Wiebe Andreas, Geo-blocking - permitted under European Law?

Geo-blocking is widely used today as a technical means to segment markets by territorial restrictions or limit access to information to a national territory. The objective is to control marketing of copyrighted works, but also to discriminate among consumers in e-commerce. If this technical measure is accompanied by pertinent contractual restrictions, the question arises if and to what extent this is contrary to European law, especially the principles of free movement of goods and services as well as competition law. The leading CJEU case on this question is the Murphy case decided in 2011. This article analyses European case law to draw conclusions on the extent that geo-blocking may be permitted, and criteria are developed in light of justified purposes to find a balance between the interests of rightholders and the development of the internal market. Finally, the application of the TFEU is compared to other legal measures.