Austrian-Sardinian copyright agreement

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Treaty between Austria and Sardinia to secure the property rights with regard to the literary and artistic works appearing in their mutual states
Short title: Austrian-Sardinian copyright agreement
Date: May 22, 1840 (ratified June 10, 1840)
Reference: Ferdinand I. Political Laws and Ordinances, Vol. 68, 1842, p. 219 ( digitized via Austrian National Library) = Raccolta degli Atti del Governo de Sua Maestà il re di Sardegna , Vol. 8, No. 301, 1840, p. 77 ( Digitized via HathiTrust)
Contract type: bilateral
Legal matter: copyright
Signing: 2 (+ accessions)
Ratification : 2 (+ accessions)
Please note the note on the applicable contract version .

The Austro-Sardinian Copyright Agreement (on the Austrian side, official: Treaty between Austria and Sardinia to ensure the property rights with regard to the literary and artistic works appearing in their mutual states ) is an agreement in the area of copyright between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia . It is one of the first copyright treaties in the world. In 1891 it was replaced by a state treaty between Austria-Hungary and Italy and ceased to be in force.

A special feature of the essentially bilateral treaty was an opening clause, which also made it possible for other states to join the convention. As late as 1840, a number of states on the territory of what is now Italy made use of it.

content

Due to the extremely fragmentary copyright legislation that existed on the Sardinian and Austrian sides when the contract was concluded, very detailed and fundamental copyright regulations can be found in the agreement. As Cavalli notes, it has the character of a full-fledged copyright law rather than that of an ordinary agreement.

Protected against mechanical reproduction (reprinting) were initially “works or products of the human spirit or art” that were published in one of the contracting states; their authors were also granted an exclusive right of publication (Art. 1). The protected works of art included copper engravings , lithographs , medals , plastic works and shapes, paintings, sculptures and drawings (Art. 12). There was also an exclusive right to publish and reproduce in printed form in favor of the authors of works of dramatic art, which - unlike musical works - were also protected against unauthorized performance (Art. 2). Works protection was also assigned to the translations of manuscripts and foreign-language works that appeared in third countries (Art. 3). Authors of literary and scientific works have been granted copyright protection (Art. 11).

In the event of unauthorized reprinting, the agreement provided for a claim for damages (Art. 15); the rights holder could also demand the confiscation and destruction of the reprinted copies of the work (Art. 16). The sale of such copies of the work was also prohibited (Art. 17). Copyright was hereditary, but hereditary transfer to the state was impossible (Art. 18). In principle, protection ended 30 years after the author's death (Art. 18), for works published posthumously 40 years and for works that are “published by learned institutes or literary associations” 50 years after the author's death (Art . 19, 20).

According to Article 27 of the Convention, the contracting governments would invite the other governments of Italy and those of the Canton of Ticino to accede to the agreement; these should then "be regarded as co-contracting parties by the sole fact of the consent they have given [...]". The agreement should initially remain in force for four and a half years (Art. 28). It was not applicable to works published before it came into force (Art. 14).

Accessions

At the end of 1840, the Papal States , the Duchy of Modena , the Duchy of Lucca and the Duchy of Parma joined the Convention by declaration. The Grand Duchy of Tuscany acceded through a formal treaty with Sardinia and Austria on October 31, 1840 (ratifications changed on December 12, 1840).

The canton of Ticino was expressly invited to join by Vienna in December 1840. A proposal by the Ticino government to accept the invitation met with a mixed response in the Grand Council - the Ticino parliament - but was able to prevail, so that on May 15, 1841, Ticino's accession was decided. In the meantime, the decision did not lead to the settlement of the intra-parliamentary differences of opinion; rather, a number of parliamentarians, especially those from the publishing industry, intensified their efforts to prevent the convention from coming into force. They mainly referred to economic reasons. Giacomo Luvini , for example, pointed out that printers in the convention states would now have to charge high prices for their reprints due to the need to acquire rights - a non-accession of Ticino would therefore give domestic printers a considerable competitive advantage. The efforts were successful: on May 26, 1841, the Grand Council decided to make accession dependent on a number of conditions, in particular that all the states of Italy had acceded. This condition remained unfulfilled until the founding of the Kingdom of Italy , as the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies stayed away from the Convention. The Ticino did not join; From 1868 on, the copyright relations between Ticino and Italy were regulated at the federal level by the Swiss-Italian copyright agreement.

Development of the legal and political environment and expiry

In the course of time the political situation changed: Sardinia became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 , the Austrian Empire was rebuilt into Austria-Hungary in 1871 . The copyright agreement remained in force. According to Article 20 of the peace treaty of October 3, 1866 between Italy and Austria ( Peace of Vienna ) it was now to be extended to all of Italy.

At the level of international copyright law, the conclusion of the Bern Convention for the Protection of Works of Literature and Art in 1886 did indeed result in a turning point; but while Italy was one of the founding members of the Berne Union, Austria-Hungary never joined it, so that the Berne Agreement did not initially change the bilateral relationship between Austria-Hungary and Italy. There have been extensive developments at the national level:

  • On the Italian side, only the Papal States and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies had laws protecting copyright in 1840. This changed as a result of the agreement: after joining the agreement, several states either explicitly or implicitly adopted its internal regulations. The level of protection in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which fell short of the Convention, favored the development of Naples into a stronghold of reprint for the works of authors from other parts of Italy. After the establishment of the state as a whole, a fundamental reform of copyright law was pursued, which resulted in the Copyright Act of 1865.
  • A national copyright law was also created in Austria. The agreement of 1840 itself contributed not least to this. In a hand-held ticket issued shortly before his signature, the imperial statement is documented that “the negotiations presented for the conclusion of a convention with the royal Sardinian government for the protection of literary and artistic property” had “highlighted the need to have this item internally as soon as possible to be legally standardized ”, combined with the request to accelerate the start of the necessary preparatory work. The efforts culminated in 1846 in the issuance of a copyright patent that was closely related to the legislation in the German Confederation .

On May 8, 1884, the Italian government canceled the contract. The Austro-Hungarian government commented on the reasons that, as a result of a far-reaching revision of its national copyright law, the Italian side had felt compelled to adapt its international agreements to the changed internal legal situation. In the following years, however, the contract was repeatedly extended temporarily. On July 8, 1890, Austria-Hungary finally concluded a new state treaty with Italy “on the mutual protection of authors of works of literature or art and the legal successors of the authors”, which was supposed to replace the treaty of 1840. In contrast to the treaty of 1840, which made extensive detailed regulations on the subject matter and scope of protection, the new treaty was essentially limited to recognizing the principle of national treatment . The new agreement came into force on January 12, 1891 after the ratification process was completed. After renewed termination by the Italian side, the treaty of 1840 ceased to be in force with effect from January 13, 1891.

literature

  • Barbara Dölemeyer: Copyright and Publishing Law . In: Helmut Coing (Hrsg.): Handbook of the sources and literature of the recent European history of private law . tape 3 , 3 ("Legislation on special areas under private law"), 1986, p. 3955-4066 . [S. 3987 f., 4039 f.]
  • [UK] Foreign Office: British and Foreign State Papers . tape 31 (1842-1843) . James Ridgway and Sons, London 1858. [p. 1117–1129: comprehensive documentation of the declarations of membership, including declarations of acceptance, in English translation]
  • Herbert Hofmeister : The Austrian-Sardinian Copyright Treaty of 1840 . In: Robert Dittrich (Ed.): The necessity of copyright protection in the light of its history (=  Austrian series of publications on commercial legal protection, copyright and media law ). Manz, Vienna 1991, ISBN 3-214-07707-4 , pp. 239-251 .
  • Fabrizio Mena: Stamperie ai margini d'Italia: Editori e librai nella Svizzera italiana 1746–1848 . Casagrande, Bellinzona 2003, ISBN 88-7713-384-8 . [S. 298–308: on the accession discussions in Ticino]
  • Luigi Carlo Ubertazzi: On the Piedmontese origins of Italian copyright law . In: Elmar Wadle (Hrsg.): Historical studies on copyright in Europe: Lines of development and basic questions (=  writings on European legal and constitutional history ). Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1993, ISBN 3-428-07683-4 , S. 81-104 .

Remarks

  1. ↑ Cf. Barbara Dölemeyer, ways of legal standardization. On the impact of international treaties on European patent and copyright laws of the 19th century , in: C. Bergfeld et al. (Ed.), Aspects of European Legal History. Festgabe for Helmut Coing on his 70th birthday , Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 1982, ISBN 3-465-01517-7 , pp. 65–85, here p. 77; Stephen P. Ladas, The International Protection of Literary and Artistic Property , Macmillan, New York 1938, Vol. 1, p. 22; Silke von Lewinski, International Copyright Law and Policy , Oxford University Press, Oxford and New York 2008, ISBN 978-0-19-920720-6 , § 2.04; Ricketson / Ginsburg, International Copyright and Neighboring Rights , 2005, Vol. 1, § 1.29. It is sometimes referred to as the world's first copyright treaty; However, reference should be made to domestic German copyright agreements (between member states of the German Confederation ), some of which date back a few years further. On this from Lewinski, ibid. , §§ 2.03 f.
  2. ^ Jean Cavalli, La genèse de la Convention de Berne pour la protection des œuvres littéraires et artistiques du 9 septembre 1886 , Imprimeries Réunies, Lausanne 1986, p. 71.
  3. ↑ Cf. Dölemeyer, Copyright and Publishing Law , 1986, op. Cit., P. 3987 f .; In detail: Accession of the Papal, Modenese and Luchese Governments to the Convention concluded between Austria and Sardinia for the protection of literary and artistic property (Court Chancellery Decree of November 26, 1840), Ferdinand I. Political Laws and Ordinances, Vol. 68, 1842, p 358 ( digitized via the Austrian National Library); Accession of the Tuscan and Parmasan government to the convention concluded between Austria and Sardinia for the protection of literary and artistic property (Hofkanzleidecret of December 30, 1840), Ferdinand I. Political Laws and Ordinances, vol. 68, 1842, p. 369 ( digitized via Austrian National Library).
  4. ↑ Repertorio del diritto patrio toscano vigente , Vol. 10, 2nd edition, Florence 1841, pp. 173 ff. Also printed by Johann V. v. Püttlingen, The musical author right. A legal and musical treatise , Wilhelm Braumüller, Vienna 1864 (digitized via Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, urn : nbn: de: bvb: 12-bsb10601809-7 ), p. 179 ff.
  5. ↑ Cf. Accession of the Tuscan and Parmasan Government to the Convention concluded between Austria and Sardinia for the protection of literary and artistic property (Hofkanzleidecret of December 30, 1840), Ferdinand I. Political Laws and Ordinances, Vol. 68, 1842, p. 369 ( Digitized via the Austrian National Library); Dölemeyer, Copyright and Publishing Law , 1986, op.cit., Here p. 3987.
  6. ↑ See Mena, Stamperie ai margini d'Italia , 2003, op.cit ., P. 298 f. The author thanks C. Agliati, Archivio di Stato del Cantone Ticino, Bellinzona, for valuable information and research tips on the accession discussions in Ticino.
  7. ↑ See Mena, Stamperie ai margini d'Italia , 2003, op. Cit., P. 299 f .; Hofmeister, The Austrian-Sardinian Copyright Treaty of 1840 , 1991, op. Cit., P. 249. The decision is documented in the minutes of the Gran Consiglio for the meeting of May 15, 1841, Atti del Gran Consiglio della Repubblica e Cantone del Ticino , May 1841 ( digitized via Biblioteca cantonale Bellinzona), p. 127 ff.
  8. ↑ See Mena, Stamperie ai margini d'Italia , 2003, op.cit ., P. 301.
  9. ↑ See the minutes of the Gran Consiglio for the meeting of May 26, 1841, Atti del Gran Consiglio della Repubblica e Cantone del Ticino , May 1841 ( digitized via Biblioteca cantonale Bellinzona), p. 414 ff., Here p. 416 ff., 431 f .; Hofmeister, The Austrian-Sardinian Copyright Treaty of 1840 , 1991, op. Cit., P. 249. As Hofmeister reports there, the change of course led to some confusion regarding the - apparent - accession of Ticino; J. Delalain, Recueil des conventions conclues par la France pour la reconnaissance des droits de propriété littéraire et artistique , 3rd edition, Paris 1867, p. XXXIII; Robert Phillimore, Commentaries upon International Law , Vol. 4, 2nd ed., Butterworths, London 1874 (digitized via Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, urn : nbn: de: bvb: 12-bsb11008924-9 , and - not freely accessible - HeinOnline ), P. 440; and apparently Dölemeyer, copyright and publishing law , 1986, op. cit., p 3987th
  10. ↑ See Dölemeyer, Copyright and Publishing Law , 1986, op. Cit., P. 3987; Hofmeister, The Austrian-Sardinian Copyright Treaty of 1840 , 1991, op.cit., P. 249.
  11. ↑ See Hofmeister, The Austrian-Sardinian Copyright Contract of 1840 , 1991, op.cit., P. 249.
  12. ↑ See Mena, Stamperie ai margini d'Italia , 2003, op.cit ., P. 307 f.
  13. ↑ See Hofmeister, The Austrian-Sardinian Copyright Treaty of 1840 , 1991, op.cit., P. 250.
  14. ↑ Peace treatise between His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty and His Majesty the King of Italy , RGBl. 116/1866 ( digitized via the Austrian National Library).
  15. ↑ a b Cf. the explanatory remarks on supplement No. 1094 in the supplements to the stenographic minutes of the House of Members of the Austrian Reichsrath in 1890 - 10th session , vol. 13, Vienna 1890 ( digitized via the Austrian National Library), p. 7th
  16. ↑ For the reasons cf. Walter Dillenz, Why Austria-Hungary never acceded to the Berne Agreement , in: Elmar Wadle (Ed.), Historical Studies on Copyright in Europe. Lines of development and basic questions , Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1993, ISBN 3-428-07683-4 , pp. 167-189.
  17. ↑ On the above: Dölemeyer, Copyright and Publishing Law , 1986, op. Cit., P. 3988 f.
  18. ↑ See Heinrich M. Schuster, The emergence of the copyright patent from October 19, 1846. A contribution to the history of Austrian legislation , in: Juristische Blätter , Vol. 20, No. 25–29, 1891, pp. 291–294, 303 -305, 315-318, 327-330, 339-341, here p. 327 f.
  19. ↑ Quoted here from Heinrich M. Schuster, The emergence of the copyright patent from October 19, 1846. A contribution to the history of Austrian legislation , in: Juristische Blätter , Vol. 20, No. 25–29, 1891, pp. 291–294, 303-305, 315-318, 327-330, 339-341, here p. 328.
  20. ↑ The highest patent of October 19, 1846, regarding the protection of literary and artistic property against unauthorized publication, reprinting and copying , Ferdinand I. Political Laws and Ordinances, Vol. 74, 1848, p. 196 ( digitized via the Austrian National Library).
  21. ↑ Cf. Herbert Hofmeister, The Development of Copyright Law in Austria from Enlightened Absolutism up to 1895 , in: Robert Dittrich (Ed.), Where does copyright come from and where is it going? Roots, historical origin, intellectual historical background and future of copyright law , Manz, Vienna 1988, ISBN 3-214-07705-8 , pp. 135–146, here p. 138.
  22. ^ State treaty between His Majesty the Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia etc. etc. and the Apostolic King of Hungary and His Majesty the King of Italy, regarding the mutual protection of authors of works of literature or art and the legal successors of the authors, RGBl. 4/1891 ( digitized via the Austrian National Library).
  23. ↑ Cf. Le nouveau traité conclu en matiére littéraire et artistique entre l'Autriche-Hongrie et l'Italie , in: Droit d'auteur , Vol. 4, 1891, No. 2, pp. 13-14, here p. 13 ; Jean Cavalli, La genèse de la Convention de Berne pour la protection des œuvres littéraires et artistiques du 9 septembre 1886 , Imprimeries Réunies, Lausanne 1986, p. 70.
  24. ↑ At the time of entry into force, see Art. IX, Paragraph 2 of the 1890 Agreement.
  25. ↑ See the relevant explanation in RGBl. 4/1891 ( digitized via Austrian National Library), p. 8.