The government restarted the revision of the Copyright Ordinance and launched a three-month public consultation yesterday (24th). The document is based on the proposed amendments in 2014, and three new exemptions have been added, including parody, satire, ridicule and Use works for the purpose of imitating, commenting on current events, and citing copyrighted works in three categories.
The government has also clarified the threshold of criminal responsibility. When the court handles the case, the main considerations are whether economic damage and infringement will replace the original work.
However, the consultation document did not include examples of what is meant by "sarcasm, imitating and current affairs comments." The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Yau Tenghua described it as "common sense."
The Director of the Intellectual Property Department, Huang Fulai, said on the RTHK program this morning that it is difficult to generalize whether individual acts constitute "infringement" and whether they will be exempted. It depends on the purpose.
He also pointed out that many overseas countries will not directly specify the definitions of parody, satire, and imitation in the law, and maintain flexibility in implementation and handle individual cases.
Huang Fulai added on the commercial channel program that the government will never bypass copyright holders to initiate prosecutions, mentioning whether a work involves infringement, the most important thing is whether the copyright owner himself has consented, acquiesced or pursued it, such as the copyright owner himself Without objection, the government has no way to prosecute.
Huang Fulai: Some copyright owners welcome the second creation disguised promotion
Huang Fulai pointed out that the government's draft text 7 years ago was the result of multiple studies. Many principles are still applicable today. Therefore, the original plan was used as the blueprint and some amendments were added.
He pointed out that the purpose of the law is to protect the rights of private property and prevent piracy, but it has always given exemptions to second-innovators. There are currently more than 60 exemptions in the law.
He pointed out that when judging whether an act is infringing or violating the law, the overall situation of the case will be considered.
Huang Zhi, can’t explain in general terms what “covering” is, because it depends on the purpose; even in some cases, copyright holders will welcome cover songs or secondary creations because it helps to promote the original work.
When asked if online video creators use other people’s work to create and receive advertising dividends, whether there is a risk of illegality in the future, Huang Fulai pointed out that these platforms now have mechanisms to let copyright owners know that the work is being used and then respond accordingly. It is a mature business operation model.
Democratic Party: The case and the scope of exemption must be clarified
Huang Fulai also mentioned that the scope of satire and imitation of current affairs comments is actually very clear. It may not be appropriate to "write to death" the definition directly: "For example, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia will all imitate, satirize, and imitate these. There are exemptions for works, and their laws do not specify the definition, because in this more complex concept, we would feel that it would be better to retain a flexibility. It is good to deal with this matter from a normal and general meaning. The practice...I will see that when foreign countries provide some exemptions, there is not a big problem in operation. In fact, everyone knows how to deal with it."
The Democratic Party’s Information Technology Policy Spokesperson Xian Zhuolan pointed out that Huang Fulai could not answer many times when he was asked about the definitions of satire and parody. It was even more difficult for the general public to understand the specific scope. He believed that at least some cases and exemptions should be explained. come out.
He also pointed out that there is no objective standard for "art", and it is difficult to define what is meant by "substituting the original work."
The Copyright Ordinance uses "common sense" to exempt the second-time singer-songwriter Qingtian Lin: I may become a precedent, and the Bureau of Commerce and Economics will push the consultation draft of the Copyright Amendment Bill to add 3 exemptions including parody and comment on current affairs.
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