Notice of Partial Revision to the “Niconico Terms of Use” and “Niconico Action Guidelines”

Thank you for always using Niconico.

On Wednesday, October 30, 2024, we will partially revise the Niconico Terms of Use and the Niconico Action Guidelines as outlined below.

This revision is based on the “Operational Policy for the Niconico Terms of Use and Niconico Action Guidelines,” which has been announced in this Niconico Info article.

Reasons for the Revision

・In addition to Japanese laws and regulations, it is necessary to take appropriate measures in response to recent social conditions, the international situation, and laws and regulations outside Japan.
・For some services, restrictions are imposed on access from outside Japan.

Revised Sections

■Niconico Terms of Use
https://account.nicovideo.jp/rules/account?language=en-us

Before the Revision

Niconico Terms of Use (these “Terms of Use”) apply to any use by users (simply, the “User(s)”) of Niconico and services related to Niconico (including services operated by a company other than the Operating Company; collectively, “Niconico”) which are provided by DWANGO Co., Ltd. (the “Operating Company”). The Users shall consent to these Terms of Use and Basic Policy on Personal Information Protection in using Niconico. In addition, the Users shall respect and consent to the substance of the Niconico Action Guidelines established by the Operating Company.

These Terms of Use provide basic matters that will commonly apply to all individual services of Niconico (the “Individual Services”), and in order to use the Individual Services, the Users must consent to the terms of use of each Individual Service (the “Individual Terms of Use”) in addition to these Terms of Use. If there is any discrepancy concerning any matter between the Individual Terms of Use and these Terms of Use, the Individual Terms of Use shall have precedence over these Terms of Use.

If the User is a minor, they shall have a person with parental authority (親権者 shinkensha) confirm these Terms of Use and Individual Terms of Use (“These Terms of Use, etc.”), and use Niconico with the consent of the person with parental authority. Minor Users who used Niconico will be deemed to have used the same with the foregoing consent of the person with parental authority. However, where there any mandatory provisions limiting the use of Niconico by a person under 13-years of age in the country that the User resides in, the relevant person shall not be allowed to use Niconico irrespective of the foregoing.

After the Revision

■Niconico Action Guidelines (Japanese Only)
https://www.nicovideo.jp/guideline.html

Before the Revision

1. Niconico is a platform where everyone can freely engage in expressive activities.
Niconico is a service that allows users to freely post content, such as videos, live streaming, or blog posts, on the internet, and viewers can leave comments on the content as they wish.
It is a space where anyone, regardless of race, gender, age, organizational affiliation, or past experience, can equally express their thoughts or share their creations.
We aim to minimize Niconico’s regulations on the content expressed by users.
By doing so, we hope that many wonderful works will emerge, discussions on specific themes will deepen, and internet culture will continue to evolve and flourish.
Users who participate in Niconico are expected to understand this philosophy and agree to all the terms outlined in Articles 1 to 5 of these guidelines before using the service.

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3. Freedom of expression through content is not unlimited
As mentioned in the previous section, when issues arise from posted content, it is generally expected that the involved parties will resolve the matter. Niconico’s regulations on expression will be kept to a minimum. However, there are cases where certain content will not be allowed to be posted.
In particular, Niconico may delete content at its discretion if it includes the following, but not limited to:

＜Crimes and Illegal Acts＞
Examples:
・Announcing murder or terrorism by specifying the time, place, and method
・Announcing the sale of illegal items such as drugs, weapons, or bombs
・Soliciting prostitution or compensated dating
・Posting illegally recorded movies filmed in theaters
・Content involving child pornography or child abuse
・Content involving animal abuse

＜Acts that infringe on others’ rights＞
Examples:
・Content that violates the honor, social reputation, or privacy of others
・Content that infringes upon fundamental human rights, intellectual property rights such as copyrights, or any other rights

＜Violations of public order and morality＞
Examples:
・Sexual content
・Violent content
・Content that involves or promotes suicide (inducing, abetting, aiding, inciting)

＜Other content deemed inappropriate by Niconico＞

After the Revision

1. Niconico is a platform where everyone can freely engage in expressive activities
Niconico is a service that allows users to freely post content, such as videos, live streaming, or illustrations, on the internet, and viewers can leave comments on the content as they wish.
It is a space where anyone, regardless of race, gender, age, organizational affiliation, or past experience, can equally express their thoughts or share their creations.
We aim to minimize Niconico’s regulations on the content expressed by users.
By doing so, we hope that many wonderful works will emerge, discussions on specific themes will deepen, and internet culture will continue to evolve and flourish.
Users who participate in Niconico are expected to understand this philosophy and agree to all the terms outlined in Articles 1 to 5 of these guidelines before using the service.

——-

3. Freedom of expression through content is not unlimited
As mentioned in the previous section, when issues arise from posted content, it is generally expected that the involved parties will resolve the matter. Niconico’s regulations on expression will be kept to a minimum. However, there are cases where certain content may not be allowed to be posted, and Niconico may take necessary actions, including deletion, at its sole discretion.

Below are examples that Niconico will not be allowed to be posted, but not limited to:
For the avoidance of doubt, Niconico may change restricted contents at its sole discretion, in accordance with change of social environments, revision of laws, rules and/or regulations in and outside Japan etc.

Examples of restricted content
・Content that appears to involve or depict the abuse, sexual exploitation, or sexual activity of children, child-like characters, or animals, as defined by the standards and laws of the country or region in which the content is accessed or posted.
・Content that is or appears to be intended for or involved in excessive violence, suicide, self-harm, promotion of terrorism, or manufacture or sale of illegal drugs or weapons
・Any other content that may violate the laws, rules, or regulations of the country or region in which it is accessed or posted.

In particular, Niconico may take necessary actions, including deletion, for content that falls under these categories, at its sole discretion.

＜Crimes and Illegal Acts＞
Examples:
・Announcing murder or terrorism by specifying the time, place, and method
・Announcing the sale of illegal items such as drugs, weapons, or bombs
・Soliciting prostitution or compensated dating
・Posting illegally recorded movies filmed in theaters
・Content involving child pornography or child abuse
・Content involving animal abuse

＜Acts that infringe on others’ rights＞
Examples:
・Content that violates the honor, social reputation, or privacy of others
・Content that infringes upon fundamental human rights, intellectual property rights such as copyrights, or any other rights

＜Violations of public order and morality＞
Examples:
・Sexual content
・Violent content
・Content that involves or promotes suicide (inducing, abetting, aiding, inciting)

＜Other content deemed inappropriate by Niconico＞

Additionally, when accessing Niconico from outside Japan, users must comply with the various laws and regulations applicable in the country or region where they reside, regardless of the content described above.
If any content contains depictions that may violate the laws and regulations of a specific country, or if there are features that provide such content, access to those contents and/or features, including browsing, may be restricted for users from all countries outside Japan or from specific countries or regions.

Thank you for your continued support!

Niconico

*The Niconico Terms of Use and Niconico Action Guidelines are entirely in Japanese and shall be interpreted solely in Japanese. English translation is solely prepared for your reference.

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