Is Hunger Games a Battle Royale Rip off?

Hunger Games, Battle Royale copy cat?

The similarity between the two is so undeniable that the question comes up naturally. But did Hunger Games copy from Battle Royale?

What came first? Obviously, that would have to be Battle Royale. 

Koushun Takami, Suzanne Collins

Battle Royale (jap: バトル・ロワイアル Batoru Rowaiaru) was written by Koushun Takami and published in Japan in April 1999. Takami actually completed the novel three years earlier, 1996. 

Hunger Games, written by Suzane Collins, was published in the US in September 2008. When this was made known to Collins, she said, "I had never heard of that book or that author until my book was turned in. At that point, it was mentioned to me, and I asked my editor if I should read it. He said: 'No, I don't want that world in your head. Just continue with what you're doing.' "

Similarities

Battle Royale is the Program, a "research" by the government where every year fifty 3rd-year classes are selected. Each class is isolated, given different weapons, and forced to fight each other to death until one student remains.Bomb collars are used to track movements and prevent them from escaping and entering forbidden zones.

The Hunger Games is set in a place called Panem, in a future after North America is destructed by some unsaid reason. As a punishment for a rebellion from some years past, the Capitol of Panem invented the Hunger Games, a televised game where tributes from the 12 districts fight each other to death until one remains. Two tributes from each district is chosen by lottery every year, one boy and one girl of ages 12 to 18. The game is set in a high-tech, controlled environment.


Differences


In Battle Royale, the students just told that they are participating in the Program, given weapons and forced to kill each other.

In Hunger Games, the tributes are trained before the games and sponsors, influential people outside the games, could send supplies to selected tributes.