The EU has similar but generally harsher laws. The copyright lobby is extremely powerful. They literally control the media. In the US, this is slightly tempered by the traditional commitment to free speech.
Europe demands that you follow their law if your service is available to them. You may have noticed the legal fight between the UK and 4chan? (BBC story)
In the EU there is a lawsuit regarding the matter. The ECJ will soon decide. It’s about the diaries of Anne Frank, which are public domain in most countries, but not in the Netherlands. The Dutch Anne Frank Foundation offers a free edition on the net, but in deference to Dutch copyright they geoblock the Netherlands. The rights owner, the Swiss Anne Frank Fund, is suing them with the argument that geoblocks can be easily circumvented via VPNs. (Heise story)
The EU has similar but generally harsher laws. The copyright lobby is extremely powerful. They literally control the media. In the US, this is slightly tempered by the traditional commitment to free speech.
Europe demands that you follow their law if your service is available to them. You may have noticed the legal fight between the UK and 4chan? (BBC story)
In the EU there is a lawsuit regarding the matter. The ECJ will soon decide. It’s about the diaries of Anne Frank, which are public domain in most countries, but not in the Netherlands. The Dutch Anne Frank Foundation offers a free edition on the net, but in deference to Dutch copyright they geoblock the Netherlands. The rights owner, the Swiss Anne Frank Fund, is suing them with the argument that geoblocks can be easily circumvented via VPNs. (Heise story)
So that’s about where we’re at.