Is there a copyright fee for dressing up as an anime or game character? -. The government has started developing rules to prevent cosplay, which is becoming popular abroad, from becoming a copyright problem.

If you make a profit, the relationship with copyright law is ambiguous. We hope it will be a pillar of Cool Japan’s strategy to sell Japanese culture abroad and will support active development.

Japanese animation has a lot of fans abroad and the number of cosplay events has increased. If the cosplay is for non-commercial purposes, it does not violate copyright law, but if you post photos on membership exchange sites (SNS) like Instagram or get rewards at events, there is a chance that copyright infringement exists. ..

Shinji Inoue, Strategy Minister for Cool Japan, raised these issues at a press conference late last year. “Cosplay has broadened its base as a culture. We have to show the ideas of the country,” he said. The government has already begun to hear opinions from officials on the side of original author and popular cosplayer Enako, who has been appointed as an ambassador for Cool Japan.

The government is looking for ways to protect copyright without overwhelming the cosplay culture. If the enforcement of copyright law is too strict, the cosplay may part ways. First of all, it is difficult for cosplayers to obtain permission to use it because there is no contact with the original author.

At the moment, we do not anticipate amendments to the law, and a plan emerges to raise awareness by clarifying cases where royalties are required for copyright. Even in the Liberal Democratic Party, Taro Yamada, Assistant Secretary General of the Study Group on Intellectual Property Strategy, said: “We need a mechanism that both parties can enjoy with peace of mind,” and proposes to develop a database that allows copyright holders to be easily searched. (Joint)