In response to the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) taking effect on July 1, 2020, the Mexican government made adjustments to its intellectual property (IP) legislation, including amendments to its Federal Copyright Law and Federal Criminal Code, effective July 2, 2020.
In a nutshell, the amendments include:
Works Made Available to the Public: Inclusion as a form of public communication of works made available to the public by wire or wireless means allowing access at a place and time individually chosen by the public members, and rights to holders of economic rights to authorize or prohibit such communications
Technological Protection Measures: Regulation of effective technological protection measures, comprising any technology, device or component, protecting copyrights or related rights, controlling access to a work, performance or phonogram, including civil remedies and redress, as well as criminal procedures and penalties for the violation of such measures
Rights Management Information: Regulation of rights management information, comprising data, notices or codes and any information identifying a work, owner of the work, performance, performer, phonogram, producer of the phonogram, or the owner of any right on them, or information about the terms and conditions of the use of the work, performance or phonogram, or any numbers or codes representing such information, when any of those items is attached to a copy or appears in connection with them, including civil remedies and redress, as well as criminal procedures and penalties for the violation of such information
Internet Service Providers: Inclusion of provisions related to internet service providers, containing safe harbors for copyright infringements that they do not control, initiate or direct, occurring through systems or networks controlled or operated by them or on their behalf; such safe harbors are conditioned to their compliance with certain actions aimed to deter the unauthorized storage and transmission of copyrighted material; as part of such actions, the amendment includes a notice and takedown process
Blind, Deaf and Hearing or Visually Impaired: Strengthens regulation in favor of the blind, deaf and hearing or visually impaired for accessing works through accessible format copies
Encrypted Program-Carrying Satellite and Cable Signals: Strengthens regulation for encrypted program-carrying satellite and cable signals with broader legal scenarios for civil remedies and criminal procedures
Federal Court of Administrative Justice: Inclusion of provision of competency of the Federal Court of Administrative Justice when challenging a certificate, annotation or recordation in the registry
Camcording: Inclusion of legal scenarios deriving in criminal and administrative enforcement procedures and penalties based on the unauthorized recording, broadcasting or copying of a cinematographic work performed in a movie theater or similar venue
For more information or questions about how these changes may affect your clients or business, please contact the author.
Information contained in this alert is for the general education and knowledge of our readers. It is not designed to be, and should not be used as, the sole source of information when analyzing and resolving a legal problem. Moreover, the laws of each jurisdiction are different and are constantly changing. If you have specific questions regarding a particular fact situation, we urge you to consult competent legal counsel.
