{"rewrite":{"id":"r_9497fee15e7cd4cf94604e38","clusterId":"c_a27726031cd6e97a4058a0a0","slug":"eu-court-state-of-the-art-geo-blocking-shields-publishers-from-vpn-liability","model":"deepseek-v4-flash","headline":"EU Court: State-of-the-Art Geo-Blocking Shields Publishers from VPN Liability","summary":"The EU's top court ruled that publishers using state-of-the-art geo-blocking are not liable for copyright infringement when users circumvent the restrictions via VPN. The decision came in a case involving The Diary of Anne Frank, where the Anne Frank Fund argued that geo-blocking must be 100% effective. The court held that the technical measure is sufficient, clarifying the legal standard for online publication of works with varying public domain status across EU member states.","whyItMatters":"The ruling establishes that geo-blocking is a permissible technical measure for copyright holders to meet their obligations, even if not foolproof, affecting how works with different public domain terms across EU countries can be published online.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eThe Court of Justice of the European Union, Second Chamber, issued the judgment in July 2026, rejecting the Anne Frank Fund\u0026#39;s argument that geo-blocking must be absolute. The Anne Frank Foundation had published an academic edition of The Diary of Anne Frank online, using geo-blocking to restrict access from the Netherlands, where the Fund still claims copyright through Otto Frank. The Fund sought an order to stop publication or to block access even via VPN. The CJEU ruled that publishers who use state-of-the-art geo-blocking technology do not need to be held liable if users circumvent it. The decision affirms the March 2023 Amsterdam Court of Appeal ruling, which found no infringement. The case now returns to the Dutch Supreme Court for final application.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"The Anne Frank Fund wanted geo-blocking to be 100% effective. The EU Court said state-of-the-art is enough, shifting the burden onto users who circumvent.","twitterPost":"The EU Court ruled geo-blocking need not be impenetrable. The Anne Frank Fund's demand for 100% effectiveness was rejected.","threadsPost":"The Anne Frank Fund argued that geo-blocking must be 100% effective to prevent VPN circumvention. The EU Court disagreed: state-of-the-art measures are sufficient. This ruling sets a clear standard for publishers handling works with different public domain status across EU member states.","newsletterBlurb":"The EU's top court ruled that state-of-the-art geo-blocking is enough to shield publishers from copyright liability, even if users bypass the restriction with a VPN. The decision came from a case involving The Diary of Anne Frank, where the Anne Frank Fund had demanded 100% effective blocking. The ruling sets a clear precedent for online publication of works under varying public domain terms across EU member states.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"GIGAZINE\",\"url\":\"https://gigazine.net/news/20260717-geo-blocking-disputes/\",\"title\":\"In a trial concerning 'The Diary of Anne Frank,' the EU's top court rules that 'publishers are not held liable even if geo-blocking technology is circumvented by VPN.'\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":4222,"outputTokens":1962,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1784301357,"createdAt":"2026-07-17T15:10:11.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-07-17T15:12:28.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-07-17T15:10:11.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_a27726031cd6e97a4058a0a0","canonicalTitle":"「アンネの日記」を巡る裁判でEUの最高裁判所が「ジオブロッキング技術がVPNで回避されても責任を問われない」と判決を下す","representativeArticleId":"a_cd69061fcdae29e24fac3236","sourceCount":1,"writtenSourceCount":1,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":true,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[\"The Diary of a Young Girl\"],\"studios\":[],\"people\":[\"Anne Frank\"],\"type\":\"news\",\"domain\":\"industry\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-07-17T03:30:00.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-07-17T03:30:00.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-07-17T15:12:29.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"GIGAZINE","url":"https://gigazine.net/news/20260717-geo-blocking-disputes/","title":"「アンネの日記」を巡る裁判でEUの最高裁判所が「ジオブロッキング技術がVPNで回避されても責任を問われない」と判決を下す"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":["The Diary of a Young Girl"],"studios":[],"people":["Anne Frank"],"type":"news","domain":"industry","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":null}