Copyright Act

In the following cases and as part of non-commercial undertakings at the National Diet Library or at a library or other facility specified by Cabinet Order whose purpose is to offer books, records, and other materials for the public to use (hereinafter referred to as a "library or similar facility" in this paragraph and paragraph (3)), it is permissible for a person to reproduce a work from a book, record, or other material of the library or similar facility (hereinafter referred to in this Article as a "library material"):

when providing a single user of the library or similar facility with a single copy of a part of a work that has been made public (or the whole of each work printed in a periodical for which a considerable period of time has elapsed since its publication; the same applies in paragraph (3)) in response to the user's request and for the purpose of the user's research or studies;

when necessary for the purpose of preserving library materials;

when providing a copy of a library material that is difficult to obtain through normal trade channels because it is out of print or for a similar reason (hereinafter referred to as a "rare or out-of-print material" in this Article), in response to a request from another library or similar facility.

In addition to cases set forth in the items of the preceding paragraph, if, either in order to prevent the loss, damage, or defacement of the original copy of a library material that the National Diet Library offers to the public, or in order to use a work that is associated with a rare or out-of-print material in an automatic public transmission (this includes making such a work available for transmission; the same applies in that paragraph) pursuant to the provisions of the following paragraph, an electronic or magnetic record (meaning a record used in computer data processing that is created in an electronic format, magnetic format, or other format that cannot be perceived with the human senses alone; the same applies hereinafter) is created at the National Diet Library so that it can be offered for public use in place of the original, it is permissible for a person to record a work that is among the library materials of the National Diet Library onto a recording medium, to the extent considered necessary.

The National Diet Library may transmit a work that is associated with a rare or out-of-print material via automatic public transmission using a copy of that work that it has recorded onto a recording medium pursuant to the preceding paragraph, if the purpose of the transmission is to present the work to the public in a library or similar facility. In such a case, the library or similar facility may, as part of its non-commercial undertakings, in response to the request of a user of the library or similar facility and for the purpose of the user's research or studies, prepare a copy of a part of the work that is transmitted via automatic public transmission and provide a single copy of it to each user.

It is permissible to quote and thereby exploit a work that has been made public. In such a case, the work must be quoted consistent with fair practices and within a scope that is justified for the purpose of news reporting, critique, study, or other place in which the work is quoted.

It is permissible for public relations materials, research or statistical materials, reports, or any other similar works, which have been prepared by a national or local government agency, incorporated administrative agency, or local incorporated administrative agency with the goal of making them widely known to the general public, and have been made public under the authorship of such agency, to be reprinted as explanatory materials in a newspaper, magazine, or other printed publication; provided, however, that this does not apply if it is expressly indicated that this is prohibited.

It is permissible to print a work that has been made public in a textbook (meaning a book for use by children or students in education at an elementary school, junior high school, compulsory education school, high school, or secondary education school, or at any other school equivalent thereto, which has been authorized by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology or is under the authorship of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; the same applies hereinafter), to the extent that this is found to be necessary for the purpose of school education.

A person that prints a work in a textbook pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must inform the author of this and pay compensation to the copyright owner in the amount established annually by the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs in consideration of the purport of the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the nature and purpose of the work, the ordinary rate of royalties, and other conditions.

When the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs has established the amount referred to in the preceding paragraph, the commissioner issues a public notice of this in the Official Gazette.

The provisions of the preceding three paragraphs apply mutatis mutandis to the reproduction of works in textbooks intended for use in high school correspondence courses (including correspondence courses for the upper-class levels of a school for secondary education) and in the teachers' manuals for textbooks (limited to teachers' manuals published by the person publishing the textbooks).

In order to make a work printed in a textbook available for the learning purposes of children or students who have difficulty using such a work printed in a textbook due to a visual impairment, developmental disorder, or other disabilities, it is permissible to reproduce the work with enlarged letters, illustrations and the like, or by any other means necessary for those children or students to use that work.

A person that seeks to prepare textbooks or any other copies in which works are reproduced pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph (excluding copies in which the works are reproduced in Braille, and limited to copies in which all of or a considerable part of the works printed in the relevant textbook are reproduced; hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as a "large-print textbook, etc.") must inform the person that publishes the relevant textbook of this in advance; and, if the person distributes the large-print textbooks, etc. commercially, the person must pay the owners of the copyrights to the relevant works compensation in the amount established annually by the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs in proportion to the amount of compensation provided for in paragraph (2) of the preceding Article.

When the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs has established the amount referred to in the preceding paragraph, the commissioner issues a public notice of this in the Official Gazette.

A person that provides electronic or magnetic records of the works printed in a textbook pursuant to the provisions of Article 5, paragraph (1) or (2) of the Act to Accelerate the Dissemination of School Textbooks for Children and Students with Disabilities (Act No. 81 of 2008) may exploit those works, to the extent that is found to be necessary in order for the person to provide those electronic or magnetic records.

A work that has been made public may be broadcast or cablecast in a broadcast program or cablecast program for schools that conforms to the standards for curricula established by laws and regulations on school education, or may be transmitted via automatic public transmission (including making it available for transmission by inputting data into an automatic public transmission server that is connected with a public telecommunications network) by receiving that broadcast and doing so simultaneously, with the objective of allowing an exclusive audience within the service area that the broadcast is intended for to receive it (meaning the service area that a broadcast is intended for, as provided for in Article 91, paragraph (2), item (ii) of the Broadcasting Act (Act No. 132 of 1950) or, for a broadcast for which this is not specified, the broadcast area provided for in Article 14, paragraph (3), item (ii) of the Radio Act (Act No. 131 of 1950); the same applies hereinafter), and may be printed in teaching materials for that broadcast program or cablecast program, to the extent that this is found to be necessary for the purpose of school education.

A person that exploits a work pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must inform the author of this and pay the copyright owner a reasonable amount of compensation.

A person in charge of teaching or a person taking classes at a school or other educational institution (except one founded for commercial purposes) may reproduce a work that has been made public to the extent that is found to be necessary if the purpose of doing so is use in the course of those classes; provided, however, that this does not apply if the action would unreasonably prejudice the interests of the copyright owner in light of the nature and purpose of the work, the number of copies that would be made, and the circumstances of its reproduction.

A work that has been made public may be transmitted to the public (including making it available for transmission, in the case of automatic public transmission) for any persons taking a class simultaneously at a place other than that where the class is being held, if, in the course of the classes at an educational institution referred to in the preceding paragraph, the original or copies of the work are made available or presented to persons who directly attend the class and thus exploited, or if the work is exploited through a stage performance, musical performance, on-screen presentation, or recitation pursuant to the provisions of Article 38, paragraph (1); provided, however, that this does not apply if the action would unreasonably prejudice the interests of the copyright owner in light of the nature or purpose of the work or the circumstances of that public transmission.

It is permissible to reproduce a work that has been made public in a question on an entrance examination or other examination or in an official certification of knowledge or skills, to the extent that this is found to be necessary for such purpose, and to transmit to the public such a question (except in a broadcast or cablecast; however, it is permissible to make such a question available for transmission, if it is to be transmitted to the public via automatic public transmission; the same applies in the following paragraph); provided, however, that this does not apply if the action would unreasonably prejudice the interests of the copyright owner in light of the nature or purpose of the work or the circumstances of its transmission.

A person that, for commercial purposes, reproduces a work or transmits it to the public as referred to in the preceding paragraph must pay the copyright owner compensation in an amount that corresponds to the ordinary rate of royalties.

It is permissible to reproduce in Braille a work that has been made public.

It is permissible to use a computerized Braille processing system to record a work that has been made public onto a recording medium or make a public transmission of such a work (except in a broadcast or cablecast; however, it is permissible to make the work available for transmission, if it is to be transmitted to the public via automatic public transmission).

A person set forth by Cabinet Order that engages in an undertaking related to the welfare of persons with visual impairments and other persons with an impairment in perceiving visual renderings (hereinafter in this paragraph and in Article 102, paragraph (4) any such person is referred to as a "person with a visual or vision-related impairment") may reproduce a work that has been made public and that is made available or presented to the public in a rendered form that is perceived visually (including a work that has been made public and that is made available or presented to the public in a form that is perceived both visually and through other senses) (including a work other than the work in question which is reproduced therein or which is made available or presented to the public in a body united with the former work; hereinafter in this paragraph and in Article 102, paragraph (4) referred to as a "visual work"), and may transmit such a visual work via automatic public transmission (including making it available for transmission) by changing texts in the visual work into sounds or in any other form that is necessary to allow the visual work to be used by persons with visual and vision-related impairments who have difficulty in using that visual work in its visual form, within the limits that are found to be necessary in order to provide the visual work for their exclusive use; provided, however, that this does not apply if the visual work has already been made available or presented to the public in such a form by the copyright owner, a person authorized thereby, a person in favor of whom the print rights set forth in Article 79 have been established, a person granted authorization for reproduction thereby, or a person granted authorization for public transmission thereby.