Japan Cartoonists Association formally responds to efforts to expand Japanese Copyright Law

Another update has come up in the ongoing battle over the new Japanese Copyright Law expansion, February 12th, Manga Artists voiced their complaints and input over the proposition which Keiko Takemiya, the head of the Japan Studies of Cartoons and Comics releasing a statement on the 23rd of January.

Now there is the word from the Subcommittee of Japan’s Agency of Cultural Affairs recently agreed on expanding the scope of its Copyright Law, from downloading anime images, illustrations, and photographs that are illegally posted on personal blogs and social media accounts up to even copying and pasting song lyrics would be considered illegal. The Laws would not be limited to directly downloading images, taking screenshots illegally would also fall under the lines of violating the new laws.

The Japanese Cartoonists Association released a formal statement on Wednesday in response to the new laws: “We ask that due deliberation is taken to ensure that the expansion [of copyright law] does not impede civil rights such as research and freedom of expression.“

The Association said that it understood that the law was targeting illegal sites, but there needed to be certain improvements made on the law. The statement offered lawmakers these following suggestions:

1. The Law should address repeat offenders.
2. The Law should address the illegal uploading and sharing of Manga with no altercations of content.
3. The Law should only target cases where the rights holder’s profits are negatively affected.

The following information was provided by: Anime News Network

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