Amendments In Copyright Law Regulate The Digitization Of "Orphan Works"In the State Gazette, Nr 14/2014. are promulgated amendments in the Copyrights and Related Rights Act (CRRA). The new provisions (Section VIII, Art.71b to Art.71з incl.) harmonize national legislation with the requirements of Directive 2012/28 / EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on certain permitted uses of orphan works.

The Directive aims creating a legal framework to facilitate the digitization and dissemination of so-called orphan works. The main idea targets the specific problem of the legal determination of orphan work status and its consequences in terms of the permitted users and permitted uses of works or phonograms considered to be orphan works.
The „orphan works” are works and other subject-matter which are protected by copyright or related rights and for which no rightholder is identified or for which the rightholder, even if identified, is not located.

The new provisions in the CRRA cover:

- The scope of subjects that can benefit from these provisions (publicly accessible libraries, educational institutions, museums, archives of institutions with films or sound records heritage, and public radio and television organizations);
- Type of works, covered by the Directive;
- The procedure of the inquiry and the establishment of orphan works;
- Uses of orphan works;
- The ways of permitted use of orphan works .
Tags: Copyrights