In a recent decision, the CJEU made it clear that streaming of content over the internet can constitute copyright infringement (see the case of ITV and others v. TVCatchup). In this preliminary reference procedure, the referring court (i.e., the High Court of Justice of England and Wales) had asked the...

On 17 April 2013, the Court of Appeals of Brussels lodged a reference for a preliminary ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Luxembourg, in a case opposing the heirs of one of Belgium's most famous comic book authors (Willy Vandersteen) and the far-right political party 'Vlaams Belang'...

Recent case law by the European Court of Human Rights ("ECtHR") sheds new light on the relationship between copyright protection and freedom of expression. In its decision of 10 January 2013 in the case of Ashby Donald and others v. France, the ECtHR makes clear that a conviction for copyright infringement can in...