The Minister for Research and Innovation, Sean Sherlock TD,
recently announced the signing into law of the European Union
(Copyright and Related Rights) Regulations 2012 (the
"Regulations"). The Regulations
seek to fill the apparent gap in existing copyright legislation and
in the protection afforded to copyright holders, highlighted by the
court in the EMI1case in October 2010.
The Regulations
The Regulations amend the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000
(the "Act") by explicitly providing for
the right of a copyright owner to apply to the High Court for an
injunction against an intermediary whose services are used by a
third party to infringe their copyright or related
right.
They compel the Court to consider the rights of any person likely
to be affected by virtue of the grant of an injunction and to give
directions, such as requiring a person be notified, whenever it
considers appropriate.
Comment
In the EMI case, Mr Justice Charleton decided that he was
constrained by the Act in its current form and was unable to grant
an injunction to prevent an infringement of copyrights against an
ISP. The Act had to be amended in order to fully transpose
the EU Copyright Directive and the Enforcement Directive (the
"Directives").
However, it is argued by businesses that that these amendments are
not necessary and the Judge was misinformed during the case as
regards Ireland's non-compliance with the Directives.
Despite the ongoing debate, the Regulations have been in effect
since 29 February 2012 and it is believed that proceedings against
businesses, such as ISPs and telecoms companies, could begin
imminently.
There may also be further changes ahead as the Minister has
launched the next stage of the Copyright Review Committee review of
Ireland's copyright legislation and has implied that there are
to be further updates to copyright legislation aimed at striking a
balance between encouraging innovation and protecting
creativity.
1 EMI Records (Ireland) Ltd & Ors -v- UPC Communications Ireland Ltd [2010] IEHC 377 (11 October 2010)
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