Under the Norwegian Copyright Act, private person may copy intellectual works and other protected material such as music, film, TV content, audiobooks, text, and visual works free of charge and share them with close friends and family. This right is established to ensure public access to culture. However, the access to make private copies presupposes that the individual has legal access to the works being copied, and that technical protection systems are not circumvented during the copying process.
Compensation over the state budget
To compensate for the private copying exception, right holders receive financial compensation through annual grants in the state budget. The compensation granted is divided in an individual and a collective part, with Norwaco being the designated organisation to distribute the individual, appointed by the Norwegian Ministry of Culture. Under the individual compensation, Norwegian and EU/EEA-based right holders are eligible to receive compensation.
In the state budget for 2025, a grant of NOK 60,300,000 has been proposed for individual distribution to Norwegian and European rights holders through Norwaco.
Distribution of compensation
Remuneration to Norwegian individual right holders is distributed through Norwaco's member organisations. For EU/EEA right holders, the compensation is distributed to various foreign organisations that Norwaco has bilateral agreements with. Such organisations typically represent categories of rights holders and receive compensation relevant for this group. The foreign organisation then undertakes the responsibility to distribute the remuneration to their members, as well as national non-represented right holders within this category of right holders.
Bilateral agreements with foreign organisations also ensure that Norwegian right holders are compensated for private copying in other EU/EEA countries.
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Annual surveys
As a basis for distribution, Norwaco conducts annual statistical surveys of private copying in Norway. The surveys indicate the scope of copying, which types of works are copied and to what extent. It does not, however, provide a direct overview of which individual works are copied. The reports can be downloaded from our download pages (in Norwegian).
Guidelines for distribution
The following guidelines for distribution of the compensation for private copying have been provided by the Norwegian Ministry of Culture:
- The funds shall be distributed as outlined in the original law proposal (Prop. 104 L (2016-2017)).
- The distribution shall, to the extent possible, correspond to actual copying.
- Distribution shall be based on statistical surveys and/or any other sources that shed light on the extent of private copying.
- Only original right holders are entitled to compensation, and the right cannot be transferred through agreement, inheritance or otherwise.
- Compensation shall be given to authors of independent literary and visual works, as well as right holders of sound recordings and films.
- Only lawful copying shall be compensated, and consideration shall be given to technical copying restrictions
- The compensation shall not be used to cover ordinary operating expenses
- Deductions cannot be made for social, cultural, or educational purposes.
- Right holders must be citizens of an EU/EEA country or be resident in or have their registered offices within the EU/EEA area to be eligible for compensation