Japanese copyright groups are demanding an end to what they say is unfair punishment against Japan for World War II.
The punitive measure was imposed on Japan not for its military actions, but over its failure to pay royalties to its enemies for music, novels and art released before and during the war.
Under the San Francisco Peace Treaty signed in 1951, Japan has been obliged to pay royalties on these materials to the United States, Britain, France and 12 other victor nations for around 10 years longer than the normal period.
“It is a penalty that has only been imposed on Japan,” said Shunichi Tokura, chairman of the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC).
JASRAC plans to call on Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida on Feb. 25 to start international talks on changing the situation.
Other Japanese groups handling copyright issues for foreign novels and artworks have also been putting pressure on the government to work toward ending the penalty. They see a chance for change with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pushing a more assertive diplomacy.
Japan’s Copyright Law stipulates that the copyrights remain valid until 50 years after the death of the author or artist.
But copyrighted materials from the victor nations are treated as exceptions under a law based on the San Francisco Peace Treaty, which took effect in 1952 and allowed Japan to restore its sovereignty.
During World War II, materials from the warring nations were not well protected in Japan, and the country failed to pay the full amount it owed.
The copyright issue was raised during negotiations for the peace treaty.
The Japanese law based on the treaty requires Japan to pay royalties to 15 members of the Allied Powers for up to around 3,000 days longer than the legal copyright protection period.
Under the legislation, for example, Japan will pay royalties for Charlie Chaplin’s song “Smile” until May 21, 2038. Without the rule, the payment period would end in December 2027, 50 years after Chaplin’s death.
The punitive measure was also imposed on Axis nation Italy but was scrapped when the country joined the European Community, which became the basis of the European Union.
Germany became exempt from the additional payment period after it negotiated with relevant nations over the issue.
Japanese officials discussed plans to scrap the international rule when they prepared to overhaul the Copyright Law in 1970. But the talks did not go beyond Japan’s borders.
JASRAC said it collected 160 million yen ($1.72 million) in 2012 to pay royalties for foreign music under this arrangement, with 70 to 80 percent of the sum going to the United States.
The total would be several times that amount if novels and movies were included, industry officials said.
In a written request to Kishida, JASRAC will call for an early resolution of the issue.
“Both victorious nations and defeated nations were in a similar situation in that copyrights (for these materials) were not protected (before and during the war),” the draft request said. “The war will not be over unless the issue of the additional payment period imposed on Japan is resolved at an early date.”
According to officials familiar with the issue, Japan needs to hold talks with each of the 15 nations to establish a new rule that effectively abolishes the punitive measure because revising the San Francisco Peace Treaty would be difficult.
(This article was written by Naoki Kimura and Yasukazu Akada.)
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