Crunchyroll Sends Takedown Notice to Hayase Over Anime Piracy

• Crunchyroll cites both U.S. copyright law and Indian IT regulations in its takedown of Hayase.
• While Hayase’s core functionality remains, the removal of GitHub links limits access for new users.
• With Crunchyroll ending its free tier service this year, many fans may be turning towards unofficial streaming services.

Crunchyroll, the Sony-owned popular anime streaming service, has stepped up its anti-piracy efforts by sending a takedown notice to Hayase, a reported popular torrent-based streaming service among anime enthusiasts. The company's rights enforcement partner recently filed a DMCA takedown notice to remove Hayase-related URLs from GitHub, charging improper access to copyrighted content.

Hayase, formerly called Miru, is reportedly a torrent service that allows real-time streaming, enabling users to watch content while it downloads. The developers of the service claim that it “does not provide, index, host, or link to any content sources, torrent files, or unofficial repositories. Users are fully responsible for sourcing their own content legally and in compliance with their local laws."

In simple terms, Hayase says that it does not store or share any media on its own; yet, many people use it to watch pirated anime, which Crunchyroll believes to be violating the law.

Crunchyroll-Hayase Crackdown: What did the Takedown Notice Point Out?

As reported by TorrentFreak, in the takedown notice, Crunchyroll’s partner MarkScan referenced both Indian IT regulations and U.S. copyright law to bolster its demand for the removal of nearly two dozen URLs associated with Hayase on GitHub. "We have found material on your service that promotes, directs to, or enables the ongoing infringement via Hayase," the notice read. "Hayase enables unauthorized access to anime content, an activity which is well established as copyright infringement under applicable laws and relevant case law." 

The disputed links have been deactivated, and Hayase's developers removed the impacted files rather than filing a counter-notice. Since the service does not host material, its essential functionality stays unchanged for users who have it installed already.

Crunchyroll maintains what many fans consider to be an exclusive grip on anime streaming. Its recent step aligns with broader industry trends in which rights holders target infrastructure that can be used for piracy, even if the service does not directly circulate illegal content. Additionally, the elimination of the free ad-supported tier may make it harder for some viewers to gain affordable access to certain series, making Hayase and similar alternatives all the more alluring.

Crunchyroll continued to exercise its legal authority in November, partnering with Netflix and Disney to take on VidSrc, a prominent piracy platform. Local internet service providers in India blacklisted around 200 domains as part of the operation. As other streaming companies' anime archives dwindle in 2026, Crunchyroll's presence in the anime community is only going to grow.