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Copyright and related rights in the information society

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Copyright and related rights in the information society

SUMMARY OF:

Directive 2001/29/EC on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE DIRECTIVE?

The directive aims to adapt legislation on copyright and related rights to technological developments and particularly to the information society, while providing for a high level of protection of intellectual property.
It seeks to implement 2 international treaties that were concluded in December 1996: the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (see relevant summary).
It is 1 of several directives and regulations, including Directive 2004/48/EC on the enforcement of intellectual property rights (see summary), Directive 2012/28/EU on orphan works (see summary), and Directive 2014/26/EU on the collective management of copyright and related rights (see summary), which together comprise European Union (EU) copyright legislation.

KEY POINTS

The directive harmonises key rights granted to authors and neighbouring rightholders (the reproduction right, the right of communication to the public and the distribution right) and — to a lesser degree — exceptions and limitations to these rights. It also harmonises the protection of technological measures and of rights management information, sanctions and remedies.

Reproduction right

EU Member States must provide for the exclusive right to authorise or prohibit direct or indirect, temporary or permanent reproduction by any means and in any form, in whole or in part:

for authors, of the original and copies of their works;
for performers, of fixations* of their performances;
for phonogram producers, of their phonograms;
for the producers of the first fixation of films, with respect to the original and copies of their films;
for broadcasting organisations, of fixations of their broadcasts, whether those broadcasts are transmitted by wire or over the air (wireless), including by cable or satellite.

Right of communication to the public

Member States must provide authors with the exclusive right to authorise or prohibit any communication to the public of their works. This includes making their works available to the public in such a way that members of the public may access them when and where they choose.

Member States must also provide for the exclusive right to authorise or prohibit the making available to the public:

for performers, of fixations of their performances;
for phonogram producers, of their phonograms;
for the producers of the first fixation of films, with respect to the original and copies of their films;
for broadcasting organisations, of fixations of their broadcasts — regardless of the method of transmission.

Distribution right

Member States must provide authors with the exclusive right to authorise or prohibit any distribution to the public of their works or copies of their works.
This distribution right is exhausted within the EU where the first sale or first other transfer of ownership in the EU of a work is made by the rightholder or with their consent.

Exceptions and limitations

The directive sets out an exhaustive list of exceptions and limitations to rights, in order to facilitate the use of protected content in specific circumstances.

There is a mandatory exception to the right of reproduction for certain temporary acts of reproduction which are an integral and essential part of a technological process (temporary copies), and which aim to enable a lawful use or a transmission in a network between third parties by an intermediary, of a work or other subject matter.

All the other exceptions and limitations relating to the rights of reproduction and communication to the public are optional (Member States may decide to implement them or not) and particularly concern the ‘public’ domain. For 3 of these exceptions — reprography*, reproductions for private use and broadcasts made by social institutions — the rightholders must receive fair compensation.
Where Member States provide for exceptions and limitations to the reproduction right, they may provide for similar exceptions to the distribution right.

Legal protection

Member States must provide legal protection against the circumvention of any effective technological measures covering works or any other subject matter.
This legal protection also relates to the manufacture, import, distribution and sale of devices or provision of services which would contribute to the circumvention of technological measures.

Protection of rights-management information

Member States must provide legal protection against any person knowingly performing without authority any of the following acts:

the removal or alteration of any electronic rights-management information;
the distribution, broadcasting, communication or making available to the public of works or other protected subject matter from which electronic rights-management information has been removed.

Sanctions and remedies

Member States must provide for appropriate sanctions and remedies in case of infringements of the rights harmonised in this directive. They have to ensure that rightholders can apply for an injunction against intermediaries whose services are used by a third party to infringe a copyright or related right.

Amendments to Directive 2001/29/EC

Directive 2001/29/EC has been amended twice by:

Directive (EU) 2017/1564, the directive on permitted uses of certain works protected by copyright for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print-disabled (see summary) and implementing the Marrakesh Treaty in the EU (see summary). This Directive introduces a mandatory exception to the rights that are harmonised by EU law and relevant for the uses and works covered by the Marrakesh Treaty. These rights include, in particular, the rights of reproduction, communication to the public, making available to the public, distribution and lending. The amendment clarifies that Article 5(3)(b) of Directive 2001/29/EC allowing Member States to provide for exceptions or limitations for the benefit of persons with a disability applies to cases which are not covered by Directive 2017/1564.
Directive (EU) 2019/790, on copyright and related rights in the EU’s digital single market (see summary). Article 24 clarifies that Member States may rely on the exceptions and limitations provided in Article 5(2)(c) and Article 5(3)(a) of Directive 2001/29/EC, which concern acts of reproduction made by publicly accessible libraries, educational establishments or museums, or by archives, and respectively, the use for the sole purpose of illustration for teaching or scientific research, without prejudice to the exceptions and limitations provided for in Directive 2019/790/EC.

FROM WHEN DOES THE DIRECTIVE APPLY?

Directive 2001/29/EC has applied since 22 June 2001 and had to become law in the Member States by 22 December 2002.

BACKGROUND

For more information, see:

Shaping Europe’s digital future — copyright (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

Fixation: a work has to be embodied in a copy that allows it to be seen or copied by others (i.e. in a tangible medium such as a recording).

Reprography: the science and practice of copying and reproducing documents and graphic material.

MAIN DOCUMENT

Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society (OJ L 167, 22.6.2001, pp. 10–19)

Successive amendments to Directive 2001/29/EC have been incorporated in the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.