[Article] Protection of avatar names and likenesses under intellectual property and other laws (Yasuyuki Echi, Patent, 2025 Special Issue No. 31)
更新日：10月9日
Article information
Content type: Publication review
Categories: Copyright / Trademarks / Unfair competition law / Other Japanese law
Issues: Copyrightability / Neighboring rights / Image rights / Publicity rights
First published on this site: 2026-10-03
Display and classification checked: 2026-10-03
[Article] Protection of avatar names and likenesses under intellectual property and other laws (Yasuyuki Echi, Patent, 2025 Special Issue No. 31)
1. Copyright law
① Names: Like character names, these are merely ideas, and copyright protection is denied.
② Likenesses (appearance): Avatars completed by combining parts and fine-tuning parameters in 3D avatar creation software are generally recognized as copyrightable works.
Individual parts: If a part is itself creative, its unauthorized use may also infringe.
2. Trademark law and the Unfair Competition Prevention Act
If an avatar serves to indicate the source of goods or services, protection under trademark rights or the Unfair Competition Prevention Act is possible.
3. Avatar movements and neighboring rights
① Motion capture: If the movements of the person behind the avatar are reflected with reasonable accuracy, this is considered that person's performance, and neighboring rights may be exercised against unauthorized recording or live streaming.
② Controller operation: Acts equivalent to operating a game character do not, in principle, constitute a performance.
③ Voice: Voice acting through an avatar is protected as the performer's rights.
4. New interpretation of likeness and publicity rights
“If one understands a person's likeness as that which identifies and specifies the person ..., there should be no obstacle to recognizing a CG avatar as her or his likeness, even if it does not reflect the actual appearance of the person behind the avatar at all.”
5. Coincidental identity and infringement liability
Even if there was no negligence at the time of generation, does continued use after becoming aware that it is identical to another person's likeness constitute infringement?
Original article: https://lnkd.in/gjNpxeTh
Original source shown in the LinkedIn preview: https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/patentsp/78/31/78_217/_pdf/-char/ja
Originally posted on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7511585118310903808/
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Update and correction history
Dated entries are added for corrections, supplements, classification, display, and related-article changes, separately from the first publication date.
2026-10-03: First publication on this site from the LinkedIn original.
Consultation guide by purpose: https://www.takaishihideki.com/en/single-post/consultation-guide-en
