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In our earlier article on Saudi Arabia's new copyright law, issued by Royal Decree No. M/169 dated 14/8/1447 AH, we highlighted a number of areas where further clarity was expected through the Implementing Regulations. Those Regulations have now been published.
On 31 July 2026, the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property (SAIP) issued the final Implementing Regulations, which came into force alongside the Copyright Law on 12 August 2026. The Regulations provide important clarification on a range of issues, including neighbouring rights, online enforcement, software licensing, AI training and border enforcement, while leaving some questions unresolved.
For general counsel, rights holders and organisations operating in Saudi Arabia, the practical impact is clear. Rights are better defined, enforcement mechanisms are more developed and technology-related uses now come with clearer conditions. This article examines the key clarifications introduced by the Regulations, the issues they resolve and the areas where uncertainty remains.
Key clarifications under the Implementing Regulations
Neighbouring rights and performers
The regulations fully define neighbouring rights, granting performers perpetual, non-transferable moral rights to attribution (unless a special provision or legal disposition states otherwise or attribution is impossible) and protection against distortion. After death, these rights transfer to successors. Performers have exclusive economic rights related to broadcasting, fixation, reproduction and distribution of performances. Sound recording producers and broadcasters have parallel rights. For commercial sound recordings broadcast or communicated to the public, performers and producers share a single equitable remuneration right, which they may allocate by agreement. A unique Saudi feature is the explicit inclusion of Quranic recitation and the call to prayer as protected performances.
Internet content providers and notice-and-takedown regime
Internet content providers now have a workable notice-and-takedown regime. A complete notice gives the notifier's identity and contact details, the right relied on, supporting facts, the URL, and ownership and good-faith declarations. A user may counter-notify, and the original notifier must be told within two business days. Safe harbour requires all six cumulative conditions:
- Purely technical conduct or conduct at the user's request, with no modification of content and no knowledge of infringement.
- Reporting mechanisms for rights holders.
- Removal within 48 working hours after the provider learns of the infringement or receives a complete notice, whichever comes first.
- No direct financial benefit from the infringing activity.
- A written repeat-infringer policy. Compliance with SAIP's requirements.
A provider acting on a compliant notice is protected from civil and criminal liability for the removal. SAIP may order temporary blocking only as an exceptional last resort where an internet content provider does not comply, cannot be identified or the infringement repeats. Telecoms infrastructure and data centres fall outside this chapter.
AI training exception
The AI training exception is narrowly defined. Only lawfully published works lawfully acquired can be used, and copying must be strictly necessary for AI development. The exception excludes republication, distribution, or direct commercial exploitation. Use must not harm the author's interests or the work's normal exploitation. Developers must record the type, source, purpose and date of each use and produce those records upon dispute. Adaptation, republication, distribution or making the work available to the public, and its unnecessary inclusion in final products, are prohibited without the rights holder's authorisation, unless the work is in the public domain. For technology clients, this is likely the most commercially consequential clarification.
Software licensing
Software licensing terms such as click-through and shrink-wrap are binding unless they violate public order or morals. Licenses must clearly specify scope, duration and restrictions. Waivers of statutory rights or lawful exceptions are unenforceable. Unilateral amendments require notice and user acceptance.
Border enforcement
Border enforcement through the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) is operational. Rights holders must apply with evidence; ZATCA may require a bond and has 10 working days to decide. Measures last up to one year or the protection term. Rights holders have 10 working days to initiate court proceedings. Exemptions include small non-commercial quantities and goods marketed with rights holder's consent. This framework complements registration and complaint procedures.
Registration and complaints
Registration with SAIP provides a rebuttable presumption of ownership but is not required for protection and entry in the register neither creates nor limits rights. Transfers recorded in the register also provide presumptions against third parties. For deal teams, this means that while registration is not a prerequisite to protection, it is a useful step when rights change hands, particularly in M&A, licensing, or content acquisition transactions where provenance may later be disputed.
SAIP complaints are admissible only if filed within five years of the infringement by the rights holder or an authorised representative and supported by a technical examination report Completed enforcement files are referred to the Public Prosecution after 15 days from the date the alleged infringer is notified that the investigation is complete, unless the infringer applies to settle within that window. A challenge to a SAIP decision must be filed with the SAIP's CEO within 60 days of publication or notification of the decision, as applicable, and the grievance does not suspend the decision.
Areas where uncertainty remains
Collective management societies
The regulations require contracts between collective management society members detailing works, exploitation, duration, territory and revenue sharing, including review rights. However, there is no current governance or licensing framework for such societies in Saudi Arabia. SAIP and the Ministry of Culture are expected to develop this framework.
Architectural and artistic works in buildings
Protection applies to architectural and artistic works integrated into buildings, with exceptions for building owners altering or removing such works after notification efforts. Copyright does not automatically transfer to property owners; ownership remains contractual.
Employment and commissioned works
Works created during employment or commissioned belong economically to employers or commissioning parties unless contracts state otherwise. Moral rights remain with authors. Ordinary office equipment is excluded unless essential to creation. This clarification is clearer but fact-dependent.
Remaining open questions
The Regulations do not address ownership or protection of AI-generated outputs, so our earlier view stands: autonomously generated content without meaningful human input is unlikely to be protected. Resale rights for artists, sector-specific digital streaming and distribution licensing, and any published tariff or rate-setting mechanism for equitable remuneration, remain unresolved leaving pricing negotiable.
The five-year limitation period for SAIP complaints runs from the "date of occurrence" of the infringement, but the Regulations do not say how this applies to continuing infringements. It is unclear whether time runs from the first act, the last act, or resets daily. This will remain uncertain until clarified by SAIP decisions or court rulings.
We previously noted that the new Law covers public transmissions by wire or wireless means, including on-demand access. However, while the Law's broadcasting definition excludes transmissions via computer networks, neither the Law nor the Regulations set tailored licensing, reporting or regulatory obligations for music or video streaming services or digital distribution platforms. Businesses operating music or video streaming services, or digital distribution platforms, should therefore look to other Saudi media laws for further guidance.
What should organisations do now?
The Implementing Regulations provide much of the clarity that businesses, rights holders and advisers were waiting for following the introduction of Saudi Arabia's new Copyright Law. Important areas, including neighbouring rights, online enforcement, software licensing, AI training and border enforcement, now benefit from a more detailed and workable framework. However, questions remain around AI-generated content, collective management frameworks and certain aspects of digital content licensing.
Organisations should review content and licensing agreements in light of the new framework, ensure appropriate records are maintained for AI training activities, verify platform compliance with notice-and-takedown requirements and consider whether border enforcement measures could strengthen their wider intellectual property protection strategies. Explicit contractual allocations should also be considered by architects, developers, employers and commissioning parties.
As further guidance and enforcement practice emerge, organisations operating in Saudi Arabia should continue to monitor developments closely.
Read the original article on GowlingWLG.com
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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