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takyon writes:

Japan Becomes Latest Country to Consider Pirate Site Blocking

Following comments this week from Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary, blocking pirate sites could soon be on the country's anti-piracy agenda. Yoshihide Suga says that the government is considering "all measures" to reduce piracy of manga and anime while supporting the "Cool Japan" initiative designed to promote the country locally and overseas.

[...] Speaking at a news conference, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that the Japanese government is considering taking measures to prohibit access to pirate sites, largely to protect the country's manga and anime industries. "The damage is getting worse. We are considering the possibilities of all measures including site blocking," he said. "Manga and anime are important types of content that represent the 'Cool Japan' initiative. I would like to take countermeasures as soon as possible under the cooperation of the relevant ministries and agencies."

[...] According to a lawyer cited by the Sankei news outlet, piracy in Japan is largely facilitated by roughly two kinds of sites – hosting and linking. While the former can be anywhere but can be dealt with locally, Japan has an estimated 200 sites that link to pirated content. Their legal status doesn't appear to be as clear as many would like. "In the conventional theory the link itself is not illegal," the lawyer notes. "There is no legal basis to declare the act of facilitating piracy of other sites as 'illegal'. Without a [linking] site, many users can not reach pirated versions, [so the government] needs to define malicious [linking] sites properly and regulate them."

Also mentioned in the article is a recent incident of mass copyright infringement in which local governments in South America facilitated unlicensed public screenings of an episode of Dragon Ball Super.

See also:

Russia Blocked 8,000 Pirate Sites in 2017, "Visits to Cinemas Up 11%"

Key Internet Players Excoriate Canadian Pirate Site Blocking Plan

Google Should Begin Delisting Pirate Sites, Aussie Rightsholders Say

Original Submission