Nintendo Co. Ltd, v PC Box Srl, [2013] EUECJ C-355/12 (19 September 2013)

Nintendo Co. Ltd, v PC Box Srl, [2013] EUECJ C-355/12 (19 September 2013)

Technological measures incorporated in both games and consoles may qualify for protection under Article 6 of Directive 2001/29 if they are proportionate and effective in preventing unauthorised acts requiring rightholder authorisation; the national court must assess whether such measures unnecessarily restrict legitimate acts and whether devices circumventing them have commercially significant legitimate uses.

Citation
[2013] EUECJ C-355/12
Parties
Applicant: Nintendo Co. Ltd; Applicant: Nintendo of America Inc.; Applicant: Nintendo of Europe GmbH; Respondent: PC Box Srl; Respondent: 9Net Srl
Jurisdiction
European Union
Judgment Date
19 September 2013
Procedural Posture
Preliminary Reference / Opinion of Advocate General
Outcome
Guidance provided for national court's determination; no final disposition on merits.
Legal Topics
Copyright, Technological Protection Measures, Video Games, Interoperability, Proportionality
Intellectual Property European Union Law Copyright Technological Protection Measures Video Games Interoperability Proportionality

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Parties

Nintendo Co. Ltd

Applicant

Nintendo of America Inc.

Applicant

Nintendo of Europe GmbH

Applicant

PC Box Srl

Respondent

9Net Srl

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Preliminary Reference / Opinion of Advocate General

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether technological measures incorporated in consoles as well as in games qualify for protection under Article 6 of Directive 2001/29
  2. 2 Criteria for assessing whether devices circumventing such measures have commercially significant purposes other than circumvention

Ratio Decidendi

Technological measures incorporated in both games and consoles may qualify for protection under Article 6 of Directive 2001/29 if they are proportionate and effective in preventing unauthorised acts requiring rightholder authorisation; the national court must assess whether such measures unnecessarily restrict legitimate acts and whether devices circumventing them have commercially significant legitimate uses.

Court Disposition

Guidance provided for national court's determination; no final disposition on merits.

Orders

  • Technological measures may include those in consoles as well as games.
  • National court must apply proportionality test to determine if measures qualify for protection.