Category Regional Fora

How to license Article 17? Exploring the Implementation Options for the New EU Rules on Content-Sharing Platforms

[Martin Husovec and João Quintais] Abstract: How can the EU Member States license Article 17 of the new Directive on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market? This is the central question that this paper addresses. To answer it, we first analyse the nature of the right included in Article 17. We argue that the nature of the right has a number of serious consequences for its licensing.

Civil Society Letter on Intellectual Property to RCEP Negotiators

We are concerned about TRIPS-plus proposals concerning intellectual property enforcement. Intellectual property are “private” rights, to be enforced by the IP holder. However, we note with concern that there are a number of proposals shifting the burden of enforcement onto the government and according greater enforcement rights in favour of the IP holder at the expense of equity, rights of third parties and public interests.

Monitoring and Filtering: European Reform or Global Trend?

[Giancarlo Frosio and Sunimal Mendis] Abstract: ...Article 17 of the newly enacted EU Directive on the Digital Single Market has come under fire for the heightened level of liability it imposes on online services providers (OSPs) for copyright infringing content stored or transmitted by them. Based on an analysis of case-law from multiple jurisdictions and an overview of industry practice, this chapter seeks to locate the new European reform within a much wider global trend that aims to impose proactive monitoring and filtering obligations on OSPs.

Copyright Issues and Teachers’ Dilemma in Asia Pacific

[Robert Jeyakumar] ... The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Asia-Pacific Regional Seminar was held in Singapore on the 28th to 30th April 2019. I took part in the event as a member of the EI delegation to express our teacher concerns on copyright issues. Among the objectives of this seminar was to gather views from teacher unions on copyright exceptions for education.

Finally! The Text of Poland’s Legal Challenge of Copyright Directive Was Published

[Natalia Mileszyk] Earlier this year, Poland initiated a legal challenge against Article 17 of the Directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) [C-401/19]. The CJEU has finally published the application for this legal challenge... In our opinion, referring the Directive to the Court of Justice is a good step that can help clear controversies concerning Article 17. An independent court will assess issues that in the policy debate are usually dismissed by representatives of rightsholders as fear-mongering or disinformation.

Final WIPO Exceptions Seminar Endorses Exceptions, But Leaves Stakeholders Complaining

The last in a series of World Intellectual Property Organization regional seminars on copyright limitations and exceptions concluded with broad agreement that exceptions in Latin America are inadequate to cater to the needs of education and research in the digital world, including through the work of libraries, archives and museums, according to participants. But complaints continued from beneficiary communities that the discussion in the seminars was steered away from the topic of how international law could help remedy the problems identified.

The Same Problem, Different Outcome: Online Copyright Infringement and Intermediaries’ Liability Under the US and the EU Law

[Lia Shikhiashvili] Abstract: ... Recently, the European Union has adopted a new Copyright Directive, which, in article 17 (ex-article 13) indirectly introduces filtering and monitoring obligations to online platforms that allow users to upload content. It creates the “de facto strict liability regime” for internet intermediaries to root out copyright-infringing content. In contrast with this approach, in the United States internet intermediaries still benefit from the legislative immunities that exclude them from copyright-infringement liability uploaded by their users. This article compares the new European Union directive with the United States approach and shows that these differences might create uncertainties in the digital marketplace. This article also reviews potential consequences of the article 17 and demonstrates the need of harmonized secondary liability regime to Internet Service Providers at European level, without sacrificing safe harbor provisions. The article proposes the adoption of “fair use doctrine” and “fair remuneration” provisions as an effective and alternative tool to protect the rights of all players in the digital scene and simultaneously tackle the so-called “value gap” problem.

The New Copyright in the Digital Single Market Directive: A Critical Look

Abstract: On 17 May 2019 the official version of the new Directive on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market was published. This marks the end of a controversial legislative process at EU level. It also marks the beginning of what will surely be a contentious process of national implementation. This article provides an overview and critical examination of the new Directive. It argues that what started as a legislative instrument to promote the digital single market turned into an industry policy tool, shaped more by effective lobbying than evidence and expertise. The result is a flawed piece of legislation.

Time for Copyright Laws in Africa to Change

[Electronic Information for Libraries] On 12-13 June 2019, heads of copyright offices from more than 40 African states met in Nairobi, Kenya, to discuss copyright limitations and exceptions for libraries, archives, and education in the African region... The clear consensus that emerged from the two-day seminar was a recognition that copyright exceptions in Africa are wholly inadequate, especially for online uses, and that there is a real need for reform.

Implementing the Copyright Directive: Protecting the Public Domain with Article 14

[Paul Keller] Article 14 – Works of visual art in the public domain – is one of the very few unambiguously good provisions of the new EU copyright directive. The article is intended to ensure that (digital) reproductions of public domain works cannot be protected by exclusive rights, and as a result, taken out of the public domain. This legislative intervention comes in response to the relatively widespread practice of museums in claiming exclusive rights of digital reproductions of public domain works that they have in their collections and which they make available to the public.

The New Copyright Directive: A tour d’horizon – Part II (of press publishers, upload filters and the real value gap)

Part I of this post discussed the legislative process and Titles I through III of the CDSM Directive. This Part II will tackle the remainder of the Directive, namely its measures to achieve a well-functioning marketplace for copyright (Title IV) and final provisions (Title V)... e IV contains the most controversial provisions of the Directive, namely the new right for press publishers and the new liability regime for user-upload platforms.

Over 60 Health Organisations Demand ARIPO Reform to Increase Access to More Affordable Medicines in Eastern & Southern Africa

[KLIEN and Health GAP] More than 60 health organisations are calling for rapid reform of the Harare Protocol of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) in order to protect public health across its 18 Eastern and Southern African member states. Representing people living with cancer, tuberculosis, HIV, and many other diseases and conditions—the organisations are demanding that ARIPO takes urgent steps to amend the Harare Protocol and introduce public health safeguards that will significantly improve access to medicines in the region.