Textbook publisher
infringed
Copyright.
Textbook publisher
infringed
Copyright.
from
A children’s book publisher successfully took copyright action against the publication of a teacher’s guide containing a multi-page reproduction of a novel.
Reproduction and distribution rights
The right of reproduction and the right of distribution are exclusive rights to exploit the copyrighted work in physical form. This refers to the law to make reproductions, i.e. copies of a work or parts thereof, and to offer them to the public. The reproduction and distribution of a novel or individual excerpts of a novel without the corresponding rights of use constitutes an infringement of copyright. This was confirmed by the Nuremberg-Fürth Regional Court.
The lawsuit was brought by a children’s book publisher who had extensive rights of use and exploitation to a young adult novel. In the past, the defendant school book publisher had offered a “teaching model” teacher’s guide to this young adult novel. The children’s book publisher considered the reproduction of text excerpts from the novel to be an infringement of the right of reproduction and distribution and – after the school book publisher had issued a cease-and-desist declaration – demanded compensation and reimbursement of the warning costs.
Action protected as a linguistic work
In its judgment of 28.06.2024 – 19 O 5537/23, the Regional Court of Nuremberg-Fürth upheld the children’s book publisher’s claim almost in full.
The one-page summary of the content of the novel constitutes an act of reproduction of the original work and the sale constitutes an infringement of the distribution right.
The fable as the plot of the novel is protected by copyright as a linguistic work. According to the case law of the BGH, it is recognized that in the case of literary works, it is not only the specific text version or the direct shaping of an idea that is eligible for copyright protection. Personal components and formative elements of the work also enjoy copyright protection. Against this background, the unilateral summary of the content of the novel constitutes an act of reproduction of the original work and the sale of the teaching model constitutes an infringement of the distribution right.
The court ruled out limitations of copyright, such as the right to quote and parody/caricature. The right to quote did not apply due to the lack of a dispute with the original text. In the absence of a collection, there is also no teaching and instructional medium because the teaching model deals almost exclusively with one work.
Conclusion
Reproduction of content infringes copyright. It is not only the verbatim copying from the original work that constitutes copyright infringement. The plot of the novel, depicting the relationships between the characters, enjoys independent copyright protection. The reproduction of the content is therefore also in breach of copyright.
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