Kenjiro Tsuda voice deepfake — Sep 2024

In a landmark decision on September 30, 2024, a Tokyo court ruled that the human voice is legally protected under publicity rights in Japan. The ruling followed a lawsuit filed by prominent anime voice actor Kenjiro Tsuda, who challenged the unauthorized use of an AI-generated clone of his voice on TikTok.

What happened

Kenjiro Tsuda, known for his roles in franchises like Jujutsu Kaisen and Yu-Gi-Oh!, took legal action against an anonymous TikTok account that used a voice clone mimicking his distinctively deep and lustrous baritone. The account, which featured imagery resembling a character voiced by Tsuda, narrated videos about urban legends and conspiracy theories. At its peak, the account had over 200,000 subscribers and was estimated to generate upwards of 500,000 yen (US$3,200) in monthly revenue.

Tsuda’s legal team argued that the account gained traction specifically by leveraging the commercial appeal of his voice. TikTok defended the content, claiming the audio was merely a generic male voice and that any perceived similarity to Tsuda was subjective. Presiding judge Aya Takahashi ruled that the unauthorized use of a performer's voice can constitute an infringement on publicity rights, noting that a voice is as symbolic of one's personality as a portrait. While the court recognized the protection of the voice, it dismissed the request to remove the videos because the anonymous user had already deleted them months after the lawsuit began. The ruling is considered a significant development for Japan's animation industry, where voice actors are increasingly concerned that unbridled AI mimicry could threaten their livelihoods and the value of their years of professional training.