Art & Allposters International BV v. Stichting Pictoright
European Union Court of Justice
Case C-419/13 (2015)
- Written by Eric Miller, JD
Facts
Art & Allposters International BV (Allposters) (defendant) sold reproductions of paintings. Some works were sold in the form of posters, but others were transferred from poster to canvas and sold in that medium. Stichting Pictoright (Pictoright) (plaintiff), a Netherlands-based group representing the interests of copyright holders, asked Allposters to stop selling the canvas transfers. After Allposters failed to comply with the request, Pictoright brought an infringement action in the Dutch court system. The court dismissed the suit. Pictoright appealed. The court of appeals reversed, holding that, even though the copyright holders’ rights to require consent had been previously exhausted by placement of the posters on the market, the transformation of the works from poster to canvas had the effect of reviving those rights. Allposters appealed to the Dutch supreme court, which referred the matter to the European Union (EU) Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)
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