Japan court dismisses suit against Meta over scam ads using billionaire’s likeness
TOKYO, Nov 10 — A Tokyo court dismissed today Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa’s lawsuit against US...
A Tokyo court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa against US tech giant Meta and its Japan unit on November 10. Maezawa accused Meta of using his name and image in fraudulent investment ads on their platforms. The lawsuit was filed in 2024, alleging that Meta was not taking measures to stop the incidents.
Maezawa sought one yen in damages, claiming he wanted to clarify whether their actions were legal. Meta argued that unidentified posters placed the advertisements and that the company had no obligation to constantly monitor content to detect and remove rights-infringing material. The Tokyo District Court ruled against Maezawa, stating that Meta was merely a platform operator and not directly involved in the posting of the ads.
The court acknowledged that Maezawa's publicity rights and portrait rights had been infringed. Maezawa's lawyer expressed concern that the ruling may lead to a society where people believe fighting in court is useless and accept losses.
Written by urgent.news from Malay Mail's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
