RwandaLaw on the Protection of Intellectual Property, news exclusion and informatory-use and quotation exceptions
Law N° 31/2009 of 26/10/2009 on the Protection of Intellectual Property, arts. 198, 205, 209
A snippet reproduction rule binding public and private bodies.
- Instrument type
- an act of a legislature
What it requires
- Repealed by Law N° 055/2024 with effect from , so read this as context rather than a live duty. While it applied, you needed no permission to use published daily news or news communicated to the public, official legislative, administrative or judiciary texts, or mere ideas, procedures, systems, methods, concepts, principles or discoveries: article 198 excluded them from copyright protection.
- While it applied, you could reproduce in a newspaper or periodical, or broadcast or otherwise communicate to the public, an article published in a newspaper or periodical on current economic, political or religious topics, or a broadcast work of the same character, without authorization or payment, unless that right was expressly reserved (art. 209).
- While it applied, you could reproduce or communicate to the public, to report short current events, a work seen or heard in the course of those events, to the extent the informatory purpose justified (art. 209).
- While it applied, you could reproduce, broadcast or communicate to the public a political speech, lecture, address, sermon or similar public address, or a speech delivered during legal proceedings, to the extent justified by the purpose of providing current information (art. 209).
- While it applied, the source and the author's name had to be indicated, as far as practicable, for each use under article 209.
- While it applied, you could quote a short part of a published work, without authorization or payment, if the quotation was compatible with fair practice, did not exceed the extent its purpose justified, and indicated the source and the author's name where it appeared in the work quoted (art. 205).
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text.
What this law does
Article 198 excludes published daily news or news communicated to the public, official legislative, administrative, or judiciary texts, and mere ideas, procedures, systems, methods, concepts, principles, or discoveries from copyright protection: a bare news item is never a protected work under Rwandan law, whichever outlet reports it first.
Article 209 separately permits, without the author's authorization and without payment of remuneration, subject to indicating the source and the author's name as far as practicable: the reproduction in a newspaper or periodical, or the broadcasting or other communication to the public, of an article published in a newspaper or periodical on current economic, political, or religious topics, or a broadcast work of the same character, where the right to reproduction, broadcasting, or communication to the public is not expressly reserved; the reproduction or communication to the public, for the purpose of reporting short current events, of a work seen or heard in the course of those events, to the extent justified by the informatory purpose; and the reproduction, broadcasting, or communication to the public of a political speech, lecture, address, sermon, or similar public address, or a speech delivered during legal proceedings, to the extent justified by the purpose of providing current information.
Article 205 separately permits free reproduction in the form of quotation of a short part of a published work, without authorization or payment, provided the reproduction is compatible with fair practice and does not exceed the extent justified by the purpose, and is accompanied by an indication of source and the author's name where it appears in the work quoted.
None of these three provisions is capped at a headline-length threshold distinct from the fair-practice and informatory-purpose tests they each already carry.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app reuses other publishers' content.
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