Earlier this year in May, four individuals from Japan were formally accused of breaching national copyright regulations after they published extensive written synopses of films on their website, accompanied by related screen captures. A recent update from a report by Japan’s Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA) reveals that following charges were filed, the two males and two females involved received guilty verdicts at the Sendai District Court on August 3. The court’s rulings were as follows:
Company executive A: 2 years’ imprisonment with a 3-year suspension, and a fine of 1 million yen
Company employee B: 1 year’s imprisonment with a 2-year suspension
Writer C: A fine of 500,000 yen
Writer D: A fine of 300,000 yen
Operating company: A fine of 1 million yen.
As reported by Japanese news source Anime Anime, the site in question featured summary pieces on more than 8,000 different films. Significantly, in November 2023, the group published thorough transcriptions of works owned by CODA member firms such as Toho (Godzilla Minus One), Toei (Shin Kamen Rider), KADOKAWA (Kubi), and Tsuburaya Productions (Shin Ultraman).
Following the investigation and public trials conducted on July 24 and August 3 respectively, the court determined that “the defendants had collaborated to carry out systematic copyright infringement and had managed their website with the aim of generating profit.” CODA labels this as an “exceptionally uncommon” instance where the operating company was also brought to trial and charged under the Copyright Act.
Although some might argue that such practices fall into a legal “grey area,” CODA asserts that disseminating detailed written accounts of a movie’s entire narrative exceeds the bounds of lawful quotation. The organization contends that such actions could enable readers to grasp a film’s full story without viewing it, diminishing their motivation to pay for authorized content platforms, thereby “severely harming the content sector.” Notably, this marks the second instance this year where writers and site administrators were held accountable for contributing to monetized platforms centered on movie plot summaries. In April, a site administrator in Tokyo faced charges under the Copyright Act for posting “spoiler articles” that included written summaries of film and anime plots. The individual was sentenced to one year and six months in prison with a 4-year suspension and a fine of 1 million yen. A writer affiliated with the site was likewise found guilty on July 16 and imposed with a 500,000 yen penalty.