Komada Yasuto

Abstract Digital items that have the appearance of real utilitarian products are often tied to NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) in the virtual space known as the metaverse, and sold as goods. The designs of real utilitarian products are increasingly being converted into the designs of such NFT goods without the permission of their developers. In order to deal with these imitations, which intersect the real and the virtual worlds, the Japanese legislator decided to utilize the existing provision for the protection of forms of goods in the unfair competition prevention law (UCPA 1993). The law was amended in June 2023 to newly define ‘the act of offering through telecommunication line’ goods that imitate the form of another person’s goods as an act of unfair competition. Copyright protection under Japanese case law has rarely been granted to designs of utilitarian products, and under Japanese design law the product design is identified not only by its shape but also by its product type. The protection of image designs is almost exclusively limited to specific images unrelated to the NFT goods. However, the revised provision of UCPA 1993 has also been generally interpreted as the provision prohibiting the imitation of designs between homogeneous products. The amendment effectively negates this interpretation. This paper reveals the impact on the existing interpretation of the relevant provision of UCPA 1993 and the issues arising from other legal provisions with respect to such imitations.