FRANCE LAW AND PRACTICE Contributed by: Michael Doumet, François-Xavier Naime, Guillaume Nataf, Léna Sersiron, Eléonore d’Anthonay, Nella Picou, Pauline Celeyron and Magalie Dansac Le Clerc, Baker McKenzie Paris
11.3 Data Protection and Privacy Considerations
Moreover, France has provisions for compulsory licensing under its patent law, which apply in specific circumstances. This means that the government may authorise third parties to use a patented invention without the patent holder’s consent in certain situa - tions, usually to address public health needs or other critical issues. Protection of AI-Generated Works The protection of AI-generated works is currently under discussion in France and has not yet been clearly regulated or addressed by case law. However, it is likely that such works will be eligible to copyright protection if they reach the threshold of originality. This threshold is typically satisfied if the imprint of a human author can be identified in the creation pro - cess. Should this interpretation be confirmed, busi - nesses using AI-generated works in their creative pro - cesses could rely on copyright protection to safeguard their outputs.
France enforces both the General Data Protection Regulation and the French Data Protection Act, each with extraterritorial scope. These laws apply to foreign entities that process data of EU residents, regardless of where the processing takes place. Oversight is provided by the National Commission on Informatics and Liberty ( Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés , or CNIL), which conducts numerous inspections each year. Penalties for non-compliance can be substantial, often exceeding the actual economic harm caused. Fines are calculated based on the severity of the vio - lation and the company’s global turnover, potentially reaching up to 4% of annual revenue. This explains the significant sanctions imposed on major foreign tech companies. Foreign investors must be vigilant to ensure compli - ance with these stringent data protection laws.
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