SIAE Publishes List of Unlocatable Artists for Resale Royalty Payments

The Italian resale right (diritto di seguito) entitles artists to a royalty on each resale of their works after the first transfer. Under Italian copyright law (Law No. 633/1941), the royalty must be paid to SIAE, which then distributes it to the entitled artists. However, many artists or their heirs have not claimed these funds. SIAE is not required to search for rights holders but must publish a list of unlocatable authors on its website. The owed amounts are held for five years; after that, they are transferred to the former ENAP (now part of INPS). The list includes sale details and amounts paid. Raffaella Pellegrino, a lawyer specializing in copyright, reports on this process.