Scanlation laws and Etiquette
(Before I write, please allow me to apologise in advance; I've not been active on reddit for a while now, so I'd ask for everyone to be understanding and patient as I've not posted, so I'm still catching up in regards to reddit "etiquette".)
Hello, everyone! Wishing you well.
First time posting here, hopefully the post is within the rules.
I'm writing to ask something that I've been trying to wrap my head around for a good few years now, and that is what are the laws like when referring to scanlation?
Or, in a different vein - What are your thoughts on the laws of scanlation?
The very simple reason being that I'm currently living in Japan, and I've been dipping my toes more and more into scanlation/translation.
I'd also like to state that -
- I've already done a fair bit of research into Japanese laws on translation/scanlation
- I'm slowly building up a portfolio and upping my skills
- I'm not asking for advice or tips (at least in this post)
- I'm looking for everyone's views***
[*I understand that every country's law is different, and unless someone has solid evidence regarding certain laws, it's best to look from a perspective point of view]
Furthermore, as far as I know, the laws in Japan do state that translating an official/copyrighted work is technically illegal since it belongs to a company/author. But there's also a whopping big grey area regarding doujins, independent artists, and even simple online web comics.
EDIT: I see now that I've been getting confused between the 'grey area' and the laws on 'scanlation'. Whilst I continue to understand it all, allow me to thank everyone so far on their input.
I'm trying to approach as respectful as possible, but at the same time there's so much amazing work that I really want to translate and publish (provided I have permission, and aren't gaining monetary gain)
If anyone can shed any light, advice, experience or views on the above, I'll ask to please respectfully comment below.
(Bit of a wall of text, apologies.)