With the recent news about a ring tunes site being busted for offering illegal downloads, a site that apparently almost all middle and high-school children know, this survey from the Cabinet Office Japan looking into intellectual property is well-timed. Suspiciously well-timed.
Demographics
3,000 members of the public were randomly selected from resident registers, and face-to-face interviews took place between the 11th and 21st of September 2008. 1,770 people, or 59.0%, were available and agreed to be interviewed. The demographic information has not been made public yet, but as these Cabinet Office surveys are usually face-to-face interviews they tend to catch an older demographic, as can be seen in Q4 where over half the sample never or almost never access the internet.
This is quite a relevant survey in other ways too as I read just today an article on Global Voices Online about new copyright protection laws being proposed in Japan, where I read much to my surprise that it is not actually illegal to download copyright-infringing material, even if one is aware that the contents are not correctly licensed!
There is also no attempt to differentiate between legal and illegal free contents, just anything privately shared must be bad.
Research results
Q1: In the last few years, have you or anyone close to you bought items either in Japan, abroad, or over the internet aware of them being fake? (Sample size=1,770)
| Yes, often |
9.9% |
| Yes, sometimes |
24.2% |
| No, almost never |
17.5% |
| No, never |
47.2% |
| Don’t know |
1.2% |
Q2: If you are aware of something being fake, what do you think regarding purchasing it? (Sample size=1,770)
| No matter the excuse, they should not be purchased |
39.9% |
| If they are cheaper than the original, it’s inevitable that they will be purchased |
27.3% |
| If they have a design or are a product that the original brand doesn’t have, it’s inevitable that they will be purchased |
7.5% |
| If they are being sold openly, it’s inevitable that they will be purchased |
17.6% |
| Other |
2.1% |
| Don’t know |
5.5% |
Q3: Did you know that the government is running a campaign to eliminate fakes and pirate items covering posters, television advertisements, internet, etc? (Sample size=1,770)
| Knew it well |
20.4% |
| Knew a bit about it |
34.1% |
| Didn’t really know about it |
23.2% |
| Didn’t know about it at all |
20.2% |
| Don’t know |
2.1% |
Q4: How often do you use the internet for work or private use, from computer or mobile phone, for web pages or email, etc? (Sample size=1,770)
| Use it almost every day |
29.1% |
| Sometimes use it |
16.9% |
| Rarely use it |
7.3% |
| Never use it |
45.8% |
| Don’t know |
0.9% |
Q5: In the last few years, have you ever come across privately-shared movies, animations, television programs, music games, etc on the internet? (Sample size=1,770)
| Often |
14.0% |
| Sometimes |
19.8% |
| Rarely |
15.3% |
| Never |
48.0% |
| Don’t know |
2.9% |
Q6: Did you know that as a rule, offering or sharing someone else’s intellectual property over the internet is illegal? (Sample size=1,770)
| Knew that |
75.8% |
| Didn’t know that |
24.2% |
Q7: Which of the following measures do you think would be effective in counteracting illegal offering or sharing of material over the internet? (Sample size=1,770, multiple answer)
| Strengthen penalties for illegal activity |
53.8% |
| Strengthen control of illegal activity |
51.8% |
| Promote self-policing by site operators, service providers |
31.8% |
| Publicity regarding the elimination of illegal activity |
29.2% |
| Cooperating with countries where copyright infringement, etc, is happening |
22.8% |
| Other |
0.4% |
| Nothing in particular |
6.3% |
| Don’t know |
11.4% |
With the recent news about a ring tunes site being busted for offering illegal downloads, a site that apparently almost all middle and high-school children know, this survey from the Cabinet Office Japan looking into intellectual property is well-timed. Suspiciously well-timed.
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