Japan’s Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA) and the Motion Picture Association (MPA) of the United States have renewed their memorandum of understanding (MOU), with the aim of further strengthening cooperation in combating online copyright infringement and promoting copyright protection activities.

According to a joint press release yesterday, the signing ceremony was held on April 10 at MPA headquarters in Washington. The renewal follows the previous update in April 2024 and marks the sixth renewal since the initial agreement was signed in March 2014.

On the day of the ceremony, Larissa L. Knapp, Executive Vice President and Chief Content Protection Officer of MPA, and  CODA’s Representative Director Takero Goto (both in the picture) signed the agreement and reaffirmed their commitment to continued close collaboration in advancing global anti-piracy efforts.

CODA and MPA began their cooperation in 2005 through a business alliance focused on combating physical piracy in the Asia region. Since then, the two organizations have built a strong collaborative relationship over the past 21 years. In 2014, they further strengthened their partnership by concluding this MoU.

Through joint enforcement activities conducted in cooperation, primarily in the Asia-Pacific region, numerous measures have been implemented, resulting in tens of thousands of enforcement actions and significant achievements, the press releases asserted.

CODA was established in 2002 at the call of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Agency for Cultural Affairs to promote the overseas development of Japanese content and take anti-piracy measures. Japanese content, including music, movies, anime, broadcast programmes, video games and publishing, plays an important role in enhancing the nation’s international presence and economic growth, the organisation said.

Both the MPA and CODA engage in joint enforcement. When MPA finds pirated copies of Japanese content through their investigation, CODA joins forces with them to take appropriate measures against the infringer. The initiatives have been carried out since 2005 in order to seek further support from local regulatory bodies in Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, where a relatively large volume of pirated copies are distributed, and they have resulted in considerable achievements.

CODA will continue to deepen its collaboration with MPA and promote initiatives aimed at protecting intellectual property rights and encouraging the distribution of legitimate content, the statement said.