VG Wort
In addition to the PMG licenses, the “press review paragraph” (Section 49 UrhG) provides a further, yet more restrictive means of press review creation.
The “press review paragraph”
The “press review paragraph” of the German Copyright Act (Section 49 UrhG) permits self-digitisation and internal distribution of articles from daily newspapers covering current political, economic or religious issues. In cooperation with VG Wort, you can report these articles via PMG.
Restrictions of Section 49 of the German Copyright Act
Articles in press reviews created in accordance with Section 49 of the German Copyright Act (UrhG) can be retained for a maximum of seven days. They can only be distributed in the form of a graphical representation of the original article, and the usage intensity of the electronic press review must not exceed that of the paper press review. The articles and any images published alongside them must not originate from professional or scientific journals. Any further storage, or archiving in particular, is prohibited.
Please note: For foreign clients, it is not possible to bill articles to VG WORT through section 49 of the German Act on Copyright and Related Rights (Urheberrechtsgesetz, UrhG). This copyright is a territorial right and exclusive to clients established in Germany.
Press reviews according to Section 49 of the German Copyright Act
For self-digitised articles and images, the authors or creators receive remuneration based on legally prescribed rates. The relevant amounts are levied by the VG Wort or VG Bild-Kunst collecting society. As part of a cooperation agreement between the collecting societies and PMG, the used articles and images can be reported via the PMG press database and remunerated directly.
This remuneration is passed on to the collecting societies by PMG. By reporting the relevant articles and images via PMG, the users are granted an “exemption” by the collecting societies, allowing them to use the material in their press reviews – within the limits defined by Section 49 of the German Copyright Act.
Price calculator for press reviews according to Section 49 of the German Copyright Act
Here you can calculate the expected costs for your electronic press review in accordance with Section 49 of the German Copyright Act.
Please note that this does not cover any digital archiving of the press reviews or individual articles contained therein.
Do you have questions regarding the acquisition of usage rights for press reviews?
Simply send us a message and we will get back to you.