Summary

Article 70,(1),1) of the Copyright Act stipulates that the right of reproduction for a producer of phonograms is an exclusive right to authorise or prohibit the direct or indirect, temporary or permanent, partial or total reproduction of a phonogram, in any form or by any means. The reproduction right, however, is not an absolute right for the producer of phonograms since it is possible for a state to make various exceptions to reproduction rights through its own legal acts.

The article concentrates on two exceptions to the right of reproduction for a producer of phonograms, which due to their nature in restricting the right of reproduction have generated much debate in the information society. Firstly, there is an analysis of the regulation of the payment paid as compensation for the copying of an audiovisual work and the audio recording of the work for personal use and, secondly, of the exception given to broadcasting organisations to make temporary copies. In relation to the first topic, there is also an analysis of the relationship between the compensation for making a copy for personal use and the introduction of technical protection measures. The question is thereafter posed as to whether the implementation of the abovementioned exceptions to reproduction rights is justified in an information society, and whether the impact of the information society on the right of reproduction has resulted in changes for the producer of phonograms as regards carrying out the right of reproduction. The article also looks at those theoretical and practical issues of copyright that are directly linked to the topic.