[A2k] Fwd: PRESS RELEASE: Rigorous Analysis of Gowers Review Essential

[Michelle Childs]

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[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
The Gowers review - (an independent  review of IPR laws in the UK
commissioned by the UK Chancellor  ) is due to be released tomorrow.
One potential recommendation- not to extent the copyright term for
sound recordings had been leaked - we will find out tomorrow if this
is true! The UK Digitals right group ask a number of questions
( below) to test the usefulness of the report . For an international
context this one is very relevant:
> 10. Will the Gowers Review challenge any of the current European
> legislation or international treaties, many of which force a
> 'maximalist' stance on member nations and treaty signatories?

Michelle



Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Suw Charman" <suw.charman@openrightsgroup.org>
> Date: December 5, 2006 9:59:19 AM EST
> To: suw@openrightsgroup.org
> Subject: PRESS RELEASE: Rigorous Analysis of Gowers Review Essential
>
> Press release also available at:
> http://www.openrightsgroup.org/press-releases/rigorous-analysis-of-
> gowers-review-essential/
>
>
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> 5 December 2006
>
> RIGOROUS ANALYSIS OF GOWERS REVIEW ESSENTIAL
>
> The Open Rights Group eagerly anticipates tomorrow's publication of
> the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property. We especially welcome the
> evidence-based approach that Andrew Gowers is reported to have taken,
> because we believe that the evidence is entirely on our side.
>
> We have campaigned against the extension of copyright term on sound
> recordings, and over 700 people have signed our petition in just a
> couple of weeks
> (http://www.releasethemusic.org/five-minutes/sign-our-petition/). We
> also held a very successful debate on 13 November
> (http://www.releasethemusic.org/events/release-the-music-debate/) to
> address the issues around term extension. It would seem that our
> campaigning, along side the British Library, the IPPR and others, has
> been successful, if rumours that Gowers will not be recommending an
> extension of term are true.
>
> A second petition on the official No. 10 petition site calling for a
> right to private copy has also been very successful - it has so far
> been signed by over 2800 people
> (http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/privatecopy/), putting it in the top 10
> most popular petitions on the site.
>
> But no matter how encouraging indications have been as to the
> direction the Gowers Review will take, it is important that we are
> rigorous in our analysis of the report and the press releases that
> will be distributed by parties with a vested interest in specific
> policy changes. To that end, we ask ten key questions that Gowers must
> have answered for his report to be valuable in forming future policy
> for the creative industries:
>
> 1. If we are granted the "right to private copy", which would legalise
> the act of copying a CD to an iPod, will the exception cover copying
> DVDs to iPods too? And will it allow individuals to circumvent copy
> protection?
>
> 2. Will companies using Technical Protection Measures (TPM)  be
> required to ensure that their software respects all legal access
> rights? For example, the right to make preservation copies, the right
> of individuals to loan and resell, and the right to freely access and
> reuse material that is in the public domain?
>
> 3. Does the Gowers Review differentiate between professional
> counterfeiting, i.e. mass producing counterfeit DVDs and CDs to sell,
> and individual fans making copies for back-up or to format-shift? Will
> any changes to the law suggested by Gowers make this difference too?
>
> 4. Will the Gowers Review make recommendations regarding how to
> facilitate the use of orphaned works (where the rights holder is not
> known or cannot be contacted)? If not, will the Review recommend
> further examination of this problem?
>
> 5. Will musicians and authors be given the right to claim back their
> IPR when their works go out of print?
>
> 6. Will the British Library, and other archives, be allowed to make
> copies of sound recordings for preservation?
>
> 7. Will the law be changed to ensure that companies cannot use
> contract law to undermine the rights granted under copyright law?
>
> 8. Why now? In the US, copyright term extension typically comes up for
> discussion whenever Mickey Mouse comes close to entering the public
> domain. Are The Beatles the UK's Mickey Mouse?
>
> 9. The Gowers Review deliberately excludes Crown Copyright,
> Parliamentary Copyright, and the regulations governing Public Sector
> Information. When might these be reviewed in the interests of widening
> public access to the data we have paid for as tax payers?
>
> 10. Will the Gowers Review challenge any of the current European
> legislation or international treaties, many of which force a
> 'maximalist' stance on member nations and treaty signatories?
>
>
> For the full text of the Open Rights Group's submission to the Gowers
> Review, please see:
> http://www.openrightsgroup.org/orgwiki/index.php/
> Gowers_Review_Submission
>
>
> Notes for Editors
> The Open Rights Group is a digital rights advocacy group based in the
> UK. It aims to increase awareness of digital rights issues, help
> foster grassroots activity and to preserve and extend civil liberties
> in the digital age.
>
> For more information, contact:
>
> suw@openrightsgroup.org
> Tel: +44 (0)20 7096 1079
> www.openrightsgroup.org
> www.releasethemusic.org
>