European Business Law, the fourth volume in our series, shows how the European authorities simultaneously abolish all restrictions on access to and exercise of economic activities and support the growth of domestic markets, through the harmonization the internal legislation or the enactment of genuinely unified regulations.

European Business Law

The author of a cinematographic or audiovisual work  has an exclusive broadcasting right which consists in authorizing or prohibiting the satellite communication to the public of his work . The concept of satellite communication is reserved to signals received by the general public, and does not concern those received only by equipment available solely to professionals .
In order to avoid satellit …

Satellite broadcasting

The author of a cinematographic or audiovisual work  has an exclusive broadcasting right which consists in authorizing or prohibiting the satellite communication to the public of his work . The concept of satellite communication is reserved to signals received by the general public, and does not concern those received only by equipment available solely to professionals .

In order to avoid satellite transmission of a TV program being subject to multi-authorizations, the “Satellite and Cable” Directive establishes the place of communication to the public by satellite at the European level in the State of origin, i.e. the country from which the program's signals are uplinked to the satellite . Acquisition of exclusive rights, which is necessarily by agreement (Article 3(1)) , must comply with the law of that State (recital 15). The payment to be made for the rights acquired must be determined by taking the number of countries covered into account. In effect, the directive recommends taking account of all aspects of the broadcast, such as the actual audience, the potential audience and the language version (recital 17).

In order to prevent broadcasting organizations from bypassing the rule of the country of origin by broadcasting programs intended for a European public from a non-member State which does not provide the same level of protection, the directive establishes the place of transmission in the Member State where the uplink situation is or in which the broadcasting organization which ordered the transmission is established (Article 1(2)(d)).

Lastly, the directive brings in line the protection granted to rightholders of rights related to copyright with that provided for by Directive No 2006/115 on rental rights and lending rights and on certain rights related to copyright  and the Member States retain the possibility to extend the presumed assignment of the rental rights to the producer of a film to the rights of performers as part of the communication to the public by satellite, as well as a rebuttable presumption of authorized exploitation with respect to the exclusive rights of performers.

The principal director is considered as the author or one of the authors, but Member States may provide for others to be considered as co-authors (Directive No 93/83, Article 1(5)).

Article 3 of Directive No 2001/29, which does not challenge the application of that provision, protects more widely the author's right of communication, by wire or wireless means.

See Case C-192/04 Lagardère Active Broadcast [2005] ECR I-7199, LawLex200900002214JBJ, which refuses to apply the directive to coded signals which may be received only by equipment available solely to professionals.

Directive No 93/3, Article 1(2)(b): "The act of communication to the public by satellite occurs solely in the Member State where, under the control and responsibility of the broadcasting organization, the programme-carrying signals are introduced into an uninterrupted chain of communication leading to the satellite and down towards the earth".

The Court of Justice has specified that the contractual acquisition of exclusive broadcasting rights does not confer an established legal position on the acquirer - see Case C-283/11 Sky Österreich GmbH [2013], LawLex201300000100JBJ.

Directive No 2006/115/EC of 12 December 2006, which came into force on 16 January 2007 and which codified Directive No 92/100 of 19 November 1992 on rental right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property, OJ L 346 of 27 November 1992.

European Business Law

272. Satellite broadcasting

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272. Satellite broadcasting

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise