Ireland IP & Technology Law Blog : Dublin Lawyers & Attorneys for Intellectual Property, Communications & Information Technology Law in Ireland, U.S. & England

Recent developments at domestic and European level in the area of consumer law aim to overhaul the current framework, to strengthen consumer rights and to provide a more user-friendly system for consumers.

Irish developments

At domestic level, the Sales Law Review Group (SLRG) recommended in their Report which was issued today, that a new Irish Consumer Contract Rights Act be enacted to incorporate the main statutory provisions applicable to consumer contracts, including the provisions of the new Consumer Rights Directive (see below for details), the Directive on Consumer Sales and Guarantees, the Directive on Unfair Contract Terms, and relevant provisions of the Sale of Goods Acts 1893 and 1980 and other enactments. Provisions relating to other non-core aspects of consumer contracts of sale should be dealt with, together with all of the provisions applicable to commercial contracts, in a new Sale and Supply of Goods and Supply of Services Act.

The SLRG also recommended the following:

• A ban on excessive payment fees – it will not be permissible for a seller to charge payment fees greater than the cost of processing the payment
• A ban on additional charges on consumers by means of ‘pre-ticked boxes’ – additional charges will only be permitted where express consent is given
• Curbs on “small print”, possibly by requiring minimum font sizes and mandatory font colour such as black
• A requirement that receipts be issued in consumer transactions
• A rule that consumers would have the right to reject faulty goods within 30 days, replacing the complex and uncertain rules that currently apply
• A rule that goods must be of satisfactory quality
• Significant pro-consumer improvements in laws relating to services, including a rule that sellers cannot exclude certain terms in consumer contracts and strengthened guarantees as to the quality of a service provided to a consumer
• Improvements in the rules governing distance and off-premises selling. These will apply most notably to internet purchases, and will include an increase from 7 to 14 days in the time period in which consumers can withdraw from a contract

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A new EU Directive extending the term of copyright protection in sound recordings from 50 years to 70 years has been recently passed. The ultimate aim of the new Directive is to help bridge the gap between the level of copyright protection given to authors and composers (70 years after their death) and that previously afforded to performers (50 years after the date of the initial performance). Colloquially it has been referred to as “Cliff Richard’s Law” because of this promise to ensure veteran rockers continue to earn royalties into their old age.

 Although this means a further 20 years of copyright royalties for an artist’s record label, as owner of copyright in the sound recording, it will also be a welcome development for the individual artist, as essentially the new Directive provides the following benefits for artists:

·         A “session musicians’ fund” has been set up to ensure that such performers obtain an additional revenue stream for the duration of the extended copyright term (i.e. during the extra 20 years). This fund will consist of contributions made by the record companies, who will have to pay 20% of their revenues earned during the extended period into the fund. In this way, the extension of protection provided to sound recordings will benefit not only record labels, but all performers;

·         Also, a practical tool with which performers can make the most of the new protection is the new “use it or lose it” clause. This means that the record company which owns the copyright in the sound recording must give the copyright back to the performer if it fails to market the recording during the extended period despite requests from the performer. The performers themselves will then be able to market the recording however or wherever they chose. In addition, the new Directive has placed a prohibition on record producers from deducting any royalties due to be paid to a performer during the extended period.

This has been hailed as a major triumph for musicians all over Europe, as, prior to this amendment, the 50 year term of protection awarded to performers invariably expired during their lifetime. Member States must implement the Directive by 1 November 2013.

See attached link to the new Directive.  

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The ECJ last week handed down a comprehensive ruling on the long awaited Premier League rights case. The main points are as follows:  

• The granting of exclusive broadcasting rights to show Premier League football games on a country by country basis is contrary to the principles of the internal market, according to last week’s ruling by the ECJ.  

• Similarly the prohibition on the supply and use of decoder cards which allow viewers to watch the broadcasts from another jurisdiction is unlawful. This leaves consumers free to purchase decoding equipment and watch the games broadcast from another jurisdiction.
• The ECJ also held that while there is no copyright in the games themselves, showing the games publicly without a broadcast license will infringe copyright in some displayed features, such as the Premier League logo, credits and playback clips. The ruling therefore has the practical effect of still requiring public venues to purchase a license to show the games.

The full text of the judgment is available here.

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