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Mangamura

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Mangamura
Screenshot of Mangamura
Native name
漫画村
Type of site
Online piracy
Available inJapanese
FoundedJanuary 2016[1]
DissolvedApril 2018[1]
Country of originJapan
OwnerRomi Hoshino (星野 ロミ)
CommercialYes
RegistrationOptional

Mangamura (漫画村, lit. 'manga village') was a Japanese piracy website that primarily hosted popular Japanese manga books.[2] Besides manga books, it also hosted pirated copies of magazines and photo-books.[3] It was shut down in April 2018.[1]

Launch and rise to popularity

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The site was launch in January 2016 by Romi Hoshino (星野 ロミ) or his pen name Zakay Romi.[4][1]

Mangamura spiked in popularity in 2017. According to Similarweb, an estimated 98 million people visited the website in January 2018, placing it the thirty-first most visited website in Japan that month.[5] Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA), an association of Japanese copyright-holding companies, said that the site had been accessed about 620 million times between September 2017 and February 2018, and claimed that this had caused ¥319.2 billion (2021) (US$2.91 billion) worth of damages to copyright holders in Japan.[6]

In 2017, Kodansha and multiple other publishers filed a criminal complaint against Mangamura for alleged violation of the copyright law of Japan.[7] In February 2018, Manga Japan (マンガジャパン), an association of manga artists, issued a statement urging people not to visit the website.[8]

In March 2018, Mangamura announced its paid subscription plan named Mangamura Pro (漫画村プロ).[9]

Shutdown and arrest

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On April 13, 2018, the Japanese government announced its plans to begin considering measures to block traffic to piracy sites from the country, and requested internet service providers in the country to stop providing access to the three piracy sites named, including Mangamura.[10] This move was criticized by a number of legal professionals and ISP industry groups, including the Japan Internet Providers Association [ja], who deemed it in violation of the right to secrecy of communications guaranteed by Article 21 of the Japanese constitution.[11] On April 17, the Mangamura website became inaccessible. It has been speculated that operator of the website may have closed it themselves.[12]

On May 14 the same year, multiple major news outlets reported that the Fukuoka Prefectural Police [ja] had opened a criminal investigation into the website on suspicion of copyright infringement.[7] On July 7, 2019, operator of Mangamura, Romi Hoshino (星野 ロミ), was caught by the National Bureau of Investigation in the Philippines. Wataru Adachi, another person associated with the site, as well as Hoshino's friends Kōta Fujisaki and Shiho Itō were arrested in August 2019. Fujisaki pleaded guilty, while Itō pleaded innocent in their arraignment in September 2019.[13] On June 2, 2021, the Fukuoka District Court [ja] found Hoshino guilty of violating the copyright law and other charges, and sentenced him to three years in prison.[14]

In 2020, the Japan Cartoonists Association issued a joint statement with Shuppan Koho Center (出版広報センター) in favor of revising the Japanese copyright law to make it illegal to download pirated materials in order to protect young artists from piracy.[15]

Lawsuit

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In July 2022, Japanese publishers Shogakukan, Shueisha and Kadokawa filed a lawsuit against the site for ¥1.9 billion (2022) (US$14.45 million) at the Tokyo District Court. The number represents estimated damages to the company from piracy of 441 volumes from 17 manga.[a] [13]

On April 17, 2024, The Tokyo District Court ordered the former owner of the site to pay the Japanese Publishers Shogakukan, Shueisha and Kadokawa ¥1.7 billion (US$15.49 million).[4]

Notes

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  1. ^ The manga mentioned in the lawsuit are One Piece, Kingdom, YAWARA!, Dorohedoro, Overlord, Sgt. Frog, Wise Man's Grandchild, The Rising of the Shield Hero, Trinity Seven, Hinamatsuri, Erased, Mushoku Tensei, Golden Rough, Kanojo wa Uso o Ai Shisugiteru, Karakuri Circus, Kengan Ashura, and Tasogare Ryūseigun[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Santos, Tina (July 10, 2019). "Manager of illegal manga website caught". Inquirer. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  2. ^ Shimazaki, Akane; Tanahashi, Satsuki (2019-09-24). "「漫画村」運営者？星野容疑者を逮捕 著作権法違反容疑" [Is he operator of Mangamura? Hoshino arrested on suspicion of copyright infringement]. The Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  3. ^ "漫画村とは" [What is Mangamura?]. Mangamura. Archived from the original on 2018-03-03. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  4. ^ a b Hodgkins, Crystalyn (April 18, 2024). "Mangamura Pirate Site Owner Ordered to Pay 1.7 Billion Yen to Shueisha, Shogakukan, Kadokawa". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  5. ^ "海賊サイト「漫画村」10〜20代の意識調査 「存在を知っていても購入する」が7割". KAI-YOU.net (in Japanese). 2018-01-20. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  6. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (June 2, 2021). "Fukuoka Court Hands Guilty Sentence to Mangamura Piracy Site Administrator". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  7. ^ a b "海賊版サイト捜査開始＝著作権法違反容疑－福岡県警など" [The Fukuoka Prefectural Police to open investigations into pirate sites on suspicion of copyright infringement]. Jiji Press (in Japanese). 2018-05-14. Archived from the original on 2018-05-14. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  8. ^ "「漫画村」についての見解" [Our views on Mangamura] (in Japanese). Manga Japan. 2018-02-19. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  9. ^ Maeda, Sunehiko (2019-07-13). "被害額は3200億円とも ついに「漫画村」に捜査のメス、ヘビーユーザーは取調べも？". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  10. ^ "海賊サイトブロッキング、対象は「漫画村」「Anitube」「Miomio」の3サイト 法整備に伴い"静止画ダウンロード違法化"も視野に". Netorabo (in Japanese). 2018-04-13. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  11. ^ Tanaka, Tetsu (2018-08-06). "「漫画村」ブロッキング: 誰が、どんな経緯で動いたのか". Yahoo! News (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-01-01.
  12. ^ Sudo, Tatsuya (2018-04-17). "海賊版サイト「漫画村」に接続できず 運営側自ら閉鎖か" [Unable to connect to the piracy site "Mangamura": the operator may have closed it themselves]. The Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  13. ^ a b c Mateo, Alex (July 29, 2022). "Kadokawa, Shueisha, Shogakukan Sue Mangamura Pirate Site for 1.9 Billion Yen". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  14. ^ Kazuki, Nunota (2021-06-02). "'Mastermind' of pirated manga site sentenced to 3 years in prison". The Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  15. ^ "「若き才能、そして夢」奪う。日本漫画家協会、海賊版対策で著作権法の改正求める声明を発表" ["Takes away young people's talents and dreams": the Japan Cartoonists Association to issue a statement in favor of revising the copyright law to combat piracy]. The Huffington Post (in Japanese). 2020-02-04. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
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