Slovakia

[SK] New Copyright Law in 2003

IRIS 2004-1:1/41

Kathrin Berger

Institute of European Media Law (EMR), Saarbrücken/Brussels

Law N° 618/2003 Coll. on copyright and related rights replaced the old Copyright Act (law N° 383/1997 Coll.), as well as law N° 283/1997 Coll. on the collective management of authors' rights. The new law entered into force on 1 January 2004.

The act has introduced a fundamental change with respect to the systematics of copyright law: individual authors' rights and exploitation rights are no longer treated as one. The resulting separation of these two rights has now led, amongst other things, to the fact that individual copyright can no longer be inherited and that the right of exploitation of materials will continue to exist up to 70 years after the death of the author.

Copyright contract law was also changed. Two kinds of contracts are planned now: licensing contracts and contracts for work and services. The formal prerequisites for these kinds of contract are set out in the new law.

Collecting companies are also to be strengthened through the act.

Moreover, there are new provisions on employee copyright law, the right to compensation for the resale of an original painting as well as regulations making it easier for the author to assert his rights.