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On 26 March 2003, the Executive Yuan ap-proved draft amendments to the Copyright Law, which it recently submitted to the Legislative Yuan for consideration. The Executive Yuan hopes that the amendments can be enacted as quickly as possible. The proposed amendments were drafted with reference to the 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and WIPO Perform-ances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT), and seek to make appropriate adjustments in the protec-tion of copyright and the public interest, to take account of the development of digital and Inter-net technology, and to strengthen copyright en-forcement in order to effectively deter piracy.
The draft amends 39 articles, and introduces 14 new articles. The main points are as follows:
Temporary reproduction will fall within the meaning of reproduction. Exclusions to the right of reproduction are introduced so that ordinary Internet browsing or lawful use of a work do not require the consent of the copy-right holder.
A right of communication to the public is in-troduced, so that making another's work available online requires the consent of the copyright holder.
A right of distribution is introduced, to give copyright holders the right to prohibit the dis-tribution of unauthorized copies of works.
A right of remuneration for public perform-ance of a recorded work is introduced, to al-low copyright holders to seek remuneration for the use of recorded works in public places such as department stores, shopping malls, aircraft, or restaurants.
Provisions are introduced concerning techno-logical protection measures, to prohibit ac-tions to evade or defeat technological protec-tion measures used by copyright holders, such as encryption or means to prevent unauthor-ized copying, and to prohibit the supply of technology, equipment, or services for the evasion or defeat of technological protection measures.
Provisions are introduced concerning the protection of electronic rights management information, to prohibit the unauthorized de-letion or alteration of electronic rights man-agement information added to a work by the copyright holder.
Amendments are proposed to the provisions on fair use, including explicit provisions on reasonable online use, and provisions to allow copyright holder organizations and user or-ganizations to conclude agreements regarding the scope of various kinds of reasonable use so as to remove the lack of clarity as to the scope of reasonable use.
The use of unauthorized copies of computer program works for business purposes will trigger civil and criminal penalties, while in-dividual use by members of the general public is not illegal.
The maximum statutory civil damages in non-aggravated infringement cases will be increased from NT$1 million to NT$5 million.
The maximum fine for pernicious and grave professional infringement will be increased from NT$4.5 million to NT$8 million, and other fines will also be raised proportionately. The manufacture or sale of illegally copied optical media will be made prosecutable without a complaint being filed.
The customs authorities will have the power to seize infringing articles on their own initiative.
The judicial police authorities will have the power to seize items used or acquired in the commission of offences, in cases where the infringer has absconded and cannot be prop-erly identified.
Provisions are introduced requiring the pay-ment of remuneration for the continued use, during the transitional period, of works that gained protection due to Taiwan's WTO ac-cession, and prohibiting further sale or rental after the end of the transitional period.
