Collective Licensing Research Articles

Copyright Protection Against Use of copyrighted Works Without Permission in AI Machine Learning: Focused on Introducing Blockchain-Based Extended Collective Licensing System

Copyright Protection Against Use of copyrighted Works Without Permission in AI Machine Learning: Focused on Introducing Blockchain-Based Extended Collective Licensing System

Ethical approach to translation memory reuse: discussions from copyright and business ethics perspectives

ABSTRACT Under existing copyright provisions, translation memories are protected as “composite works” comprised of source texts and their translations, or as “databases” when created with a large volume of the source text and target text pairs. Freelance translators should exercise copyright to translations in line with the “sweat of the brow” principle. However, the translation industry maintains practices that dispossess translators of translation memories and reuse them without translators’ approval. When examined based on Kant's categorical imperative, this utilitarian practice is deemed unethical since it violates individual translators’ rights. This study offers proposals for promoting the ethical reuse of translation memories. First, translations by freelancers should be excluded from works-for-hire to allow the global protection of language assets and the rights of freelancers. Second, a collective licensing regime for translation memories should be introduced to promote distributive justice and the free circulation of knowledge.

Pravo konkurencije u eri interneta inteligentnih uređaja

The Internet of Things (IoT) brings mobile internet connectivity to many different sectors of the economy. 5G standard is expected to play a key role in fostering seamless connectivity between devices. However, it also requires licensing patents essential for 5G standards to a diverse group of companies. How to effectively license essential patents in IoT has been the central question in recent policy debates before the European Commission. Competition law has often been invoked as a solution to either directly regulate certain licensing practices or to take a step back and enable the industry to collectively agree on certain licensing solutions. The article analyses three situations where the role of competition law was discussed: i) refusal to license patents to different levels of the production chain; ii) collective price-setting of a standard and iii) collective licensing of patents. The article examines each situation and discusses the appropriate role of competition law in fostering efficient licensing of essential patents in the IoT.

The Future of Music Copyright Collectives in the Digital Streaming Age

The Future of Music Copyright Collectives in the Digital Streaming Age

What Has Changed Since 2015? A New and Expanded Update on Copyright Practices and Approaches at Canadian Post-Secondaries

Objective – The aim of this study is to update our understanding of how Canadian post-secondary institutions address copyright education, management, and policy matters since our last survey conducted in 2015. Through the new survey, we seek to shed further light on what is known about post-secondary educational copying and contribute to filling some knowledge gaps such as those identified in the 2017 statutory review of the Canadian Copyright Act. Methods – In early 2020, a survey invitation was sent to the person or office responsible for oversight of copyright matters at member institutions of five Canadian regional academic library consortia. The study methods used were largely the same as those employed in our 2015 survey on copyright practices of Canadian universities. Results – In 2020, respondents were fewer in number but represented a wider variety of types of post-secondary institutions. In general, responsibility for copyright services and management decisions seemed to be concentrated in the library or copyright office. Topics covered and methods used in copyright education remained relatively unchanged, as did issues addressed in copyright policies. Areas reflecting some changes included blanket collective licensing, the extent of executive responsibility for copyright, and approaches to copyright education. At most participating institutions, fewer than two staff were involved in copyright services and library licenses were the permissions source most frequently relied on “very often.” Few responded to questions on the use of specialized permissions management tools and compliance monitoring. Conclusion – Copyright practices and policies at post-secondary institutions will continue to evolve and respond to changes in case law, legislation, pedagogical approaches, and students’ learning needs. The recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling on approved copying tariffs and fair dealing provides some clarity to educational institutions regarding options for managing copyright obligations and reaffirms the importance of user’s rights in maintaining a proper balance between public and private interests in Canadian copyright law.

Proposals for copyright law and education during the COVID-19 pandemic

This article asks whether the catastrophic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic justifies new limitations or interventions in copyright law so that UK educational institutions can continue to serve the needs of their students. It describes the existing copyright landscape and suggests ways in which institutions can rely on exceptions in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA), including fair dealing and the exemption for lending by educational establishments. It then considers the viability of other solutions. It argues that issues caused by the pandemic would not enliven a public interest defence to copyright infringement (to the extent this still exists in UK law) but may be relevant to remedies. It also argues that compulsory licensing, while permissible under international copyright law, would not be a desirable intervention, but that legislative expansion to the existing exceptions, in order to encourage voluntary collective licensing, has a number of attractions. It concludes by observing that the pandemic highlights issues with the prevailing model for academic publishing and asks whether COVID may encourage universities to embrace in-house and open access publishing more swiftly and for an even greater body of material.

Extended Collective Licencing in the DSM Directive ‒ An Opportunity to Make Art. 17 DSM Directive Work?

Abstract Digital content is the core asset and currency of the internet. However, there is a common and well-founded perception that those who create this content do not participate in the revenue generated online as they ought to. Adequate protection by way of a modern and concise copyright regime is rightly deemed to be the answer to this dilemma. Accordingly, the legislator has made several attempts to keep pace with the technological developments of the last two decades. Still, it remains a struggle. The latest legislative amendment within European copyright law has created a very interesting tool kit. New liabilities and licensing obligations for major service providers come hand in hand with the opportunity to obtain extended collective licenses. Deploying these tools in a sensible and dovetailed way could be highly rewarding. The following article looks more closely into this opportunity.

Proposals for copyright law and education during the COVID-19 pandemic

This article asks whether the catastrophic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic justifies new limitations or interventions in copyright law so that UK educational institutions can continue to serve the needs of their students. It describes the existing copyright landscape and suggests ways in which institutions can rely on exceptions in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA), including fair dealing and the exemption for lending by educational establishments. It then considers the viability of other solutions. It argues that issues caused by the pandemic would not enliven a public interest defence to copyright infringement (to the extent this still exists in UK law) but may be relevant to remedies. It also argues that compulsory licensing, while permissible under international copyright law, would not be a desirable intervention, but that legislative expansion to the existing exceptions, in order to encourage voluntary collective licensing, has a number of attractions. It concludes by observing that the pandemic highlights issues with the prevailing model for academic publishing and asks whether COVID may encourage universities to embrace in-house and open access publishing more swiftly and for an even greater body of material.

Collective licensing and asymmetric information: The double eff ect of the Medicine Patent Pool on generic drug markets

The paper studies the Medicine Patent Pool (MPP) as an effective coordination mechanism to allow access to essential medicines. Focusing on one of the most important disease areas (HIV), we exploit heterogeneity in the timing of entry into the pool of active pharmaceutical ingredients across countries to estimate the effect of the pool on the market for essential drugs. We show that the pool works on two levels. First, it improves access to drugs by increasing competition by generics producers. Second and surprisingly, it further increases access by eliminating funda- mental asymmetric information about the intellectual property rights status of drugs across geographical markets.

Exploring the suitability of Chesbrough's open innovation concept for the exploitation and management of orphan works under copyright law

Orphan works are copyright-protected works whose holders cannot be located. The solutions to enable access to these works include the use of fair defence, the extended collective licensing regime, the scheme for reappearing copyright holders, and the blockchain-based system. None of these options, however, have included an open innovation framework as part of the solutions. Therefore, this paper aspires to explore the suitability of Chesbrough's open innovation concept. This paper discusses two underlying theories for the exploitation of the orphan works and further highlights the suitability of the open innovation concept based on the said theories. This paper further argues that the open-innovation based model is suitable for the exploitation of the orphan works because it may encourage grassroots innovations and promote sustainable economic growth through one of open innovation's mechanisms, IP licensing.

IPO Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property: Call for Views Copyright

In response to the UK Intellectual Property Office’s call for views on Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property, this paper by the Oxford Intellectual Property Research Centre addresses the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on exceptions in copyright law. Response focus on balancing the protection of the rights of copyright-holders as against the need for a variety of large data inputs from international sources for ethical, robust and innovative AI development. This paper argues that AI developers may benefit from the quotation exception as a form of ‘global mandatory fair use’, whilst calls for enhanced collective licensing arrangements to ensure proper remuneration for copyright-holders.

Proposals for copyright law and education during the COVID-19 pandemic

This article asks whether the catastrophic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic justifies new limitations or interventions in copyright law so that UK educational institutions can continue to serve the needs of their students. It describes the existing copyright landscape and suggests ways in which institutions can rely on exceptions in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA), including fair dealing and the exemption for lending by educational establishments. It then considers the viability of other solutions. It argues that issues caused by the pandemic would not enliven a public interest defence to copyright infringement (to the extent this still exists in UK law) but may be relevant to remedies. It also argues that compulsory licensing, while permissible under international copyright law, would not be a desirable intervention, but that legislative expansion to the existing exceptions, in order to encourage voluntary collective licensing, has a number of attractions. It concludes by observing that the pandemic highlights issues with the prevailing model for academic publishing and asks whether COVID may encourage universities to embrace in-house and open access publishing more swiftly and for an even greater body of material.

Proposals for Copyright Law and Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic

This article asks whether the catastrophic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic justifies new limitations or interventions in copyright law so that UK educational institutions can continue to serve the needs of their students. It describes the existing copyright landscape and suggests ways in which institutions can rely on exceptions in the CDPA, including fair dealing and the exemption for lending by educational establishments. It then considers the viability of other solutions. It argues that issues caused by the pandemic would not enliven a public interest defence to copyright infringement (to the extent this still exists in UK law) but may be relevant to remedies. It also argues that compulsory licensing, while permissible under international copyright law, would not be a desirable intervention, but that legislative expansion to the existing exceptions, in order to encourage voluntary collective licensing, has a number of attractions. It concludes by observing that the pandemic highlights issues with the prevailing model for academic publishing, and asks whether COVID may encourage universities to embrace in-house and open access publishing more swiftly and for an even greater body of material.

Orphan Works Situation Under Canadian Copyright Act

This article examines the orphan works solution under the Canadian Copyright Act. This article introduces the type of solution adopted by the Canadian Copyright Act. The author undertake a qualitative approach to a thorough investigation that discloses that Canada has adopted centrally granted licensing model which enables a public body to issue licenses for users of orphan works. The author also revealed that under the Canadian system a prospective user is required to carry out a reasonably diligent search prior to using orphan works. It is understood that the type of solution adopted by the Canadian law may not function well at the moment, due to technological advancements that allow public libraries and other public institutions to digitise the whole collections that they own. However, compulsory licenses model could be considered a barrier before such institutions to have all their collections digitised, therefore, it is preferred for the Canadian law to adopt extended collective licenses model in addition to the compulsory licensing model. Keywords: orphan works, centrally granted licenses, license, section 77. DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/95-12 Publication date: March 31 st 2020

Comment of the European Copyright Society on the Implementation of the Extended Collective Licensing Rules (Arts. 8 and 12) of the Directive (EU) 2019/790 on Copyright in the Digital Single Market

Articles 8 and 12 of the DSM Directive provide the first explicit legal basis for extended collective licences (ECL) in the EU copyright acquis. Article 8 is a mandatory rule on the use of out-of-commerce works and other subject matter by cultural heritage institutions, whereas Article 12 is an optional rule that applies to all kinds of works or other subject matter and all forms of use. Article 12 harmonizes national rules on ECLs and leaves some, but limited, freedom to the Member States. The comment of European Copyright Society examines the possibilities that Articles 8 and 12 provide for adopting national rules on extended collective licences and addresses a number of core aspects of Articles 8 and 12 that may play an important role in the national implementation process.

Exploring the suitability of Chesbroughs open innovation concept for the exploitation and management of orphan works under copyright law

Orphan works are copyright-protected works whose holders cannot be located. The solutions to enable access to these works include the use of fair defence, the extended collective licensing regime, the scheme for reappearing copyright holders, and the blockchain-based system. None of these options, however, have included an open innovation framework as part of the solutions. Therefore, this paper aspires to explore the suitability of Chesbrough's open innovation concept. This paper discusses two underlying theories for the exploitation of the orphan works and further highlights the suitability of the open innovation concept based on the said theories. This paper further argues that the open-innovation based model is suitable for the exploitation of the orphan works because it may encourage grassroots innovations and promote sustainable economic growth through one of open innovation's mechanisms, IP licensing.

Bermuda Triangle – Licensing, Filtering and Privileging User-Generated Content Under the New Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market

The new EU Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market creates a peculiar triangle of obligations to license, filter and privilege user-generated content (UGC). As it abolishes the traditional safe harbour for hosting in the case of copyrighted content, it may lead to the disappearance of the open, participative internet which EU citizens currently enjoy. To avoid the loss of open, democratic avenues for online content creation, national lawmakers will have to find the right amalgam of licensing and filtering obligations on the one hand, and new use privileges that offer room for user-generated content without prior authorization on the other. Against this background, the analysis sheds light on these regulatory options and their impact on freedom of expression and information in the digital environment. It demonstrates that the two options which the Digital Single Market Directive offers to alleviate the burden of strict liability for user-generated content – the licensing approach and the filtering approach – are problematic. The licensing approach imposes the task of clearing rights for the wide variety of UGC in the highly fragmented collective licensing framework in EU Member States. The filtering approach raises the spectre of content censorship following the maxims of cost and efficiency considerations of the content and platform industry. In comparison with these scenarios, the development of a broader use privilege for UGC has the advantage of avoiding an encroachment upon fundamental rights and safeguarding breathing space for open, participative online communication. If it is combined with an obligation to pay equitable remuneration for content remixes and mash-ups that do not fulfil quotation or parody standards, it also has the advantage of generating a revenue stream that benefits not only the creative industry but also individual creators. Implementing the new Directive, national lawmakers should thus consider all options: licensing, filtering and privileging UGC. A broadened copyright limitation infrastructure that supports UGC also provides important impulses for the development of filtering technology that follows a reverse logic. Instead of seeking to find protected third party content that renders UGC impermissible, a limitation-based filtering system focuses on creative user input that may justify its online dissemination despite the inclusion of protected third party material.

Complements and/or Substitutes? The Competitive Dynamics Between News Publishers and Digital Platforms and What It Means for Competition Policy

This paper is to analyse the competitive dynamics between news publishers and digital platforms. News publishers and digital platforms are vertical complements in that news publishers publish content that helps digital platforms to attract users. In turn, digital platforms generate traffic for news publishers. However, the relationship between news publishers and digital platforms is not harmonious. While digital platforms are an important source of traffic, news publishers are concerned that digital platforms free-ride on their valuable content, but also that that distribute that content in a manner that commoditizes it, hence harming their brands. News publishers and digital platforms also horizontally compete for user attention and advertising revenues. Internet users in search of news can go to the website or app of their favourite newspaper, but they may also go to Google News, Facebook or Twitter. Similarly, advertisers can spend their online advertising budget on news publishers, but also on Google or Facebook online properties, which for that matter are also publishers. Linked with technological development, the growing ability of digital platforms to target audiences due to their data advantage has turned the market for online display advertising into a Google and Facebook duopoly. Whether the relationship between news publishers and digital platforms is of a vertical or horizontal nature has implications for competition policy. From a vertical standpoint, some of Google and Facebook’s practices vis-a-vis news publishers could be exploitative in nature. Exploitative cases are, however, difficult to run and in some jurisdictions such as the United States, taking advantage of one’s market power is not illegal even if it harms one’s trading partners. Thus, other avenues may need to be explored to counterbalance the digital platform’s market power and to create a sustainable source of income for news publishers, such as, for instance, joint bargaining or the creation of collective licensing mechanisms for their rights. From an horizontal standpoint, while digital platforms cannot be blamed for seeking to maximize their revenues, competition authorities should however prevent them from engaging in strategies that draw traffic away from news publishers and deprive them of advertising opportunities, either through self-preferencing, discrimination, the imposition of formats and standards that reduce the ability of news publishers to monetize their content, or by making it harder for them to access the data generated by the users’ interaction with their content.

Facilitating Transactions and Lawful Availability of Works of Authorship

The importance of providing access to the cultural heritage1 is widely accepted. Digital technology has supplied powerful new tools to reproduce and disseminate works and at the same time has transformed the demands and expectations of end-users.2 Nevertheless, there are several issues that cultural heritage institutions (“CHIs”) must resolve in order to maintain their role of preserving and disseminating cultural heritage in the digital age. Although some of those issues are budgetary rather than legal,3copyright is obviously a key consideration in the digital use of in-copyright works by CHIs. The largest copyright challenge for CHIs is the process of identification of right holders of copyright and clearance of rights, i.e. obtaining authorization or licenses for use of in-copyright works. Stakeholders do not agree how best to facilitate CHIs in their important cultural role. Some advocate the establishment of legal exceptions whereas others favor licenses. My starting assumption is that, given the impact of online use, licensing is a more appropriate and flexible tool than exceptions. However, obtaining individual licenses for the use of in-copyright works held by CHIs is complicated, time-consuming, and costly, in particular for cross-border online use.4 Thus individual licensing is not a practical solution for CHIs except for the use of a few well-defined works. Even collective licensing does not fully solve the licensing issue because no collective management organization (“CMO”) has mandates from all right holders in a given field.5 Hence, I propose that the solution is to be found through collective licenses with legislative support, such as the system of extended collective licenses (“ECL”).6 In this essay I will start by giving a brief account of the main strands which constitute an extended collective license in the Nordic countries, where it was first developed.7 I will describe two examples where ECLs have been used to facilitate access to the cultural heritage, in Norway and Finland respectively. I will also discuss the compatibility of the system with international norms, in particular the Berne Convention,8 and finish with some reflections on challenges and benefits of the system of ECLs in facilitating access to cultural heritage.

Extended Collective Licensing for the Use of Out-of-Commerce Works in Europe: A Matter of Legitimacy Vis-\xe0-Vis Rights Holders

Extended Collective Licensing (ECL) schemes have been put forward in Europe as one of the solutions for the licensing of out-of-commerce works by cultural heritage institutions. ECL schemes extend the application of freely negotiated copyright licensing agreements between a user and a collective management organisation (CMO) to the works of non-members of the organisation. Not every CMO is suitable to license works under ECL provisions, however. In particular, the legitimacy of any agreement crucially relies on the “representativeness” of the CMO. This article focuses on the notion of representativeness of CMOs. On the basis of current European and national legislation, we argue that the representative character of a CMO encompasses three essential elements to be considered from the perspective of the rights owners: (1) the CMO must have a broad membership among the potential rights owners in the market it serves; (2) it must have a proper mandate from the rights owners in terms of category of works and rights covered; and (3) it must take appropriate measures to reach and inform (non-)members about the exercise of rights. ECL schemes can only be sufficiently legitimate to presume tacit approval by non-members if this assessment of the three criteria is carried out carefully.