Facts
The Federal Tribunal was seized of an appeal against a judgment of the Superior Tribunal of the Canton of Zurich prohibiting the company Monopol-Films AG from distributing in Switzerland a modified version of the silent film "The Gold Rush" by Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin and the company Roy Export Company Establishment, the holder of the exploitation rights of the film, had requested the seizure and destruction of this copy. The established facts are as follows: - Chaplin made a silent film entitled "The Gold Rush" in 1925, which he deposited in the United States. He then adapted this film into a sound version in 1942. - In 1962, the company Monopol-Films AG wanted to screen in Switzerland an abridged and modified version of the silent film, without Chaplin's authorization. - Chaplin and the company Roy Export Company Establishment then took legal action to prohibit this distribution and obtain the destruction of the copy.Considerations
The Federal Tribunal upheld the judgment of the Superior Tribunal of Zurich. It considered that: 1. Chaplin's silent film, although first distributed in the United States, was also simultaneously published in Canada, which was then a member of the Berne Convention. Chaplin therefore benefited from copyright protection in Switzerland under this convention. 2. The version modified by the company Monopol-Films AG constituted an unauthorized reproduction and adaptation of Chaplin's film, protected by copyright. 3.…