The European Parliament’s new directive on copyright: civil liability on the Internet, fundamental rights and the risk to innovation

Abstract

The European Parliament approved, on 26 March of this year, the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market, a theme bearing on intellectual property, its availability in relations between Internet users and questions concerning civil liability for its infringement. The Directive proved controversial, especially in its article 13, in which it intends, in other words, to transform the civil liability of online content providers and intermediaries into strict liability, independent of fault, forcing a need for permanent control and filtering. This article intends to answer the following problem-questions: (1) who are the stakeholders and what motivations have led to the existence of the Directive? (2) what does it propose in terms of changes in civil liability on the internet? (3) what is its relation to fundamental human rights, given the concern of so many relevant names? and (4) what are the possible impacts of the Directive on society and the market? The results show that the controversy lies in the scope of the relation between intellectual property, fundamental rights and tendencies of incentive to innovation.