Tools & Resources
Digitising public domain images creates a new copyright, rules German court
Type: Online Resource
Author
Glyn Moody
Description
This blog post summarises the result of the Regional Court of Berlin's decision to recognise protection in 17 reproductions of public domain works made by the Reiss Engelhorn Museum, which were uploaded to Wikimedia Commons.
Date
2016 June 23
Commentary
In June 2016, the Regional Court of Berlin ruled that the museum's reproductions were protected, even though the intent was to create a faithful image rather than produce an artistic interpretation. Wikimedia appealed.
In September 2016, the decision was affirmed. The court held not only that copyright as simple light photography existed in the museum’s reproductions, but also that the museum could restrict visitors from making their own reproductions based on the private ownership status of the works. Wikimedia appealed.
In June 2017, the highest court in Stuttgart affirmed again, but permitted an appeal.
Publisher
Ars Techica
Jurisdiction
Germany
Language
ENG
Copyright Information
In Copyright
Rights and Reuse
All Rights Reserved
Cortex Citation:
Glyn Moody, “Digitising public domain images creates a new copyright, rules German court,” Copyright Cortex, accessed October 18, 2026, https://copyright-cortex.org/tools-resources/digitising-public-domain-images-creates-a-new-copyright-rules-german-court.
Glyn Moody, “Digitising public domain images creates a new copyright, rules German court,” Copyright Cortex, accessed October 18, 2026, https://copyright-cortex.org/tools-resources/digitising-public-domain-images-creates-a-new-copyright-rules-german-court.