Japan and Seven Other Countries Sign ACTA
Signing Ceremony Held in Tokyo
Japan and seven other countries signed the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) in Tokyo on October 1. ACTA is an international agreement that is intended to combat the counterfeiting and pirating of goods through international cooperation and enforcement. The other signatories of ACTA are America, Australia, Canada, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, and South Korea.
ACTA entitles right holders to civil judicial procedures to enforce IP rights, with the availability of damages and injunctive relief. ACTA also provides for border measures related to imports, exports, and in-transit goods, which allow the right holder to request customs authorities to suspend the release of goods. Customs authorities will have the authority to act upon their own initiative regarding the suspension of the release of goods, and may order the destruction of goods upon a finding of infringement. ACTA also calls for criminal procedures and penalties for certain cases.
ACTA remains open for signing by other WTO members until May 2013. It will not go into force until ratified by six signatories.
ACTA has been controversial because of privacy and freedom of expression concerns, and because the negotiations leading up to the signing have been secret. Some have speculated that ratification by six signatories will not be easy.
In Japan, protection is quite strong for right holders. Article 4, Clause 1 of Japan’s Internet Service Provider Responsibility Restraint Law (known as the purobaida sekinin seigen-ho in Japanese) requires internet service providers to disclose the names and addresses of internet users who infringe the rights of others. The Japan Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry provides details here of the remedies available to right holders whose IP rights have been infringed, including civil court procedures, requesting criminal prosecution, and requesting a suspension at customs. In addition, the Japan Customs Law prohibits the importation of goods that infringe upon intellectual property rights. The punishment for violating the applicable provisions of the Customs Law is imprisonment of up to 10 years and/or a fine of up to 10 million yen, plus confiscation and destruction of the goods.
Click here to learn about nipponCompass’s services for tracking copyright infringement over the internet.
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