McDonald’s Japan region-blocks more anime ads

Users on social media platform X have observed that McDonald’s Japan’s popular anime advertisements are no longer accessible to individuals outside of Japan.

The McDonald’s X account for Japan is implementing region-locking on these ads, making them visible only to users with a Japanese IP address or those accessing the internet from within the country.

This practice is not new for the McDonald’s Japan account. The adjustment was initially reported by Niche Gamer in March 2024, though it appears that the online community has a short memory.

Many users are understandably displeased with the region locking, as the anime ads are known for their high quality and unique style compared to Western corporate advertisements.

Unfortunately, these ads have become a point of contention in the West, particularly in recent years with some individuals expressing a desire to censor anime for various reasons.

Certain Western critics claim that anime is overly sexual, despite the lack of explicit content in the ads. Others, like Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh, have even labeled it as satanic. While these voices represent a minority of Americans, they are quite vocal.

Fortunately, some users have discovered ways to bypass the region-blocking (using a VPN or other methods) and are sharing the videos in response to McDonald’s posts. You can view the latest videos here.