On 11th February 2020, Switzerland ratified two agreements of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The Beijing Treaty improves protection for actors at international level by enabling them to make a case against any unauthorised use of their performances. Actors already have this level of protection at national level.

 

The Marrakesh Treaty improves access to copyright-protected works for the visually impaired. For example, in order to make books accessible for people with visual impairments, they have to be converted into specific formats (e.g. published with large lettering, in Braille or as an audio book). The Marrakesh Treaty authorises the production and cross-border exchange of such copies of works. The Swiss Copyright Act already contains a regulation on access to works for people with disabilities. With the implementation of the Marrakesh Treaty, this regulation has been extended and it now permits the importation of copies of works into Switzerland that were produced in a contracting state in accordance with a legal regulation.