geo-blocking | Dekuzu

Directive on television and radio programmes

Published 24th September 2019

What is the current situation for online transmission and retransmission of television and radio programmes?

Broadcasters are increasingly offering their broadcasts online (for instance through their simulcasting or catch-up services). However, such online programming often remains unavailable in other Member States, even if there is interest abroad to access it. The clearance of rights for such uses can be particularly burdensome: a broadcaster needs to obtain authorisations from various rightholders, for different categories of works and other protected content, and separately for every Member State, where the programme will be available online.

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Survey shows Europeans are well aware of rules against unjustified geo-blocking

Published 13th September 2019

Seven months after new rules against unjustified geo-blocking began to apply, general consumer awareness of the new rules against restrictions for online shopping and cross-border sales is already high. A Eurobarometer survey shows that just a few months after the new rules on geo-blocking started to apply, 50% of EU citizens are generally aware of EU action to tackle unjustified discrimination by traders.

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Commission sends Statements of Objections to Valve and five videogame publishers on “geo-blocking” of PC video games

Published 30th May 2019

The European Commission has informed Valve, owner of the “Steam” video game distribution platform, and five videogame publishers, of its preliminary view that the companies prevented consumers from purchasing videogames cross-border from other Member States, in breach of EU competition rules.

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Pirates lose their ad money thanks to VPN?

Published 22nd May 2019

VPN allows circumventing geographical restriction of access to certain web-site if it is blocked. But most web-sites, including those “pirate”, rely on advertising; their most part of revenue is derived from advertising. One informational agency spoke with operator of one so called pirate site. What exactly distributes such site it is unknown, but the operator says some interesting things.

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Spanski v Telewizja Polska: domestic copyright infringement from abroad

Published 21st May 2018

When the owner of a foreign website, acting abroad, uploads video content in which another party holds exclusive United States public performance rights under the Copyright Act and then directs the uploaded content to United States viewers upon their request, does it commit an infringing “performance” under the Act? If so, is it protected from liability by the principle – unquestioned here – that the Act has no extraterritorial application?

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Some facts about regulation on portability of online content services in EU

Published 6th April 2018

The aim is to ensure that Europeans who buy or subscribe to films, sports broadcasts, music, e-books and games in their home Member State are able to access this content when they travel or stay temporarily in another EU country. The Regulation comes into force on 1 April 2018 in all EU Member States.

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Amendments to regulation on geo-blocking and other forms of discrimination based on customers’ nationality, place of residence or place of establishment

Published 23rd March 2018

In many cases, divergent legal environments, the legal uncertainty involved and the associated risks as regards the applicable consumer protection and environmental or labelling laws, taxation and fiscal issues, delivery costs or language requirements contribute to the traders’ unwillingness to engage in commercial relations with consumers from other Member States. In other cases some traders are fragmenting the market in order to increase consumer prices.

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Reforming of copyright in EU and one of the questions concerned: territoriality of copyright

Published 9th February 2018

In the light of coming copyright reforms in EU the draft impact assessment concerns some important copyright issues. One of them is territoriality of copyright.

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UK consultation on cross-border portability of online content services

Published 10th January 2018

Regulation 2017/1128 of the European Parliament and of the Council on cross-border portability of online content services in the internal market (the “Portability Regulation”) comes into force in the United Kingdom on 1 April (Article 11 of the Regulation). The Regulation is designed to make it easier for consumers who live in the European Union (EU) to access online content services they subscribe to (for example, television, film and music subscription services) when they are temporarily located in another Member State of the EU (Article 1.1). This could be, for example, when on holiday or travelling on business.

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SWD Impact assessment on the modernisation of EU copyright rules – the general objective

Published 7th September 2017

The Internet has favoured the entry of new market players and the development of new services (e.g. music streaming services, Video on Demand – VoD – platforms, etc.) providing access to a large quantity and variety of content online. Digital technologies also offer new opportunities to cultural heritage institutions (CHIs) willing to digitise and disseminate parts of their collections that would otherwise remain confined to their premises with limited access to the public.

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Category: geo-blocking