A 53-year-old man, Shinobu Yoshida, was sentenced to 2 years in prison in Japan for uploading copyright-protected material to YouTube. We at MeinMMO explain what this case is about.
What is this case about? In May 2023, the 53-year-old Japanese man, Shinobu Yoshida, was arrested for uploading gameplay material from games as well as summaries of anime episodes to his YouTube channel.
Specifically, it is said to concern 3 videos from 2019 about the visual novel Steins;Gate: My Darling’s Embrace (featured in the title image). The colleagues at GameStar reported on the case at that time.
On September 7, 2023, Yoshida was sentenced by the Sendai District Court to 2 years in prison, 5 years of probation, and a payment of 1 million yen, equivalent to approximately 6,300 euros. According to the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun, this is said to be the first conviction of its kind.
Instead of a Copyright Strike, There is Prison Time
Why is the penalty so high? The videos in question are classified as “fast content”. They show story elements including spoilers and possible endings, and present them in a shortened and commented form (via PC Gamer). This was done without permission from the publishers.
This allegedly leads consumers not to purchase the media shown themselves and undermines the effort that went into creating the original content, according to the Content Overseas Distribution Agency (CODA), which acted as the prosecutor.
Yoshida’s videos were also monetized, which, according to The Verge, violates Japanese law. It is not allowed to make money with copyright-protected material. The 53-year-old admitted during a hearing on August 2 that he knew his actions were illegal.
However, the defense stated in court that he had not acted with malicious intent and only wanted to share his hobby with others.
The CODA stated in a press release that they will continue to strive to curb the unauthorized use of Japanese content and promote healthy, authorized distribution where content is properly protected.
Surprisingly hefty could also be the penalty for a thief in the USA who stole collectible cards from various TCGs from a supermarket. He faces 20 years in prison because he took a few too many packs.
