Manga publishers of major importance in Japan are planning to file an indictment against the admin who runs one of the biggest manga-watching illegal websites in the world. A US court ruling has allowed them to determine the site’s owner and his location.
Four publishers, including Shueisha, have accused the pirate site “Manga Bank” of infringing copyrights. They claim that the site’s operator has posted all their comics or magazines without their permission.
Shueisha requested a US tribunal in November to order Google and other Internet companies to release information about the company’s operator. The court wanted to know the operators’ names, addresses, IP addresses, phone numbers, and other details.
Last Friday, court-ordered internet platforms to reveal the relevant details. A site called “Manga-mura,” or manga village was the first manga website illegal in Japan. In June, the site’s owner was sentenced to three years ‘ prison for copyright violations, among other abuses.
Manga Bank then replaced Manga-mura. The audience visited the site about 8 million times during one month. The place was then shut down in November. The four publishers are planning to file a damages suit along with filing a criminal lawsuit.
A Shueisha representative, Ito Atsushi, says it is the responsibility of publishers to safeguard work that authors have devoted themselves to writing and offer them to the public in the correct format. Ito has committed to fighting against websites that promote piracy.
The lawyer representing publishers, Nakajima Hiroyuki, claims pirate websites’ operators are identified by legal action even if they utilize servers in other countries. He also said that the possibility of taking legal actions regarding this Manga Bank case would help to stop individuals from operating illegal websites.
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