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We certainly didn’t ask for this, but Italy appears to have made it its mission to show why our work at COMMUNIA is as relevant as ever: by launching an attack on the Public Domain. Since October last year, Italian courts have applied the country’s Cultural Heritage Code (hereinafter shortened to “the Code”) in a […]

Products have never lasted forever. Over recent years, however, the average lifetime of products seems to consistently decrease. From fast fashion which typically lasts a single season to electronic devices which swiftly become obsolete as soon as a new iteration or update is released. This development is particularly worrying regarding modern technological devices such as […]

As the summer approaches, we are taking stock of the latest developments in copyright policy debates. The scene-stealer “Generative AI” is prompting a copyright comeback in the EU bubble, forcing everyone to take a position (including us). Yet the conversations that deserve the attention of copyright experts in the months to come are not limited […]

The surge of generative artificial intelligence has gone alongside a renewed interest in questions about the relationship between machine learning and copyright law. In our newly published policy paper #15 entitled “Using copyrighted works for teaching the machine” (also available as a PDF file), we are looking at the input side of the equation within the […]

In our capacity as accredited observers of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR), we are attending the 43th session of the Committee, which is currently taking place in Geneva (March 13-17, 2023). We made the following statement regarding limitations and exceptions for educational and research institutions and for persons with other […]

In our capacity as accredited observers of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR), we are attending the 43th session of the Committee, which is currently taking place in Geneva (March 13-17, 2023). We made the following statement regarding the protection of broadcasting organisations (Agenda Item 5): COMMUNIA works to defend the […]

Last Friday, news broke of the order taken by the court of first instance of Venice on a precautionary judgement served by Gallerie dell’Accademia di Venezia, a public museum under the Italian Ministry of Culture. At stake: a Ravensburger puzzle representing the famous 1490s drawing Vitruvian Man by Italian Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci. The […]

COMMUNIA is looking for a Policy Advisor who is passionate about the Public Domain and dedicated to enabling access to culture and knowledge. We offer you an opportunity to join our advocacy efforts to advance cutting-edge copyright reform and work with a network of activists, researchers, and other practitioners in Europe and the United States. […]

The legislative decree implementing the CDSM Directive in Italy was adopted on November 8th, 2021, and published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale on November 27th. It came into force on December 12th, 2021, amending the Italian Copyright Law (April 22nd 1941, n.633 – Legge sul diritto d’autore, referred to below as “LdA”). This blog post analyses […]

In 2019, the EU’s Copyright in the Digital Single Market Directive (CDSMD) was adopted. This included the highly controversial Articles 15 and 17 on, respectively, the new press publishers’ right (PPR) and the new copyright liability scheme for OCSSPs (“online content-sharing services providers”). In a report published in September 2022, I undertook research into the […]