Court in Spain puts a stop to unlicensed press summaries for copyright infringement

A Barcelona court has taken a firm stand against the unauthorised use of press content, ruling that media summaries sold without a licence violate copyright law and undermine the sustainability of journalism. That was the decision during the preliminary hearing of the case between Cedro - the association that provides coverage in this field to more than 36,100 authors and publishers of newspapers, books, magazines and sheet music - and Hallon, which is a company that collects information from the media to offer it to third parties that contract its services. The judicial decision is relevant because it curtails a practice that erodes the viability of journalistic work.

This week's ruling halts Hallon's defence strategy of invoking article 163 of the intellectual property law, which allows appropriations to be made while a licence and its fee are being negotiated. "They were relying on legal fiction," said Jorge Corrales, general director of Cedro. Corrales's opinion was backed by the judge in charge of the proceedings, who rejected the argument, considering that the case deals with a possible infringement of copyright and not with a process of economic negotiation as the defendants claimed. "The key is that Hallon has been operating without the necessary licence to use content since August last year," Corrales said.

'Clipping' companies - as they are called in the media industry - collect and summarise relevant information for their clients, covering print and digital media as well as social media. "The judge has reiterated that content protected by intellectual property rights cannot be used without authorisation," said Cedro's director general. The head of the Barcelona court's decision is final and cannot be appealed and, therefore, consignment cannot be used to avoid legal obligations to press publishers.

As a result, the court will return to Hallon the amounts it had deposited over the past few months, as the judge considers that these payments are not applicable in a context that may involve a breach of intellectual property rights. The lawsuit will continue following the corresponding judicial course. The ruling is a step towards guaranteeing the economic sustainability of the publishing sector and protecting professional journalism, which is considered a fundamental pillar of democracy. "It is essential that the rights of news publishers are respected in all areas, both by clipping companies and artificial intelligence models," said Irene Lanzaco, general director of the association of news media (AMI).

Cedro wants companies that develop this type of press summaries or content aggregation to obtain the corresponding authorisations, respecting the terms of the authorisations and paying the corresponding considerations. "They have to respect intellectual property just as they respect the licence of any software they use," said Lanzaco. "Content has a value. With this activity, they are devaluing the service. This affects the business sustainability of the world of journalism and is critical in a state governed by the rule of law," warned Corrales.

According to data provided by the plaintiff, the content reuse market in Spain generates around 10 million euros per year, when at present "only 3.5 million euros are being collected". In any case, these figures are a far cry from those of neighbouring countries, which collect from 44 million euros in the case of the UK to 17 million euros in the case of France. "It is clear that we need to make progress in respecting the rights of press publishers, along the same lines as other EU countries, which recognise the value of the press in democracy and also in the creation of large national language models," added Lanzaco.

Cedro and AMI appeal to the entities that contract these services: "This is not a trivial issue: the work of the press is not recognised and this affects its sustainability, and therefore, all pillars of the State."