Search results : 1348

In a ruling of 8 January 2014 (case no. I ZR 1169/12), the first civil chamber of the Bundesgerichtshof (Federal Supreme Court - BGH) decided that parents were not liable for copyright infringements committed by their grown-up children if they had no actual knowledge of the offences. The plaintiffs, four major German record producers, had taken court action against the defendant. According to the charge, the defendant’s 20-year old stepson had made around 3,750 music files available via online filesharing sites in 2006. The rightsholders had written to the stepfather, demanding lawyers’ and caution...

In a ruling of 12 December 2013 (case no. I ZR 192/12), the Bundesgerichtshof (Federal Supreme Court - BGH) decided that linking a competition to the sale of sweets in a television advertisement was admissible, provided the diligence requirement set out in Article 3(2)(3) of the Gesetz gegen den unlauteren Wettbewerb (Unfair Competition Act - UWG) did not apply, since the advertisement was aimed not only at minors. The case concerned a TV commercial for a competition in which customers had to purchase the advertised sweets in order to take part. The advertisement showed the presenter Thomas Gottschalk...

In a decision of 28 January 2014, the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court - BVerfG) confirmed that the provisions of the Filmförderungsgesetz (Film Support Act - FFG) concerning the film levy were in conformity with the Constitution. The BVerfG explained, first of all, that the Federal Government was responsible for legislation on the collection of the film levy according to Articles 72 and 74(1)(11) of the Grundgesetz (Basic Law - GG). Opponents of the levy had argued that it fell under cultural legislation, for which the Länder were responsible. However, the BVerfG ruled that...

Tierbefreier E.V. is an association based in Germany that militates in favour animal rights. A court decision prevented the association from disseminating film footage, which was secretly taken by a journalist on the premises of a company performing experiments on animals for the pharmaceutical industry (C. company). The journalist used his footage to produce documentary films of different lengths, critically commenting on the way in which laboratory animals were treated. His films, or extracts from them, were shown on different TV channels. Largely based on the journalist’s footage, Tierbefreier...

In a decision of 8 October 2013, the Amtsgericht Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf District Court - AG) ruled that a claim based on an out-of-court settlement was unenforceable because it had been preceded by a fraudulent-filesharing caution and its enforcement was incompatible with the defence of bad faith. At the rightsholders’ request, a law firm specialising in copyright had informed the defendant that her Internet connection had been used to make 537 copyright-protected music files available for download. As the connection owner, she was obliged to reimburse the legal prosecution costs even if she had...