Digital copying of protected books only with the consent of the copyright owner

Two authors of literary works applied to the French constitutional Court for the annulment of a decree which allowed the commercial use of "out-of-print books" in digital form. The ECJ ruled that the interpretation of the Directive 2001/29/EC on The Harmonisation of Certain Aspects of Copyright and Related Rights in the Information Society prohibits a national collecting society from exercising the right to reproduce and publicly display out-of-print books in digital form. The authors must be able to object to such an exercising or terminate it. [ECJ 16.11.2016, C-301/15, Marc Soulier and Sara Doke v Prime Minister and Minister for Culture and Communication]