CJEU on the protection conferred by the exclusive distribution right of copyright protected goods
20-12-2018 Print this page
Copyright - The storage by a retailer of goods bearing a motif protected by copyright on the territory of the Member State where the goods are stored may constitute an infringement of the exclusive distribution right of article 4(1) of the InfoSoc Directive: the distribution right may include an act prior to the actual sale of a work or a copy thereof with the objective of making such a sale, it must nonetheless be proven that the goods concerned are actually intended to be distributed to the public on the territory of the Member State in which those goods are protected by copyright, this cannot be inferred from the mere fact that the stored goods and the goods sold instore are identical, as regards the determination of the purpose of the goods considered, account must be taken of all relevant factors, including the distance between the storage facility and the place of sale, the regular restocking of the shop with goods from the storage facilities at issue, accounting elements, the volume of sales and orders as compared with the volume of stored goods, or current contracts of sale.
