Intellectual Property Rights

Protection for databases
Prof. Marie-Christine Janssens
Centre for Intellectual Property Rights
Catholic University Leuven - Belgium
WIPO-UNIDO National Seminar on Managing Intellectual Property of SMEs
Minsk, 23-25 January 2007
1
International context
 Berne (1908-1948) : article 2(5)
Collections of literary or artistic
works such as encyclopaedias
and anthologies which, by
reason of the selection and
arrangement of their contents,
constitute intellectual creations
shall be protected as such,
without prejudice to the
copyright in each of the works
forming part of such collections.
2
Copyright
works in database
Copyright
database (collection)
3
International context
 TRIPS (1994) : art. 10.2
Compilations of data or other material,
whether in machine readable or other
form, which by reason of the selection
or arrangement of their contents
constitute intellectual creations shall be
protected as such.
Such protection, which shall not extend
to the data or material itself, shall be
without prejudice to any copyright
subsisting in data or material itself
4
Cf. Copyright Act Belarus 1998/2003
Закон Республики Беларусь
об авторском праве и
смежных правах.
5
Статья 7. Произведения,
являющиеся объектами авторского права
1. Объектами авторского права являются:
литературные произведения
(включая компьютерные программы и базы данных)
3. (…)
Базы данных или компиляции иных материалов в
любой форме, представляющие собой по подбору и
расположению материалов результат
интеллектуального творчества, охраняются как
таковые. Такая охрана не распространяется
непосредственно на сами данные или материалы и
действует без ущерба какому-либо авторскому праву, к
сфере распространения которого относятся такие
данные или материалы.
6
Situation in EU (prior to 1996)
I. Berne Convention (1908-1948)
 Protection for collections of literary or artistic
works (art. 2.5)
Original
II. Protection for databases containing nonprotected materials (TRIPS & WCT)
 differences between member states (sweat of the
brow v. originality) Original
III. Protection for non-original databases
 Unfair competition law
 Legislation (Scandinavian countries,
Netherlands)
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Call for stronger protection
 advent of the information society
 importance : analogue v. digital environment
 have become motor of E-commerce
 software-technology  necessary tools
 necessary tools to manage information
 storage, processing, providing access
 information = value
8
Trend in common
Increased
IP awareness
Knowledge and Intellectual Property
are replacing
Capital, Buildings and Machinery as the
Most Important Company Assets
LES Scandinavia Conference ‘98
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Call for stronger protection
 advent of the information society
 importance : analogue v. digital environment
 have become motor of E-commerce
 software-technology  necessary tools
 necessary tools to manage information
 storage, processing, providing access
 information = value
protect “investment” (v. originality)
10
Copyright &
European Legislation
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 Computer programs (1991)
 Rental & Lending right and
neighbouring rights (1992)
 Cable and satellite (1993)
 Term of protection (1993)
 Databases (1996)
 Information society (2001)
 Resale right (2001)
Harmonisation
copyright
protection
New
exclusive
right
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1 Jan. 1998  two-tier protection
scheme
Copyright
Sui generis right
Databasestructure
(le contenant)
Databasecontent
(le contenu)
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Scope of application
Definition article 1 D.
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“Databases”
Non- protected
Protected
Bare facts
‘raw’ information
 A collection of works, data or other materials
Scope of application
texts, sounds, images, numbers, facts
meteorological data, bibliographic data, photographs,
DNA seq., photo's of houses
 A collection of works, data or other materials
 That are independent
Scope of application
Telephone directory, business directory,
URL listings, newspaper clippings, records of births,
stock market quotations, trademark registers, tissue banks
 A collection of works, data or other materials
 which are independent
“Databases”
A collection of works, data or other
materials
 which are independent
 arranged in a systematic OR methodical
way
 individually accessible (in whatever way)
17
What is a ‘Database’? (Examples)
 Telephone directory
 Real estate database
 TV program listings
 Bibliographic database
 Medical lexicon
 Ticketing information
 Online job ads
 Exhibition catalogues18
Exclusion clauses
(‘as a rule’)
 Computer programmes
 Musical compilations
 no substantial investment
 Recording of audiovisual … works as
such
Not independent
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Definition Database in Belarus
Статья 4. Основные понятия
база данных – компиляция материалов,
данных, информации, по подбору и
расположению материалов представляющая
результат творческого труда;
понятие базы данных не распространяется
на компьютерную программу, с помощью
которой может осуществляться электронный
доступ к материалам базы данных
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Object of protection
Copyright
Originality
intellectual activity
stamp of personality
Selection or arrangement
of contents (structure)
Sui generis right
Investment
substantial
 ‘obtaining,
verifying, presenting’
nature : of any kind
money, time, effort, energy
Quantitative
Substantial
investment
Qualitatitive
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Term of protection
Copyright
Sui generis right
Death of author
Completion of
database
+
70 years
+
15 years
23
Beneficiary of protection
Copyright
Sui generis right
Making a (multimedia)
database
Producer
information and instruction
designers
scriptwriters
software developers
graphical designers
audiovisual technicians
contribution client
subcontractors
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Beneficiary of protection
Copyright
Sui generis right
Author
Maker (producer)
natural person(s)
employees ?
 national law
natural/legal person
initiative & risk
investment
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Restricted acts
Copyright
Economic rights (+)
 reproduction
 public communication
 distribution
by any means and
in any form
Sui generis right
Economic rights
extraction
re-utilisation
whole or substantial part
Exceptions
Copyright
•Acts by lawful user
•private purposes (but)
•teaching & research
•public/judicial/
administrative
•traditional exceptions
Sui generis right
• Acts by lawful user
•Private purposes
•teaching & research
•public/judicial/
administrative
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12 December 2005
First evaluation of Directive
96/9/EC
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 Vague terms to define ‘sui generis rights’ have
caused considerable legal uncertainty
Scope of sui generis right was severely curtailed
by ECJ
 ECJ’s concern (?)  new right (
 NOT : investment in creation of data’ (comes precariously close to
protecting basic information)
 BUT only for ‘obtaining, verification or presentation of content’
Economic impact = unproven
 Empirical evidence  doubts on the usefulness of the
right
 EU database production in 2004 fell to pre-Directive
levels !
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Three policy options
Repeal the sui generis right
Amend the sui generis provisions
Maintain the status quo
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Copyrighted
subject matter
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