The European Union’s Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market takes effect June 7. It is intended to update European policies regarding online intellectual property and shelter fledgling European technology companies against competition from Apple , Google and other foreign tech giants. The irony is that the new directive may end up hampering web-based initiatives everywhere—particularly the very companies it is meant to protect.
Of particular concern is Article 17, which limits the “use of protected content by online content-sharing services.” It would make social-media and video-streaming sites liable for preventing repeat instances of copyright infringement on their platforms. These sites function by allowing people to post content freely without waiting for review by human moderators, and a restrictive standard of liability would stifle the atmosphere of user-created content and...
