Storing Personal Music Online Is Illegal In Japan

An anonymous reader writes "A decision in Tokyo District Court could have implications in Japan for online services that let users store files, if any music files are involved. The court case pitted JASRAC, the Japanese organization that collects fees for public music performances, against Image City, whose MYUTA service lets users employ a central server to store songs from their own CDs, to play on their own phones. The Tokyo District Court handed down a ruling declaring Image City guilty of copyright infringement (Google translation). Despite the music being stored strictly for personal use, the ruling reasoned that the act of uploading music to a central server owned by a company is the equivalent of distributing music to that company. This has implications for other services such as Yahoo! Briefcase and Apple's .Mac, which could mean these companies are guilty of copyright infringement if any of their users in Japan store music in their accounts for personal use. Here are some additional details on JASRAC's activities and methods." Neither article talks about possible appeals, or about how strong a precedent this case sets in the Japanese legal system.

Comments

Those wacky japanese

[QuantumG]

Shifting copyright works? bad.
Animated tentical rape? ok.

Re:Which is why encryption should be used

[vakuona]

Thank you for the heads up. We shall cover this in an addendum.

RIAARUS

My huge mp3 collection

[billcopc]

How to build a huge mp3 collection:

1. Launch company that stores users' music online
2. Users send you all their music
3. W00T! check out my huge crappy mp3 collection.

I haven't figured out where to put "Profit" in there. I guess that's because I'm Canadian.

Re:A little snag...

[Spy der Mann]

Will they try to prosecute across borders like the States does?

No, they'll send giant robots after us.

Re:Sign over your trailer's front door:

[Anonymous Coward]

so I could hang out with the Absolute Moral Authority Club.

I think you need to get your TiVo fixed, it's been playing 700 Club reruns nonstop for the past few years.

Re:A little snag...

[cerberusss]

Hehheh, reminds me of something nerdy...

During lunchtime, two developers and a bunch of electronics guys take a stroll around the building. On the way back, one asks, where are we going? Straight through, the other says. Dev 1 doesn't see the hall through the building and asks "Straight through the building?" The other says: "No, unless you brought your mech." Developers laugh out loud.

Electronics guys look totally puzzled. "A what? A mekk?"