| Abstract [eng] |
This paper examines the relationship between the right to information dissemination and copyright through the lens of theories such as social good, culture, natural rights, and justice. It reveals that copyright and the right to information are inseparable and, therefore, must be harmonized. Different aspects of balancing copyright and the right to information dissemination emerge when analysing key legal regulatory issues at different levels—constitutional, international, and regional. While the balancing of these rights at the constitutional and international levels is relatively successful, at the regional (EU) level, there is a lack of legal clarity when harmonizing copyright and the right to information. Furthermore, this paper analyses the search for a balance between copyright and the right to information dissemination within Lithuanian domestic law, revealing that the three-step test established by the Republic of Lithuania Law on Copyright and Related Rights and the copyright protection provisions in the Civil Code of Republic of Lithuania tend to favour copyright protection over the right to information dissemination. However, the limitations on authors' economic rights established by the Republic of Lithuania Law on Copyright and Related Rights and certain provisions of other laws that ensure information freedom effectively restore the imbalance between copyright and the right to information. Nonetheless, when considering copyright regulation exclusively in the digital space, authors' interests are often outweighed by the dissemination of information processes. In the digital space, copyright faces particular protection challenges, primarily related to the lack of legal regulation and the application of provisions. |
