On October 9, the Osaka High Court acquitted the developer of the file sharing software Winny of abetting the illegal copying over the internet. The prosecutors appealed to the Supreme Court.
Winny enables computers to exchange files without revealing their IP addresses on a peer-to-peer network and makes online tracking impossible. This anonymity attracted a large number of illegal users; however, the developer continued updating the software. In 2003, two Winny users uploading video games and movie files to the Winny network were charged, and the developer was arrested for aiding them in 2004.
In 2006, the Kyoto District Court ruled that "the Winny technology itself is 'value-neutral' regardless of the purpose to be developed". It also decided that the developer was guilty because he released and updated the software despite being aware that large numbers of users were using the software for illegal online copying, and fined him ¥1.5 million yen ($16,000).
The High Court acknowledged that Winny technology itself is value-neutral and ruled that supplying value-neutral software while merely being aware of the possibility that the software could be misused does not constitute a crime of aiding users with violating copyright law. The court further stated that the developer should be accused of aiding a crime only if he instigated such unlawful use or supplied the software while acknowledging that the main use of the provided software would result in copyright violations. The High Court acquitted the developer because he repeatedly warned users against illegal file sharing and did not induce users into copyright infringement. This standard seems similar to the US Supreme court Grokster decision, because both courts stressed the importance of whether a software provider instigated unlawful use.
 |
| Takashi Nakazaki |
Anderson Mori & Tomotsune
Izumi Garden Tower
6-1, Roppongi 1-chome
Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-6036
Japan
Tel: +81 3 6888 1101
Fax: +81 3 6888 3101
takashi.nakazaki@amt-law.com
www.amt-law.com/professional/profile/TAN