A digital platform is an online environment that enables the intermediation, distribution, exchange, or marketing of digital content, products, or services.
From an intellectual property perspective, these platforms play a central role in the management, protection, and exploitation of copyrights, related rights, patents, trademarks, and designs related to the content they host or distribute.
They involve several intellectual property issues:
- Respect for rights: identification and prevention of copyright infringements, trademark counterfeiting, or unauthorised use of patents.
- License and contract management: negotiation and enforcement of exploitation rights granted by rights holders to users or consumers.
- Valuation and monetisation: redistribution of revenues to rights holders and valuation of intangible assets.
Digital platforms can be passive (content hosts) or active (commercial or technical intermediaries), which determines their liability in the event of IP rights infringement.
They often require the implementation of monitoring, filtering, and control mechanisms to comply with legal and contractual obligations relating to intellectual property