JRRC is a public interest incorporated association designated by the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs, which centrally manages rights related to the reproduction and other secondary uses of copyrighted works.
JRRC manage reproduction rights for literary and visual works—including newspapers, magazines, books, academic articles, illustrations, photographs, and cartoons—granting licenses for lawful secondary use, collecting royalties, and distributing them to rightsholders.

1. Overview of JRRC

Name:
Public Interest Incorporated Association Japan Reproduction Rights Center (Abbreviation: JRRC)
Address:
7th Floor, Atago Toyo Building, 1-3-4 Atago, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Established:
September 30, 1991 / Registered No. 01008

• Authorized as an incorporated association: October 1, 1998
• Registered as a copyright management organization: November 14, 2001, Registration No. 01008
• Designated as a specified copyright management organization: March 7, 2002
• Certified as a Public Interest Incorporated Association: March 21, 2012

JRRC is a member of IFRRO (International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organisations).

2. Member and Related Organizations

JRRC’s member organizations are the following three bodies:

Related Organizations

• Japan Specialized Newspapers Association – http://senmonshinbun.or.jp/
• Japan Magazine Publishers Association (JMPA) – https://www.j-magazine.or.jp/
• Japan Publishing Copyright Organization (JPO) – http://www.jpca.jp.net/

3. Details of Works Managed by JRRC

Newspapers:
JRRC manages reproduction rights for 99 newspapers that are members of the Copyright Council of Newspapers of Japan (CCNP), including The Asahi Shimbun, The Mainichi Newspapers, The Yomiuri Shimbun, The Sankei Shimbun, and nearly all regional newspapers (a total of 68 publishers), as well as four Nikkei newspapers and more than 30 specialized newspapers.
For more information: https://www.ccnp.jp/
Magazines and Books:
Approximately 100,000 titles are under management.
Author s / Creators:
Approximately 15,000 creators, including novelists, artists, photographers, illustrators, and cartoonists.

Search the JRRC’s domestic Copyright Works Database: (Japanese version only)
https://duck.jrrc.or.jp/bibliography/search

4. JRRC’s Domestic Reproduction Licensing Services

Obtaining permission from each copyright owner individually is often difficult and time-consuming.
To simplify this process, JRRC provides reproduction licensing (rights clearance) services on behalf of rightsholders.

4-1 Scope of Mandate and Licensing Conditions:

(1)The work must be a Japanese copyrighted work or a work represented by a foreign Reproduction Rights Organization (RRO) that has entered into a Bilateral agreement with JRRC.
(2)Permitted uses include the following types of reproduction, facsimile transmission, and digital copying made from print and digital media ( below items b, c, and d may be selectively mandated by rightsholder):
a.Reproduction not for transfer (see Section 2 of the Royalty Tariff)

→ “Not for transfer” refers to internal use within an organization.
b.Reproduction for transfer, and distribution of reproduced copies (see Section 3 of the Royalty Tariff)
c.Facsimile transmission (see Section 4 of the Royalty Tariff)
d.Digital reproduction not for transfer (see Section 5 of the Royalty Tariff)
(3)Under JRRC’s license in Japan, the reproduction must be limited in scope, quantity, and scale.
→ The limit is the lesser of 30% or 60 pages of the publication; for newspapers, one article shall be counted as a single unit.
→ Up to 30 paper copies or shared access by up to 40 users for digital reproductions. For newspapers that are members of the CCNP, the storage of digital reproductions shall be limited to within two (2) months after reproduction; however, this limitation shall not apply to paper copies.
→ Within an organization, if each department has a different purpose of reproduction, the departments shall be treated as independent units based on their respective purposes, and reproductions may be made within the limits specified above for each purpose.
JRRC’s blanket license offers a reasonable and affordable fee structure, enabling organizations to reproduce copyrighted materials lawfully, safely, and efficiently.

4-2 Types of Licenses (Blanket and Transaction)

JRRC provides two types of licenses:
a Blanket License, which allows users to reproduce works within a predetermined scope under a comprehensive agreement, and a Transaction License, which covers reproduction on a pay-per-use basis.
JRRC’s mission is to promote the protection of copyright while facilitating the proper use of copyrighted works.

5. Agreements with Foreign RROs

JRRC has concluded bilateral agreements with foreign reproduction rights organisations for the purpose of cross-border reproduction rights.
Under these Bilateral Agreement, JRRC authorizes foreign RRO to grant reproduction rights for Japanese works within their respective jurisdictions.

（Illustration reference: “Relationship among Users (Licensees), Rightsholders, JRRC and Foreign RRO”)
Royalties collected by foreign RRO are remitted to JRRC and distributed to JRRC’s members. Conversely, royalties collected in Japan by JRRC are remitted to partner foreign RROs.

Current Partner RROs:

• NLA media access ltd. (United Kingdom) (tentative)
• Copyright Clearance Center (CCC, USA) (tentative)

List of works to be mandated to foreign RROs:

Note 1: “Paid-content articles” refer to articles that require a subscription agreement with the respective newspaper publisher to view their digital edition. Representative examples include:

• Articles presented in the same layout as the printed edition (page-viewer type), and
• Articles whose full text is available only to paid subscribers, typically marked with notices such as “subscription required beyond this point.”

Note 2: “Free-content articles” refer to articles that can be viewed in whole or in part on the publisher’s website without logging in or holding a subscription.
Note 3: With respect to works for which copyright is owned by each newspaper publisher, representative examples of works whose copyright does not belong to the publisher include contributed articles, reader submissions, serialized novels, and radio or television program listings.

6. JRRC’s Core Activities

JRRC carries out three (3) main activities to achieve its objectives.
(1) Licensing and royalty distribution
– Granting reproduction licenses for works entrusted by rightsholders, collecting royalties, and distributing them to the rightsholders.
(2) Copyright education and research
– Promoting understanding of copyright and conducting related studies.
(3) Consultation and advisory services
– Providing advice and information related to the use of copyrighted works.

7. Flow of Rights Management

(1) JRRC receives mandates from rightsholders to manage reproduction rights.
(2) JRRC concludes reproduction license agreements with users and collects royalties.
(3) JRRC distributes collected royalties to the rightsholders through their respective member organizations.

（Illustration reference: “Relationship among Users (Licensees), Rightsholders, and JRRC”)

8. Distribution of Royalties

Royalties collected from users are distributed to copyright owners through member organizations after deduction of administrative fees, in accordance with JRRC’s Distribution Rules.
Royalties received within a fiscal year are distributed by the end of the following fiscal year.

9. Data Collection

In cases where specific works used under a blanket license (simplified license) cannot be individually identified, JRRC conducts empirical usage surveys in cooperation with selected companies by industry sector, pursuant to Article 5 (“Survey on Actual Copying Practices”) of the Simplified Licensing Agreement.
Based on the results of these surveys, JRRC determines and allocates the royalty distribution amounts accordingly, ensuring fair distribution to rightsholders.

10. Contact Details for Foreign RROs and Licensees

International Relations Division
Japan Reproduction Rights Center (JRRC)
7F Atago Toyo Building, 1-3-4 Atago, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-0002, Japan
Email: intl@jrrc.or.jp