Quotations, Parody and Fair Use

Abstract

The Dutch legal tradition in the field of quotations, parody and fair use can provide important impulses for the further development of European and international copyright law. Given the fundamental importance of use privileges in this area for achieving copyright’s overall goal to support cultural follow-on innovation, these impulses may become particularly relevant when it comes to the question of adequate reactions to new forms of re-using and disseminating copyrighted material on the Internet, such as the re-use and dissemination of protected material in the context of enhanced search engine services and user-generated content. Against this background, the book chapter offers a detailed analysis of the development of the right of quotation, the exemption of parody and the debate on fair use under the 1912 Dutch Copyright Act. The insights from the analysis are subsequently placed in the broader context of European copyright law. A final assessment of the impulses that may be derived from the Dutch approach concludes the analysis and leads to policy recommendations.

Keywords: right of quotation, parody, fair use, three-step test, search engine, user-generated content, flexible copyright, copyright policy