DELFI AS v. ESTONIA JUDGMENT
19
the unlawful nature of those data or of that advertiser’s activities, it failed to
act expeditiously to remove or to disable access to the data concerned
44. In a judgment of 12 July 2011 (Case C-324/09 L’Oréal and Others
[2011]) the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that Article 14(1)
of Directive 2000/31 was to be interpreted as applying to the operator of an
online marketplace where that operator had not played an active role
allowing it to have knowledge or control of the data stored. The operator
played such a role when it provided assistance which entailed, in particular,
optimising the presentation of the offers for sale in question or promoting
them. Where the operator of the online marketplace had not played such an
active role and the service provided fell, as a consequence, within the scope
of Article 14(1) of Directive 2000/31, the operator none the less could not,
in a case which could result in an order to pay damages, rely on the
exemption from liability provided for under that Article if it had been aware
of facts or circumstances on the basis of which a diligent economic operator
should have realised that the offers for sale in question had been unlawful
and, in the event of it being so aware, had failed to act expeditiously in
accordance with Article 14(1)(b) of Directive 2000/31.
45. In a judgment of 24 November 2011 (Case C-70/10 Scarlet Extended
[2011]) the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that an injunction
may not be made against an Internet service provider which required it to
install a system for filtering all electronic communications passing via its
services, in particular those involving the use of peer-to-peer software,
which applied indiscriminately to all its customers, as a preventive measure,
exclusively at its expense and for an unlimited period, which was capable of
identifying on that provider’s network the movement of electronic files
containing a musical, cinematographic or audiovisual work in respect of
which the applicant claimed to hold intellectual property rights, with a view
to blocking the transfer of files the sharing of which would infringe
copyright.
THE LAW
ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 10 OF THE CONVENTION
46. The applicant complained that holding it liable for the comments
posted by the readers of its Internet news portal infringed its freedom of
expression as provided in Article 10 of the Convention, which reads as
follows:
“1. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include
freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without