Civil Protection of the Sports Streaming Rights: Study in the Light of Qatari Law and International Standards of Intellectual Property

Dr. Abdullah Abdul Karim Abdullah
Associate Professor of Civil Law – Faculty of Law – University of Qatar

Abstract:

The research focuses on the topic of civil protection of the rights of sports streaming based on the challenges facing the regulations of Civil Law to develop the framework regulating the basis of all rights, especially the rights with a “dual” nature, which is the intellectual property rights. On the other hand, the so-called WIPO Internet Treaties, I and II, 1996, concerned with the protection of copyright and the neighboring rights, regulate these rights in their recent form, i.e., those exercised electronically and through the Internet. The presence of many entities specialized in online streaming necessitated the study of the contractual frameworks established by these entities with consumers or licensees to receive the online stream of sports and others, as the streaming of sports is now competing with satellite broadcasting; it needs a special type of protection that would take into consideration the digital environment through which it is conducted.
In this context, the study includes three topics: The first topic was devoted to the protection of sports streaming under the rules of civil law and the law of copyright and the neighboring rights, and the adequacy of this protection. The second topic was devoted to the study of the protection sports streaming under the WIPO Internet Treaties, as well as updates on the protection of streaming on the subject of streaming under the Beijing Treaty on Audiovisual Performances of 2012. The third topic of the study was devoted to the protection established under the streaming contracts by “BEIN Sport”, “Facebook” and “Google” in addition to studying the protection under the rules determined by the International Federation of Football Association “FIFA.” In conclusion, we reached a set of results reflected in some proposed amendments related to some relevant (Qatari) laws in the light of recent international trends in relation to the protection of sports streaming.

Keyword (s):
Electronic Broadcast; Sports; Civil Law; Intellectual Property; Copyright; Neighboring Rights; Civil Protection; WIPO Internet Treaties (I and II).

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