Studio Legale Pavan Website

The Italian law on copyright (as amended by “Decreto Legislativo” no. 68/2003 and subsequent “Decreti Ministeriali di Attuazione”) provides that companies which produce and import audio recording and media devices have to pay a levy (so-called “fair compensation”) to the S.I.A.E. (Italian society for authors and publishers), on each device they produce or import. Obviously, “fair compensation” is then charged to the final users of those devices (individuals, professionals, businesses).

The said levy is aimed at balancing the presumable prejudice caused to authors by the use of such devices for private copying.

Some commentators had doubts regarding the compatibility of the Italian law with the European Directive 2001/29 on copyright (see A. Pavan,Sale of smartphones and tablets: “fair compensation” under the scrutiny of the administrative judge, on www.altalex.com, 3rd October 2014).

On 22nd September 2016, the European Court of Justice passed judgment in case C-110/15 (against the Italian Ministry of cultural assets and activities and tourism, and the S.I.A.E.), stating that the Italian law contrasts with the European law, where the Italian law does not provide specific criteria for a ex ante exemption from the levy for private copying. Namely, when devices are purchased for purposes clearly unrelated to private copying.

It may be that this ruling will be applied to past purchases, too. If so, businesses and professionals could ask for reimbursement of the levy they have already paid for. Consequences may be important if one bears in mind that, in 2015 only, the S.I.A.E. got 130 million euros for “fair compensation”.