The start of the conference on anti-piracy measures

The start of the conference on anti-piracy measures             

When the government’s conference on measures against piracy sites began, I was joint chairman.

The government decided on emergency measures; while explaining the blocking as a form of “emergency evacuation”, it did not request implementation from ISPs. This gave rise to criticism and led to a lively discussion.

After this, the situation changed, and designated sites such as Mangamura became almost unviewable. The situation settled down for the time being, and is now in a stalemate.

In the government’s measures, the top goal was for the government to send a message.

Measures against piracy sites had been discussed by the intellectual property committee for over two years. Each ministry had taken measures against leech sites and ads, and blocking was the topic that remained.

The harm caused by piracy had radically worsened, and there were calls to take action. If the government had not taken steps, it would have faced criticisms of inaction.

The government accepted this, and the plan was agreed on by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the Ministry of Justice, as well as the National Police Agency, with the main goal of demonstrating the government’s stance on the issue.

The content of the agreement was the legal interpretation of the measures as “emergency evacuation”, as well as the legislative policy moving forward.

The government made it clear that it had taken measures that it could demonstrate as the government, and was not making demands of or giving instructions to society. In my opinion, the stop there was made well.

Around the same time as this decision and message, actions apart from blocking also became widespread, such as search blocks as well as the cessation of advertisements for these sites. Following this, the three problematic sites became almost unviewable. This was probably influenced by the government’s decision as well. As a result, the situation has subsided, and the measures to “stop the bleeding” have worked for the time being.

There have been many criticisms of the measures, but what should the government have done? I do not know a correct answer that would have been better than this decision. I think that without this decision, the piracy sites would probably still be around today, and citizens’ awareness of the issue would not be as high as it is now.

What is more important is the next action, and the review of the legislative system, etc., in the countermeasure conference. From that point on, it’s the real deal. But two months were needed after the government’s decision before the conference could start. I am also saying that the selection of members for this conference was difficult for the government as well.

I think the following three points are in question.

1. Putting legitimate versions in place

　How can content creators, such as in the manga world, create attractive platforms that are like Mangamura? The music and film industries have put effort into constructing a business model for the Internet age, but the reaction of the publishing world has been slow. I think this is important to examine before discussing the legislative system.

２. Evaluating the current situation and deciding on measures

　We can recognize that the current situation has changed as the three sites have become unviewable or have weakened.

　Moreover, I would like to consolidate the measures we can and should take based on current laws - such as measures against advertising, deletion requests, criminal proceedings, demands for injunctions, filtering, etc.

3. The legal system

　Apart from blocking, is it necessary and possible to set up other legal measures? If we do this, which law will we use to handle it, such as the Copyright Act or the Telecommunications Business Act? How can we handle measures against leech sites or the illegalization of the downloads of illegal still images?

How can the government integrate its IT and intellectual-property policies? Almost all policies governing content are currently related to IT policy. The problem we are now facing is a key issue regarding coordination - namely of the questions of the protection of copyright and of the privacy of communications. Cases like this will continue moving forward, and this problem is a touchstone for them.