Collective management
3 pending referrals
Referral C-248/26 (Radio Express 92.3 FM, 26 Mar 2026) 
Referral C-22/26 (AIE and AGEDI, 21 Jan 2026)
Referral C-601/25 (E. spółka z ograniczoną odpowiedzialnością, 9 Sep 2025)
3 preliminary rulings
Judgment of 22 Oct 2026, C-840/24 (VG Wort)
Article 11(4), read in conjunction with Article 12(4) and Article 13(4) and (6), of Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market,must be interpreted, first, as precluding– on the basis of national legislation under which collective management organisations are called upon to promote works of cultural importance– the articles of association of a collective management organisation from providing that part of the ‘rights revenue’, within the meaning of Article 3(h) of that directive, be allocated to the funding of social, cultural or educational services which benefit persons who are not copyright holders, where that funding is provided by means of deductions made from that revenue and, second, as not precluding those articles of association where that funding is provided by means of ‘non-distributable amounts’, within the meaning of Article 13(4) of that directive.
Article12(4) of Directive 2014/26must be interpreted as meaning that, as regards social, cultural and educational services provided by a collective management organisation and funded by deductions from ‘rights revenue’, within the meaning of Article 3(h) of that directive, those services may benefit ‘rightholders’ within the meaning of Article 3(c) of that directive, irrespective of whether or not those rightholders have a present right to remuneration or whether or not they have concluded a management agreement with that collective management organisation, provided that, directly or indirectly, the management of the rights on behalf of those holders falls within the scope of the activity of the collective management organisation concerned.
Judgment of 10 Jul 2025, C-37/24 (DADA Music and UPFR)
Article 8(2) of Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on rental right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property and the second subparagraph of Article 16(2) of Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market and Article 17 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, read in the light of Article 52(1) thereof,must be interpreted as not precluding national legislation which does not guarantee minimum flat-rate remuneration to phonogram producers for the broadcasting of phonograms published for commercial purposes and which repeals, with effect from 90 days after its publication, the provisions relating to minimum flat-rate remuneration applicable to broadcasting established by a previously applicable methodology, without, however, altering the criteria for calculating remuneration and without providing for a maximum period for adopting a new methodology for quantifying the remuneration, provided that that legislation guarantees that the remuneration paid to rightholders is equitable or appropriate and that it complies with the principle of proportionality.
It is for the national court before which a dispute has been brought regarding the equitable or appropriate nature of remuneration payable to rightholders for the broadcasting of phonograms published for commercial purposes, calculated according to the rules defined by national law, to verify whether that remuneration is equitable or appropriate within the meaning of Article 8(2) of Directive 2006/115 and the second subparagraph of Article 16(2) of Directive 2014/26, that is, that it guarantees a balance between the interests of rightholders and those of the users of those phonograms. If the application of that legislation does not allow for such remuneration to be set, the provisions of those directives cannot be relied on to exclude that legislation, unless domestic law provides otherwise.
Judgment of 21 Mar 2024, C-10/22 (LEA)
Article 56 TFEU, read in conjunction with Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market,must be interpreted as precluding legislation of a Member State which generally and absolutely excludes the possibility of independent management entities established in another Member State providing their copyright management services in that first Member State.
