user3650: On YouTube, there are partners from which we can view full anime episodes. An example is Funimation. You can watch full episodes of anime such as Full Metal Alchemist, Shakugan no Shana, Nabari Na Ou and many other animes. My question is, would this be illegal and if so why?
Also, how do you tell if an anime streaming website is legal or not? Do you decide based on the criteria "if you can watch it for free, it is illegal", because I strongly disagree with this. Sometimes, it can be legal.
Link - Funimation YouTube Channel

user274: There are sites which host legal material that is free. CrunchyRoll is an example of this (though there is a premium version). They do their licensing through advertising.
In this case I think it's best just to do some basic research. Sites like CrunchyRoll, Funimation, and YouTube generally have licensed materials; in the case that they don't (specifically with YouTube), it's YouTube's job to handle the legality of the embedding, not ours. Worst case scenario, they'll take down the video.
From my perspective, what we want to avoid is linking to sites that are clearly just for streaming/downloading fansubs or scanlations. These are generally unofficial (and thus unlicensed, and illegal).
So, I'd say, yes, feel free to link to channels such as Funimation's.

3650: <p>On YouTube, there are partners from which we can view full anime episodes. An example is Funimation. You can watch full episodes of anime such as <em>Full Metal Alchemist</em>, <em>Shakugan no Shana</em>, <em>Nabari Na Ou</em> and many other animes. My question is, would this be illegal and if so why?</p>

<p>Also, how do you tell if an anime streaming website is legal or not? Do you decide based on the criteria "if you can watch it for free, it is illegal", because I strongly disagree with this. Sometimes, it can be legal.</p>

<p>Link - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/FUNimation" rel="nofollow">Funimation YouTube Channel</a></p>
 274: <p>There are sites which host legal material that is free. CrunchyRoll is an example of this (though there is a premium version). They do their licensing through advertising.</p>

<p>In this case I think it's best just to do some basic research. Sites like CrunchyRoll, Funimation, and YouTube generally have licensed materials; in the case that they don't (specifically with YouTube), it's YouTube's job to handle the legality of the embedding, not ours. Worst case scenario, they'll take down the video.</p>

<p>From my perspective, what we want to avoid is linking to sites that are clearly just for streaming/downloading fansubs or scanlations. These are generally unofficial (and thus unlicensed, and illegal).</p>

<p>So, I'd say, <strong>yes</strong>, feel free to link to channels such as Funimation's.</p>
