GPSR regulations in relation to font production and selling

FettleFoundry

On 13th December 2024, new EU regulation comes into effect regarding the safety of all products sold into EU markets. This applies to any manufacturer outside of the EU and covers digital products as well as physical ones, so I would assume it includes font files.

I have heard nothing from the third party platforms I use to sell my typefaces and cannot find any specific information on how digital products should meet the new regulations.

There are some tricky requirements for small manufacturers, such as the need to have a representative based in the EU if you intend to sell directly in that market.

I am going to get some advice on this matter, but before I do I was wondering if anyone has already looked into this and whether there is anything that font manufacturers need to do to ensure they are compliant?

Jasper de Waard

I haven't looked into this in great detail, but I thought it was mainly aimed at bigger corporations. Seems unlikely that they would force every individual who wants to sell something digital on the European market to have an address in Europe. 

James Hultquist-Todd

Having just read this regulation, I must be confused. It seems everyone who sells to the EU has to have a representative inside the EU (with their information clearly available on the packaging), or they are out of compliance?

I did some digging and it looks like Article 51 states that EU nations “shouldn’t ‘impede’ the sale of any product that was first supplied for distribution, consumption, or use on the EU market before December 13, 2024, provided that product is covered by and complies with the General Product Safety Directive (2001/95/EG).” 

This means that customs or whoever enforces this law is going to have to know when the product was first for sale? This sounds like a mess.

I think I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing and when (if) it’s ever clarified in practice, I’ll adjust.

If I had to guess, I’d say this is something that won’t really be enforced except when issues arise like when all those cheaply made hoverboard toys or Samsung phones started bursting into flames years ago.

FettleFoundry

Jasper de Waard said:

I haven't looked into this in great detail, but I thought it was mainly aimed at bigger corporations. Seems unlikely that they would force every individual who wants to sell something digital on the European market to have an address in Europe. 

It’s everyone, from sole traders to big corporations. 

FettleFoundry

James Hultquist-Todd said:

Having just read this regulation, I must be confused. It seems everyone who sells to the EU has to have a representative inside the EU (with their information clearly available on the packaging), or they are out of compliance?

It seems that is correct. The representative must be given a mandate and would be responsible for checking and raising safety concerns, keeping technical documents and more. It seems you can pay someone to be your representative but it’s incredibly expensive.

Some advice suggests that this only applies if you sell direct, suggesting that selling through a third party platform puts the responsibility on the platform. However, none of this is information I’ve seen backed up by any legal professionals. 

Johannes Neumeier

Objectives:
    ensuring the safety of all products, including those linked to new technologies
    addressing challenges posed by the growth of online sales and in particular via online marketplaces;
    ensuring a better enforcement of the rules and more efficient and even market surveillance;
    improving the effectiveness of recalls of dangerous products in the hands of consumers.

Unless your fonts need to be recalled due to posing a health hazard, I think the type business is in the clear on this one. *not official business advice.

John Hudson

It isn’t clear to me from what I have read so far what ‘dangerous product’ means in the context of this regulation. Dangerous to individual health and safety only, as suggested by the examples and illustrations provided in the official fact sheet? Or also dangerous to e.g. digital data security, financial security, etc.?

JoyceKetterer

@John Hudson I have a lawyer in the Netherlands I trust, if you want to go in together on looking into this.  My guess from skimming the law is that it's really intended for physical products, though that doesn't mean software might not get caught up in the net.  

John Hudson

That was my impression too, Joyce. ‘Digitalisation’ and ‘new technologies’ are mentioned, so it seems likely that software will be subject in some way, but it would be good to get clarification on what it means in terms of ‘safety’.

FettleFoundry

The European Commission confirmed before Christmas that software is included in the regulations [Questions and Answers about the GPSR, https://ec.europa.eu/safety-gate/#/screen/pages/obligationsForBusinesses] so, technically, fonts should be covered by the regulations.

I've been advised that the typefaces I've already released should be fine as products released before 13th December 2024 are exempt – unless they are updated after that date. Any updates and new releases would be covered by the regulations.

Unfortunately, I'm not yet currently in a position to be able to put an EU representative in place, so I have been advised not to make any updates or release any new products until the vendors I use make it clear how they will limit sales in certain geographical areas as part of their responsibility to ensure only products that comply are sold to users based within the EU.

None of the vendors I sell through have provided information as of yet. I've contacted representatives from each but haven't heard anything back.

As a solo operation, this is definitely something that will have a profound effect on my ability to produce and release Latin-based typefaces.

John Hudson

I think some important questions remain unanswered, at least for those of us operating outside of the EU.

What falls under the category of ‘products on the EU market’? — which is the term used in the Q&A document regarding this safety regulation. I would take this to be products either manufactered in or imported into the EU for sale there.

Is there any sense in which a company that has no presence in any EU country, does not use web hosting or payment processing in any EU country, and does not advertise in EU-based media is selling products on the EU market? I would say that EU individuals or companies purchasing font licenses from companies outside the EU are technically not buying products on the EU market, they are buying products on e.g. the Canadian market, and are solely responsible for abiding by any applicable import regulations (in the same way that I have to pay import duty or taxes on some products that I order from outside my country).

In reference to my previous question in this thread, it does seem that the definition of safety is limited to health and well-being. So I am pretty unfussed by this regulation in terms of its scope applying to fonts, especially fonts conforming to published specifications.

John Butler

Reading the final paragraph, I am reminded of several fonts that present risks to mental health.

James Puckett

I was working on a new web site with Fontdue but I think I’m going to pull the plug. I don’t want to get sucked into a legal mess when I’m using an EU based service to sell software covered by these regulations.

FettleFoundry

John Hudson said:

I think some important questions remain unanswered, at least for those of us operating outside of the EU.

What falls under the category of ‘products on the EU market’? — which is the term used in the Q&A document regarding this safety regulation. I would take this to be products either manufactered in or imported into the EU for sale there.

Is there any sense in which a company that has no presence in any EU country, does not use web hosting or payment processing in any EU country, and does not advertise in EU-based media is selling products on the EU market? I would say that EU individuals or companies purchasing font licenses from companies outside the EU are technically not buying products on the EU market, they are buying products on e.g. the Canadian market, and are solely responsible for abiding by any applicable import regulations (in the same way that I have to pay import duty or taxes on some products that I order from outside my country).

In reference to my previous question in this thread, it does seem that the definition of safety is limited to health and well-being. So I am pretty unfussed by this regulation in terms of its scope applying to fonts, especially fonts conforming to published specifications.

It seems that as long as a user based in the EU can access a storefront and purchase products, that counts as the retailer operating in the EU market. Retailers now have the responsibility to prevent products from being listed as purchasable in the EU if the products are not compliant.

As an example, Folksy – a UK based crafting marketplace – has a great summary on how they need to meet the regulations:

https://blog.folksy.com/2024/11/26/gpsr-guide-for-artists-and-makers-on-folksy

It would be useful to be given further clarification on this, particularly from Monotype, Fontspring and other big hitters.

One thing for certain is that if you want to sell into the EU from outside of the Union you need an authorised representative based in the EU. It'll be interesting to see how that market develops. I might have to consider moving to Europe – which sounds great, thinking about it.

FettleFoundry

James Puckett said:

I was working on a new web site with Fontdue but I think I’m going to pull the plug. I don’t want to get sucked into a legal mess when I’m using an EU based service to sell software covered by these regulations.

I was hoping to move over to selling direct instead of through vendors and Fondue looks to be a great option. Does it allow you to limit sales by geographical location? If so, it's probably still viable to use it until there's further clarification on the regulations?

Mark Simonson

I won’t be surprised if this has some unintended consequences.

John Hudson

The only rationale I can see for the requirement of an authorised, responsible representative within the EU is that there is someone who can be sued or prosecuted within that jurisdiction. So basically you’d be paying someone danger money to assume risk on your behalf. If the price reflects the actual risk that fonts pose to anyone’s health and safety—i.e. zero—, that’s fine. Anything else is a shakedown.

James Hultquist-Todd

Until I get a letter from the EU telling me to stop nothing will be changing here. I'm not going to play pretend lawyer and act like I know what this law actually means.