IP news in Finland

The Copyright Directive (Directive on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market (EU) 2019/790) came into force in June 2019. 

 

The Directive provides new rules for online content-sharing service providers when it comes to protected con­tent that is uploaded by its users. According to the Directive, platform services (Google, Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) will be responsible for the content they transmit and there will be an obligation to obtain autho­ri­za­tion for the use of the works. Platform services are also obliged to remove content that infringes copyright. Platform providers though cannot be forced to generally monitor user content to check the legality of content; that also means that they cannot be required to conduct an independent assessment of the content. If a plat­form ends up removing lawful content, users can invoke the Directive’s “complaint and redress” mechanisms. The obligations of the platform providers vary in the area of protected content also according to the type and scope of services they provide, their turnover or number of their visitors.

 

The Directive contains as well measures to ensure that authors and performers (actors, singers, musicians etc.) receive an appropriate and fair remuneration for the exploitation of their works and performances. This means the platform services will have to enter into agreements for the use of creative content and pay appropriate copyright compensation to the original authors of the content. 

 

The Directive also introduces a new right for publishers of press publications to make it easier to grant licences for the online use of their publications. This provides a better protection of their rights and they can receive a remuneration to recoup their investments. It also ensures the sustainability of the publishing industry. 

 

The overall aim of the Directive is to create a fairer internal market where content creators can live and prosper from their work and entrepreneurs can invest and produce new content for viewers and listeners.

 

The Directive has naturally an impact on Finland as well, as the copyright law has to be aligned with the Direc­tive. The implementation of the Directive into national law is the most significant reform of copyright law in Finland in the last 20 years. The corresponding preparations have started already in 2019. The revised Finnish copyright law was supposed to come into force on January 1st, 2023, but the parliamentary debates are still ongoing. 

 

Also the Finnish patent legislation is changing. The overall reform of the Finnish Patent Law has begun as part of the implementation of the IPR Strategy (the National Intellectual Property Rights Strategy) in spring 2020, as the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment initiated its preparation.

 

In March 2022, the Finnish Government adopted a decision on the IPR Strategy. The Government’s vision is to ensure that by 2030 Finland will have an IPR environment that effectively supports innovation and creative work, increases economic well-being and competitiveness while taking into account fundamental rights and social interests. 

 

The up-to-date patent law as part of the IPR Strategy helps companies as well as universities and research institutes to manage and to exploit their commercially intangible assets. After mapping the needs for change, the administrative working group (set in 2022) will begin preparing the actual amendments, namely the proposal for a new patent law, new utility model law, new law on inventions relevant to national defense etc. The current objective is to issue a government motion on the comprehensive reform of patent law in autumn 2024.