New French Copyright Act

After months of discussions, the French Copyright Act was finally enacted on 1 August.

The so-called DADVSI Act is 52 sections long and divided into 5 parts. Its main purpose is to implement the Directive on Copyright and Related Rights in the Information Society (2001/29). In doing so, it creates new exceptions to copyright protection and provides for the protection of technological measures and rights management information. Besides implementing the Directive, the new Act contains provisions relating to unlawful downloading on the internet and ownership of copyright in works created by civil servants.

New exceptions.

The DADVSI Act provides new exceptions, in addition to those already set out in Article L.122-5 of the Intellectual Property Code (IPC), which allow the use of copyright works in certain special cases without the rightholder’s permission. Under the Act, the rightholder’s exclusive right to authorise or prohibit the reproduction of a work may be limited in respect of