In 2005, Chile proposed that WIPO’s Standing Committee on Copyight (SCCR) examine limitations and exceptions to copyright. IP Justice made a statement at the WIPO 13th SCCR meeting in November 2005 in support of Chile’s proposal to update limitations and exceptions to copyright. The WIPO SCCR has not yet given serious attention to Chile’s proposal, however the issue is on the agenda for the next SCCR (16th session), scheduled for 10 - 12 March 2008 at WIPO headquarters in Geneva.
The limitations and exceptions to a copyright holder rights are an important part of the over-all balance found in copyright law. Copyright law grants some rights to creators and reserves some rights for the public. It is the limitations an exceptions to the monopolist’s power that provide the breathing space for free expression and that encourage innovation and competition in the market.
International treaty clauses that contain limitations and exceptions to copyright include:
- TRIPS Article 13 and 30 (general exceptions & limitations)
- WIPO Copyright Treaty Article 10(1) (general exceptions & limitations)
- WIPO Performances and Phonograph Treaty Article 16(2) (general exceptions & limitations)
- European Union Copyright Directive Article 5 (specific limitations & exceptions for particular use)
- Rome Treaty Article 15(1) (specific limitations & exceptions for particular use)
- Berne Copyright Treaty Article 10bis (specific limitations & exceptions for particular use)
- TRIPS Article 31 (compulsory license)
- Rome Treaty 15(2) (compulsory license)
- Rome Treaty Article 13(d) (certain uses)
Many national copyright laws also contain important exceptions and exceptions to a copyright holder’s rights to help achieve the optimum balance. For example in the United States the equitable doctrine of "Fair Use" permits a number of uses that can be legally exercised even when the copyright holder does not wish to permit those uses. For example, making personal use copies of CDs, archiving books and software, and reverse-engineering technology are examples of fair uses under US Copyright Law. Section 117 of the US Copyright Act codified the fair use doctrine and lists other examples of fair uses (education, research, commentary, criticism, news, etc).
Other countries’ copyright laws contain a similar concept of "fair dealing" or specific statutorily permitted exceptions and limitations to copyright. And some countries, like Chile and Peru do not grant fair use rights to use copyrighted works.
15 Mar, 2008: WIPO Copyright Committee Considers Many Proposals for 2008 Work Program
WIPO Copyright Committee: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
'Broadcast Treaty Chair' Remains, Limitations and Exceptions to Copyright Considered
(15 March 2008) The WIPO Copyright Committee (SCCR) met from 10-12 March 2008 in Geneva to debate the future work program for the committee after the Member States ...
13 Mar, 2008: Text Adopted by WIPO Copyright Committee on Exceptions and Limitations
Brazil, Chile, Nicaragua and Uruguay presented a proposal which elaborated further the proposal by the delegation of Chile (SCCR/13/5). Many of the delegations who took the floor supported the proposal, in whole or in part. Other delegations expressed support or opposition to specific elements of document SCCR/13/5, which are reflected in their
interventions in the report of the meeting....
12 Mar, 2008: WIPO Copyright Committee Done For Year; Exceptions And Limitations ‘Here To Stay’ 
"The World Intellectual Property Organization copyright committee on Wednesday concluded work until next November in a way similar to recent years, with the same chair, European dominance, no agreement, and division over a proposed treaty on broadcasters’ rights. But it also contained the elevation of a proposal to improve exceptions and limitations to copyright, and a proposal for four ...
11 Mar, 2008: WIPO Copyright Committee Begins New Era With Revised Agenda, Same Chair (IP-Watch)
The World Intellectual Property Organization copyright committee on Monday began a new era in the wake of a failed decade of negotiations for a broadcasters’ rights treaty. But it will tackle its new agenda including limitations and exceptions to copyright with the same chairman who guided the broadcasting talks with fervour. Finland’s Jukka Liedes was re-elected chairman of the ...
11 Mar, 2008: New Proposal At WIPO For Exceptions and Limitations Agreement; US Unconvinced (IP-Watch)
"Several nations have joined Chile in presenting a new proposal for work on limitations and exceptions to this week’s meeting of the World Intellectual Property Organization copyright committee. The work would include establishing an international agreement on the issue. But the United States told the plenary on Tuesday that it is “not ready” for norm-setting activities on exceptions and ...
10 Mar, 2008: WIPO Member States Request Agenda for Copyright Exceptions and Limitations
A group of developing countries submitted a proposal for a work program for WIPO's Standing Committee on Copyrights and Related Rights (SCCR) on 10 March 2008. The new proposal from Brazil, Chile, Nicaragua and Uruguay, calls for work on three areas: identification from members’ national IP systems of models and practices on exceptions and limitations; analysis of exceptions and ...
6 Mar, 2008: “Conceiving an International Instrument on Limitations and Exceptions to Copyright” (Hugenholtz, Okediji / March 2008) 
"The task of developing a global approach to limitations and exceptions (“L&E’s”) is
one of the major challenges facing the international copyright system today. As mechanisms of access, L&E’s contribute to the dissemination of knowledge, which in turn is essential for a variety of human activities and values, including liberty, the exercise of political power, and economic, social and personal advancement. ...
2 Mar, 2008: Education, IPRs and Fundamental Freedoms: The Right To Knowledge, 2005 (Suthersanen)
2 Mar, 2008: The International Copyright System: Limitations, Exceptions and Public Interest Considerations for Developing Countries in the Digital Environment (Okediji/ UNCTAD-ICTSD)
4 Feb, 2008: WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) 16th Session - 10-12 March 2008
Info on the WIPO Copyright Committee's meeting
- View all entries under Copyright Limitations & Exceptions
