Time and again, content appears on YouTube that violates copyright law. Until now, the respective uploader was liable for this. Now, in its ruling of June 2, 2022 (case reference: I ZR 135/18), the Federal Court of Justice has decided that in future, platforms such as YouTube can also be sued for damages for copyright infringements. Even if the copyright infringements were committed by third parties.
Platforms must take effective action against copyright infringements
However, a prerequisite for liability is that the platform operators have not taken action against copyright infringements or have not taken action in good time after learning of copyright-infringing content. Liability also arises if the company creates incentives for users to illegally upload music or videos, for example through monetary payments.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) recently issued a ruling on the requirements for such liability. This decision now forms the basis for the ruling of the BGH. Previously, platform operators were only obliged to cease and desist in the event of copyright infringements, but not to pay damages or even provide information about the identity of the perpetrators.
Copyright lawsuits must be renegotiated after judgment
This has changed due to the case law of the ECJ – and the German Federal Court of Justice also followed this course with its ruling on Thursday. In the case before the BGH, a music producer had filed a lawsuit against YouTube because users had repeatedly uploaded music videos of a popular British singer without permission. In other cases, the German collecting society GEMA, for example, filed suit.
These legal disputes, some of which have been going on for years, are now entering a new round as a result of the ruling: the lower courts will have to re-examine the claims for damages and information according to the standards set by the Federal Court of Justice. Specifically, whether the platforms take sufficient measures of their own accord to prevent copyright infringements. In future, platforms will be liable for their users!