Denmark Backs Publishers in EU Court Case on Tech Giants' Responsibility
Denmark's Intervention in the European Court of Justice Case
Background of the Legal Dispute
July 6 (Reuters) - The Danish government has filed a written intervention in the European Court of Justice's case pitting tech companies against Belgium's government, citing the potential impact of the case on the rights of Danish media houses, the Culture Ministry said on Monday.
Streamz, Google, Meta, Spotify, and Sony filed a lawsuit against the Belgian government in 2023. They did so primarily because they believe that Belgium's implementation of Article 15 of the Digital Single Market (DSM) Directive undermines EU law concerning press publishers' rights.
Denmark's Position and Actions
• The government has decided to intervene in the Streamz case, as it is known, in favour of Belgium and participate in the oral hearing on July 6-7.
• Denmark will primarily focus on ensuring that Meta and other tech giants are held accountable for paying for newspaper articles or other content uploaded to their platforms.
• The Culture Ministry participates in a Danish procedural delegation intervening in the case.
Potential Impact on Press Publishers' Rights
• According to the ministry, a ruling in favour of Google, Spotify, Meta, Streamz and Sony could dilute press publishers' rights under the DSM directive.
• At the oral hearing, Denmark will urge the ECJ to clearly define the scope of press publishers' rights, and the responsibility that tech giants have to pay the press publishers when the publishers' content appears on their platforms.
Statements from Danish Officials
• Denmark's Culture Minister Zenia Stampe said tech giants should not be allowed to use media content without paying for it.
• "In the end, it hits the Danish media hard and damages our democracy," Stampe added.
Related Legal Actions
• In addition to the Streamz case, Denmark has also participated in the landmark European copyright lawsuit dealing with the legality of Google's training of artificial intelligence on press releases.
(Reporting by Elviira Luoma, editing by Andrei Khalip)
