WEBTOON to Close Fan Translation Service in November
WEBTOON Entertainment shared on September 25 that it plans to close its Fan Translation Service. The platform will officially shut down on November 26 PDT, bringing an end to the community space where fans translated webtoons into many languages.
The company says the choice came after careful thought, pointing to how hard the service had become to maintain and grow over time. Stepping away from it, they explained, will let them put more resources into the core reading and creating experiences instead.
There is an important note for anyone who has contributed. After the shutdown, all translation data and user information will be permanently removed from WEBTOON’s servers with no backups kept. Translators who want to hold on to their work should download it from their profile pages before the service ends.
The Fan Translation Service leaned on volunteer translators for years and helped the platform reach readers around the world. Even so, the company described keeping it running as no longer sustainable.
From November 27, the site and everything tied to it will be unavailable, including fan translations people had previously read or followed.
My take: It is sad to see a volunteer driven space wind down, since so many readers found new favorites through it. If you helped translate, please save your work while you still can.
