EU support commercial copyright infringement laws

European Parliament vote to approve protection of intellectual property

26 April 2007 14:57 GMT / By Ryan Haynes

Intellectual property is a big thing in today's online multimedia world, so to bring regulation to protect people is exactly what EU is seeking to do.

The European Parliament has approved new EU-wide laws that impose criminal sanctions for the infringement of intellectual property rights for commercial gain. In order to make these laws successful the European Commission has advised that criminals should receive punishments ranging from fines to imprisonment, according to the gravitas of the crime.

Aiding or abetting and inciting anyone to infringe intellectual property rights will also be treated as a criminal offence. It is suggested that seizure and destruction of counterfeited goods will help protect property as a deterrant.

The Parliament approved the proposals by 374 votes to 278 with 17 abstentions, with some amendments. It excluded patent rights from the scope of the directive and decided that criminal sanctions should apply only to infringements deliberately carried out to obtain a commercial advantage.

On the plus, anyone who likes to play with material for personal usage and for non-profit purposes can do what they like.

Full tags

Software, Legislation, EU