Osaka –
Police in Osaka Prefecture have arrested a 66-year-old man for alleged copyright infringement by selling a colorized copy of the first “Godzilla” film without permission.
Ippei Miyamoto, a part-time worker in the Osaka city of Toyonaka, has admitted to the allegation, according to investigative sources.
Miyamoto is suspected of selling a DVD copy of the 1954 film, copyrighted by Toho, for ¥2,980 in mid-November last year.
According to police sources, he allegedly used image conversion software to colorize old black-and-white films and created pirated DVDs, which he sold on flea market websites and his own website.
While the copyright protection period for films is currently 70 years after release, Japan’s former copyright law, replaced in 1971, set the period at 38 years after the creator’s death.
As the Godzilla film’s creator, director Ishiro Honda died in 1993, police determined that the film’s copyright will last until the end of 2031.
The arrest came after a report from the Content Overseas Distribution Association in January. Police believe that Miyamoto pirated other copyrighted works in addition to Godzilla.
AloJapan.com