6 September 2018

New Public Opinion Poll Finds that 2 out of 3 Citizens* Believe Tech Giants Have More Power than the European Union

Within EU Member States where the Copyright Directive has been fiercely debated, 61% fear the influence of tech giants compromises the functioning of European democracies, 87% favour legislation guaranteeing the remuneration of artists

Brussels, September 6, 2018 – EUROPE FOR CREATORS today released a new poll among “swing states” and France that found that an overwhelming number of respondents (87%) support legislation to protect artists’ rights. The data also revealed deep concerns that Internet platforms are endangering democracy in Europe, with 67% indicating that platforms have more power than the European Union and 61% indicating the sovereignty and independence of European countries is compromised by the influence of Internet platforms.
The online poll, fielded by Harris Interactive, surveyed 6,600 citizens over the age of 18-years old in Spain, Italy, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Greece and France (where the Directive had been debated), to understand their perception of relations between the EU and Internet platforms and the protection and remuneration of creators. These countries represent nearly 60% of the EU Members of Parliament and are critical deciders in the Copyright Directive debate.
“These results are incredibly striking. They amount to a wakeup call to MEPs, ahead of the EU Copyright Directive vote on September 12. The balance of power needs to be reformed in favour of creators and citizens.” said Véronique Desbrosses, general manager, European Grouping of Societies of Authors and Composers (GESAC). “MEPs have the future of the European Union in their hands. The people have spoken, now policymakers must act.”
Additional notable insights from the poll included:
– 66% of respondents believe internet platforms do not fairly share revenues with content creators whose content appears on their sites, with French (76%) and German (72%) respondents most strongly indicating that current revenue sharing is unfair.
– 81% of respondents believe platforms should more fairly remunerate media organisations, with the highest number of respondents who are completely in favour of legislation to level the playing field located in Germany (43%) and Romania (41%).
“This is the first survey ever to explore the perceived influence of global tech giants on the functioning of democracy in Europe. The insights clearly highlight that citizens are waiting for action,” said Jean-Daniel Lévy, Head of the Opinion department of Harris Interactive.
This poll was conducted between August 24 and 30, 2018 and included a representative sample of populations in the target countries.

To learn more about the results of the poll and EUROPE FOR CREATORS, visit us at www.europeforcreators.eu or follow the conversation on Twitter @EUForCreators with #EuropeForCreators.

About EUROPE FOR CREATORS
EUROPE FOR CREATORS gathers citizens, creatives and organisations committed to fight in favour of the Copyright Directive. We represent European creators and rights holders, including authors, composers, musicians, singers, painters, sculptors, directors, producers, journalists, writers, scientists and academics, responsible for the more than 12 million jobs associated with the Creative Industries.

About Harris Interactive
Harris Interactive is a historical and independent market research player.
Managed by its founders Nathalie Perrio-Combeaux and Patrick Van Bloeme, the institute develops innovative qualitative and quantitative approaches, both in France and abroad.
Harris Interactive blends innovative technology and expert support beyond research, ensuring clients make impactful decisions to stay Ahead of What’s Next.
Harris Interactive Europe (including Harris Interactive France, UK and Germany) is part of ITWP Group.

Press Contacts

GESAC
Aurelia Leeuw
32 (0) 2 511 44 54
aurelia.leeuw@gesac.org

Elan Edelman
Amandine Pesqué
01 86 21 50 73 | 06 29 21 63 78 – amandine.pesque@elanedelman.com

* “Citizen” refers to those individuals surveyed as part of this representative poll

Policies

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence brings about many new opportunities for our lives, including in the field of culture and creativity, but its applications also raise a number of ethical and legal questions due to their wide-spread uncontrolled and unchecked usage.

Policies

Music Streaming

Music streaming has unquestionably become the predominant means of enjoying music, replacing traditional physical media and expanded far beyond the live sector by providing user-friendly, high quality, and affordable access to the largest possible repertoire anytime, anywhere, online, or offline.

Songs and compositions are at the heart of this thriving market, which counts 524 million users on subscription-based music services globally, reaches more than 2 billion users including the streaming on UGC platforms, and offers more than 70 million tracks from approximately 8 million artists.

Yet, the authors and composers cannot benefit adequately from this success, and the debate over unfairness of this market is gaining traction across Europe and around the world.

There is a need to look more closely at how songwriters and composers are connected to this thriving economy and what can be done to improve their currently neglected situation.

Read below to find out more about the Music Streaming market.

Policies

Buy-out contracts: a dangerous threat to European creators

European music creators (composers, lyricists etc.) are being forced to forsake thousands of euros in future earnings by draconian ‘work made for hire’ (WMH) and buy-out contracts.

Online audiovisual services and broadcasters that are mainly US-based are forcing music creators to accept such contracts, which enforce a one-time payment in exchange for their rights.

Given the worldwide popularity of shows and series on platforms like Netflix, Amazon, Disney etc., and their replay value, the audiovisual market represents an important revenue stream for creators. Soundtracks alone are part and parcel of series and often attract a similar amount of popularity, massively boosting sales, streams and the worldwide fanbase of their authors.

Read below to find out how video on demand (VOD) platforms and broadcasters are circumventing EU law and what can be done about it.

Policies

Authors’ societies & the collective management model

Authors’ societies are hugely beneficial to both authors (creators), users (platforms and services), and the broader public.

Beyond benefiting these different groups, authors’ societies also support the broader cultural ecosystem by funding and promoting cultural and creative initiatives.

Below are five key benefits to authors’ societies and the collective management model.

Policies

The Copyright Directive

In April 2019, the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market was formally adopted, a change that will positively transform authors’ rights throughout the EU. Each member state now has until 7 June 2021 to transpose the Directive into their respective national law.

This reform is an opportunity to address pressing issues for authors in the Digital Single Market and will promote the growth of Europe’s creative and cultural industries (CCIs) – a major driver of Europe’s economy.

One of the biggest achievements of this new piece of legislation was to address the
‘Transfer of Value’ problem, a priority issue for all European creators.

Below are some of the Directive’s key areas that will affect creators and those who profit from their work.