: https://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%83%97%E3%8…(See full link)
    Yamashiro: Thank you very much Please hold on while I check the details.
    Me: Thank you
    Yamashiro: Just to confirm is your address outside of Japan?
    Me: yes California, USA
    Yamashiro: Thank you
    Unfortunately, although this item is selected as eligible for global shipping
    it seems ineligible for global shipping
    We are very sorry for the misleading information on our website and your disppointment
    Please check our website frequently as it is subject to change
    Me: Is there any information regarding its ineligibility? Has the company Avex Trax restricted sales of their products outside of Japan?
    Yamashiro: We are unsure of the exact reasons to why some products can no longer be shipped to the international addresses
    I wish we and the customers are informed of the regulations so that we understand the situation better
    Me: I have one more question Yamashiro, was this listing created by a third party seller?
    Yamashiro: Do you mean that this item is sold by the third party seller?
    Me: yes
    Yamashiro: No this item is sold and shipped by Amazon.co.jp
    However, the global shipping categories can be changed based on the shipping carrier condition and other issues
    If you will ever plan to visit Japan, please shop at Amazon.co.jp for items available only for domestic shipping.
    Please remember that we will be always here to support your shopping.
    Me: Is there a chance that this could be shipped internationally?
    Yamashiro: I cannot tell for sure however, our website changes frequently
    Please check it often as it is subject to change
    Me: Thank you Yamashiro, I appreciate the information.
    Yamashiro: We will continue to improve the selection and service we provide.
    No problem Although I was not able to meet your expectation in this case
    I hope the information was helpful
    I wish I could be of more help to you
    Is there anything else I can do for you today?
    Me: You have been very helpful, i have no further questions.
    Yamashiro: Thank you very much for your interest in shopping on our website
    You are going to receive a short survey at the end of this chat. I really appreciate for your cooperation.

  15. I recently pre-ordered Tacoyaki Rainbow’s Naniwonderland 2016 – Himitsu no Kamen Butokai Blu-Ray from Amazon JP and for shits and giggles I contacted them asking whether or not my order will be eventually cancelled due to Avex recently blocking their products shipping to foreign countries, and I got this response:

    “Hello,

    We have not heard anything like that, so we do not have any plan to cancel the order at this moment.

    If we need to cancel your order, we will let you know via e-mail.

    If you have any other questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at any time.

    Thank you for choosing Amazon.co.jp. We look forward to serving you again soon.

    Best regards,
    菱沼 / Hishinuma”

    Has anyone else try to order anything recently?

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