Databases Solution

• US - Contract Rights

• EU - Database Directive

  • Extends copyright to database contents
  • Right to prevent unfair extraction
  • See Durdik, ôAncient Debate, New Technology: The European Community Moves to Protect Copyright in Databases,ö 12.B.U. IntÆl L.J., 153, 1994.

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Well, in the U.S. we can use contract rights. The database owner agrees in a contract to provide certain information to subscribers of the database in return for payment. But, this is not a property rightà

The European commission, a governing body of the European community addressed this issue in the mid nineties. Their solution was two fold.

First, by a Directive, a legal document addressed to all member states of the community, the commission extended copyright to the contents of databases.

Second, in that same Directive, the commission created a new kind of property, called a ôright to prevent unfair extractionö of database contents.

For a positively brilliant treatment of the subject of European law of Databases, I refer you to Durdik, Ancient Debate, New Technology: the European Community Moves to Protect Databases.ö