News

‘The creative sector is what we’re good at in Europe – something that could really help us grow in the future, economically and culturally.’

The above quotation by European Commissioner Neelie Kroes is something that we as author societies whole-heartedly believe in. And helping the European cultural sector grow is something we are committed to.

Sometimes, there’s misunderstanding about the role of author societies – often we talk uniquely about our primary function of administering author rights. Now, that’s an important job, but it’s far from all we do.

Author societies work hard to promote and encourage talent where they are based, promoting cultural diversity as we go.  Take PRS for Music , the UK-based author society, for example. Music Makeover 2012 demonstrates PRS for Music’s commitment to live music and shows how this society is successfully adapting to changes in the UK’s cultural landscape.

This short extract is taken from a full-length article in the European Voice by Xavier Blanc (AEPO-ARTIS); Véronique Debrosses (GESAC); Helen Smith (IMPALA) andCécile Despringre (Society of Audiovisual Authors).

 The portrayal of collective rights-management organisations (CMOs) in your editorial from 12-18 July is a caricature (“Copyright rules must keep up with digital world”, 12-18 July), and, as organisations representing authors, performers and music producers, we would like to correct that picture.

CMOs are non-profit organisations created for, and most often run by, the artists and creators themselves. They ensure remuneration is paid to right-holders, who individually would in most cases not be able to or, in other cases, would struggle to manage their rights and obtain the appropriate remuneration for the use of their creative works.

As a vital link between individual right-holders and the users of creative works, CMOs stop users from needing to obtain authorisations from thousands of individual right-holders. CMOs are a useful counterweight to increasingly powerful and dominant media and technology companies, whose business is based on consumer demand for films, music and books anywhere, anytime. At the same time, they allow authors and artists to continue creating their works and performances, while driving the growth of the digital single market.

Click here to read full article on the European Voice.  

We wish all our readers a very happy holidays from all of us at authorsocieties.eu.

Come back in September for fresh news about collective rights management and author societies across Europe.

Until then, read more about the work author societies do, watch creators talking about the role their author society has in their lives and get up-to-date on some of the goings on of author societies where you are on this site.

You’ve heard what we’ve had to say about the new proposal, but what is everyone else doing? Here are some highlights of press coverage from the European Commission’s copyright proposal…

EU OBSERVER, 11/07/2012 Michel Barnier, European Union commissioner for Internal Market and Services

Moving the single market for online music

Music is everywhere, and the digital age has only increased its presence. Today, (11 July) I am proposing a modernised system of collective rights management that will use the single market – the EU’s most powerful economic tool – to distribute music online. This is a crucial adaptation to the world we inhabit, a world in which both supply and demand are increasingly digitised.

More…

WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/07/2012

EU Aims to Ease Music-Licensing Rules

Copyright-collecting societies—the organizations that collect royalty payments from music, movies and books and distribute them to copyright holders—must adapt to an age of online music downloads, the European Commission said Wednesday as it laid out plans to modernize the industry.

More…

EUROPOLITICS, 12/07/2012. Nathalie Vandystadt 

 Long-awaited proposal on copyright

There will be no lack of intellectual property issues during the Cyprus Presidency. In addition to the European patent (see separate article), the initiative on collective management of copyright, due to be presented on 11 July, is likely to spark…

More…

INVEST IN EU, 12/07/2012 Eric Pfanner

Copyright: Commission proposes easier music licensing in the Single Market

The European Commission has today proposed measures to modernise collecting societies and put in place incentives to promote their transparency and efficiency.
More…

NEW YORK TIMES, 10/07/2012

Europe Moves to Aid Digital Music Industry

The European Commission plans to introduce legislation on Wednesday to bolster the digital music market in Europe by streamlining the methods of agencies that collect royalties on behalf of copyright holders.

More

Curious to know more?

GESAC Press release

CISAC Press release