Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)

Rule Changes

Considering adding voice and portrait to the Unfair Competition Prevention Act

On September 30, 2026, the Tokyo District Court ruled that a person's voice can be protected under publicity rights, Japan's first such finding. The ruling came in voice actor Kenjiro Tsuda's suit over TikTok videos narrated with an AI imitation of his voice; the court dismissed his removal request because the poster had already deleted the account.

Updated Oct 18