Italy: Regional Administrative Court for Lazio announced request for opinion on compatibility of Italian Copyright compensation rules for digital platforms with European Union's copyright directive (Regional Administrative Court for Lazio v Meta Platforms Ireland) (Case No. C-797/23)

On 21 December 2023, the Regional Administrative Court for Lazio announced a request for a preliminary ruling at the Court of Justice of the European Union, seeking clarification on the compatibility of Italian legislation with Article 15 of Directive (EU) 2019/790 on copyright in the digital single market (EUCD). The case concerns the digital platforms sector, particularly information society service providers (ISSPs), including Meta, and questions whether national rules require ISSPs to pay fair compensation to publishers. It also focuses on mandatory negotiations, providing information to both publishers and the national regulator (AGCOM), and refraining from limiting the visibility of publisher content are consistent with EU law. It also examines whether AGCOM’s supervisory, sanctioning, and dispute resolution powers, along with these obligations, infringe fundamental EU principles of freedom to conduct business, free competition, and proportionality.