Wi-Fi/Copyright

Operator of a Wi-Fi network cannot be held liable for copyright infringements committed by users of that network

In its judgement C-484/14 dated 15 September 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that vendor who offer an open Wi-Fi network free of charge to the public, cannot be held liable for copyright infringements committed by users of such a Wi-Fi network.

If, however, the Wi-Fi network is used unlawfully, the Wi-Fi operator may be required by court or administrative order to password-protect its network in order to bring an end to or prevent such infringements. Before obtaining the password, users are required to reveal their identity to be prevented from acting anonymously.