The History of Copyright “Formalities” In Nineteenth Century Europe
Stef Van Gompel, University of Amsterdam, has published Les Formalités Sont Mortes, Vive Les Formalités! Copyright Formalities and the Reasons for Their Decline in Nineteenth Century Europe, at Privilege and Property: Essays on the History of Copyright 157 (R. Deazley, M. Kretschmer & L. Bentley eds.; Cambridge: Open Book, 2010). Here is the abstract.
This paper examines the development of copyright formalities against the background of the upcoming national rights thinking and some conceptual innovations in copyright law in nineteenth century Europe (France, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK). Among other things, this paper concludes that, from a historical perspective, formalities are not as incompatible with the natural rights view as is commonly believed. This may cast new light on the possible reintroduction of copyright formalities, which is increasingly called for in the current digital era.
Download the essay from SSRN at the link.