Copyright Act

The person set forth by Cabinet Order for each type of exploitation set forth in the following items that engages in an undertaking related to the welfare of persons with hearing impairments and other persons whose perception of aural renderings is impaired (hereinafter in this Article and in paragraph (5) of the following Article referred to as "persons with hearing impairments, etc.") may exploit a work that has been made public and that is made available or presented to the public in a rendered form that is perceived aurally (including a work that has been made public and that is made available or presented to the public in a form that is perceived aurally 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 Article referred to as an "aural work"), in the way set forth in the relevant item, within the limits that are found to be necessary in order to provide the aural work for exclusive use by persons with hearing impairments, etc. who have difficulty in using that aural work in its aural form; provided, however, that this does not apply if the aural work has already been made available or presented to the public in the necessary form for persons with hearing impairments, etc. to be able to use it, 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 authorized thereby to reproduce the visual work, or a person authorized thereby to transmit the visual work to the public:

reproducing an aural work or transmitting it via automatic public transmission (this includes making it available for transmission) by changing sounds in the aural work into texts or in any other form that is necessary to allow the work to be used by persons with hearing impairments, etc.;

reproducing an aural work solely for the purpose of renting it to persons with hearing impairments, etc. (limited to when this is done in conjunction with the reproduction of the sounds in the aural work by changing the sounds into texts or in any other form that is necessary to allow the aural work to be used by persons with hearing impairments, etc.).

It is permissible to publicly give a stage performance or a musical performance, make an on-screen presentation, or give a recitation of a work that has been made public, if this is done for non-commercial purposes and without charging a fee (meaning anything of value received in exchange for making available or presenting a work, regardless of what it is called; the same applies in this Article) to the listening or viewing audience; provided, however, that this does not apply if a performer or reciter is paid any remuneration for the stage performance, musical performance, on-screen presentation, or recitation.

It is permissible to cablecast a broadcast work or to transmit such a work 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) for non-commercial purposes and without charging a fee to the listening or viewing audience, with the objective of allowing an exclusive audience within the service area that the broadcast is intended for to receive that broadcast.

It is permissible to publicly communicate a work that is broadcast or cablecast (including a broadcast work, in the case where that work is transmitted via automatic public transmission), through a receiver for non-commercial purposes and without charging a fee to the listening or viewing audience. The same applies if the work is communicated publicly through a receiver commonly used in a household.

It is permissible to make available to the public a work that has been made public (except a cinematographic work) by renting out copies of that work (if the work is one that has been reproduced in a cinematographic work, this excludes making that work available to the public by renting out copies of the cinematographic work), if this is done for non-commercial purposes and without charging a fee to persons renting copies of the work.

An audiovisual education facility or any other facility (excluding one set in place for commercial purposes), designated by Cabinet Order, that aims to offer cinematographic films and other audiovisual materials for public use, or a person, provided for by Cabinet Order as referred to in the preceding Article, that is engaged in an undertaking related to the welfare of persons with hearing impairments, etc. (limited to a person concerned with item (ii) of that Article, and excluding a person that engages in that undertaking for commercial purposes) may distribute a cinematographic work that has been made public, by renting out copies of it, if it does so without charging a fee to the persons renting copies of the work. In this case, the person distributing the work must pay a reasonable amount of compensation to the owner of the right set forth in Article 26 (including paying such compensation to the person that, pursuant to the provisions of Article 28, owns the same right to the relevant work as the right set forth in Article 26) for the cinematographic work or the work reproduced in that cinematographic work.

It is permissible for a person to reprint, in another newspaper or magazine, editorial commentary (excluding that of an academic nature) on political, economic, or social current affairs that has been printed and published in a newspaper or magazine; or to broadcast or cablecast such commentary; or to transmit such commentary 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; provided, however, that this does not apply if it is expressly indicated that such use is prohibited.

It is permissible to publicly communicate commentary that is broadcast or cablecast, or transmitted via automatic public transmission, pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, through a receiver.

It is permissible to exploit a political speech or statement delivered in public or a public statement given in the course of judicial proceedings (including ruling by an administrative agency or other proceedings equivalent to a trial; the same applies in Article 42, paragraph (1)), in any way, except for by making a compilation of speeches or statements by the same author.

If it is found to be justified for the purpose of news reporting, it is permissible for a person to print a speech or statement that has been delivered in public by a national or local government agency, incorporated administrative agency, or local incorporated administrative agency, other than one under the provisions of the preceding paragraph, in a newspaper or magazine; to broadcast or cablecast such a speech or statement; or to transmit such a speech or statement 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.

It is permissible to publicly communicate a speech or statement that is broadcast or cablecast, or transmitted via automatic public transmission, pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, through a receiver.

If current events are reported in the news by means of photography, cinematography, broadcasting, or other means, it is permissible to reproduce a work that comprises the event or is seen or heard in the course of the event, and to exploit it in line with the reporting of that event, within a scope that is justified for the purpose of news reporting.

It is permissible to reproduce a work if and to the extent that this is found to be necessary for judicial proceedings or for internal use by a legislative or administrative organ; 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.

The provisions of the preceding paragraph also apply if the reproduction of a work is found to be necessary for the following proceedings:

proceedings involved in a patent, industrial design, or trademark examination, the technical valuation of a utility model, or an international examination or preliminary examination for an international application (meaning international applications provided for in Article 2 of the Act on International Applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (Act No. 30 of 1978)), conducted by an administrative agency;

proceedings regarding an administrative agency's or incorporated administrative agency's examination or investigation of pharmaceutical affairs (the pharmaceutical affairs include particulars of medical devices (meaning medical devices as provided in Article 2, paragraph (4) of the Act on Securing Quality, Efficacy and Safety of Products Including Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices (Act No. 145 of 1960)) and regenerative medicine products (meaning regenerative medicine products as provided in paragraph (9) of that Article); the same applies hereinafter in this item), or proceedings regarding a report about pharmaceutical affairs submitted to an administrative agency or incorporated administrative agency.

The head of an administrative organ or an incorporated administrative agency, etc., local government agency, or local incorporated administrative agency may exploit a work in order to make available or present that work to the public, to the extent that this is found to be necessary for disclosing the work by each of the means provided for in Article 14, paragraph (1) of the Act on Access to Administrative Organs' Information (including the provisions of Cabinet Order based on the provisions of that paragraph), Article 15, paragraph (1) of the Incorporated Administrative Agencies' Information Disclosure Act (including means decided by the relevant incorporated administrative agency, etc. based on the provisions of that paragraph (excluding anything other than the means provided for by Cabinet Order based on the provisions of Article 14, paragraph (1) of the Act on Access to Administrative Organs' Information)), or information disclosure ordinance (excluding anything other than the means set forth in Article 14, paragraph (1) of the Act on Access to Administrative Organs' Information (including the provisions of Cabinet Order based on the provisions of that paragraph)).

The head of the National Archives of Japan, etc. or the head of the local archives, etc. may reproduce a work associated with the historical public records and archives to the extent that is found to be necessary, if the purpose of doing so is to preserve the historical public records and archives pursuant to the provisions of Article 15, paragraph (1) of the Public Records Management Act or the provisions of public records management ordinance (limited to provisions equivalent to the relevant paragraph of the Public Records Management Act).

The head of the National Archives of Japan, etc. or the head of the local archives, etc. may exploit a work to the extent that this is found to be necessary in order to allow the work to be exploited by each of the means provided for in Article 19 of the Public Records Management Act (this includes any provisions of Cabinet Order that are based on the provisions of that Article; the same applies hereinafter in this paragraph) or public records management ordinance (excluding anything not constituting a means set forth in the relevant Article of the Public Records Management Act), if the purpose of doing so is to make it available or present it to the public pursuant to the provisions of Article 16, paragraph (1) of the Public Records Management Act or the provisions of public records management ordinance (limited to provisions equivalent to Article 16, paragraph (1) of the Public Records Management Act).

The Director General of the National Diet Library may record a work that is included in the internet materials set forth in Article 25-3, paragraph (1) of the National Diet Library Act (Act No. 5 of 1948) (hereinafter in this Article referred to as "internet materials") or the online materials set forth in Article 25-4, paragraph (3) of that Act onto a recording medium used by the National Diet Library, to the extent that this is found to be necessary for collecting the relevant internet materials or online materials pursuant to the provisions of those paragraphs.

The following persons may reproduce works associated with the materials set forth in the following items, to the extent that is considered to be necessary in order for that person to make those materials available:

a person provided for in Article 24 or 24-2 of the National Diet Library Act:internet materials that the person makes available in response to a request referred to in Article 25-3, paragraph (3) of that Act;

a person that does not fall under Article 24 or 24-2 of the National Diet Library Act:online materials set forth in Article 25-4, paragraph (1) of that Act that the person makes available pursuant to the provisions of that paragraph.