IRIS - Editorial May 2015

Dear Readers,

Among the legal developments I would like to highlight for this month’s reading, I would say it is also about princesses and wrapping paper.

Caroline of Monaco’s husband was involved in a ECHR case concerning the balancing of the freedom of commercial speech of a tobacco company with the right to respect for private life re the use of Mr. Von Hannover’s name in an advertising campaign, and wrapping paper was at the centre of a Dutch sanctioning procedure in application of the rules concerning avoidable commercial communications on a special website in connection with a daily fictional news show for children aimed at celebrating the birthday of Saint Nicholas (Sinterklaas).

But there is much more.

Speaking about the internet, the ECJ ruled in the C-More Entertainment case concerning live streaming and stated that member states can extend the definition of “communication to the public” under the copyright framework; a new Dutch “cookie law” came into effect and, still in the Netherlands, the ECJ Google Spain ruling was applied in a case concerning delisting of search engine results relating to incitement to contract killing (the request was rejected).

From Ukraine it is worth mentioning a new law which started a transformation process leading from state media to public service broadcasting, but also a new statute prohibiting films seeing the participation of the aggressor state (Russian Federation). Repressive rules were also adopted in Bosnia and Herzegovina re social media if used to disturb public peace and order.

On the case-law side, the British regulator Ofcom fined a Russian produced news channel broadcast on satellite and DTT in the UK for breach of impartiality in news reports about Ukraine and the Court of Appeal in Paris decided to uphold the right to caricature in a case concerning broadcasting of satirical drawings of politicians.

A new law was passed in Luxembourg to change the support scheme for audiovisual works, the orphan works directive was implemented in Bulgaria and the Croatian regulator adopted new rules on the protection of minors in electronic media, setting up new watersheds and mandatory graphic information signs.

Maja Cappello, editor
European Audiovisual Observatory

See more:  merlin.obs.coe.int