Case C-393/09: Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 22 December 2010 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Nejvyšší správní soud — Czech Republic) — Bezpečnostní softwarová asociace — Svaz softwarové ochrany v Ministerstvo kultury (Intellectual property — Directive 91/250/EEC — Legal protection of computer programs — Notion of ‘expression in any form of a computer program’ — Inclusion or non-inclusion of a program’s graphic user interface — Copyright — Directive 2001/29/EC — Copyrights and related rights in the information society — Television broadcasting of a graphic user interface — Communication of a work to the public)
Date: 2010-12-22
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: broadcasting, copyright, data-processing law, interpretation of the law, software, television








C_2011063EN.01000801.xml










26.2.2011   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 63/8





Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 22 December 2010 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Nejvyšší správní soud — Czech Republic) — Bezpečnostní softwarová asociace — Svaz softwarové ochrany v Ministerstvo kultury
(Case C-393/09) (1)

(Intellectual property - Directive 91/250/EEC - Legal protection of computer programs - Notion of ‘expression in any form of a computer program’ - Inclusion or non-inclusion of a program’s graphic user interface - Copyright - Directive 2001/29/EC - Copyrights and related rights in the information society - Television broadcasting of a graphic user interface - Communication of a work to the public)
2011/C 63/14
Language of the case: Czech

Referring court

Nejvyšší správní soud

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant: Bezpečnostní softwarová asociace — Svaz softwarové ochrany

Defendant: Ministerstvo kultury

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Nejvyšší správní soud — Interpretation of Article 1(2) of Council Directive 91/250/EEC of 14 May 1991 on the legal protection of computer programs (OJ 1991 L 122, p. 42) and Article 3(1), of European Parliament and Council Directive 2001/29/EC of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society (OJ 2001 L 167, p. 10) — Whether or not the graphic user interface included in the expression ‘the expression in any form of a computer program’ contained in Article 1(2) of Directive 91/250

Operative part of the judgment







1.


A graphic user interface is not a form of expression of a computer program within the meaning of Article 1(2) of Council Directive 91/250/EEC of 14 May 1991 on the legal protection of computer programs and cannot be protected by copyright as a computer program under that directive. Nevertheless, such an interface can be protected by copyright as a work by 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 if that interface is its author’s own intellectual creation.










2.


Television broadcasting of a graphic user interface does not constitute communication to the public of a work protected by copyright within the meaning of Article 3(1) of Directive 2001/29.






(1)  OJ C 11, 16.1.2010.