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Prof. Dr. Maximilian Becker

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Univ.-Prof. Dr. Maximilian Becker

Professor

Contact

m.becker@recht.uni-siegen.de
+49 271 740-3458
US-F 212
Kohlbettstraße 15

Veröffentlichungen und Vorträge

Publications

I. Monographs 

 4. Copyright in Computer Games, a study commissioned by ver.di, 193 pages (forthcoming)
 3.

Absolute Rights of Dominion, Mohr Siebeck, JusPrivatum Vol. 266, 2022, 763 pages (habilitation thesis).

  • Reviews: ZGE / IPJ 15 (2023), 490 (H. Schack); AcP 224 (2024), 655–662 (A. Stadler)
 2.

Encyclopedia of Competition Law – Antitrust Law and Unfair Competition Law (edited and co-authored with Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs), C.H. Beck Verlag, 2015, 335 pages.

  • Reviews: R. Hauck, WRP 2015, pp. 1032–1033; W. Berlit, GRUR 2015, 763; privatfunk.de (https://www.privatfunk.de/lit/TextLit834.html). 
 1.

Absurd Contracts, Mohr Siebeck, StudPriv Vol. 27, 2013, 354 pages (doctoral dissertation).

  • Awarded the University of Siegen Prize for the Promotion of Young Scholars, presented by the DIRLMEIER MEMORIAL FOUNDATION. 
  • Reviews: JZ 2014, p. 1104 (W. Ernst); JR 2013, pp. 430–432 (P. Windel); myops 2014, pp. 21–30 (W. Grasnick); FAZ Feuilleton, Feb. 3, 2014, p. 28 (J. Kaube); FAZ Business Section, May 27, 2013, p. 18 (M. Otto); Westdeutsche Zeitung, Oct. 1, 2013, p. 27 (P. Kurz).
  • Interviews/Reports: Süddeutsche Zeitung, “Who Pays for Miraculous Healing?”, August 3, 2013, p. 12 (J. Füchtjohann); Legal Tribune Online, August 21, 2013 (M. Sehl).
 

II. Commentary

 4.
 		 Sections 27–31 of the German Trademark Act (Trademark Licensing Law), in: Fezer, Trademark Law, 5th ed. 2023 (adapted from K. H. Fezer), 6th ed. 2025, approx. 90 pages of commentary
 3.  Unfair Competition Law Protection for Data, in: Loschelder/Danckwerts (eds.), Handbook of Competition Law, C.H. Beck Verlag, 5th ed. 2019, approx. 35 pages of commentary; 6th ed. 2026, approx. 40 pages of commentary (forthcoming) 
 2. Special monographic section on event protection, in: Fezer/Büscher/Obergfell (eds.), Commentary on the Act Against Unfair Competition (UWG), C.H. Beck Verlag, 3rd ed. 2016, 198 pages of commentary.
 1. § 311 BGB, in: Dauner-Lieb/Heidel/Ring (eds.), Nomos Commentary on the BGB, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, 3rd ed. 2016; 4th ed. 2021; 5th ed. 2025, approx. 80 pages of commentary.


 

III. Lecture Notes

 1.  Introductory Course on the BGB (co-authored with JProf. Dr. Stefanie Jung, M.A. (CoE)), 13th ed. 2024, 712 pages.


 

IV. Editorial Positions

 4.  MMR – Journal of Digitalization Law, co-editor
 3. digital | recht – Papers on Intellectual Property, IT, Media, Data, and Competition Law, open access series, co-editor
 2.  Media Law in a Time of Media Transformation, conference proceedings from the conference “Young Scholars – Colloquium on Industrial Property, Copyright, and Media Law,” Nomos (together with Prof. Dr. Louisa Specht; Prof. Dr. Anne Lauber-Rönsberg), 2016, 288 pages. 
 1. Encyclopedia of Competition Law —Antitrust Law and Unfair Competition Law (co-authored with Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs), C.H. Beck Verlag, 2015, 335 pages (see above).


 

V. Articles

 48. The GDPR as a Rule of Market Conduct (Section 3a UWG)—An Opportunity for European AI Providers?, WRP 2025, pp. 1522–1532
 47. The Personal Nature of Data and Its Anonymization in Three-Party Relationships, in: Bayer/Fleischer/Habersack et al., Memorial Volume for Gerald Spindler, 2025, pp. 67–78
 46. Obligations and Dispositions in Licensing Law—Using the Example of Recent Case Law on Trademark Licensing, GRUR 2025, pp. 457–471
 45. IoT Data as Common Property – The Data Act as a Digital Utopia, RDi 2024, pp. 615–627
 44. Generative AI and Deepfakes in the AI Regulation – In Favor of Positive Labeling of Authentic Content, CR 2024, pp. 353–366
 
 43. The Data Economy Under the GDPR – A Decision Not Yet Made: The Case of the AI Regulation and the Data Act, Festschrift for Andreas Wiebe (2024), pp. 225–238
 42. Copyright as a Consolation Prize for Humans? – The Surprising Allocation of Related Rights for Generative AI Outputs, GRUR 2024, pp. 505–514
 41. Non-Human Intellectual Property – A Humanistic Justification of IP Rights, Goldhammer/Legner (eds.), "Conflicts of Freedom in Intellectual Property Law," 2024, pp. 59–84 – https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4689063
 
 40. First Cornerstones of the ECJ on Non-Pecuniary Damages under Art. 82 GDPR – Along with a Discussion of the ECJ’s “Österreichische Post” Ruling, GRUR 2023, pp. 950–955
 
 39. New Limits on Non-Pecuniary Damages in Data Protection Law? – Along with a Review of the Munich Regional Court’s “Lost” Data Case, GRUR 2022, pp. 1723–1727
 38.  Data Protection Law as a Right of Domination, in: Peifer / Kubis / Stieper / Raue / Jotzo (eds.), Festschrift for Haimo Schack (2022), pp. 99–111
 37. In the Company of Machines – IT Regulation of Autonomous Systems, in: Buck-Heeb/Oppermann/Stender-Vorwachs (eds.), 2022, pp. 29–52.
 36. The Overlap between Trade Secrets Law and Privacy Law, in: Wilkof/Calboli (Eds.), Chap. 20: Overlapping Intellectual Property Rights, Oxford University Press, 2nd ed. 2022, pp. 529–552.
 35. Technical Enforcement in the Face of Mass Infringements, Yearbook on Property and Copyright in a Democracy 1/2021, pp. 149–170.
 34. A Practical Application of the Data Protection Prohibition on Tying—On the Regulation of the Non-Contractual Exchange of Data for Services, CR 2021, pp. 230–243. 
 33. Consent Management Platforms and Targeted Advertising Between the GDPR and ePrivacy Legislation—Real-Time Bidding Based on User Profiles as a Manifestation of the Personal Data Economy, CR 2021, pp. 87–98.
 32. Automated Enforcement in the Draft Implementation of Art. 17 of the DSM Directive, ZUM 2020, pp. 681–691.
 31.  On the Freedom to Act Unlawfully – “Upload Filters” and Technical Law Enforcement [also a habilitation lecture], ZUM 2019, pp. 636–648. 
 30. Reconciling Data Privacy and Trade in Data—A Right to Data-Avoiding Products, ZGE/IPJ 9 (2017), pp. 371–393. 
 29. Rights in Data – Industry 4.0 and the IP Rights of the Future, ZGE/IPJ 9 (2017), pp. 253–265. 
 28. Study on Electronic Law Exams in Large Groups (co-authored with Dr. Christopher Weidt), ZRP 2017, pp. 114–118. 
 27. Unfair Competition Law Protection for Data, GRUR 2017, pp. 346–355. 
 26. A Right to Products Free of Data Collection, JZ 2017, pp. 170–181. 
 25. A Modern Copyright Law—New Bases for Exploitation Acts as an Alternative to the Principle of Exhaustion, ZGE/IPJ 8 (2016), pp. 239–288. 
 24. Tort Liability of Multiple Parties (co-authored with Christopher Weidt), JuS 2016, pp. 481–489 (named a “top article” by JuS). 
 23. Intellectual Property Rights in Machine Data and the Interface with Personal Data Protection, in: Büscher / Glöckner / Nordemann / Osterrieth / Rengier (eds.), Festschrift for Karl Heinz Fezer on His 70th Birthday (2016), pp. 815–831 [cited in European Commission, SWD(2017) 2 final]. 
 22. On the Dogmatics of the Principle of Exhaustion in Digital Copyright Law, UFITA 2015/III, pp. 687–708.
 21. On the Legal Admissibility of AdBlockers (co-authored with Dr. Felix Becker), GRURPrax 2015, pp. 245–248. 
 20. The Protection of Event Logos under Section 5(1), Sentence 2, No. 4 of the Unfair Competition Act (UWG), WRP 2015, pp. 139–147.
 19.

Interface Liability—The Joint and Several External Liability in Tort of Network-Like Cooperating Companies, and a Contribution to Liability in Cases of Multicausality, KSzW 2015, pp. 114–123.

  • Published in English translation in Jung/Krebs/Teubner (eds.), *Business Networks Reloaded*, Nomos/Ashgate, 2015, pp. 395–422 (“Interface Liability”). 
 18. Architectural Copyright as an Instrument for Event Protection, ZGE/IPJ 6 (2014), pp. 228–254.
 17. The Requirement of Reasonable Prospects of Success in Contractual Medical Liability—Also a Contribution to the Limits of Therapeutic Autonomy, MedR 2014, pp. 475–48. 
 16. Attention Deficit—Another Determinant in Copyright Law?, ZUM 2013, pp. 829–836. 
 15. Impossibility in Medical Law, RW (Law) 2013, pp. 123–165 (blind peer-reviewed). 
 14. File-Sharing Services—Caught Between Data Protection and Liability for Facilitating Infringement?—On the Need for a Legal Balance Between Intellectual Property Law and Data Protection Law, DuD, 2013, pp. 207–214. 
 13. Virtual Hard Drives as File-Sharing Hosts—Duties of Scrutiny in the Tension Between Copyright Law, Data Protection, and Legitimate User Interests (co-authored with Dr. Felix Becker), WRP 2013, pp. 41–48.
 12. Claims for Recall and Removal in Intellectual Property Law de lege ferenda, ZGE/IPJ 4 (2012), pp. 452–470. 
 11. The Origin and Modifiability of Customary Law and Its Application to the Criminal Liability for the Circumcision of Minors (co-authored with Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs), JuS 2013, pp. 97–103. 
 10. On the Calculation of the Permissible Number of Digital Private Copies, ZUM 2012, pp. 642–653. 
  9. The New Google Privacy Policy and the User Metaprofile (co-authored with Dr. Felix Becker), MMR 2012, pp. 351–355. 
  8. Initially Impossible Feats as a Bet Against Science, Yearbook of Young Civil Law Scholars 2011, pp. 263–287, Stuttgart, Munich, Hanover, et al., 2012. 
  7. Commercial Event Organizer Law Through Judicial Development of the Law (co-authored with Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs and Hermann Dück), GRUR 2011, pp. 391–397. 
  6. Domain Law as a Subjective Right, GRUR Int. 2010, pp. 940–945. 
  5. The Structure and Scope of Protection of Domain Name Law, DSRI Fall Academy 2010 Conference Proceedings, J. Taeger (ed.), pp. 735–750. 
  4. Positive and Negative Rights to Signs on the Internet, WRP 2010, pp. 467–474. 
  3. Distributive Justice and Required Use in Domain Name Law, GRUR Int. 2010, pp. 202–206. 
  2. Partial Reification and Its Application to Internet Domains (co-authored with Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs), JZ 2009, pp. 932–943. 
  1. Online Video Recorders under German Copyright Law, AfP 2007, pp. 5–13. 


 

VI. Educational Contributions

 3.  Tort Liability of Multiple Parties—Examples and Explanations / Exam Outlines (co-authored with Christopher Weidt), JuS-Extra 2016 (online), pp. 8–12. 
 2. (Original) Judicial Clerk Exam Essay – Civil Law: License Portfolio in a Corporate Acquisition, JuS 2015, pp. 1098–1105.
 1. Civil Law Exam: Voidability and Warranty Rights, JuS 2011, pp. 329–334. 


 

VII. Notes

 5. Federal Court of Justice (BGH), Judgment of March 27, 2025, I ZR 223/19 – Pharmaceutical Order Data II; I ZR 222/19 – Pharmaceutical Order Data III, jurisPR-WettbR 6/2025
 4. Federal Court of Justice (BGH), Judgment of Oct. 26, 2023, I ZR 107/22 – energycollect.de, jurisPR-WettbR 1/2024
 3.  Federal Court of Justice (BGH), Judgment of April 26, 2017, IV ZR 126/16 – Widow’s Pension for Registered Life Partners, NJW 2017, pp. 2195–2196. 
 2. Federal Court of Justice (BGH), Judgment of July 19, 2012, I ZR 70/10 – M2TRADE, ZUM 2012, pp. 786–788. 
 1. Federal Court of Justice (BGH), Judgment of April 22, 2009, I ZR 216/06 – Internet Video Recorder, GRUR 2009, pp. 851–852. 


 

VIII. Reviews

 3. Endres, Competitive Protection of Machine Data, 2024, ZGE/IPJ 2026 (forthcoming)
 2.  Lohsse/Schulze/Staudenmayer (eds.), *Trading Data in the Digital Economy: Legal Concepts and Tools* (2017), ZEuP 2018, pp. 493–496. 
 1. Obergfell/Hauck (eds.), License Contract Law (2016), GRUR 2016, p. 254. 


 

IX. Other Articles

 10. FAZ “Einspruch Exklusiv” of Jan. 3, 2024, “Neighboring Rights for AI-Generated Works Hinder Creativity”
 9. A Commentary on Commentaries, Hanover Law Review 2023, pp. 77–81
 8.  Glossary entry “Data Economy Law,” Law of Payment Services 2022, p. 214
 7. “We Need Your Consent for the Use of Cookies and Other Technologies by Us and Our Partners,” Leibniz University Hannover School of Law, Newsletter Issue #18, February 8, 2021 (https://tinyurl.com/4tlngzct)
 6.  Our Digital Corset, January 2020, iRights.info. 
 5. “Web Tracking Under the New Data Protection Law: Design Potentials at the Intersection of Jurisprudence and HCI” (interdisciplinary paper co-authored with Anna-Magdalena Seufert, Timo Jakobi, and Gunnar Stevens), Proceedings of Mensch Und Computer 2019, pp. 309–319, New York, NY, USA: ACM, doi:10.1145/3340764.3340790. 
 4. Statement prepared at the request of the BMJV on the draft bill for the implementation of the Marrakesh Directive (co-authored with Patrick Pokrant), May 16, 2018.
 3. Conference report “Rights to Data—Industry 4.0 and the IP Rights of Tomorrow,” JZ 2017, pp. 936–938. 
 2.

Rights to Industrial Data and the DSM Strategy, GRUR Newsletter, May 2016, pp. 7–11

Translated into Portuguese in:

  • Revista da Associação Brasileira da Propriedade Intelectual (Brazil), Issue 145 (2016), pp. 57–64 
  • Revista Eletrônica do Instituto Brasileiro de Propriedade Intelectual 15 (2017) 
 1. Working in the SME 4.0 Era – SMEs Caught Between the Forces of Digital Transformation (interdisciplinary essay co-authored with Thomas Ludwig, Christoph Kotthaus, Martin Stein, and others), HMD – Praxis der Business Information Systems, 307, Vol. 53 (2016), pp. 1–16. 


 

X. Trivia

 4.  Interview with Prof. Dr. Dr. Eric Hilgendorf on Robotics Law (co-authored with Sandra von Lingen), GRUR Newsletter 2/2017, pp. 9–11. 
 3. Interview for an article on the Internet of Things and ownership of personal data, January 12, 2017; the article appeared in the Siegener Zeitung, Westfalenpost, and elektronik.net, among others. 
 2.

LTO article on electronic law exams and the pilot project at the University of Siegen.
 1. Interview with the dpa news service (B. Krüger) for an article on the topic of domain names, January 16, 2015; the article appeared in publications including sueddeutsche.de, n24.de, and verivox.de. 

Presentations

I. Presentations (Selection)

 29. The Structure and Functioning of Trademark Licenses: A Case Study Based on Recent Case Law, Cologne Symposium on Trademark and Competition Law, February 2024
 28. Law of the Data Economy and Artificial Intelligence, GRUR Online Seminar (Intellectual Property and IT Law Practice Group), Nov. 2023
 27. The Benefits of Rights in Rem, Rhenish Institute for Notarial Law, University of Bonn, Nov. 2023
 26. Copyright as Crumbs for Humanity?, EBS Law School – Conference “Conflicts of Freedom in Intellectual Property Law,” Oct. 2023
 25. Metaverse, Games, ChatGPT ... Perspectives on the Use of Data by the Media – Legal Positions and Opportunities for Participation, June 2023, Annual Event of the Cologne Forum for Media Law e.V. (Online)
 24. Law of the Data Economy and Artificial Intelligence, GRUR Online Seminar (Intellectual Property and IT Law Practice Group), Nov. 2022
 23. Review Portals under the Unfair Competition Act (UWG), May 2021, Cologne Symposium on Trademark and Competition Law (Online). 
 22.  Freedom from Illegality on the Internet: Challenges of Technical Law Enforcement, January 2021, Frankfurt Colloquium on Media Research (Online). 
 21. Recent Developments in European Data Law, Nov. 2020, GRUR Expert Committee on “Data Rights” (Online). 
 20. “Upload Filters” and Technical Law Enforcement, Online Symposium “Access to Works—Aspiration and Reality” hosted by the Humboldt Research Institute, June 2020, Humboldt University of Berlin (Online).  
 19. Boundaries of Civil Law Property, Leipzig Lab – Boundaries of Property, May 2020, University of Leipzig (online).  
 18. The Dream of a European Data Economy—or: Why Europe Doesn’t Have Its Own Google, Keynote Address at the 20th Anniversary Celebration of the Business Law Program, Nov. 2019, Siegen.  
 17. Event Protection and Esports, Fall Seminar on Intellectual Property Law 2019 (Continuing Education for Specialized Intellectual Property Lawyers), Nov. 2019, Cologne.  
 16. On the Freedom to Act Unlawfully, Habilitation Lecture, July 3, 2019, Siegen. 
 15. A Right to Products Free of Data Collection?, Trier Talks on Law and Digitalization, May 2019.  
 14. How Can Data Be Owned?, IPO Conference “The Ever-Changing IP Landscape: Patents, Trademarks, and Trade Secrets in 2019 and Beyond,” May 2019, Basel.  
 13. Current Regulatory Developments in Data Law at the National and European Levels, Debates on Data and Data Protection Law, Feb. 2019, University of Bonn. 
 12. Paths to Data Autonomy, SFB “Media of Cooperation,” Nov. 2018, University of Siegen. 
 11. Recent Developments in European Data Law, Oct. 2018, GRUR Expert Committee on “Data Rights,” Frankfurt. 
 10. Data Law in the Digital Single Market, IP-Day 2018, Sept. 2018, Vienna University of Economics and Business.  
 09. Rights to Non-Personal Data, Regional Conference of the Stuttgart SME 4.0 Competence Center, June 2018, Karlsruhe.  
 08. The Contractual Assignment of Data, evening lecture for the doctoral program “Law in Transition,” March 2018, University of Basel.  
 07. Protection of Know-How and Performance Rights for Data under the Unfair Competition Act (UWG), 68th German Lawyers’ Conference, May 2017, Essen. 
 06. Neighboring Rights in Data, GRUR Annual Conference 2016, Oct. 2016, Munich. 
 05. Major Events in a Legal Vacuum? – An Overview of Event Protection, 2015 Fall Seminar on Intellectual Property Law (Continuing Education for Specialized Intellectual Property Lawyers), Nov. 2015, Cologne.  
 04. A Modern Copyright Law – New Points of Reference for Exploitation Acts as an Alternative to the Principle of Exhaustion, Conference: Marketability of Digital Goods, Oct. 2015, University of Basel. 
 03. Parody in the European Multi-Level Problem in Intellectual Property Law Following the ECJ’s Deckmyn Ruling (C-201/13), Colloquium on Intellectual Property Law and Competition Law for Early-Career Scholars, July 2015, LMU Munich. 
 02. Absurd Contracts – Or: How to Legally Bend the Laws of Physics, MEPLI Talks, June 2015, MEPL Institute, University of Maastricht.  
 01. Initially Impossible Performance as a Bet Against Science, 22nd Annual Conference of the Society of Young Civil Law Scholars, Sept. 2011, University of Augsburg. 

 

II. Panel Discussions/Interviews/Policy Consulting

 06.  Surveillance Capitalism: Data-Driven Business Models, Their Societal Impact, and the Role of Academic Communities; panel with Alan Borning (University of Washington); Yuuki Hara (Hitachi, Tokyo); Jingjing Liu (Siegen); Daniela Stockmann (Hertie School Berlin); ECSCW 2020 Online Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, June 2020. 
 05. 5th Workshop of the Steering Committee of the “Economy & Work 4.0 Initiative” (Ministry of Labor, Health, and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Economy, Innovation, Digitalization, and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia), January 2019, VDI Düsseldorf.
 04. Gaps in Fair Trading Law—Is Stronger Protection of Data and Data Services Recommended Under the UWG?, workshop held as part of the consultations on the Green Paper on Digital Platforms regarding “Rights to Data,” Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, Nov. 2016, Berlin.  
 03. Do We Need an Absolute Right to Data? – Panel interview for the Dortmund Lawyers’ Association (Dortmunder Juristengesellschaft e.V.), preparatory event for the 71st German Lawyers’ Congress, August 2016, Dortmund. 
 02. Expert Discussions on the “Digital Restart”: Do We Need an Absolute Right to Data?, Ministry of Justice of North Rhine-Westphalia, May 2016, Düsseldorf (panel discussion with RiOLG Dr. Gero Götz (moderator), Prof. Dr. Barbara Völzmann-Stickelbrock, Prof. Dr. Michael Grünberger, LL.M. (NYU); report in: MMR-Aktuell 2016, 379185). 
 01. Do We Need Data Ownership? – Panel interview for the State Ministry of Justice of North Rhine-Westphalia, CeBIT, March 2016, Hanover.  

  

III. Conference Organization

 02.  Rights to Data – Industry 4.0 and the IP Rights of Tomorrow, February 9, 2017, Düsseldorf Regional Court (in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice of North Rhine-Westphalia; conference report in Becker JZ 2017, pp. 936–938; conference proceedings in ZGE 3/2017). 
 01. Young Scholars – Colloquium on Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Media Law, June 17–18, 2016, University of Cologne (in collaboration with Prof. Dr. Louisa Specht; Prof. Dr. Anne Lauber-Rönsberg).