What is a pirated or "bootleg" CD?

Bootleg CDs are those that are reproduced and sold without authorization by the original publishers of the music. This has become a very serious issue throughout the entire recording industry, but it's an especially serious problem among the game and anime music community. Countries such as Taiwan and China have taken advantage of the lack of widespread distribution of game and anime soundtracks, and have thus flooded the market with cheap, unauthorized knockoffs. Aside from not being an "official" product, the original publishers receive nothing from these sales, which ultimately hurts the very artists who create the music. In fact, buyers are often fooled by these bootlegs, since they often don't know what legitimate albums look like.