US court orders Google to disclose manga piracy site owner

A US court has ordered Google and other internet companies to reveal the identity of the owner of a site that is accused of pirating Japanese manga comic books.

The site called Manga Bank has been the subject of multiple petitions from Japanese manga publishers – including Shueisha Inc – who say they will now file lawsuits against its operator. Since the court ruling Manga Bank has been offline.

Manga content worth a whopping $1.8bn was viewed by users of Manga Bank from its launch in late 2019 to October 2020, according to estimates by the Authorized Books of Japan organisation reported by Kyodo News.

Manga Bank was launched after an earlier site – Manga-mura – was taken down and its operator sentenced to three years in jail in June for copyright breaches.