Tagged: Argentina
USTR Releases Annual Out of Cycle Review of Notorious Markets
It is that time of year again when the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) releases its annual report on Notorious Markets—The 2014 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets. As we reported on last year, this annual review identifies foreign physical and online markets reported by U.S. businesses and industry organizations as being engaged in substantial IP piracy and counterfeiting.
This year’s review identified several foreign social media and file transferring websites, as well as a number of Internet service providers (ISPs), as being notorious markets including those hosted or located in Argentina, the British Virgin Islands, Canada, China, Czech Republic, France, Netherlands, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Russia, San Marino, Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and Vietnam. Additionally, physical markets in Argentina, Brazil, China, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Paraguay, Thailand and Uruguay were also identified as being notorious markets.
The USTR also highlighted a number of recent developments including efforts by certain previously listed Chinese sites to curb piracy activities on their websites, as well as increased enforcement actions by rights holders and government officials to shut down physical and online markets in Brazil, the European Union and Ukraine among others.
What’s The Takeaway? As we have said before, every foreign market has its own IP protection challenges. U.S. businesses that operate abroad or are expanding into new markets should review the USTR’s 2014 Out of Cycle Review of Notorious Markets to help evaluate the IP protection risks associated with particular markets they wish to enter. Doing so can help to ensure that such businesses can better protect their IP assets abroad.
Enforcing Online Copyright Protection Abroad: Part III – South America
As part of my ambitious plan to provide you with information on online copyright enforcement procedures through all of the countries in the world, I come to you with part III of my ongoing posting series on national notice and takedown provisions—South America. Although few South American countries have adopted full-fledged notice and takedown provisions as provided in the U.S., Australia, and others, many South American countries have or an in the process of adopting national notice and takedown provisions, either through legislative reforms or judicial action, or have adopted other measures owners or rights holders of copyright protected works (collectively, “Rights Holders”) can use to protect their works online.
However, as I have mentioned in previous posts on this topic, determining whether a Rights Holder can enforce rights in their work online and abroad depends on: (1) whether a work qualifies for foreign protection (aka national treatment) under the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (Berne Convention) or the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS); (2) whether the Internet service provider (ISP) hosting the infringing use of the work is subject to jurisdiction in the country where online enforcement is sought; and (3) what online copyright enforcement procedures are available in the country of enforcement.
Each of these issues have been previously examined here and those with further questions should consult with a qualified attorney.
Below are the current online copyright enforcement procedures in each South American country. However, a couple of preliminary notes:
Classifications: A South American country that maintain legal protocols for a Rights Holder to directly petition an ISP to remove infringing content in order for the ISP to qualify for safe harbor protection from contributory liability for copyright infringement is identified below as a “Notice and Takedown System.” A country that does not provide legal provisions for a Rights Holder to directly enforce their copyright protections through an ISP notification system, and are instead forced to seek copyright enforcement through legal action are referred to as a “Judicial System.”
Notice Limitations: Unfortunately, even if a country maintains a Notice and Takedown System, an ISP may still refuse to disable access to a website or website content upon receipt of a Rights Holder’s infringement notice. In such instances, a Rights Holder may be forced to seek enforcement through that foreign country’s legal system in order to remove such online content.
Time Sensitivity: As several of the listed countries in this posting are evaluating or in the process of implementing copyright reforms, either through legislation or judicial action, there is the possibility that the following information may soon change.
Argentina
Enforcement System: Judicial System (Possible pending judicially-created Notice and Takedown System)
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Argentina does not currently provide statutory notice and takedown provisions. However, it was reported in June 2014 that the Argentine Supreme Court (Corte Suprema de Justicia de la Nación) heard oral arguments in Rodríguez v. Google Inc., where a lower appellate court had established a ISP safe harbor test where a Rights Holder could “notify [a] search engine, identifying the alleged infringing content” and the “search engine acts expeditiously to block the content via a quick and effective filtering method.” The Argentine Supreme Court has yet to publish a final opinion in Rodríguez, and Argentina’s civil law system makes it unclear whether any such judicial decision will require that all Argentine-based ISPs be subject to notice and takedown provisions upheld in such a decision.
Governing Legislation: Copyright Law (Law No. 11.723)
Notice Requirements: N/A
Bolivia
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Bolivia does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions.
Governing Legislation: Law No.1322 on Copyright
Notice Requirements: N/A
Brazil
Enforcement System: Judicial System (*Possible Notice and Takedown System)
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Brazil has evaluated notice and takedown reforms, enacted ISP liability legislation, and has even ruled that ISPs are subject to a notice system. However, it is still unclear whether nationwide notice and takedown provisions have been fully established in Brazil. In 2012, the Brazilian government evaluated the Copyright Law Reform Bill (Bill nº 3133/2012), which commentators had reported was to include U.S.-style notice and takedown provisions. However, the Reform Bill has yet to be implemented. In August 2012, the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice held in a special judiciary opinion in Google Brazil (Special Appeal No. 1323754/RJ) that an ISP was required to temporarily remove infringing content 24 hours upon notice of infringement from a Rights Holder in order to retain immunity from from contributory liability for copyright infringement. However, commentators have questioned Google Brazil’s applicability to other Brazilian-based ISPs, requirements for Rights Holder infringement notices, and the duration of an ISP’s removal obligations, based on Brazil’s civil law system.
In May 2014, the Brazilian government enacted the Internet Bill of Rights (Law No. 12.965) that establishes liability for “Internet intermediaries” for failing to timely comply with a judicial takedown order. However, the Internet Bill of Rights provides no direct Rights Holder infringement notice provisions.
Governing Legislation: Law on Copyright and Neighboring Rights (Law No. 9.610), Internet Bill of Rights (Law No. 12.965)
Notice Requirements: N/A
Chile
Enforcement System: Expedited Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Chile does not currently possess notice and takedown provisions despite agreeing in the U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to provide “legal incentives for [ISPs] to cooperate with copyright owners in deterring the unauthorized storage and transmission of copyrighted materials.” Chile rejected adopting notice and takedown provisions in its ratification of the U.S.-Chile FTA, as well as in proposed copyright reform legislation in 2010. Instead, Chile implemented an expedited judicial enforcement process where a Rights Holder may submit a judicial petition against a Chilean-based ISP in a Chilean Civil Court to expeditiously evaluate the alleged infringement and obtain an injunctive takedown order.
However, Chile may soon be required to implement notice and takedown provisions if the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is finalized and the U.S. draft chapter is adopted in a final TPP agreement.
Governing Legislation: Article 85R, Law No. 17.336 on Intellectual Property
Judicial Petition Requirements:
-The allegedly infringed rights, with a specific indication of the rights and the infringement procedure;
-The infringing material; and
-The location of the infringing material in the ISP’s respective networks or systems.
Colombia
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Notes and Overview: Despite multiple reform efforts, Colombia does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions. Colombia had agreed to adopt notice and takedown provisions in a side letter to the U.S.-Colombia FTA in 2006. However, Colombia has yet to implement such provisions. In 2011, Colombian legislators introduced copyright reforms in Bill No. 201 (aka Ley Lleras 1.0) that included notice and takedown provisions, but it was not enacted. The Colombian Congress subsequently passed similar reform legislation in 2012, Law No. 1520/2012 (aka Ley Lleras 2.0), but such legislation was largely invalidated by the Colombian Constitutional Court in January 2013 on the grounds that such legislation was not properly implemented. Additional proposed copyright reform legislation, Bill No. 306, was circulated for comments in March 2014, but does not include notice and takedown provisions and has yet to be implemented.
Governing Legislation: Law No. 23 on Copyright
Notice Requirements: N/A
Ecuador
Enforcement System: Minimal Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Ecuador does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions. Further, it was reported in December 2013 that the Ecuadorian National Assembly amended its Penal Code and the Intellectual Property Law to decriminalize all IP rights violations, thereby only allowing administrative actions and fines to enforce copyright in works in Ecuador, online or otherwise.
Governing Legislation: Intellectual Property Law (Consolidation No. 2006-13)
Notice Requirements: N/A
French Guiana
Enforcement System: Notice and Takedown System (*Restricted and Undetermined)
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: French Guiana is an overseas department of France and is thereby governed by French copyright law. As a European Union (EU) member state, France was required to adopt notice and takedown provisions as provided under Article 14 of the EU Electronic Commerce Directive (Directive 2000/31/EC). However, the EU Directive provides only general recommendations, thereby giving EU member states such as France substantial flexibility to implement their own notice and takedown provisions.
France adopted notice and takedown provisions in its Creation and Internet Law where Rights Holder organizations could submit complaints to France’s online copyright authority, The High Authority for the Dissemination of Works and the Protection of Rights on the Internet (HADOPI), who would then provide notices to online infringers and remove allegedly infringing content under a graduated three-stikes approach. However, it was reported that individual Rights Holders were not allowed submit complaints to HADOPI, as such complaints must be submitted by agents of industry organizations, rights collection agencies, and the French Center of Cinematography.
Further, the French Ministry of Culture revoked the three-strikes approach on July 9, 2013 (Decree No. 2013-596) due to a perceived lack of effectiveness and public concerns that its enforcement measures were overly punitive. However, the Decree did not expressly remove the Creation and Internet Law’s ISP penalties or its notice system. However, as mentioned, the HADOPI notice system, if still in effect, can only be utilized by industry organizations, rights collection agencies, and the French Center of Cinematography on behalf of individual Rights Holders.
Governing Legislation: Intellectual Property Code
Authorized Agent Notice Requirements:
-Sworn declaration that the authorized agent of the referral has standing to act in the name of the Rights Holder over the protected work or materials in question;
-Information on the website address(es) and other details of the alleged infringer; and
-Information on the infringing acts including date and time of the acts.
Guyana
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: According to the World Intellectual Property Organization, copyright law in Guyana is governed by its former colonizer, the United Kingdom. However, it does not appear that Guyana has adopted notice and take provisions as required by EU member states such as the United Kingdom under Article 14 of the EU Electronic Commerce Directive (Directive 2000/31/EC).
Governing Legislation: United Kingdom Copyright Act of 1956
Notice Requirements: N/A
Paraguay
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Paraguay does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions.
Governing Legislation: Law No.1328/98 on Copyright and Related Rights
Notice Requirements: N/A
Peru
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Despite multiple reform efforts, Peru does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions. Peru had agreed to adopt notice and takedown provisions in a side letter to the U.S.-Peru FTA in 2006, and it did adopt several copyright reforms in 2009 in order to implement its U.S.-Peru FTA obligations. However, such reforms do not appear to include notice and takedown provisions as promised in the U.S.-Peru FTA side letter.
However, Peru may soon be required to implement notice and takedown provisions if the TTP is finalized and the U.S. draft chapter is adopted in a final TPP agreement.
Governing Legislation: Copyright Law (Legislative Decree No. 822), and Law Amending, Incorporating and Regulating Miscellaneous Provisions on the Implementation of the Trade Promotion Agreement Signed Between Peru and United States
Notice Requirements: N/A
Suriname
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Suriname does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions.
Governing Legislation: Copyright Law of 1913
Notice Requirements: N/A
Uruguay
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Uruguay does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions. It is reported that Uruguay is currently considering a number of copyright reforms, yet it does not appear that notice and takedown provisions are included in such reform proposals.
Governing Legislation: Law No. 17.616 Amending Law on Copyright, Law No. 9.739 on Copyright
Notice Requirements: N/A
Venezuela
Enforcement System: Judicial System
Berne Convention Member: Yes
Overview and Notes: Venezuela does not currently maintain any notice and takedown provisions.
Governing Legislation: Law on Copyright
Notice Requirements: N/A
Special thanks to Sara Parker, recent Seattle University School of Law graduate and new member of the Washington State Bar for her assistance.
Enforcing Online Copyright Protections Abroad: Understanding Foreign Takedown Notice Requirements
Establishing methods for enforcing copyright protections online has become increasingly important to protecting a content owner’s rights in their works—as demonstrated by the recent launch of the Copyright Alert System (CAS) in the U.S. Most content owners do not have the same resources for online copyright enforcement as the Media and Internet service provider industries (two central sponsors of CAS). However, nearly all owners of protected works can take advantage of relatively inexpensive online copyright enforcement methods to protect their works in many of the world’s major markets. The most commonly used means of enforcement are takedown notices—demands sent from content owners to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) or website hosts to remove infringing content hosted on websites under their control. Depending on the circumstances, an ISP may be compelled upon receiving a takedown notice to remove infringing content from a hosted website, or in some cases, an entire website, for a temporary or extended amount of time.
Takedown notices can have substantial implications on an infringer’s online presence. A takedown can interrupt access to a infringer’s site, potential disrupt or halt their business, and can possibly result in the deletion of their site’s user comments and feedback. With these potentially serious consequences in mind, a rights holder should consider exhausting all alternatives before submitting a takedown notice against an infringing website.
Determining whether to and how to utilize takedown notices as a international copyright enforcement tool requires understanding a few things:
- What international legal protections does a rights owner have in their works
- Where are works being infringed online
- Where is an ISP subject to jurisdiction
- What countries have national takedown procedures and what are such countries’ requirements
- Further issues after a takedown notice is submitted
Let’s break these down a little further:
What International Legal Protections Does a Rights Owner Have in Their Works? A rights owner cannot consider utilizing takedown procedures abroad without first establishing that their works qualify for international copyright protection. A work qualifies for international copyright protection under the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (Berne Convention) when it becomes attached. Attachment requires that the author of the work be a national of a Berne Convention country (A list of Berne Convention countries is available here), the author is a habitual resident of a Berne Convention country, that the work is first published in a Berne Convention country, or that the work is published in a Berne Convention country within 30 days after an initial publishing in a non-Berne Convention country. If a work is attached through any of these means, it is treated as if the work originated in each Berne Convention country, and is then subject to each Berne Convention country’s copyright protection requirements in order to qualify for copyright protection in that specific country.
If a content owner has questions about whether their content qualifies for international copyright protection, they should consider consulting with their national copyright office or a qualified attorney.
Where are Works Being Infringed Online? To determine if any enforcement measure can be utilized, it is essential to know where in the world a work is being infringed online. If a work is being used without authorization and is available on the Internet in a particular country, it is likely being infringed in that particular country. For example, if a song by a Spanish artist, that qualifies as a protected work under the Berne Convention, is uploaded without authorization by a Malaysian file sharer to their website and is accessible throughout the entire world, it is being infringed in both Malaysia and Spain, as well as potentially in the other 164 Berne Convention countries.
Where is an ISP Subject to Jurisdiction? In order to effectively submit a takedown notice in a country where a protected work is infringed online, the ISP of the infringing website must be subject to that country’s laws in order for the ISP to be potentially compelled to comply with a takedown request. Generally, an ISP is only subject to the laws of a country where it is physically located or countries where it is engaged in enough commercial activity to establish personal jurisdiction. Determining an infringing site’s ISP can be completed through conducting a WHOIS database search. Such a search may also help identify the ISP’s host country by providing details about the ISP. However, this is not always a certainty.
If an ISP is located in the country where a work is infringed online, a rights owner only needs to establish whether that country has takedown procedures (see next section) to determine whether they can utilize takedown notices. However, determining whether an ISP is subject to the copyright laws of a country where it is not physically located is more difficult. In the U.S., a foreign ISP must at least have sufficient “minimum contacts” with the U.S. for the foreign-based ISP to be subject to U.S. law, and potential liability under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Int’l Shoe Co. v. Wash., 326 U.S. 310, 316 (1945). Generally, such contacts have required purposeful interactions with U.S. citizens and commerce, such as marketing its services in the U.S. that would foreseeably bring the ISP under U.S. jurisdiction. Asahi Metal Indus. v. Superior Court, 480 U.S. 102, 112 (1987). It must also be “reasonable” to bring the ISP under U.S. jurisdiction, based on multiple factors. World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 292 (1980).
To illustrate these requirements using the previous example of the Spanish musician: Let’s assume that an Australian ISP hosts the Malaysian file-sharer website whose infringing content is available in the U.S., but the ISP does not market or make its services available in the U.S. In this case, the ISP would likely not be subject to U.S. law. Therefore, it is likely that the ISP is only subject to Australian law due to its location in Australia—and possibly Malaysian law if qualifying under Malaysian personal jurisdiction requirements. Alternatively, if the Australian ISP actively markets its services to U.S. citizens and businesses, the ISP may be subject to U.S. jurisdiction, and thereby potential liability under the DMCA. This would give the Spanish artist the ability to submit a U.S. takedown notice against the Australian ISP that would subject the ISP to potential liability under the DMCA if is fails to take action on the takedown notice.
Two important things to note:
- Failing to qualify for jurisdiction does not mean a rights holder is barred from demanding an ISP to takedown content that infringes a protected work. It simply means that an ISP may not be compelled or have incentive to remove infringing content because they are unlikely to face liability.
- Many content submission sites like YouTube and Facebook, as well as search engines such as Google and Bing, maintain their own takedown submissions procedures that are generally available to users regardless of their geographical location or where a protected work is infringed online.
What Countries Have National Takedown Procedures and What are Such Countries’ Requirements? To effectively utilize takedown procedure against an ISP, the ISP’s host country or country to which it is brought under personal jurisdiction must possess takedown procedures for rights holders, and such rights holders must comply with such procedural requirements. This requires understanding:
- Whether the country to which the ISP is subject to jurisdiction has takedown notice legislation
- If so, what are the country’s takedown notice requirements and procedures.
National Takedown Notice Legislation. Surprisingly, not all countries maintain takedown notice legislation for rights holders. Major markets including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India, Israel, Mexico and Russia are among those that don’t currently have takedown notice procedures. Despite such gaps, a large number of Berne Convention countries have enacted takedown notice legislation including the U.S., Australia, China, France, Italy, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan and the United Kingdom, to name a few.
National Takedown Notice Requirements: Below are the requirements for takedown notices in a number of major markets that have notice and takedown legislation.
|
Country |
Legislation |
Takedown Notice Requirements |
| United States | DMCA (17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3)(A)) |
|
| Australia | Regulation 20I, Schedule 10, 1969 Copyright Regulations |
|
| China | Article 14, Regulations on the Protection of the Right to Network Dissemination of Information Networks |
|
| Japan | Article 3(2)(ii), Act on the Limitation of Liability for Damages of Specified Telecommunications Service Providers and the Right to DemandDisclosure of Identification Information of the Senders |
|
| South Africa | Section 77(1), The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act |
|
| United Kingdom | Section 124(a)(3), Communications Act 2003 |
|
Note: Some of these national take down requirements are derived from translations. Rights holders should consult with National Copyright Offices or qualified attorneys in the jurisdictions they wish to enforce their rights in order to confirm these and other take down notice requirements.
Further Issues After a Takedown Notice is Submitted. Finally, it is important to note that there are issues to consider after a takedown notice has been submitted. First, an infringer may respond to a takedown notice by submitting a counter notice attesting to their rights in a protected work, even after their online content or website has been blocked or removed. Also, an ISP may refuse to act after a takedown notice has been submitted. If these circumstances arise, one should consider contacting a qualified attorney to discuss further actions.
Special thanks to co-author Kenneth Louis Strocsher, J.D. Candidate, 2014, Seattle University School of Law.
USTR Releases Review of Notorious IP Infringement Markets
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) released an Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets on Thursday, December 13, 2012, which identified physical and online markets reported by U.S. businesses and industry organizations as being engaged in substantial intellectual property piracy and counterfeiting. The Review included particular social media, multi-platform, deeplinking, cyberlocker, business-to-business, business-to-consumer, bit torrent indexing, bit torrent tracking, and pay-per-download websites. Specific physical markets in Argentina, China, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Paraguay, Thailand, and Ukraine were also deemed notorious.
Other notable changes in the Review included the removal of Chinese websites Taobao and Sogou as notorious markets, for their efforts to work with rights-holders to identify infringing content on their websites.
A copy of the Review is available here.
