Newsletter
The Amendments to the Copyright Act
In order to accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Taiwan government has reviewed and revised relevant laws and regulations to meet the standards set out in the CPTPP free trade agreement. As the scope of the crimes indictable by public prosecution as prescribed in Taiwan Copyright Act is limited to unauthorized reproduction and distribution of optical disks which is different to those required by the CPTPP; besides, in order to meet the CPTPP's provision in connection with stipulating criminal procedures and penalties to be applied in certain cases of willful copyright piracy, Taiwan Legislative Yuan passed the Amendments to the Copyright Act on 15 April 2022 and promulgated by the President on 4 May 2022. The implementation date will be determined by the Executive Yuan so as to meet the time and schedule of Taiwan's entry into the CPTPP. The main points of the amendments and amended provisions are as follows:
I. Amending Article 100 to stipulate that instances of illegal digital piracy, distribution, and public transmission constituting a serious infringement are now considered offenses that are indictable by public prosecution, if "infringement of work provided not for free by another person", "reproduction in the original form of the unauthorized work (100% reproduction)", and "infringements causing damages exceeding one million New Taiwan Dollars" are listed as the three conditions for determining an instance of serious infringement. The amended Article 100 are as follows:
Amended Article 100
The offenses specified in this chapter are actionable only upon complaint; provided, this shall not apply in any of the following circumstances if "infringement of work provided not for free by another person", "reproduction in the original form of the unauthorized work (100% reproduction)" and/or "infringements causing damages exceeding one million New Taiwan Dollars":
(1) violates the provisions of Article 91-2 and the reproduction work is in digital format;
(2) violates the provisions of Article 91-1(2), and for the purpose of making a profit, distributes or with intent to distribute publicly, displays or possesses a copy knowing that it infringes on economic rights, and the reproduction work is in digital format;
(3) violates the provisions of Article 92 and infringes on the economic rights of another person without authorization by means of public transmission.
II. In conformity with the amendment of Article 100 mentioned above, deleting the content with respect to the increased penalties under the current law for the indictable offense of reproduction and distribution of pirated optical discs which have become redundant in the Article 91(3) and Article 91-1(3) which will revert to general liabilities for reproduction and distribution. The Article 98 and Article 98-1 which prescribe the corresponding provisions of confiscation and forfeiture have also been deleted. The amended Article 91and Article 91-1 are as follows:
1. Amended Article 91
A person who infringes on the economic rights of another person by means of reproducing the work without authorization shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than three years, detention, or in lieu thereof or in addition thereto a fine not more than seven hundred and fifty thousand New Taiwan Dollars.
A person who infringes on the economic rights of another person by means of reproducing the work without authorization with the intent to sell or rent shall be imprisoned not less than six months and not more than five years, and in addition thereto, may be fined not less than two hundred thousand and not more than two million New Taiwan Dollars.
A work only for personal reference or fair use of a work does not constitute infringement of copyright.
2. Amended Article 91-1
A person who infringes on the economic rights of another person by distributing the original of a work or a copy thereof by transfer of ownership without authorization shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than three years, detention, or in lieu thereof or in addition thereto, a fine not more than five hundred thousand New Taiwan Dollars.
A person who distributes or with intent to distribute publicly, displays or possesses a copy knowing that it infringes on economic rights shall be imprisoned not more than three years and, in addition thereto, may be fined not less than seventy thousand and not more than seven hundred and fifty thousand New Taiwan Dollars.
Punishment of an offense in the preceding paragraph may be reduced if the offender confesses the source of the goods, resulting in the uncovering thereof.
III. To meet the time and schedule of Taiwan's entry into the CPTPP, the implementation date of the above amendments will be determined by the Executive Yuan (Amended Article 117).