- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says 'very violent' Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Guardians maul Tigers, miracle Mets rally in MLB series openers
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Madrid beat Villarreal but Carvajal suffers knee injury
- Madrid beat Villarreal to move level with Liga leaders Barcelona
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- French rugby player on rape charge whistled but 'serene' on return
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Toddler among 3 dead in migrant Channel crossings
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Kovacic stars as Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Thousands march for Palestinians ahead of Oct 7 anniversary
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
- Trump returns to site of failed assassination
- Careless Leverkusen held to Bundesliga draw
- O'Brien's 'superstar' Kyprios posts landmark win on Arc weekend
- Toddler crushed to death in migrant Channel crossing
- Liverpool suffer Alisson injury blow
- Habosi helps Racing beat Vannes before Auradou's playing return
- Thousands march in London in support of Palestinians, 1 year after Oct 7
- Israel readying response to Iran missile attack
- Schutt, Mooney help Australia beat Sri Lanka in Women's T20 World Cup
- Liverpool extend Premier League lead with win at Palace
- Djokovic 'shakes rust off' to make third round of Shanghai Masters
- 'Imperfect' PSG fighting on all fronts - Luis Enrique
- Struggling Pakistan look to thwart adaptable England
- Child 'trampled to death' in asylum seekers' Channel crossing: minister
Japanese publishers to sue US firm over manga piracy
Four major Japanese manga publishers said Monday they will sue a US company accused of hosting servers for a piracy site, in the latest offensive against illegal copies of their graphic novels.
Piracy is a long-running problem for Japan's internationally renowned manga industry, with publishers saying they lose millions in revenue as a result.
The publishing giants will file the lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court this week, a spokesman for Kodansha, one of the publishers involved, told AFP.
The four leading publishers -- Kodansha, Shueisha, Shogakukan and Kadokawa -- accuse web infrastructure company Cloudflare of copyright infringement for its role in hosting sites that distribute pirated copies of manga titles.
They will seek a combined 400 million yen ($3.5 million) in damages, according to a source with knowledge of the suit.
The site Cloudflare is accused of helping, by providing a server that can handle significant online traffic, has an estimated 300 million views a month and distributes about 4,000 manga titles, the source added.
Piracy sites, where copies of graphic novels are distributed for free, have long tormented publishers of manga epics such as "One Piece" and "Attack on Titan," with losses estimated at millions of dollars in Japan alone.
Cloudflare did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but it is not the first time it has come under fire from manga publishers.
In 2019, the same four companies reached a settlement with the US firm after it agreed it would stop providing its services for a piracy site.
Kodansha spokesman Tomoyuki Inui said publishers were determined to take legal action to protect the rights of artists.
"All the profits made from those manga piracy sites go straight to their illegal operators, with nothing going to the bookstores, publishers and manga artists who have dedicated their lives to creating these works," he told AFP.
"We must put a stop to piracy sites in order to protect the Japanese culture of manga."
P.M.Smith--AMWN