Users who publish content freely available on the Internet should get consent from the person behind it, Europe’s top court ruled on Tuesday in a boost to the bloc’s creative industries.

Regulators say they lose out because illegal uploads of works on big online platforms such as Google’s YouTube and Vivendi’s video-sharing site Dailymotion deny publishers, broadcasters and artists of revenues.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) ruling came after a secondary school student in Germany downloaded a photograph of Cordoba from a travel website to illustrate a presentation which was then published on the school website.

Photographer Dirk Renckhoff then sued the city of Waltrop and North Rhine-Westphalia for copyright infringement and 400 euros in damages. A German court then sought guidance from the Luxembourg-based ECJ, which went against a non-binding opinion from its adviser four months ago.

“The posting on a website of a photograph that was freely accessible on another website with the consent of the author requires a new authorisation by that author,” judges said.

“By posting on the internet, the photograph is made available to a new public,” they said.

Judges said posting a work online was different from hyperlinks which lead users to another website and thus contribute to the smooth functioning of the internet.

“Subject to the exceptions and limitations laid down exhaustively in that directive, any use of a work by a third party without such prior consent must be regarded as infringing the copyright of that work,” the court said, referring to EU copyright legislation.

The ruling could result in a rash of litigation as artists assert their rights, said Nils Rauer, a partner at Frankfurt-based Hogan Lovells.

“The idea is that we as a society should appreciate and protect copyrighted works. The overall intention of the Commission, European Parliament and the court is to create respect for copyright,” he added.

]]> 7651 https://www.faith-matters.org/india-asks-telcos-to-find-ways-to-block-apps-in-case-of-misuse/ Tue, 07 Aug 2018 09:28:19 +0000 https://www.faith-matters.org/?p=7642

India has asked its telecom operators to find ways of blocking applications such as Facebook and messaging app WhatsApp in the case of misuse, according to a document seen by Reuters.

India has in recent months intensified efforts to crack down on mass message forwards after it found that people were using social media and messaging apps to spread rumours and stoke public anger.

WhatsApp in particular has faced the wrath of Indian regulators after false messages circulated on the messaging platform led to a series of lynchings and mob beatings across the country.

The department of telecommunications in July asked Indian telecom service providers, as well as mobile and internet industry bodies, to “explore various possible options” to block such apps.

“You are…requested to explore various possible options and confirm how the Instagram/Facebook/Whatsapp/Telegram and such other mobile apps can be blocked on internet,” according to the government letter dated July 18 and seen by Reuters.

Facebook Inc, which owns both WhatsApp and photo-sharing platform Instagram, declined to comment. Telegram did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A source at India’s department of telecommunication said the letter was aimed at finding ways to block such apps during “emergency situations”.

“There is a need for a reasonable good solution to protect national security,” said the official, who declined to be named.

For WhatsApp, India is its biggest market with more than 200 million users and one where it says people forward more messages, photographs and videos than any other country.

Following calls from the government to stem the platform’s misuse, WhatsApp has moved to deter mass message forwards and launched an advertising campaign to educate consumers.

In July, WhatsApp said message forwards will be limited to five chats at a time, whether among individuals or groups, and said it will remove the quick forward button placed next to media messages.

Separately, India’s federal police has begun probing Cambridge Analytica’s misuse of Facebook user data, which New Delhi suspects included information on Indian users.