Strict Japanese Anti-Digital Piracy Law Goes into Effect Today

JAPAN—The Japanese signaled today that they are not fooling around when it comes to illegally downloaded content. A new law went into effect Oct. 1 that makes "anyone in possession of illegally downloaded music or movies in Japan" liable for "up to two years in jail along with a 2 million yen ($25,000) fine," according to the Global Post. Following intense lobbying by the music industry, whose sales in Japan reportedly shrank 16 percent in 2011 alone, the new provisions impose serious penalties on activity that has been illegal since 2010. What is novel about the Japanese government's approach is its willingness to criminalize possession. As TorrentFreak reports, "While Japan already has the legislative muscle to hit uploaders with up to 10 years in prison and a 10 million yen ($128,300) fine, this new legislation makes criminals of mere downloaders." According to the Recording Industry of Japan, the controversial move is necessary. Pointing to data that suggests that "illegal media downloads outnumbered legal ones by about a factor of 10," Naoki Kitagawa, the body's chairman as well as CEO of  Sony Music Entertainment Japan, stated earlier this year, "This revision [of existing law] will reduce the spread of copyright infringement activities on the internet." According to the BBC, the decision to add criminal penalties to the possession of illegally downloaded music and movies has already been met with protest. Shortly after the June vote passing the revisions, "the website of the government's finance ministry was defaced and the sites of the Supreme Court, the DPJ and LDP political parties, and the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers were briefly taken offline after cyber attacks." More traditional expressions in opposition to the measure were also made, by anonymous activists as well as well-known organizations, but the deed was done and starting today Japan becomes a test case for what happens when the possession of illegally downloaded content becomes a crime punishable by jail time and a fine that could bankrupt many.