The flexible copyright exception for 'non-enjoyment' purposes: recent amendment in Japan and its implication

AI training and copyright

Can AI be trained on protected works?

Freely allowed

Uses that don't 'enjoy' a work, including commercial data mining, fall outside copyright's purpose

What it says

Ueno explains Article 30-4 of the Japanese Copyright Act, which permits any use not aimed at enjoying a work, including commercial text and data mining. Its rationale is that such uses do not affect rightholders' chance of being paid for enjoyment of their works, an idea he finds echoed in European theories.

The leading account, in English, of the Japanese rule that makes Japan one of the most training-friendly systems.

Sources