Even in Internet era Japan’s underground porn survives on DVD

On Saturday, Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested busted a shop in the Kabukicho red-light district Shinjuku Ward for selling uncensored adult video DVDs.

Officers charged manager Eiji Sugaya, 38, street tout Fujio Nishino, 57, and seven other suspects with possessing obscene media recorded electronically with intent to distribute for profit. At the time of the raid, 20 customers were inside.

Investigators seized 60,000 discs from the shop and a nearby warehouse.

Such content, which by law must have genitalia properly censored, is of course readily available on the Internet via download or mail order. Why is it then, wonders Tokyo Sports (Nov. 13), that these types of businesses survive in Japan?

The operation, which attracted customers via street solicitation, had collected 40 million yen in sales over the last four months.

According to investigators, orders were placed by customers through a catalog. The discs were then retrieved from the warehouse by shop staff traveling by bicycle.

The evening tabloid hears from a person with knowledge of the industry that similar operations in Shibuya and Ikebukuro have been wiped out due to crackdowns, while Kabukicho still maintains roughly 10 shops.

Certainly, the Internet has had an impact. Ten years ago a single disc might have fetched 5,000 yen, but nowadays vendors offload low-end merchandise for between 100 and 200 yen a piece.

So with the risk of arrest and diminishing returns, why stay in business?

“The main customers are Chinese tourists,” says the aforementioned source. “For others, it is about the potential release of personal information. In ordering by mail, a person’s address could be sold to a fraud group. As well, if an operation gets busted, the customer list may include past purchases, which could be quite embarrassing if the content is on the heinous side.”

Downloads are problematic as well due to the necessity of a user name and password. “That would remain as evidence for the police,” says the source.

As well, some sites may charge 50,000 yen as a one-time registration fee, something a snooping wife might eventually discover.

Visiting a shop, however, leaves no paper trial. Indeed, there is something special about one-time experiences, concludes Tokyo Sports.

Source: “UraDVDten ga tekihatsu sarete mo ikinokoru jijo,” Tokyo Sports (Nov. 13)