Copyright law of the European Union
The copyright law of the European Union is the copyright law applicable within the European Union. Copyright law is largely harmonized in the Union, although country to country differences exist. The body of law was implemented in the EU through a number of directives, which the member states need to enact into their national law. The main copyright directives are the Copyright Term Directive, the Information Society Directive and the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market. Copyright in the Union is furthermore dependent on international conventions to which the European Union or their member states are part of, such as TRIPS Agreement or the Berne Convention.
"Copyright Directive" redirects here. For the 2001 Copyright directive, see Information Society Directive. For other uses, see Copyright directive (disambiguation).History[edit]
Attempts to harmonise copyright law in Europe (and beyond) can be dated to the signature of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works on 9 September 1886: all European Union Member States are parties of the Berne Convention,[1] and compliance with its dispositions is now obligatory before accession. The first major step taken by the European Economic Community to harmonise copyright laws came with the decision to apply common standard for the copyright protection of computer programs, enacted in the Computer Programs Directive in 1991. A common term of copyright protection, 70 years from the death of the author, was established in 1993 as the Copyright Duration Directive.
The implementation of directives on copyright has been rather more controversial than for many other subjects, as can be seen by the six judgments for non-transposition of the Information Society Directive.[2] Traditionally, copyright laws vary considerably between member states, particularly between civil law and common law jurisdictions. Changes in copyright law have also become linked to protests against the World Trade Organization and globalisation in general.
Sources of law[edit]
The first decisions of the European Court of Justice covering copyright were made under the non-discrimination provision of Article 6 EC (formerly Art. 7), and under the provisions of Article 36 which allows for restrictions on trade between Member States if justified by the protection of industrial and commercial property (including copyright).[3] The directives were made under the internal market provisions of the treaties, notably Article 95 EC (formerly Art. 100a)
Temporary copying which is the result of the transmission of a work or of its legal use is not covered by the exclusive right of reproduction.[30]
Member states can implement other limitations from the list in Information Society Directive Article 5, or retain limitations which were already in force on 22 June 2001. Permitted limitations are:[31]
No new limitations may come into force after 22 June 2001 except those in the permitted limitations given in the Information Society Directive. Limitations may only be applied in balance with the Berne three-step test that asks the exceptions be "certain special cases which do not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work or other subject-matter and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the rightholder".[32] However it was agreed at the time of drafting the WIPO Copyright and Performances and Phonograms Treaties that this wording "neither reduces nor extends the scope of applicability of the limitations and exceptions permitted by the Berne Convention."[33]
This explicit list of exceptions stands in contrast to the open-ended Fair Use doctrine employed by the United States, and the European Union has typically been staunchly against considering frameworks resembling Fair Use.[34] The use of short snippets of news articles in aggregation sites like Google News, covered by fair use in the United States, has been the subject of dispute between Google and European governments, following the passage of ancillary copyright for press publishers in Germany and the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market EU-wide.
Protection of rights[edit]
The Enforcement Directive covers the remedies that are available in the civil courts and harmonises the rules on standing, evidence, interlocutory measures, seizure and injunctions, damages and costs and judicial publication. Germany recognises the so-called GEMA Vermutung whereby the burden of proof is on the alleged infringer in an infringement lawsuit.[35]
Collection monopolies[edit]
Copyright collecting societies in the European Union usually hold monopolies in their respective national markets.[36] Some countries create a statutory monopoly, while others recognise effective monopolies through regulations.[36] In Austria, the Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers (Gesellschaft der Autoren, Komponisten und Musikverleger, AKM) has a statutory monopoly.[36] German law recognizes GEMA as an effective monopoly, and consequently the burden of proof is on the accused infringer that a work is not managed by GEMA.[36][37]
European copyright law is harmonised to a large extent. However, EU legislation allows for differences in the manner of member state application. Pages related to specific copyright acts are listed below: