Database

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POLAND

Since July 2000
Since July 2002

Pillar Intermediary liability  |  Sub-pillar Safe harbor for intermediaries for copyright infringement
Directive 2000/31/EC (E-Commerce Directive)

Act on Providing Services by Electronic Means
The Directive 2000/31/EC (E-Commerce Directive) is the legal basis governing the liability of Internet Services Providers (ISPs) in the EU Member States and includes a conditional safe harbor. Not all Member States have transposed the relevant articles consistently, leading to divergent national case law that could cause legal insecurity on an EU level.
The Civil Code and the E-Services Act transpose Directive 2000/31/EC. Although there is no dedicated framework on intermediary liability in Poland, the relevant provisions of Polish tort law, notably Art. 422 of the Civil Code, are interpreted in a way that shields service providers from liability for user content and behaviour.
Coverage Horizontal

POLAND

Since July 2000
Since July 2002

Pillar Intermediary liability  |  Sub-pillar Safe harbor for intermediaries for any activity other than copyright infringement
Directive 2000/31/EC (E-Commerce Directive)

Act on Providing Services by Electronic Means
The Directive 2000/31/EC (E-Commerce Directive) is the legal basis governing the liability of Internet Services Providers (ISPs) in the EU Member States and includes a conditional safe harbor. Not all Member States have transposed the relevant articles consistently, leading to divergent national case law that could cause legal insecurity on an EU level.
The Civil Code and the E-Services Act transpose Directive 2000/31/EC. Although there is no dedicated framework on intermediary liability in Poland, the relevant provisions of Polish tort law, notably Art. 422 of the Civil Code, are interpreted in a way that shields service providers from liability for user content and behaviour.
Coverage Horizontal

POLAND

Since 2006
In 2014
Since 2017

Pillar Domestic Data policies  |  Sub-pillar Minimum period for data retention
Data Retention Directive 2006/24/EC

Judgment European Court of Justice in Joined Cases C-293/12 and C-594/12 Digital Rights Ireland and Seitlinger and Others

Telecommunications Act
Under the EU Directive on Data Retention, operators were required to retain certain categories of traffic and location data (excluding the content of those communications) for a period between six months and two years and to make them available, on request, to law enforcement authorities for the purposes of investigating, detecting and prosecuting serious crime and terrorism. On 8 April 2014, the Court of Justice of the European Union declared the Directive invalid. However, not all national laws which implemented the Directive have been overturned.
Under Art. 180a-180c of the Telecommunications Act, telecommunications providers are obliged to store certain types of user data for 12 months, including user identity, date and time and the type of connection.
Coverage Telecommunications

POLAND

Since 2017

Pillar Cross-border data policies  |  Sub-pillar Local storage requirement
Telecommunications Act
Under Arts. 180a-180c of the Telecommunications Act, telecommunications providers are required to store certain types of user data for 12 months, including user identity, date and time and the type of connection, in the territory of Poland.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

POLAND

Since November 2009

Pillar Cross-border data policies  |  Sub-pillar Local storage requirement
Act on Gambling Games
Under the Act on Gambling Games, Art. 15.d, online gambling providers have to store data related to the gambling activities and transactions within the EU or the European Economic Area and provide permanent remote access to tax authorities.
Coverage Online gambling

POLAND

Since January 2006

Pillar Telecom infrastructure and competition  |  Sub-pillar Presence of independent telecom authority
Presence of independent telecom authority
It is reported that the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

POLAND

Reported in 2014

Pillar Telecom infrastructure and competition  |  Sub-pillar Presence of shares owned by the government in telecom companies
Presence of shares owned by the government in telecom companies
The government owns 52.1% of Telekomunikacja Kolejowa's shares and 100% of NASK's shares. Telekomunikacja Kolejowa, often abbreviated as TK, is the Polish national railway telecommunications company. In addition, "NASK" is the acronym for "Naukowa i Akademicka Sieć Komputerowa", which in English means "Scientific and Academic Computer Network". NASK is a Polish institution responsible for developing and maintaining network infrastructure for the country's scientific and academic community. NASK's main task is to provide advanced and secure network services to research institutions, universities and other science and education related organizations. These services include Internet connectivity, high-speed networks, cybersecurity, domain registration and web hosting services, among others.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

POLAND

N/A

Pillar Telecom infrastructure and competition  |  Sub-pillar Functional/accounting separation for operators with significant market power
Lack of mandatory functional separation for dominant network operators
It is reported that Poland does not mandate functional separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, accounting separation is required by law
Coverage Telecommunications sector

POLAND

Since June 2016
Since September 2018

Pillar Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)  |  Sub-pillar Effective protection covering trade secrets
Directive (EU) 2016/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets)

Act of 5 July 2018 amending the Unfair Competition Act and certain other acts (Ustawa z dnia 5 lipca 2018 r. o zmianie ustawy o zwalczaniu nieuczciwej konkurencji oraz niektórych innych ustaw)
The Directive 2016/943 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) is key in harmonising national laws concerning trade secrets. Poland transposed the Directive with the Act of 5 July 2018 amending the Unfair Competition Act and certain other acts in 2018.
Coverage Horizontal

POLAND

Since May 2014

Pillar Telecom infrastructure and competition  |  Sub-pillar Passive infrastructure sharing obligation
Directive 2014/61/EU on measures to reduce the cost of deploying high-speed electronic communications networks
It is reported that passive sharing is mandated in Poland, and it is practiced in the mobile and fixed sectors based on commercial agreements. In addition, Directive 2014/61/EU (Art. 3.2) establishes that Member States shall ensure that, upon written request of an undertaking providing or authorised to provide public communications networks, any network operator has the obligation to meet all reasonable requests for access to its physical infrastructure under fair and reasonable terms and conditions, including price, with a view to deploying elements of high-speed electronic communications networks. Such written request shall specify the elements of the project for which the access is requested, including a specific time frame.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

POLAND

Since May 2001
Since 2007

Pillar Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)  |  Sub-pillar Copyright law with clear exceptions
Directive 2001/29/EC

Act on Copyright and Related Rights
There is no general principle for the use of copyright protected material comparable to the fair use/fair dealing principles. Directive 2001/29/EC defines an optional, but exhaustive set of limitations from the author´s exclusive rights under the control of the “three-step test” in line with the Berne Convention that establishes three cumulative conditions to the limitations and exceptions of a copyright holder’s rights. The Directive has been transposed by Member States with significant freedom.
The Act on Copyright and Related Rights establishes a series of copyright exceptions, including copies for private use, incidental reproduction, news reporting, critique and analysis and pedagogical use.
Coverage Horizontal

Horizontal

POLAND

Reported in 2021

Pillar Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)  |  Sub-pillar Enforcement of copyright online
Lack of adequate protection of copyright online
There are reports of high rates of online piracy for Poland, inconsistent enforcement efforts by the authorities and slow processing of claims by the judicial system. However, the rate of unlicensed software installation in the country was reportedly 46% in 2017 (below the 57% rate of Central and Eastern European countries), for an estimated commercial value of unlicensed software of USD 415 million.
Coverage Horizontal

POLAND

Since March 2004

Pillar Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)  |  Sub-pillar Signature of the WIPO Copyright Treaty
WIPO Copyright Treaty
Poland has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.
Coverage Horizontal

POLAND

Since October 2003

Pillar Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)  |  Sub-pillar Signature of the WIPO Performances and Phonogram Treaty
WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty
Poland has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.
Coverage Horizontal

POLAND

Reported in 2017

Pillar Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)  |  Sub-pillar Practical or legal restrictions related to the application process for patents
Practice of the Polish Patent Office
It is reported that the Polish Patent Office does not recognise inventions that are exclusively based on digital technologies and do not have a tangible material correlate, such as specific algorithms.
Coverage Software-based patents