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3 Individuals Found Guilty for Illegally Distributing Manga in China
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
Three male individuals in Chengdu, Sichuan in China were found guilty in late February for violating copyright law and illegally distributing manga without their copyright owners' permission. The court sentenced two of the individuals to three years in prison, although the sentence is suspended for four years (they will not serve the time if they remain in good behavior for the indicated duration). The court leveled a three-year suspended sentence of two years in prison for the last individual, along with a fine.
Japan's Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA) collaborated with the investigation, and it is the first time the agency has collaborated with China in a foreign investigation.
The three individuals had set up a company in 2014, launched a website, and then used it to illegally distribute up to 5,216 manga from five different Japanese publishers, along with 23 South Korean manhwa. The company earned 1.8 million yuan (about 29.74 million yen or US$275,406) through affiliate ads.
Source: Sankei Biz
