[A2k] European Commission adopts "forward-looking package" on IP

[Anne-Catherine Lorrain]

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[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
The European Commission annouced today the adoption of a "forward-looking
package" on IP, including the extension of copyright protection from 50 to
95 years for performers on sound recordings and for phonogram producers, and
the launch of a public consultation on the Green Paper on Copyright in the
Knowledge Economy.

The novelty is that DG Markt is expressly announcing the extension of
copyright protection not only for performances but also for "the record
itself". In other words, European recording producers are on the way to have
a 95 years protection.

The Commission's proposal to amend the Directive on the term of protection (
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/term-protection/term-protection_en.htm)
still has to go to the Council and to the Parliament.

See the press release and the FAQ published on the EU portal website this
afternoon:

FAQ:
http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/08/508&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=fr

Press release:
http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1156&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

IP/08/1156

Brussels, 16 July 2008
*Intellectual Property: Commission adopts forward-looking package* *The
European Commission today adopted two initiatives in the area of copyright.
First, the Commission proposes to align the copyright term for performers
with that applicable to authors, in this way bridging the income gap that
performers face toward the end of their lives. Secondly, the Commission
proposes to fully harmonise the copyright term that applies to co-written
musical compositions. In parallel, the Commission also adopted a Green Paper
on Copyright in the Knowledge Economy. The consultation document focuses on
topics that appear relevant for the development of a modern economy, driven
by the rapid dissemination of knowledge and information. Both of these
initiatives comprise a unique mix of social, economic and cultural measures
aimed at maintaining Europe as a prime location for cultural creators in the
entertainment and knowledge sectors.*

Internal Market and Services Commissioner Charlie McCreevy said: "*The
copyright measures adopted today should underline that we take a holistic
approach when it comes to intellectual property. The proposal on term
extension has a strong social component and the Green Paper is deeply
embedded in the overall societal and knowledge context". "I am
committed to concentrate all necessary efforts to ensure that performers
have a decent income and that there will be a European-based music industry
in the years to come,*" the Commissioner continued specifically in relation
to the term proposal.

*Term of protection *
The proposal on term extension envisages extending the term of protection
for recorded performances and the record itself from 50 to 95 years. In this
way, the proposal would benefit both the performer and the record producer.
It also signals that Europe values their creative contribution.

The extended term would benefit performers who could continue earning money
over an additional period. A 95-year term would bridge the income gap that
performers face when they turn 70, just as their early performances recorded
in their 20s would lose protection. They will continue to be eligible for
broadcast remuneration, remuneration for performances in public places, such
as bars and discotheques, and compensation payments for private copying of
their performances.

The extended term would also benefit the record producers. It would generate
additional revenue from the sale of records in shops and on the Internet.
This should allow producers to adapt to the rapidly changing business
environment which is characterised by a fast decline in physical sales (-
30% over the past five yeas) and the comparatively slow growth of online
sales revenue.
In addition, when it concerns a musical composition, which contains the
contributions of several authors, the Commission proposes a uniform way of
calculating the term of protection. Music is overwhelmingly co-written. For
example, in an opera, there are often different authors to the music and to
the lyrics. Moreover, in musical genres such as jazz, rock and pop music,
the creative process is often collaborative in nature. According to the
proposed rule the term of protection of a musical composition shall expire
70 years after the death of the last surviving author, be it the author of
the lyrics or the composer of the music.

*Green Paper on Copyright in the Knowledge Economy*

In its review of the Single
Market*[1]<http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1156&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en#fn1>
* the Commission highlighted the need to promote free movement of knowledge
and innovation as the "Fifth freedom" in the single market. The Green Paper
will now focus on how research, science and educational materials are
disseminated to the public and whether knowledge is circulating freely in
the internal market. The consultation document will also look at the issue
of whether the current copyright framework is sufficiently robust to protect
knowledge products and whether authors and publishers are sufficiently
encouraged to create and disseminate electronic versions of these products.

This consultation is targeted at everyone who wants to advance their
knowledge and educational levels by using the Internet. Wide dissemination
of knowledge contributes to more inclusive and cohesive societies, fosters
equal opportunities in line with the priorities of the renewed Social
Agenda.

With this Green Paper, the Commission plans to have a structured debate on
the long-term future of copyright policy in the knowledge intensive areas.
In particular, the Green Paper is an attempt to structure the copyright
debate as it relates to scientific publishing, the digital preservation of
Europe's cultural heritage, orphan works, consumer access to protected works
and the special needs for the disabled to participate in the information
society. The Green Paper points to future challenges in the fields of
scientific and scholarly publishing, search engines and special derogations
for libraries, researchers and disabled people.
The Green paper focuses not only on the dissemination of knowledge for
research, science and education but also on the current legal framework in
the area of copyright and the possibilities it can currently offer to a
variety of users (social institutions, museums, search engines, disabled
people, teaching establishments).

Anne-Catherine Lorrain

Intellectual Property Policy Expert

TransAtlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD)
Avenue de Tervueren, 36 Bte 4
1040 Bruxelles

Mob (Belgium): +32 473 99 97 92

Cell (US): +1 202 390 6264
Tel: +32 2 740 28 17
Fax: +32 2 740 28 02
www.tacd.org