Even in death

I don't know much about law. A bit perhaps about laws of nature, but not this humans-make-up-the-rules-as-they-go-along kind of laws. But this is about an interesting law I didn't know of before.

After a writer, composer or artist have been dead for some time what they did will become public domain. Anyone can reproduce it but apparently, at least in Sweden, there are limits.
A manufacturer of auto-mobiles (Mercedes-Benz) is using a poem by Karin Boye to sell their cars. Now the Swedish Academy, yes those who hand out the Nobel prize in literature, are threatening to take Mercedes-Benz to court. Apparently they are one of three institutions in Sweden that can take people to court for using important texts or works of art in a way that ”kränker den andliga odlingens intressen” (almost ”violates cultural interests” but more literally “violates the interest of the cultivation of the spirit” - spirit is used in a non-religious way).

Basically this seems to be a law that will protect the integrity of a work of art after the death of the creator. I don't know how common these laws are in the world but I think I approve of this law as long as it is not used to prevent other artists from finding new uses for existing art.

Source (in Swedish)