Beginning in 2019, the EU will roll out new rules for its copyright laws. This will have an impact on bloggers and their commenting audience around the world, because social media platforms doing business in the EU will have to comply with the restrictions introduced through changes to Articles 11 and 13.

Article 11 has been dubbed the "Link Tax", because links back to sources of quoted news, research papers, or artwork will carry a fee. Do you remember when YouTube didn't permit text beginning with "http://" in comments and prevented users from posting comments containing links? That's what social media platforms will likely revert to in resistance to paying the coming Link Tax.

Article 13 will also likely change the direction of information sharing on the internet. This section of the EU copyright code forces social platforms and bloggers alike to BAN content that is not original, effectively nullifying the FAIR USE doctrine. To comply, platforms hosting content, will have to implement high-maintenance, expensive scanning procedures to check their content against existing materials already online. Gizmodo author, Rhett Jones, predicts that even a branded T-shirt you're wearing in a profile pic could trigger the system to automatically pull down your own profile image.

The EU Copyright Directive changes are touted by European law-makers as "good" for copyright holders, explaining that they will benefit from the added protection and the revenue from the link tax. In fact, prohibition of Fair Use will isolate copyright holders, by eliminating the free advertising gained through link backs to their material. If quoting a news article and linking to the source becomes costly for authors, they'll simply not do it. If automatic take-down processes on platforms remove authors' content, they will just stop wasting time posting on social media platforms. The coming EU Copyright Directive changes are little more than thinly disguised surveillance and censorship mechanisms that benefit no one and set back free speech and information sharing by decades.

The End of All That's Good and Pure About the Internet

https://gizmodo.com/the-end-of-all-thats-good-and-pure-about-the-internet-1826963763

'Disastrous' copyright bill vote approved

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-44546620

Fair Use Rules & Copyright Law in the US

Fair use is a legal doctrine that promotes freedom of expression by permitting the unlicensed use of copyright-protected works in certain circumstances. Section 107 of the Copyright Act provides the statutory framework for determining whether something is a fair use and identifies certain types of uses—such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research—as examples of activities that may qualify as fair use. Section 107 calls for consideration of the following four factors in evaluating a question of fair use: Purpose and character of the use, including whether the use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes: Courts look at how the party claiming fair use is using the copyrighted work, and are more likely to find that nonprofit educational and noncommercial uses are fair. This does not mean, however, that all nonprofit education and noncommercial uses are fair and all commercial uses are not fair; instead, courts will balance the purpose and character of the use against the other factors below. Additionally, “transformative” uses are more likely to be considered fair. Transformative uses are those that add something new, with a further purpose or different character, and do not substitute for the original use of the work. Nature of the copyrighted work: This factor analyzes the degree to which the work that was used relates to copyright’s purpose of encouraging creative expression. Thus, using a more creative or imaginative work (such as a novel, movie, or song) is less likely to support a claim of a fair use than using a factual work (such as a technical article or news item). In addition, use of an unpublished work is less likely to be considered fair. Amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole: Under this factor, courts look at both the quantity and quality of the copyrighted material that was used. If the use includes a large portion of the copyrighted work, fair use is less likely to be found; if the use employs only a small amount of copyrighted material, fair use is more likely. That said, some courts have found use of an entire work to be fair under certain circumstances. And in other contexts, using even a small amount of a copyrighted work was determined not to be fair because the selection was an important part—or the “heart”—of the work. Effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work: Here, courts review whether, and to what extent, the unlicensed use harms the existing or future market for the copyright owner’s original work. In assessing this factor, courts consider whether the use is hurting the current market for the original work (for example, by displacing sales of the original) and/or whether the use could cause substantial harm if it were to become widespread.

Read more here: https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/more-info.html

How much of someone else's work can I use without getting permission?

Under the fair use doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute, it is permissible to use limited portions of a work including quotes, for purposes such as commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports. There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work. Whether a particular use qualifies as fair use depends on all the circumstances. See, Fair Use Index, and Circular 21, Reproductions of Copyrighted Works by Educators and Librarians.

Read more here: https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html

Legal Guide for Bloggers from the Electronic Frontier Foundation

Freedom of speech is the foundation of a functioning democracy, and Internet bullies shouldn't use the law to stifle legitimate free expression. That's why EFF created this guide, compiling a number of FAQs designed to help you understand your rights and, if necessary, defend your freedom.

Read more here: https://www.eff.org/issues/bloggers/legal

About EFF

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization defending civil liberties in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF champions user privacy, free expression, and innovation through impact litigation, policy analysis, grassroots activism, and technology development. We work to ensure that rights and freedoms are enhanced and protected as our use of technology grows.

Read more here: https://www.eff.org/about

Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/notepad-table-decoration-notes-3297994/