Blockchain technology seems to be all the rage nowadays. In simple terms, blockchain enables parties who do not know or trust each other to maintain a common set of records without the need for a trusted third party intermediary. Bitcoin, the first major successful cryptocurrency, uses blockchain to keep track of the supply and flow…
A photographer took a portrait of a lawyer, who subsequently published the portrait in numerous newspaper articles. A lawsuit was initiated by an association enforcing the rights of the photographer. The photographer had sent the picture to the lawyer in JPEG-format. In the IPTC-metadata of the file (thus data which contain information about other data),…
Introduction On 30th March 2017, the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio (“TAR Lazio”) had the last word, at least from a domestic perspective, on the validity of the AGCOM (Italian Communication Authority) Regulation on copyright enforcement in electronic communications networks (“AGCOM Regulation” or simply the “Regulation”). This finding of validity is the final step in…
A full summary of this case has been published on Kluwer IP Law and the case has been discussed on the Kluwer Copyright Blog here. The CJEU held that the price of a hotel room should not be regarded as an ‘entrance fee’ in relation to the exclusive right of broadcasters provided for in Article…
A full summary of this case has been published on Kluwer IP Law and the case has been discussed on the Kluwer Copyright Blog here. In this judgment, the Spanish Supreme Court ruled on the concept of originality in respect of architectural works, and for the first time established clear and specific guidelines for applying copyright…
Computer games are becoming more and more important, not only in everyday life but also in legal theory. The German Federal Supreme Court has now issued a decision on the online game World of Warcraft (decision of 06.10.2016, I ZR 25/15 – World of Warcraft I). In this decision, the Court addressed questions regarding the…
In recent years, the Court of Justice has issued a growing number of decisions in response to questions referred for a preliminary ruling on the concept and delimitation of the right of communication to the public in the European Union. CJEU case-law on the topic is currently overwhelming. The particular features of each of the…
The Spanish Supreme Court has recently ruled on the concept of originality in respect of architectural works, and for the first time has established clear and specific guidelines for applying copyright protection to works of this nature. The situation which gave rise to the proceedings is very common in the architectural sector. An architect (the…
A full summary of this case has been published on Kluwer IP Law The Supreme Court provided guidance on how to assess whether a work should be considered to be an adaptation, within the meaning of Section 4, paragraph 1 of the Swedish Copyright Act, or a new and independent work within the meaning of…
The “Filmspeler” ruling is the last stone in the CJEU’s complex construction on the application of the concept of communication to the public in hyperlinking. Starting with the seminal Svensson case in 2014 (C-466/12), the Court has been progressively diving into the deeper waters of hyperlinking and has been called upon to apply the right…
