I'm still using the Japanese TA to make my orders and it's ok lol.
It still has the Tenso address. I'm just used to it. :P

I just renewed my TA membership and I had to read through the rules and whatnot. There was quite a bit in there regarding taking photo/video at live events. Is this new? I don't remember reading it last year. Did they just add it this year? If so, that's a bit embarrassing...lol

Well, I remember Stan being all nervous about fans taking pictures and recording short videos of Ayu; no one really cared, though. I guess it will eventually be the same at her concerts. Why not - if I had paid for an expensive ticket, of course I would take some pictures in order to capture this special event for myself ^O^

^ ...except no? Japan is one place that still bans cameras at nearly every concert venue.

^I agree. I think it's disrespectful. I went to a lot of concerts of japanese bands here in Germany. A lot of times they say taking pictures is forbidden. If they do that, I respect that. Some bands are here for the 5th or 6th or 10th time already. They don't care anymore and it's no problem. Once they even announced that it's ok to take pictures. But if they announce before the concert that they don't want pictures to be taken, everyone should respect that wish.

I think it was there from the beginning.
As for these rules, let me quote Ayu's lyrics:
"I don't want to be imposed on
By the same old stupid Rules
Let's start first, you and me
By breaking the Rules"
I can't see any harm in recording audio or taking some pics of the stage before/after the show. I like to use my own brain and not to follow blindly some rules. I come all the way from different country and there's no way I'm not making some sweet memories. I'm not selling these recordings and not uploading the ones where she sounds bad, so I'm not doing harm to her image. I still respect her, I just don't have to do everything Ayu or her staff says.
What they should focus on is selling unofficial photos and goods outside the venue! But no one cares, it seems that these sellers are protected by yakuza or pay money to AVEX/ police. It's them who take money away from Ayu, not fans violating some of the rules.

I hope Japanese will never change that rule, because seeing everyone with cell phones (sometimes tablets too, wtf) on concerts nowadays makes me sick. You can't even see a damn thing, 'cause someone put their phone right in your face!
I don't care about audio recording as you can do it secretly :>

I just renewed my TA membership too, trying to look for the new rules but only general Q&A.

I'm not sure if I want to rejoin TA, with the recent times I'm losing trust on Ayu over the past year or so...

Probably not gonna renew my membership. I still love Ayu as much, but the 'perks' of being in TA isn't really justifiable to me. TA version of releases aren't very enticing, and I can't afford to fly to Japan where most of the action is happening. To top it all of, the updates aren't very frequent. Meh.

I agree with you guys, I renewed mine mostly because of the concert tickets...

I just hope she will write more at TA blog after leaving from twitter

I renewed too. I didn't remember that you could pay with paypal last year. So if they added it since, it's really nice. I always prefer to use paypal than my credit card. It would be great if mu-mo could do it too.

I renewed, not only because I want concert tickets for AT16, but because I still support ayu now just as much as I always have. :heart

Same here, I renewed without hesitation b'coz I want to support her... I want to go to her concert but I yet to have the opportunity (in Japan when no tours on XP ), hopefully next year April when I in Japan, she will on her AT 2016.

Chose not to renew my membership. =/

I'm gonna renew every year until I finally get to see her live and actually get at least ONE of those venue-only benefits. THEN I'll probably cancel. Unless they fix the stuff that's wrong with it. I keep holding out blind, misguided hope for that... x_x

Venue-only benefits are fun! Like free stickers which I don't know where to attach to. LOL Maybe I'll stick them on my suitcase.

Fifteen years a fan, four years a member of TeamAyu... Never had the opportunity to ask "what should I do with these stickers" lol. That said, I never would anyway cuz I just keep everything, hahaha. :P!!

But yeah, Yahoo Auctions is usually the only way I can even find out what the venue-only benefits even ARE o_O!!

(And there are some older items that do seem to be official (they appear to have high quality printing and the appropriate copyright/trademark markings on them), but I don't know where they're from, so I dunno if they were novelties that were mailed to members or things that TA members could purchase or venue exclusives or what! o_O!! I must admit, avex don't do a good job with making TeamAyu feel like a team of any kind o_o)

I think if you take a picture or two its fine, but I think its for the ones who would abuse it if they were aloud. The saying, it only takes one to ruin it for everyone else :P. And I imagine it would be insulting for ayu. Imagine all the work she puts in her shows and all she is greeted with is a see of mobile phones pointing at her, instead of the fans face. Plus more people get annoyed at people who pull out phones and that because they will usally get in the way of someone else or, just watch the show through there phone, which is even more idiotic:P