German Copyright Law (UrhG)

The Urheberrechtsgesetz

German copyright law is governed by the Copyright Act (Urheberrechtsgesetz, UrhG), enacted in 1965 and substantially amended over successive reforms. The UrhG is founded on the author-centric (urheberrechtlich) tradition, which emphasises the personal connection between the author and their work. Copyright is conceived as a personality right rather than a purely economic right. The constitutional foundation is Article 14 GG (property protection) read with Article 5(3) GG (freedom of art and science).

Author’s Rights

The author (Urheber) is the natural person who creates the work (Section 7 UrhG). Only natural persons can be authors; legal entities cannot hold original authorship but may acquire rights by transfer. The principle of creation (Schopfungsprinzip) means that copyright arises automatically upon creation without registration or formality. Joint authorship (Miturheberschaft, Section 8 UrhG) arises where several persons have created a work jointly; each joint author may exploit the work with the consent of the others.

Moral rights (Urheberpersönlichkeitsrechte) under Sections 12-14 UrhG include: (1) the right of publication (Veröffentlichungsrecht); (2) the right to recognition of authorship (Recht auf Anerkennung der Urheberschaft); (3) the right to prohibit distortion or modification (Entstellungsverbot). Moral rights are inalienable; the author may not transfer them but may waive their exercise in certain respects.

Exploitation rights (Verwertungsrechte, Sections 15-24 UrhG) are divided into:

• Physical exploitation rights: reproduction (Vervielfaltigung), distribution (Verbreitung), exhibition (Ausstellung)
• Non-physical exploitation rights: public performance (Aufführung), presentation (Vorführung), broadcasting (Senderecht), making available to the public (Recht der öffentlichen Zuganglichmachung), and communication by other means

The right of making available to the public (Section 19a UrhG) covers on-demand transmission, including streaming and download. This right has become central in the digital environment and is the basis for litigation against file-sharing platforms and content aggregators.

Protected Works

Section 2(1) UrhG enumerates protected categories: literary works, musical works, pantomime and dance works, artistic works (including architecture and applied art), photographic works, cinematographic works, and representations of a scientific or technical nature. Protection requires personal intellectual creation (personliche geistige Schöpfung, Section 2(2) UrhG). The threshold of originality (Schöpfungshöhe) has been reduced by the CJEU’s Infopaq and Painer decisions; the EU standard of “the author’s own intellectual creation” now applies.

Computer programs are protected under Sections 69a-69g UrhG, implementing the Software Directive (2009/24/EC). Protection requires originality (the program must be the author’s own intellectual creation). The Computer Programs Directive’s provisions on decompilation, interoperability, and exceptions take precedence over general copyright rules.

Photographs are protected as photographic works (Lichtbildwerke, Section 2(1)(5)) if they reach the threshold of originality, or as simple photographs (Lichtbilder, Section 72 UrhG) with a lower threshold. Simple photographs enjoy related rights protection for 50 years from creation.

Limitations (Schranken)

The limitations (Schranken, Sections 44a-63a UrhG) balance the author’s rights with public interests in access to information, education, and culture. Key limitations include:

Private copying (Privatkopie, Section 53 UrhG): reproductions for private use are permitted if the source is not obviously illegal, and the reproduction is not for direct or indirect commercial purposes. The author is compensated through a blank media levy (Geräte- und Leerträgervergütung) paid by manufacturers of copying equipment and blank media, distributed by collecting societies.

Quotation right (Zitatrecht, Section 51 UrhG): quotation of published works is permitted to the extent justified by the purpose, including scientific, artistic, and news quotation. The purpose must be internal to the quoting work; the quotation must serve as evidence, illustration, or point of departure.

Education and research: Sections 60a-60h UrhG (introduced by the 2017 reform) provide a unified framework for educational and scientific uses, including the right to reproduce and make available up to 15 per cent of a work for teaching and research purposes, and the right to use works in examinations and teaching materials.

The DSM Directive implementation (2021) introduced Section 51a UrhG (text and data mining) and Section 60d UrhG (text and data mining for research), and amended the press publisher’s right (Presseverlegerrecht, Sections 87f-87k UrhG) transposing Article 15 of the DSM Directive. The upload filter provisions (Section 7(2) UrhG and platform liability under Section 1a UrhDaG — the Copyright Service Provider Act) place obligations on content-sharing platforms to obtain licences and implement filtering mechanisms.

Copyright Contracts

The Copyright Contract Act (Urhebervertragsrecht, Sections 31-44 UrhG) governs contracts for the exploitation of copyright works. Key principles: (1) the author must receive appropriate remuneration (angemessene Vergutung, Section 32 UrhG) for the grant of rights and exploitation of the work; (2) the purpose transfer principle (Zweckubertragungslehre, Section 31(5) UrhG) provides that in case of doubt, the grant of rights extends only as far as required for the contractually intended purpose; (3) the unknown use clause (unbekannte Nutzungsart, Section 31a UrhG) permits the grant of rights for unknown uses only if expressly agreed in writing, with a right of revocation after five years.

Section 32a UrhG provides a fair share (Bestsellerparagraph) claim: if the agreed remuneration is grossly disproportionate to the proceeds from exploitation, the author may claim further appropriate remuneration. This claim cannot be waived in advance. The BGH has applied Section 32a UrhG in landmark decisions concerning film rights and translation contracts.

Collective Management

Germany has a highly developed system of collective management organisations (Verwertungsgesellschaften), regulated by the Collective Rights Management Act (Verwertungsgesellschaftengesetz, VGG), which implements the EU Collective Rights Management Directive (2014/26/EU). The principal organisations are:

• GEMA (Gesellschaft fur musikalische Auffuhrungs- und mechanische Vervielfaltigungsrechte): manages performance, mechanical reproduction, and broadcasting rights for musical works
• VG Wort (Verwertungsgesellschaft Wort): manages literary works, including text reproduction rights, library lending, and press uses
• VG Bild-Kunst: manages visual arts and photographic works
• VG Musikedition: manages music editing
• GÜFA: manages film and audiovisual works

The VGG requires collecting societies to: (1) obtain authorisation from the German Patent and Trade Mark Office; (2) grant licences on reasonable terms to all users (mandatory licensing); (3) distribute collected royalties to rights holders based on transparent distribution plans; (4) submit to state supervision. The supervisory authority is the DPMA. Tariffs established by collecting societies are subject to judicial review by the BGH.

Digital Single Market Directive Implementation

The 2021 copyright reform implementing the DSM Directive (2019/790) is the most significant amendment to the UrhG in decades. Key changes:

• Press publisher’s right (Sections 87f-87k UrhG): press publishers receive a related right for the digital use of press publications, including the right to prohibit search engines and news aggregators from making press publications available to the public. The right expires one year after publication.
• Platform liability (UrhDaG): content-sharing platforms must obtain licences for copyright-protected content uploaded by users and implement effective content identification measures. Smaller platforms (under 5 million monthly users, under EUR 10 million annual turnover) have reduced obligations.
• Text and data mining: the reform clarifies the right of text and data mining for research and other purposes (Sections 60d, 44b UrhG), permitting reproductions and extractions for computational analysis.
• Fair remuneration: strengthening the author’s right to appropriate remuneration and the transparency obligations of licensees and collecting societies.