EU Public Affairs Monitor - 21/11/08

Committee on Culture
"1. Presentation of the outcomes of the French Presidency on 2nd December: The French ministers will present the achievements of the French Presidency of the Council in the fields for which the Committee is responsible. The ministers' presentations will be followed by question and answer sessions with MEPs.

2. Term of protection of copyright and related rights: the draft opinion stresses the importance of implementing measures to ensure fair and consistent remuneration of performers. It will be adopted in Committee on 2 December. The draftsman is Christopher HEATON-HARRIS (EPP-ED, GB)"

A better return for our money: The EU wants the EIB to play a role in its response to the economic crisis – but it must make sure the EIB meets its existing responsibilities better
"The European Investment Bank (EIB), the EU's publicity-shy house bank, has shot to prominence in recent weeks as the global economic crisis has deepened. Nationally and collectively, EU leaders have scrambled to boost lending to small businesses that are being hit by the credit crunch. José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, has talked up the role the EIB could play in responding to the crisis; Günter Verheugen, the industry commissioner, wants the EIB to offer a €40 billion soft-loan package to the European car industry; and the UK's finance minister, Alistair Darling, has been pushing UK banks to make the most of the EIB's increased loans facility for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)." [EuropeanVoice]

U.K. Music Backs Government Proposal On ISPs
"U.K. Music, the recently formed umbrella organization encompassing the major British music-industry groups, has declared its support for a co-regulatory system between ISPS, the music industry and a government-appointed body to ensure ISPs tackle illegal P2P file-sharing.

In its contribution to the consultation process set up by the U.K. government's Department for Business Enterprises and Regulatory Reform (BERR), U.K. Music says a government-approved independent adjudicator is required to oversee a co-regulatory system covering ISPs and digital piracy. "In view of the historic differences between rights holders and ISPs, some form of regulatory control is required," U.K. Music says in its documents. The organization agrees with the government that media and telecommunications regulator Ofcom is the appropriate body." [Billboard]

UK Music call for online copyright regulator
"Cross-industry trade body UK Music has told the government that it supports proposals for a regulator to oversee copyright issues on the internet. In a submission to a government consultation on the issue of music and the net, UK Music say that, "in view of the historic differences between rights holders and ISPs, some form of regulatory control is required".
As much previously reported, some progress has been made this year regarding the long running dispute between the music industry and the internet service providers, in which the former said the latter had a duty to play a more proactive role in combating online piracy. " [CMUDaily]

Term extension petition launched at PPL APM
"'Performer members' of recordings royalty collecting society PPL (ie recording artists and musicians) have put their names to the latest petition calling on the government to extend the recorded music copyright term.
As much much much previously reported, in Europe the copyright term for recordings is fifty years, whereas the term enjoyed by songwriters (and writers and photographers etc) is life plus seventy years." [CMUDaily]

PPL performer members sign letter to the Prime Minister as UK government continues in its failure to give musicians copyright parity with other creators
"Performer members who attended PPL's second Annual Performer Meeting (APM), which took place at Abbey Road Studios on Monday (17th), were moved to sign a letter to the Prime Minister asking him for Fair Play For Musicians.

This important initiative has been made necessary due to the intransigence of the UK government in their failure to support copyright term extension which would put musicians on parity with other creators (authors, composers, painters, photographers amongst many) and which is being both recognised and supported by the European Commission and governments around Europe." [RecordOfTheDay]

Member States Review Key Copyright Issues
WIPO member states meeting under the auspices of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights met from November 3 to 7 November 2008 to review a number of key copyright issues. Under the chairmanship of Mr. Jukka Liedes of Finland, the SCCR examined the current state of play WIPO’s work on limitations and exceptions, the protection of audiovisual performances and the protection of broadcasting organizations. Discussions also featured the question of access to copyright-protected content by visually impaired persons. [WIPO]