Abstract:
Abstract
The use of technological protection measures can play a vital role in preventing unauthorized uses
and exploitations of exclusive economic rights by controlling copying or access to works and at the
same time it can also prevent legitimate uses of exceptions and limitations permitted by law, unless
a provision ensuring circumvention of the TPMs to access the works is adopted. Many legal systems
including US and EU have granted legal protection to technological copyright protection measures
applied by right holders to enforce and manage their rights along with appropriate copyright
exceptions for legitimate user’s access to works without authorization. In Ethiopia existing
copyright law is not clear and sufficient enough in providing appropriate legal provisions that
deals with technological protection measures along with copyright exceptions. This becomes
challenges for legitimate users of the exception permitted by law unless the scheme of mandatory
exception to circumvention of TPMs incorporated into the existing legislations. This research study
focuses only on the legal analysis of technological copyright protection measures and exceptions to
copyright under Ethiopian law with US and EU copyright legislations approaches to draw lessons
for improvement of law in Ethiopia. The research thesis study employ doctrinal research method in
comparative analysis of legal documents to arrive at conclusion that the existing copyright
legislation needs a reform in light of modern copyright legislation to balance between the rights of
the copyright holders and the users access works in digital environment
