Unauthorized Copy of Internet Works Infringes Copyright

Unauthorized copy of others' works online for dissemination without paying the author is an action infringing upon the author's copyright, an official from the Supreme People's Court pointed out in Beijing December 20. For exceptionally serious case of deliberate infringement, the claim for a highest compensation of 500,000 yuan will be adjudicated.

That same day, the Supreme People's Court published the "Interpretations on Some Issues Concerning Applicable Law for the Handling of Cases Involving Disputes Over Internet Copyright". This Regulation, designed to strengthen the protection of Internet copyright, will come into effect as of December 21.

The official said that under a network environment, the use of works is expressed mainly in the form of network dissemination. In the legislative spirit of the Copyright Law, the Interpretations affirm that network dissemination belongs to a method for the use of works, the copyright holder shall enjoy the right to use the works, permit use by others and gain remuneration therefrom.

The Interpretations also stipulate that cases of disputes over Internet copyright shall come under the jurisdiction of the people's court at the place where the infringement act occurs or at the residence of the defendant. The place where infringement act occurs includes the location of Internet servers, computer terminals and other equipment that implement the accused infringement act. If said place related to the infringement act and the location of the residence of the accused are hard to be determined, then the location where the plaintiff finds infringement-related contents on terminal equipment shall be seen as the action place.

Clause 10 of the Interpretations lays down special stipulations on application of compensation responsibility for online copyright infringement. The range of compensation quota is fixed between 500 yuan and 300,000 yuan according to the circumstances of harm resulting therefrom. For particularly serious cases of deliberate infringement, the serious consequences caused to the copyright holders by the rapid and wide-ranging network dissemination shall be taken into consideration, so the ceiling compensation may reach 500,000 yuan.



By PD Online Staff Li Heng


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