Brussels, 23/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - A café-restaurant may not broadcast a radio station on its premises without having previously obtained the permission of the authors, the Court of Justice of the EU said in an order published on Tuesday 21 July.
The Court had been asked by a Portuguese court (case C-151/15) whether the transmission by means of television of broadcast works in commercial premises, such as bars, cafés and restaurants was a new use of copyright-protected works. A second question asked whether the use of technical means other than television broadcast reception equipment, such as speakers or amplifiers, to amplify broadcast sound has any effect on the answer to the first question.
Taking the wide case-law and Directive 2001/29/EC on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society as its basis, the Court concluded in its order that the permission of the authors remains necessary in these circumstances.
In the Court's view, the proprietor of a café-restaurant is engaging in “communication” when deliberately transmitting protected broadcast works, whether via television or radio. Furthermore, “communication” of this sort is carried out for profit since the aim is to attract customers, thus potentially having an impact on how well the establishment is frequented and on its economic results.
Lastly, the Court notes that the customers of a café-restaurant must be considered to be a “public” as they come and go in quick succession and are relatively numerous. A “public” of this sort is also new, in that it was not taken into consideration by the authors when granting permission for the broadcast of their works. (Jan Kordys)