Exceptions and limitations

Position of the European parliament on adoption of Marrakesh Directive

Published 21st December 2017

Taking into consideration the rights of blind, visually impaired or otherwise print-disabled persons as recognised in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (the ‘Charter’) and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (the ʻUNCRPDʼ), measures should be taken to increase the availability of books and other printed material in accessible formats, and to improve their circulation in the internal market.

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The Russian courts find out whether quotation is only for textual works or it can be also for images

Published 24th November 2017

The case is about quotation of images. One media house (defendant) has published in its articles and on its web-site the photographs of Russian popular blogger Varlamov (plaintiff). Varlamov did not like it and has filed a lawsuit for copyright infringement. He lost the case. The court of first instance ruled it was simple quotation – copyright exception. Varlamov appealed.

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Example when Russian court applied exception for quotation of photographs

Published 4th October 2017

One media house has published several images on its web-sites in order to illustrate articles. The author and copyright owner of these images has not provided publishing house with permission to publish its images. Copyright owner has filed a lawsuit for copyright infringement.

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Reasons for Vitorino’s recommendations on private copying and reprography levies: non-application of private copying levies to professional users

Published 17th August 2015

While, in principle, all products capable of making copies of copyright protected content can be levied, the private copying levies must not be imposed on goods that are acquired for purposes clearly unrelated to private copying. This approach requires a distinction between transactions where a good is sold to a private user and transactions where a good is sold to a non-private user. The latter transactions must, in principle, not be subject to a private copying levy.

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Padawan case: European court’s decision – third, fourth and fifth questions

Published 8th May 2015

Background, and first two questions were earlier

The third and fourth questions

It is appropriate to examine third and fourth questions together. It must be held from the outset that a system for financing fair compensation such as that described in relevant part of this judgment is compatible with the requirements of a ‘fair balance’ only if the digital reproduction equipment, devices and media concerned are liable to be used for private copying and, therefore, are likely to cause harm to the author of the protected work. There is therefore, having regard to those requirements, a necessary link between the application of the private copying levy to the digital reproduction equipment, devices and media and their use for private copying. Consequently, the indiscriminate application of the private copying levy to all types of digital reproduction equipment, devices and media, including in the case expressly mentioned by the national court in which they are acquired by persons other than natural persons for purposes clearly unrelated to private copying, does not comply with Article 5(2) of Directive 2001/29.

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Padawan case: European court’s decision – first and second questions

Published 24th April 2015

The first question

It should be borne in mind that under Article 5(2)(b) of Directive 2001/29 Member States which decide to introduce the private copying exception into their national law are required to provide for the payment of ‘fair compensation’ to rightholders. It should be noted at the outset that neither Article 5(2)(b) nor any other provision of Directive 2001/29 refers to the national law of the Member States as regards the concept of ‘fair compensation’.

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Reforming of copyright in EU and one of the questions concerned: user-generated content

Published 21st April 2015

User Generated Content (UGC) is understood as referring to cases where a pre-existing work is taken by a user as a starting point for his/her own expression, modified or transformed in one way or another, and then made available online. It may also include the merging of two pre-existing works (“mash-ups”). The threshold may be lower than “a certain amount of creative effort”. It excludes the case of “mere upload”, where a user merely distributes on the internet (by uploading and sharing it) pre-existing works without having intervened in any way on the work. It also excludes “creation from scratch”, i.e. the case where a user creates a new work “from scratch”, without relying on a pre-existing work.

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Reforming of copyright in EU and one of the questions concerned: exceptions and limitations and the functioning of the internal market

Published 16th February 2015

In the light of coming copyright reforms in EU the draft impact assessment concerns some important copyright issues. One of them is exceptions and limitations and the functioning of the internal market.

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Category: Exceptions and limitations