Artist Reps Ask Japan Gov’t for Copyright Extension - International Business Times -

A group of 16 organizers for writers, artists, and musicians in Japan submitted a petition calling for legislation to extend the period of copyright protection from the current 50 years to 70 years after the death of right-holders, according to Japanese media. Masahiro Mita, Vice Chairman of the Japan Writer’s Association, said to Japanese media that artists in Japan must expect their copyrights to be protected for 70 years in the same way as those in Europe and United States. International law allows each country protect intellectual property based on its own laws. Works that are supposed to be protected for 70 years in their countries of origin can be copied and distributed in Japan after 50 years in current Japanese Law.

Once the US changed its laws from 50 years to 70 years after death, it is was inevitable that copyright owner organisations worldwide would demand the same, much like a game of dominos. When the USFTA proposed this extention of 20 years in Australia, it was unsurprising that the greatest pro lobbyists were representatives of copyright owners.

It shouldn’t make sense if the copyright owners were just real living people, after all what does an extra twenty years of protection mean when you’re already 50 years dead? Sure it might give some royalties to your great great great grandchildren instead of just your great great grandchildren, though the vast majority of creators would have stopped receiving royalties off their works while they were still alive. Surely this is a poor trade for losing 20 years of extra public domain material as inspiration in your new works? However, if you see companies as the main copyright owners then this starts to make a lot more sense. Companies never die, they just go out of business and their IP assets transferred, so 20 years of a successful licence (eg Mickey Mouse or Spiderman) is a lot of money. Unfortunately, while there are less companies than real living creators companies are a lot more savvy and powerful. They have done a good job in convincing the real living creators that their agendas are the same (see Sonny Bono or Metallica).

So when Leiji Matsumoto, both a creator of comics and the standing director of Japan Cartoonists Association said, “Japanese
cartoons are enjoyed and protected in all countries around the world. I
cannot stand on this unbalanced reality.” He should have been celebrating instead the fact that his country has an extra 20 years of culture that its comic writers and artists can weave into their stories without fearing copyright infringement notices.

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