Bulgaria Falls Into All the Traps Set by Article 5 of the CDSM Directive

Abstract

With Article 5 of the CDSM Directive, the EU legislator aspired to remedy the inherited legal fragmentation in the area of copyright exceptions and limitations, by introducing a mandatory exception for the purpose of ‘illustration for teaching’ in the digital environment. Bulgaria already had an educational exception as per the InfoSoc Directive, which was rather broad, technology neutral and unrestricted in terms of its beneficiaries. Now, the ‘digital’ exception under Article 5 is being transposed in parallel with the pre-existing one, both provisions largely overlapping in scope and with no clear collision norms available. This is yet another national implementation showing that the new exception, initially envisaged as a mandatory minimum of user rights protection, would likely exacerbate, instead of remedy the fragmented legal landscape in the EU. It would appear that the regime under Article 5 may come to do a disservice to free use for educational purposes.

Keywords: copyright, educational exception, illustration for teaching, Article 5, CDSM Directive, InfoSoc Directive, Bulgaria, national implementation