Directive on Open Data and Public Sector Information
For the development of innovative products and services on the digital single market, the Proposal for the Directive on Open Data and Public Sector Information is also important. While the Copyright Directive was raising dust, the European Parliament adopted the PSI Directive with large majority but without greater attention.
The PSI Directive is the update of the Directive on re-use of public sector information from 2003, lastly revised in 2013. The new directive establishes that all public sector content, accessible under national rules on access to documents, will in principle be freely available for re-use. While public sector bodies will in very limited cases be able to charge the marginal cost for the re-use of their data, this will enhance the chances of small and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups to enter the new market of data-based products and services. How the purpose of stimulating the use of open data will be achieved, will depend on the way the Member States will transpose the Directive.
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.