Home | Databases | WorldLII | Search | Feedback Edited Legal Collections Data

Lucas, André --- "International Exhaustion" [2010] ELECD 518; in Bently, Lionel; Suthersanen, Uma; Torremans, Paul (eds), "Global Copyright" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2010)

Book Title: Global Copyright

Editor(s): Bently, Lionel; Suthersanen, Uma; Torremans, Paul

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781848447660

Section: Chapter 23

Section Title: International Exhaustion

Author(s): Lucas, André

Number of pages: 17

Extract:

23. International exhaustion
André Lucas*

1 INTRODUCTION

At first, the topic looks quite arduous, and to be frank even fairly unat-
tractive. It is, however, very interesting and the organizers should be
praised for bringing it back onto the table, more than 20 years after the
ALAI Study Days in Munich (where it was first discussed).
It is very interesting, if not fascinating, on a strictly legal level. This is
true, primarily, from a technical point of view. The distribution right (or
its variants) forces, for example, one to think of its articulation in terms of
other prerogatives granted to authors, such as the making available right
when it exists, which calls for a systemic analysis of the proprietary rights
structure. The concept of exhaustion still holds some mysteries, in so far
as one doubts its base (or rather basis) and scope. As for the international
dimension of such exhaustion, it involves, as is often said, the famous
principle of copyright's territoriality, on which Georges Koumantos
appropriately commented that it is always brought into debates, although
without ever accurately defining it, and which is not easily reconciled with
the globalization of the transfer of works. Beyond the technical aspects, it
is, of course, the philosophy of the copyright system that is at stake, hence
the decisive importance in this field of comparative law, not only to take
into account the diversity of substantive law solutions, but also to assess,
which is probably more important, the differences of approach in ...