Intellectual property is a type of right over intangible assets and belongs to the broader category of rights that protect works of human intellect, commonly referred to as Intellectual Property Rights.
Intellectual property, which is now effectively equivalent to what is referred to in Anglo-American law as “Copyright,” grants the creator of works of the mind—as defined by law—a time-limited but absolute and exclusive right to exercise a series of powers, both economic and moral in nature.
Contracts relating to the exploitation of intellectual property are generally classified into three categories:
- Transfer Contracts – These are agreements through which the economic right is either transferred in its entirety or certain specific powers derived from it are assigned.
- Exploitation Contracts – In these, the creator assigns and the counterparty undertakes the obligation to exercise only specific powers stemming from the economic right.
- Licensing Contracts – These grant the counterparty permission to exercise all or part of the powers of the economic right. These are known as “licenses of exploitation.”
The general provisions of contract law apply to both exploitation contracts and licensing agreements.
According to Article 14 of Law 2121/1993, any legal acts concerning the transfer of powers from the economic right, assignment or licensing for exploitation, and the exercise of moral rights, are void unless executed in writing. This invalidity may be invoked only by the author.
Moreover, under Article 15 of the same law:
- The transfer of the economic right and any exploitation or licensing agreements may be limited in terms of powers, purpose, duration, territorial scope, extent, or means of exploitation.
- If the duration of the transfer, contract, or license is not specified and no different intention arises from commercial practices, it is deemed to be limited to five years.
- If territorial scope is not defined, the agreement is presumed to apply to the country where it was concluded.
- If the extent and means of exploitation are not specified, the agreement is interpreted as covering what is necessary to fulfill the purpose of the contract or license.
- In all cases involving the transfer of the economic right or the granting of an exclusive license, the acquiring party is obliged, within a reasonable time, to make the work publicly accessible through appropriate means of exploitation.
Greek law also establishes a general obligation for percentage-based remuneration in any transaction involving the economic right of intellectual property. According to Article 32 of Law 2121/1993, the remuneration owed by the counterparty to the author for legal acts related to the transfer of the economic right, assignment of powers, or licensing must be agreed upon as a percentage, freely determined by the parties.
The basis for calculating the percentage includes all gross revenues, expenses, or a combination thereof, arising from the counterparty’s activities related to the exploitation of the work.
Exceptionally, remuneration may be calculated as a fixed amount in the following cases:
- a) When it is practically impossible to determine the basis for percentage calculation, or the tools for monitoring the application of the percentage are lacking.
b) When the cost of calculation and monitoring is disproportionate to the expected remuneration.
c) When the nature or conditions of the exploitation make percentage-based remuneration unfeasible, particularly when the author’s contribution is not a significant element of the overall intellectual creation, or when the use of the work is secondary in relation to the subject matter of exploitation.
Furthermore, in the event of a breach of contractual obligations, the rights holder may rescind the agreement under Articles 382–387 of the Civil Code. Upon rescission, the right reverts to the original rights holder or is released from contractual constraint. If the counterparty continues to perform acts consistent with the scope of the rescinded right, this constitutes infringement of the intellectual property or the right in question.
