Tsuburaya Productions have been really pushing their brand towards a more global audience in light of certain legal events over the past few years. However the legal battles have irrecoverably left their mark on the franchise to the point where even companies and news sites use images and information from the wrong sources. This blog post will be a short guide on how to look for official Ultraman news, products and websites.

Tsuburaya Productions' logo will appear without fail on all of their products and media. If you don't see it, it's not official. That is the first telltale sign of whether or not the product you see is authentic. You may also see ©Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd., or ©円谷プロダクション/©円谷プロ on Japanese products. Official merchandise will have a small sticker of the logo in a circle.

Unfortunately some bootlegs simply print out the Seal and place it on their products, so you will have to look out for those too. Just keep in mind that most of Tsuburaya Productions' toy merchandise comes from Bandai and other reputable companies and if you're still unsure, you can always look on Internet catalogs such as the official Bandai Ultraman website.

Most unofficial products will be licensed by UM Corporation and/or their partner TIGA Entertainment, or some random bootlegger. However, there is a small problem. Whenever UM Corporation uses Tsuburaya Productions' assets they may use "©Tsuburaya Productions", normally followed by "Licensed by UMC", so you would have to look out for that too.

The Malaysian company Taigaco may also be involved in Southeast Asian regions; they have held events and produced merchandise before in Malaysia.

Since around 2017, Tsuburaya Productions had been using an official logo for all Ultraman shows, first appearing in Ultraman Orb THE ORIGIN SAGA. However please do note that this wiki is not affiliated with Tsuburaya Productions despite our use of their official logo(s).

Also, at least one of these two screens will appear in all official Tsuburaya Productions Ultraman works and releases that have come out in the last few years. If you don't see them on something relatively new, it's probably a bootleg.

Meanwhile UMC had been using their own logo, which is noticeably different and despite containing (oddly written) Japanese wording, it is not official. Unfortunately, many people think it is.

Other than that, UMC can/will only use the Ultras from the first 6 shows in their products. This means you'll only ever see Ultraman, Zoffy, Ultraseven (or even Ultraman Seven) , Ultraman Jack, Ultraman Ace, Ultraman Taro, Father of Ultra and Mother of Ultra at their events and promotional material, which would seem a bit odd considering Tsuburaya Productions' official overseas events have more recent Ultras such as Ultraman Tiga, Ultraman Zero, Ultraman Geed, and Ultraman Ribut appear. UMC's promotional images also have strange editing done to the characters, which makes them miscolored. Eyes turn white/red and silver turns into cheap aluminium foil.

Official websites:

The "Ultraman Original" accounts are run by UMC/TIGA Entertainment/Taigaco and are therefore unofficial. Please do not support these companies as they have proven to be little more than obstacles to Tsuburaya Productions over many years. They are a large part of the reason Ultraman had not been able to properly expand globally until only recently. They themselves try to push the idea that they hold the exclusive worldwide rights to Ultraman but we all know that isn't true.

Even if legal matters fail us, what each of us can do is to STOP giving the three of them the money, positive attention, and support they desire. If anything, these should all go to Tsuburaya Productions, the true creators and rights holders of Ultraman who have been working hard to bring the franchise to a global audience for a long time, only to be barred by companies like these. It might seem a bit hopeless at times especially on the subject of legality, but small actions can go a long way. After all, this whole debacle happened because some person wrote lies on a piece of paper in 1976. This is not an invitation for any illegal acts, however.

This post will be updated with more information if we see fit.