Unsticking the centre-piece – the liberation of European copyright law?

Following European legislative initiatives in the field of copyright limitations and exceptions, policy flexibilities formerly available to mem- ber states has been greatly diminished. The law in this area is increasingly incapable of accommodating any expansion in the scope of freely permitted acts, even where such expansion may be an appropriate response to changes in social and technological conditions. In this article, the causes of this problem are briefly canvassed and a number of potential solutions are noted. It is suggested that one such solution – the adoption of an open, factor-based model similar to s 107 of the United States’ Copyright Act – has not received the serious attention it deserves. The fair use paradigm has generally been dismissed as excessively unpredictable, contrary to international law and/or culturally alien. Drawing on recent fair use scholarship, it is argued here that these disadvantages are over-stated and that the potential for the development of a European fair use model merits investigation.

EU Copyright Law, Lobbying and Transparency of Policy-Making: The cases of sound recordings term extension and orphan works provisions

The objective of this paper is to discuss EU lobbying in the area of copyright. Legislation needs to regulate the legal position of various different stakeholders in a balanced manner. However, a number of EU copyright provisions brought into effect over recent years were highly controversial and have led to suggestions that powerful lobbying forces may have had some influence. This article investigates the effects of lobbying on copyright law-making in Europe. A specific comparative and multi-faceted analysis is provided of the legislative process for two recently adopted directives: 2011/77/EU which extends the term of protection of sound recordings and 2012/28/EU which introduces certain permitted uses of orphan works (some references are also made to the ACTA case). Firstly, a short presentation is given of the legal bases for the EU consultation process and lobbying. Next, an analysis is provided of the two cases, taking into consideration the policy-making procedures (with special focus on how the consultation process was handled), the legal solutions proposed and adopted and the various stakeholders’ claims. Lastly, it asks why some interest groups were successful and some others failed (the analysis identifies two types of factor for the effectiveness of lobbying: those resulting from stakeholders’ actions and those connected with the consultation process).

A review of the evidence relating to the copyright law as it applies to jukeboxes in connection with S. 590, a bill relating to the rendition of musical compositions on coin-operated machines.

Mode of access: Internet.

Concordance -- Title 17, Copyright law, keyword-in-context index : of the Copyright law of the United States, as enacted on October 19, 1976 /

Mode of access: Internet.

Copyright law of the United States of America.

Issues for [1909-1949] include "Rules adopted by the Supreme Court of the United States for practice and procedure."

[Petition of Hilliard, Gray and Co. and 693 others remonstrating against an international copyright law, June 4, 1842].

Photocopy.

Copyright law revision. Hearings, Ninetieth Congress, first session, pursuant to S. Res. 37, on S. 597.

Hearings held Mar. 15-April 12, 1967.

General revision of the copyright law. Hearings, Seventy-first Congress, third session.

Mode of access: Internet.