On December 12, 2024, local time in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, CODA conducted a “knock-and-talk” (direct negotiation) operation against the operator of a malicious Japanese anime piracy website, confirming its closure.
Earlier, on December 4, CODA conducted a similar knock-and-talk operation in São Paulo, confirming the closure of a total of 15 piracy websites. This recent closure was also achieved through a joint enforcement effort.
CODA employs four countermeasures against piracy websites as part of its joint enforcement efforts: criminal prosecution, civil lawsuits, administrative penalties (applicable to countries such as China and Vietnam), and knock-and-talk (direct negotiation). Depending on the circumstances of each case, CODA selects the most appropriate measure. In cases where criminal prosecution in the operator’s residing country may take time, knock-and-talk is chosen as a practical solution after a comprehensive consideration of factors such as the scale of damages and the urgency of the situation. The knock-and-talk approach was deemed the most appropriate and effective measure for resolving this case.
The recent knock-and-talk operation in Brazil was conducted with the approval of three companies: Toei Animation Co., Ltd., Toho Co., Ltd., and Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc.
The website confirmed to be closed was rine.cloud, ranked as the seventh most accessed Japanese anime piracy site in Brazil. Similar to many other piracy websites targeted by CODA’s countermeasures in Brazil, this site operated as an “overseas-origin, overseas-targeted” piracy platform for Japanese content. It implemented geo-blocking to prevent access from Japanese IP addresses, making it difficult for Japanese rights holders to detect copyright violations. The site also provided Portuguese subtitles for Japanese anime, targeting Brazilian audiences and generating unlawful advertising revenue.
The website’s monthly average number of visits over the past three months (September–November 2024) reached approximately 2.74 million (※). CODA has also obtained voluntary submission (transfer) of the site’s domain. Currently, access to the site is redirected to a page managed by CODA, notifying users of its closure.
CODA emphasizes the importance of fostering a global mindset of “not using piracy websites” to prevent copyright infringement activities from being further encouraged by advertising revenue, even overseas. The act of infringing on content created through the time, effort, and resources of creators to generate unjust advertising income is highly malicious and cannot be tolerated.
CODA will continue to ensure the proper protection of copyrights and implement effective countermeasures against piracy websites. This activity was conducted as part of a project commissioned by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry.
※: Data source: SimilarWeb
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About CODA
CODA (Content Overseas Distribution Association) was established in 2002 at the call of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Agency for Cultural Affairs to promote the overseas development of Japanese content and take anti-piracy measures. Japan’s proud content, including music, movies, anime, broadcast programs, video games, and publishing, plays an important role in enhancing the nation’s international presence and economic growth. As digital technology becomes more widespread, it is even more significant to protect Japan’s content from increasingly artful copyright infringement and promote the content industry’s development. CODA contributes to the deterrence and detection of online and other piracy, by sharing knowledge with relevant government agencies, organizations, and companies in Japan and abroad, to engage in direct and indirect anti-piracy measures, as well as public relations activities. Visit https://coda-cj.jp/en/activity/ for more information on CODA’s projects.