CJEU clarifies the limits of private copying in paid streaming services

The Court of Justice of the European Union ("CJEU") has ruled in case C-496/24, concerning the application of the private copying exception in the context of streaming services that allow the downloading of content for offline use. The judgment rules on the interpretation of Article 5(2)(b) of Directive 2001/29/EC (InfoSoc Directive) and its connection with current digital models of exploitation of protected content. The Court determines whether copies generated through these functionalities can be considered private reproductions made by users and, therefore, whether they should give rise to the payment of fair compensation.

Key points:

• Restriction of the private copying exception in the digital environment: the CJEU concludes that copies made by means of offline download functionalities offered by paid streaming services do not generally fit within the concept of private copying, as they are reproductions made in the context of an authorised service and under the control of the service provider.
• Relevance of the provider's technical and legal control: where the service provider retains control over the reproduction, i.e. by limiting its duration, access or use, it cannot be said that the copying is carried out autonomously by the user for strictly private purposes.
• Inapplicability of fair compensation in these cases: the Court considers that, in the absence of private reproduction in the legal sense, it is not appropriate to demand fair compensation through levies applied to devices or media used for this type of service.
• Strict interpretation of intellectual property exceptions: it is emphasised that exceptions and limitations to copyright must be interpreted restrictively and in accordance with the so-called "three-step rule", especially in contexts of authorised digital exploitation.
• Direct impact on national digital levy systems: the ruling limits the possibility of extending private copying compensation schemes to uses linked to digital business models based on licensing and subscription, obliging Member States to review the coherence of their national regimes.
• Conceptual reinforcement: the distinction between private copying in the strict sense and reproductions made in the context of digital services provided under licence is consolidated, with the consequent delimitation of the limits to the extension of national digital levy systems in the online environment.

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• Judgment
• Directive 2001/29/EC