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Information Technology in Italy |
by Agnese de Leo & Rosa Gabriele | |
Legal EnvironmentSince May of 1998 Italy has been one of fifteen US trade partners on their priority watchlist, because Italy doesn't guarantee adequate protection of intellectual property rights. The Business Software Alliance estimates that the 1998 figures for pirated software used in Italy is 45%, at a value of more than $357 million. Also, the piracy rate is around 70% in the country's small and media size companies. The average European rate of piracy is around 18%. In terms of economic losses caused by illegal use of software, Italy ranks eighth worldwide. As recent as April of this year, a Turin judge ruled that copying software programs is not illegal provided that they are not sold for profit. Apparently, the ruling was based on an incorrect reading of a 1941 copyright law. Ironically, Italy has been a party to two key international intellectual property treaties since the late 19th century. They joined the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property in 1884 and the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works in 1887. These two treaties are considered to be part of the foundation for the current international intellectual property protection system. Furthermore, Italy has signed 17 of the 21 WIPO treaties. Copyright issues come under the Office of Copyright and the Promotion of Cultural Activities.The most important Italian Internet related trademark infringement case, involving a domain name dispute, was decided by a Milan Civil Court. The decision seems to indicate that according to Italian law, the use of a third party's trademark as a domain name involves infringement of the exclusive rights of the trademark owner, provided that the goods sold or the services rendered through the internet are similar to those covered by the third party's trademark registration. In 1999, Italy passed legislation to implement an EU directive extending copyright protection to paper and electronic databanks created since January 1, 1998. Besides the 70-year standard copyright protection for the "author" or the databank, the law provides protection for the investor of money, time or working the compilation of databanks for 15 years. In February of 2000, Italy became the first European country to introduce a legally binding digital signature. In April of 2000, Italy approved a draft law to regulate the use of Internet domain names in order to crack down on cybersquatting. The measure would provide a minimum compensation of $28,000 for companies and individuals who could prove that they have been damaged by illegal use of their domain name. The law will establish a registration authority of domain names in Pisa. The new law would protect Italian names if they were registered outside the country. Italian legislators used the US model as their guide and they are one of the first European countries to regulate Internet domain names. Although, there are plans to legislate this type of thing at the European Union level, governments are being encouraged to take action by themselves and then the Union will be left with the job of harmonizing the laws. In fact, Italian legislators and the Italian Data Protection Commission or the Garante per la protezione dei dati personali made significant contributions to the drafting of EU principles. |