CJEU issued a rulling in case YouTube/Cyando
The European Court of Justice (CJEU) has finally (almost a year since the Advocate General opinion, on which IPI already reported) issued a ruling in joined cases C-682/18 (YouTube) and C-683/18 (Cyando), concerning platform liability for copyright-infringing user uploads under Art. 3(1) InfoSoc Directive. Even though the CJEU, in its ruling, refrained from engaging with the DSM Directive’s Article 17, the judgment is still highly significant, as it comms at a time when the fundamental rights compatibility of Art. 17 DSM Directive is in question, and very few Member States have implemented the DSM Directive, including Slovenia, where the public debate ended on 28th of June, 2021.
CJEU leaned toward the conclusion that neither YouTube nor Cyando performed acts of communication to the public (Art. 3(1) InfoSoc Directive). The CJEU concluded also that if a platform does directly perform copyright-restricted acts, then it is ineligible for the hosting safe harbour. Only if the platforms meet the requirements of the safe harbour will they be exempt from (at least intermediary or secondary) liability for copyright infringing acts of their users.
In its ruling, CJEU, following the approach it took in GS Media, had put a stronger focus on fundamental rights, by providing that Art. 3(1) requires a fair balance between the interests and fundamental rights of copyright holders, users and the general interest, in particular their freedom of expression and information (Art. 11 of EU Charter of Fundamental Rights). CJEU even seems to be moving closer to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), which reiterates the particular importance of the internet for the freedom of expression and information enshrined in Art. 10(1) of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR).
In this light, it will be interesting to follow the decision of the ECJ in Case C-401/19, which otherwise concerns Article 17 of the DSM Directive, and in which the Advocate General (AG) Saugmandsgaard Øe issued its Opinion on 15th of July, 2021.
The Internet Archive is a non-profit organization that maintains the Open Library, a digital library index, and is dedicated to preserving knowledge. As many of the works in the Internet Archive are under copyright, the Archive uses a system of controlled digital lending based on digital rights management to prevent unauthorized downloading or copying of copyrighted books. In March 2020, due to the circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, the Internet Archive established the National Emergency Library, eliminating the waiting lists used in the Open Library and expanding access to books for all readers. In June 2020, the Emergency National Library faced a lawsuit from four book publishers and was ultimately closed.
The 43rd session of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (hereinafter SCCR) made substantial progress on the issues advocated by the A2K Coalition (Access to Knowledge Coalition), which IPI is a member of. This year’s session was the most productive on the issues of exceptions and limitations. James Love (Knowledge Ecology International), a long-time observer at WIPO, described the outcome and the impact of the public interest community as the strongest since the conclusion of the Marrakech Treaty, which brought global copyright exceptions for the benefit of the blind and visually impaired.
Today, March 17, 2023, a symposium on law in the information society is taking place in the golden lecture hall of the Faculty of Law in Ljubljana. Dr. Maja Bogataj Jančič will present copyright aspects of artificial intelligence at the symposium.
The third day of the 43rd session of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights is intended for discussion on the topic of exceptions and limitations to copyright, especially in connection with the right to research.