CHAPTER 2. NEIGHBOURING RIGHTS

. Sources.

I. International sources⁷⁹:

• Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting organisations Gazette No.: 111 from 26.02.2004⁸⁰.

• The WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT), SG, issue 60, 22.07.2005, entered into force for the Republic of Bulgaria on 20.05.2002 ⁸¹

• The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). The Republic of Bulgaria becomes a member on 01.12.1996⁸²

The TRIPS agreement and WPPT were signed by the European Union and approved by Decisions 94/800 and 2000/278 respectively. Consequently this agreement and the aforementioned contract are binding upon the institutions of the Union and on its Member States⁸³.

As stated as the beginning in regard to the TRIPS agreement, direct reference to the Agreement establishing the WTO or its annexes shall not be made before the courts of the EU and its Member States. The Court has ruled that, due to their nature and structure, the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement do not have a direct effect and cannot provide

private legal entities with rights which the latter can refer to directly before the court by virtue of the Union’s law⁸⁴.

In regard to WPPT, it should be noted that pursuant to Article 23, §1 of this Treaty, Contracting Parties undertake to adopt, in accordance with their legal systems, the measures necessary to ensure the application of this Treaty. It follows from the above that the implementation of WPPT provisions, on account of their enforcement or effective action, shall depend on the issuance of subsequent acts. Thereupon these provisions do not have a direct effect in the Union’s law and they cannot provide private legal entities with rights that the latter can refer to directly before the court by virtue of this law⁸⁵.

With regard to the Rome Convention it should be noted that, firstly, the Union is not a contracting party to the Convention, and secondly, it cannot be considered as having adopted the rights and obligations of its Member States in the scope of application of this Convention, despite the only reason being that not all of the latter are parties to this Convention⁸⁶. Thereupon the provisions of the Rome Convention are not part of the Union’s legal order. Pursuant to Article 1, §1 of WPPT, the provisions of this Treaty shall not §1derogate from existing obligations that Contracting Parties have to each other under the Rome Convention. It follows from the above that, although the Union is not a Contractual Party to the Rome Convention, it still undertakes, pursuant to Article 1, § 1 of WPPT, not to oppose the fulfilment of Member States’ obligations existing under the Convention. Hence, its effect in the Union is indirect.

Sources of EU Law

Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September 1993 on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission⁸⁷;

Directive 2001/29/EC⁸⁸ of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society ⁸⁹;

Directive 2006/116/EC⁹⁰ of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on the term of protection of copyright and certain related rights⁹¹;

Directive 2006/116/EC ⁹² of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on rental and lending rights and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property⁹³;

Directive 2012/28/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on certain permitted uses of orphan works ⁹⁴

Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market⁹⁵II. Internal sources. Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act⁹⁶ Like most Eastern and Central European, Bulgaria did not protect neighbouring rights under the Copyright Act during the period of socialism. Bulgaria has been a member of the World Trade Organisaiton since 1 December 1996. Since 1 January 2007, it has been a Member State of the European Union. Since 30 November 2009, the EU has been a WTO member as an international organisation and all of its Member States are WTO members of their own right.

Among the characteristics of the modernisationof copyright is the adoption of neighbouring rights, including, above all,

A rightholder is considered to be the natural person whose name, title or other identification mark is indicated in the usual manner in, respectively, the original work, the work’s copies and/or its packaging, or in the process of presenting the programme.

The property rights of holders of neighbouring rights may be exercised by the collective management organisations authorized by the rightholders, in accordance with the provisions of Directive 2014/26/EU on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market.