The bill on compulsory licensing of objects of copyright and related rights, including software, will include two new mechanisms for former and new licensees. The bill is scheduled to be submitted to the State Duma in early February, report “Vedomosti”.

Currently, those who have purchased temporary subscriptions or licenses to foreign software cannot upgrade those licenses and are at risk of criminal liability for piracy. The authors of the initiative believe that compulsory licensing will help to avoid such a situation.

The first licensing mechanism, simplified, is intended for users who have previously purchased a license from a vendor. They are invited to apply to the Russian court and report that the copyright holder has left the country, and there are no Russian analogues of the product, therefore, permission is needed to use such software without a license, deputy Dmitry Kuznetsov explains.

Another mechanism is more complicated and is intended for objects of copyright and related rights that have not been used before and are currently not available in Russia. In this case, the company must justify the need to use a foreign product through legal proceedings. If the plaintiff can prove the need for use, he can use this product without the permission of the copyright holder and send royalties to a special account. (We are talking about ruble accounts in banks provided for by a presidential decree for settlements with foreign companies under sanctions).

In August 2022, Dmitry Kuznetsov submitted to parliament a draft law on compulsory licensing of copyright and related rights, which includes not only software, but also video games, films, music and books from countries that Russia considers “unfriendly”. Russian developers criticized the initiative, believing that such a mechanism would not solve the problem of using software. ARPP “Domestic Soft” (which unites 240 Russian developers) issued a response to the bill, arguing that it “carries great risks for both users and Russian developers.”

However, in December, the Ministry of Digital Transformation announced its intention to forcibly license foreign software, the developers of which stopped working in Russia. According to the department, this will “decriminalize” the illegal use of software by foreign companies that have stopped supporting and updating software in the Russian Federation.