NCOS Japan - A2Knetwork.org

La voix des Consommateurs
à travers le monde
The global voice
for consumers
La voz global para la defensa
de los consumidores
Country report for Japan for CI Regional
Meeting on A2K
Michelle Tan
Board Director, NCOS
19 February 2009
Summary of issues of concern to consumers in Japan
 Cost and availability of learning materials
– The Agency for Cultural Affairs runs “Copyright Seminars” aimed at deepening understanding of basic
copyright and thereby increasing knowledge and awareness of copyright.
– The Agency also distributes a publication, “Textbook on Copyright” which can be downloaded from
the internet.
 Use of copyright material by libraries
– Section 31 of the Copyright Act allows copying without permission as an exception, subject to the
following conditions.
1.It is for individual use for the purposes of research or investigation
2. Only one part of the copyright work is copied (interpreted to mean less than half
3. In the case of regularly published materials, a reasonable length of time has passed since publication
4. Only one copy per person is made
5. The copying is not for the purpose of re-copying or distribution
Summary of issues of concern to consumers in Japan
 Locks on access such as region coding and DRM
The region code on DVD players and DVD drives
sold domestically is “2.”
Discs sold domestically are to be region code “2” or
“ALL.”
There are examples of DRM in DVD, music downloads,
digital TV etc.
 Restrictions on Copying for Personal Use
– According to the Copyright Act regulations copying using
a machine/ medium for the purposes of recording sound
or picture requires a fee to be paid. However, this fee is
contained in the purchase price of the machine and
therefore the user is not required to pay.
Summary of issues of concern to consumers in Japan
 Availability of local content
– Available
 Needs fulfilled by black or grey markets
– There exists to some extent DVD piracy and P2P file conversion,
however, the authorities (police etc)
are increasingly taking more action based on investigations.
Japan’s intellectual property regime
Which IP conventions has your
country signed?
– Main ones are:
– Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property
– Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
– Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement)
– Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration
of Marks
– Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works
Japan’s intellectual property regime
 Are there any bilateral trade agreements on IP?
– No, but there are some Economic Co-operation treaties.
– Please refer to: http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/gaiko/fta/
 Is your country listed in the US 301 Watch List?
– No
 Is there much awareness of IP alternatives such as open source
and Creative Commons licensing?
– Use of open source is being positively encouraged.
– Creative Commons Japan is engaged in spreading the use of licenses.
Other communications rights in Japan
 Are blogs or email monitored or censored?
– There are private services available which provide surveillance for:
blogs, mobile phone sites, picture, notice boards, SNS, formal mobile
sites, web/ mobile communities, and other net patrol services.
 Is Internet access filtered (and if so how?)
– Filtering software or services by providers are available to protect
children from harmful sites.
 Is “net neutrality” an issue in your country?
– It is discussed on the internet but not in any official forums.
Other communications rights in Japan
 What privacy and data protection laws exist?
– There is an act to protect information held by government agencies (enacted in 1988 and
revised in 2003.
– An act to protect information by private organizations was enacted in 2003 and came into
effect in 2005.
 To what extent does government policy favour software
interoperability and open standards?
–
Japanese government has been looking at open source since the latter half of 2002.
–
Since then it has been referred to may times. The big IT vendors advocate LINUX support.
Access to the Internet in Japan
 Penetration of broadband, fixed-line and mobile Internet
services (see this Web site for statistics)
– Not sure how to respond, but these are all well developed
 Laws or policies that impact on Internet access
– Not sure what information in required.
Access to the Internet in Japan
 Notable deficits in infrastructure,
skills or content
– Not sure what information is required.
•Affordability and accessibility issues
– In general internet access is quite cheap, and there are
many access plans available.
– In many hotels, internet access is free of charge.
Michelle Tan
Board Director, NCOS
http://www.ncos.gr.jp/

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