[Research Contribution] Japan’s Experience in Protecting Intellectual Property in the Digital Environment and Policy Implications for Vietnam
11 March, 2025
Keywords: digital economy, digital space, digital environment, legal regulations, intellectual property rights, intellectual property.
In the context of the digital economy rapidly transforming how people create, transact, and access knowledge, many countries – including Japan and Vietnam – face the urgent need to effectively protect intellectual property in the digital space. In Japan, this issue is given top priority, as evidenced by the continuous updating and refinement of legislation related to copyright, industrial property, and digital data to address infringement, enhance transparency, and ensure fairness for creative entities. The following article analyzes how Japan has constructed its legal framework for intellectual property protection in the digital environment and the lessons drawn from its implementation in practice. On that basis, it offers a number of policy suggestions for Vietnam in the process of refining intellectual property protection legislation suited to the digital era.
When Intellectual Property Enters the Era of Comprehensive Digitalization
The powerful shift toward the digital economy is fundamentally changing how nations create and exploit value from knowledge, technology, and data. Within this trend, intellectual property – long the foundation of innovation – has become the most directly impacted subject, as creative activities, content storage, and distribution are being digitized on a massive scale. Japan, a nation at the forefront of technology and digital infrastructure, recognized early on the new risks in managing intellectual property in the online space, from unauthorized copying and opaque data exploitation to unfair competitive practices on digital platforms.
Meanwhile, Vietnam is vigorously pursuing digital transformation and international economic integration, requiring its intellectual property legal system to adapt swiftly to the new landscape. Given this imperative, studying Japan’s experience – a country with a relatively comprehensive legal system that is continuously updated for the digital environment – carries significant importance. This context lays the foundation for research aimed at analyzing how Japan designs and operates intellectual property protection policies in the digital era, thereby drawing relevant policy implications for Vietnam.
Japan and the Journey of Building a “Legal Shield” for Intellectual Property in the Digital Era
Japan – one of the countries leading digital transformation in Asia – recognized early on that protecting intellectual property – which is becoming a “fragile resource” amid the vast digital space – is not merely a legal matter, but also the foundation of trust, creativity, and national competitiveness.
The author illustrates how Japan has established a multi-layered legal ecosystem, where components are not isolated but mutually reinforcing, to ensure that creative activities are adequately protected and the digital environment does not become a legal “gray zone.”
1. Copyright in the Digital Environment: Continuous Adjustments to Keep Pace with Emerging Behaviors
In the online environment, the right to copy and share works are the two areas generating the most disputes. Japan therefore consistently treats this as a domain requiring frequent updates to ensure that infringing acts can be addressed quickly and appropriately.
Recent amendments have focused on expanding the scope of regulation over the use of works in the digital space. Japan pays particular attention to forms of unauthorized copying, methods of content redistribution, and new modes of exploitation that did not exist in the traditional environment.
However, legislation is not solely about “tightening.” A noteworthy point is that Japan has also introduced legitimate exceptions to serve academic research, innovation, and education – fields that all require access to information for development. The simultaneous protection of authors and facilitation of fair use reflects Japan’s balanced approach: safeguarding rights without impeding the flow of creativity.
2. Industrial Property Rights: Expanding Protection and Digitizing Procedures
For industrial property rights, Japan has pursued adjustments in two directions: enhancing the capacity for protection and improving enforcement effectiveness.
On one hand, the scope of protection has been expanded to better encompass innovations arising in the digital environment, from designs and inventions to industrial identity elements. This reflects the changing nature of innovation – when many products and services today are deployed primarily on digital platforms and are no longer limited to tangible objects.
On the other hand, the industrial property rights management system has been extensively digitized. Registration, monitoring, updating, and information processing procedures have been simplified to align with the needs of businesses and individuals in the digital era, where the pace of innovation is ever-accelerating and protection requirements must be met in a timely manner.
This approach ensures that the protection system is not only “legally comprehensive” but also flexible in enforcement – a necessary element for supporting businesses as they compete in the global digital environment.
3. Data and Electronic Transactions: A Period of Intensive Reform from 2016–2021
From 2016 to 2021, Japan entered a phase of deep and extensive legal refinement related to data and electronic transactions. The backdrop was the rapid increase in data collection, processing, and storage activities on the Internet, alongside the strong growth of online transaction models.
The adjustments during this period aimed to create a clear legal corridor for entities participating in transactions in the digital environment. Regulations were supplemented to ensure information security, the legality of transactions, and the ability to control risks during data processing.
Notably, the adjustments were not merely reactive to problems that had already emerged but also preparatory for new forms of data exchange, in line with the development trajectory of the digital economy. This effort helped Japan maintain the trust of users and businesses as they transitioned to online operating models.
4. Responsibility of Digital Platforms: Establishing Transparency Standards to Manage Risks
As digital platforms have become the spaces where consumers and businesses interact daily, the responsibility of these platforms in protecting information, managing content, and preventing IP infringement has become critically important. Japan therefore incorporated into its legal system regulations requiring platforms to be more transparent in their operations.
The new requirements aim to clarify information processing procedures, how platforms interact with users, and support mechanisms in the event of disputes. The objective is not only to prevent IP infringement but also to foster a healthy online environment where small businesses, creators, and consumers can all participate without disadvantage.
The establishment of transparency standards also reflects how Japan perceives the role of digital platforms: not merely as intermediary tools, but as important institutions that must be rigorously governed to ensure fairness in the digital economy.
Lessons Drawn from Japan
Japan’s legal reforms on intellectual property in the digital environment demonstrate a balanced approach, where the protection of rights is pursued in tandem with promoting innovation and maintaining healthy competition. Three prominent pillars clearly reflect this orientation.
First, Japan firmly upholds the protection of personal data and business data as the foundation of digital trust. Legal provisions require a higher degree of transparency in data collection, analysis, and sharing, while strengthening oversight of large platforms to prevent monopolistic practices and ensure data is used safely.
Second, the country prioritizes algorithmic oversight and the enhancement of accountability among digital platforms. As algorithms increasingly influence the market, Japan requires the disclosure of operating principles and complaint resolution processes, thereby limiting the abuse of market power and reinforcing fairness in the online space.
Third, through the Intellectual Property Strategy 2022, Japan has built a more comprehensive intellectual property ecosystem, focusing on supporting patent commercialization, human resource training, and improving data and AI infrastructure. These policies help create an environment that simultaneously protects innovation and minimizes the risk of infringement in the digital space.
Overall, Japan pursues a model of “protection coupled with innovation and competition,” thereby shaping a legal framework suited for intellectual property in the digital era and providing valuable lessons for other countries.
Lessons and Directions for Legal Improvement in Vietnam
Japan’s experience demonstrates that protecting intellectual property in the digital era requires not only a complete legal system but also a governance mindset aligned with the rapid development of technology. On that basis, the research proposes several key directions for Vietnam.
First and foremost, Vietnam needs to refine its legal framework for intellectual property in the digital environment. Updating the Intellectual Property Law to address new forms of infringement, while strengthening digital copyright protection and the scope of protection for industrial property objects, will help establish a clearer and more consistent legal foundation.
In parallel, building a transparent and unified data policy is essential to reinforce digital trust. A robust personal data protection mechanism, with clear regulations on data processing responsibilities and oversight of algorithmic collection and analysis, will enable the digital environment to operate more safely and responsibly.
Vietnam also needs to focus on enhancing the accountability and transparency of digital platforms. As platforms play a central role in commerce and content distribution, requiring the disclosure of algorithmic operating principles and dispute resolution processes will contribute to ensuring healthy competition and limiting the abuse of market power.
Finally, developing an innovation ecosystem linked to intellectual property exploitation is a critical step. Supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in commercializing intellectual property, along with investing in data infrastructure and specialized human resources, will create long-term momentum for Vietnam in the transition to a digital economy.
Author: MSc. Nguyen Hoang Nam – UEH College of Economics, Law and Government, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City; Member of the Southeast Asia Youth Leadership Program.
This article is part of the Series on Research Dissemination and Applied Knowledge from UEH, carrying the message “Research Contribution For All”. UEH cordially invites readers to follow the next edition of UEH Research Insights.
News and image: Author, UEH Department of Communications and Partnerships
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