Belgian and French copyright laws ban photos of EP buildings

An obscure clause in EU copyright rules means no one can publish photos of public buildings in Belgium, like the Atomium, or France’s Eiffel tower at night without first asking permission from the rights owners.

The optional rule extends to the buildings of the European Parliament in Brussels and in Strasbourg.

“Every website of every MEP that uses [an image of] the parliament building on it is a copyright infringement in the sense of the law,” said Dimitar Dimitrov, a so-called W...