CJEU case C-275/06 Promusicae – CJEU Judgment (European Union, 2008)
The Court of Justice decided that Telefonica did not have to provide personal data about users who shared files illegally to an organization seeking to protect copyright. This ruling matters because it protects user privacy while balancing the need to enforce intellectual property rights. It shows that companies can limit the sharing of personal data in certain situations.
What happened
Telefonica refused to give personal data of users who accessed a file-sharing program to an organization wanting to take legal action.
Who was affected
Users of the KaZaA file exchange program who shared copyrighted material.
What the authority found
The Court held that EU law does not require telecom operators to disclose personal data for copyright enforcement in civil cases.
Why this matters
This ruling reinforces the importance of user privacy and indicates that companies can resist demands for personal data in copyright cases. It sets a precedent for how privacy and intellectual property rights can coexist.
Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Juzgado de lo Mercantil No. 5 de Madrid. Telefonica had refused to disclose to Promusicae, an NPO acting on behalf of its members who are holders of intellectual property rights, personal data relating to users of the internet who accessed the KaZaA file exchange program and shared files of recordings of Promusicae's members, by means of connections provided by Telefonica. Promusicae wanted to bring civil actions against those persons. Question referred: Whether EU law permits Member States to limit the duty of operators of telecom networks to supply traffic data. Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market (‘Directive on electronic commerce’), Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society, Directive 2004/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the enforcement of intellectual property rights, and Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications) do not require the Member States to lay down, in a situation such as that in the main proceedings, an obligation to communicate personal data in order to ensure effective protection of copyright in the context of civil proceedings. However, Community law requires that, when transposing those directives, the Member States take care to rely on an interpretation of them which allows a fair balance to be struck between the various fundamental rights protected by the Community legal order. Further, when implementing the measures transposing those directives, the authorities an
Outcome
CJEU Judgment
A judgment by the Court of Justice of the European Union, typically on a preliminary reference from a national court.
Related Cases (0)
No other cases found for CJEU case C-275/06 Promusicae in EU
This is the only recorded case for this entity in this jurisdiction.
Details
Judgment Date
29 January 2008
Authority
Court of Justice of the European Union
GDPRhub ID
gdprhub-cjeu-4083About this data
Cite as: Cookie Fines. CJEU case C-275/06 Promusicae - European Union (2008). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu
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