"Hello Kitty" is Japan's Copyright Public Relations Ambassador

Written by:

Jei Beltrano

Published on:

August 4, 2020 at 2:21 PM PHT (GMT +8:00)

Sanrio's famous character "Hello Kitty" was appointed as Japan's Copyright Public Relations (PR) Ambassador by The Education and Culture Ministry of Japan at a formal ceremony held last Wednesday, July 29, 2020. The character will be appearing in PR materials and videos in order to spread awareness about Copyright infringement issues.

Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Koichi Haguida was present at the ceremony with a Hello Kitty mascot to officially inked the promotion.

It was reported June of this year that Japan's parliament enacted the proposed revised copyright law to expand the law to punish those who knowingly download illegally uploaded or pirated manga, magazines, and academic works. The revised law will go into effect on January 1 and penalties for repeat offenders of illegal downloads will be up to two years in jail or a maximum fine of 2 million yen (about Php 1 million), or both. Penalties for those operating illegal sites include up to five years in jail or a maximum fine of 5 million yen (about Php 2.5 million), or both.