Research Guides: Japanese Studies Resource: Copyright Research

OSU Copyright Resources

Resources on Japanese Copyright

NDL Guide on how to find author information and date of death
Find information on author and publisher from NDL-OPAC. Information on copyright protection for individual book can also be found in NDL's record.
Guide to finding an author's year of death (National Diet Library Newsletter)
English article published by the National Diet Library on how to verify an author's year of death in order to determine the copyright status.

著作権情報センター [electronic resource]
The Copyright Research and Information Center is a membership organization with programs, services, and activities to support the copyright system in Japan. The web site includes an introduction to the Japanese copyright system, frequently asked questions and answers about copyright, a database of copyright law and related materials, a catalog of the center's library, a list of the center's publications, and other resources. The English language site provides information about the Japanese copyright system useful to those outside Japan, but does not include everything in the Japanese site

Audiovisual Rights Management Association
Image Use Protocol (NCC)
Designed to give basic guidance to North American Japanese studies scholars who seek permissions for the use of Japanese images particularly in scholarly publications. Includes templates for bilingual letters to request permission for use of Japanese images.

Contact Information on Publishers & Authors

Resources to find address, phone number or e-mail for publishers and some authors.

著作權臺帳. 文化人名錄 by 日本著作權協議會
Call Number: DS834.A1 C5
ISBN: 0529-407X
Annual publication issued until 1996. The publication contains contact and information on individual authors and their copyright status.
文芸年鑑 by 日本文芸家協会
Call Number: PL701 .B85
日本の出版社 by 出版ニュース社出版年鑑編集部編集
Call Number: Z463.5 .N53

Wikipedia - 日本の出版社一覧
Japan Book Publishers Association 日本書籍出版協会
List of members in the Japan Book Publishers Association 日本書籍出版協会. The English list includes the email contact for the foreign rights/trade department/personnel in many of the publishers

Questions about copyright?

Contact Copyright Services for assistance:

Call: 614-688-5849

Email: libcopyright@osu.edu

Website: go.osu.edu/copyright

Visit: Copyright Services
Thompson Library, Suite 350
1858 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH

Japanese Calendrical Systems

Two number systems for years are commonly used in Japan:

Gregorian Calendar - the western calendar year system commonly used in US. e.g. 2015
Nengō 年号 - calendar year system based on the reigns of emperors.e.g. Heisei 27 or 平成二十七年

Japanese year converter

Japanese Romanization Standards

Most North American academic libraries follow the Library of Congress' Japanese romanization rules. Many Japanese libraries use either Modified Hepburn or Kunreishiki romanization. Please see the following links for more information on various romanization standards.

Library of Congress Romanization

Searching Japanese Materials in Library Catalogs (video)