Information for rights holders

The Lingstudium service (the “Service”) respects intellectual property rights and uses audiovisual works under the laws of the Russian Federation. This page explains the legal basis for using video for educational purposes and how rights holders may contact us.

Educational nature of the Service

Lingstudium is software for learning English from video: two subtitle tracks, tap-to-translate, a personal vocabulary list, and spaced review. Video in the Service is teaching material and an illustration for language study, not a substitute for theatrical exhibition or licensed rental.

The exclusive right and its limits

Chapter 70 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation grants the author and other rights holders an exclusive right in a work (Article 1270 of the Civil Code). That right covers reproduction, broadcasting, making available to the public, and other modes of use.

The exclusive right is not unlimited. The Code expressly provides cases of free use of works without the rights holder’s consent and without payment (Articles 1273–1280 of the Civil Code). These rules limit the exclusive right in the interests of science, education, and culture. If the conditions of the relevant article are met, a separate license is not required.

Article 1274 of the Civil Code

Article 1274 of the Civil Code (“Free use of a work for informational, scientific, educational, or cultural purposes”) allows a work to be used without the author’s or other rights holder’s consent and without payment, provided the author’s name and the source of the borrowing are indicated.

Subparagraph 2 of paragraph 1 of Article 1274 of the Civil Code permits the use of lawfully disclosed works and excerpts from them as illustrations in publications, radio and television programs, and educational sound and video recordings, to the extent justified by the intended purpose.

The Service takes the view that placing and playing video in Lingstudium falls within this rule because:

• the works have already been lawfully disclosed — films and other audiovisual works previously made available to the public;
• playback is tied to an educational recording: language study, subtitle work, and analysis of vocabulary and speech;
• the extent of use is set by the educational purpose, not by entertainment viewing as in a cinema;
• the law requires naming the author (rights holder) of the work used and the source of the borrowing.

In other words, the content is used as an illustration in an educational recording, not as a standalone rental or broadcasting service. This is a statutory limitation of the exclusive right, not a license agreement with the rights holder.

Extent justified by the educational purpose

The law does not require the rights holder’s consent where the extent of use is justified by the educational purpose. In the Service, video is linked to language exercises: parallel subtitles, vocabulary lookup, saving words, and review. That scenario differs from commercially showing a film as entertainment.

Author and source credit

Free use under Article 1274 of the Civil Code is allowed only if the author’s name and the source of the borrowing are indicated. The Service takes this requirement into account when publishing educational materials.

Notices from rights holders

The Service is open to discussion. If you believe a particular title is used beyond Article 1274 of the Civil Code or other free-use rules, write to support@lingstudium.tv. The notice will be reviewed; if an infringement is confirmed, the material will be removed within a reasonable time.

For a notice to be reviewed, it must include the information below. Without it, the request cannot be decided.

1. Contact details
2. Description of the work
3. Page addresses in the Service
4. Signature

Send the notice to support@lingstudium.tv and include all of the information listed above.