Study On EU Copyright Legislation Integration

The main purpose of this research is to observe the background of the EU copyright legislation integration regarding its advent and development, to explore the main contents of integration, to well understand and learn from the the legislation integration through the systematic research on the First Generation Directives and Second Generation Directives, in hopes to update our understanding towards the development of the international copyright legal system and to provide a useful reference for perfecting the legal system of China's copyright.The historical research method, comparative research methods, economic analysis methods as well as other methods are adopted herein to research the EU copyright legislation integration.The legislation integration is lauched against the EU unification with profound historical motives and institutional resources.The international copyright protection system stated in Berne Convention has great impact on the legislation integration. First Generation Directives and Second Generation Directives represent as the achievements of the EU copyright legislation integration.By virtue of technological advancement and economic development, currently there are two trends in respect of the international protection of copyright:first is to reinforce the protection of the rights holders; second is to coordinate various laws and regulations among different countries. The EU has attached importance to copyright protection and will constantly adjust their laws faced with new technologies and new environments. In regards to the coordination, the EU adoptes a progressive model by progressively fulfilling the integration of the EU copyright legislation in a classified way. In the legislating course of integration, European Union legislators pay full attention to the Berne Convention, the Rome Convention, WTO TRIPS Agreement and other existing international conventions to maintain coordination of international copyright.During the course, EU employs the directives as the main legal form to reconcile differences between the national laws of the member States, which reflecs the EU's maximum co-ordination principle and the spirit of cooperation and compromise within the EU framework. Under legislation integration, the roles of the European Parliament and the European Council are in full play to actively coordinate the different legal systems within the EU as well as different national legal systems of copyright. The remarkable outcomes turn to achieve in computer programs, rental rights, satellite cable transmission, databases, duration of copyright protection, information society and the artist resale right, which represents the initial implementation of coordination among the EU members in a number of areas of copyright in favor of the free flow of the goods and services across the EU and the establishement of unified internal market.The systematic research will help us to deepen our understanding of the EU copyright legislation integration, to analyze its merits and demerits, and to duly estimate the impact of the integration. Not only can it promote the improvement of the construction of domestic copyright law as well as the perfiction of copyright law in China, but also have important significance in adaption of international copyright law development.