DVD Piracy in Japan
NTV news reports on shops in Osaka that sell pirated DVD’s, and the measures being taken to stop the piracy:
They visit the Nipponbashi area of Osaka, which is described as a “lawless” area containing over 70 shops that deal in pirated copies of DVD’s. Newly released DVD’s with retail prices of around 3000 yen are being copied and sold for 500 yen. Although the report does not directly say so, the signs on the stores and the censored DVD cases make it pretty clear that it the shops are selling copies of porno movies.
They follow around a group of men in suits. They are not police officers – they are representatives of the companies that hold the copyright to the films in question. They are visiting stores that sell pirated movies and delivering legal threats. Those selling pirated dvd’s are told that they are breaking the law and face huge fines. Shop owners are made to sign statements acknowledging their infractions and promising to halt the sale of illegal copies. If stores to do not cooperate, the police are called in. In the report, the store owners feign ignorance of the illegality of dvd piracy, but they cooperate and sign the papers.
By sending private investigation teams instead of police, the copyright holders can obtain information about the names and signatures of the store’s owners and managers. If a the signed warnings are ignored and the store resumes the sale of pirated dvd’s, copyright holders might have a better chance of going after the people in charge, rather than arresting and convicting a few low level employees.
- Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
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