Dear All,
What follows is a longer email than usual BUT of considerable
importance as it deals with matters of commodification of information
that will directly affect us through teaching and research.
Jon Fairburn
Staffordshire University
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From: SCONUL
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Subject: EC copyr directive
Date: 10 March 1999 09:53
This is a long message but the current situation is bad news and it's
probably helpful for everyone to know. For nearly two years I've
been lobbying about the EC copyright directive, mostly through EBLIDA
and the UK civil service, twice meeting UK ministers, and often by
writing to MEPs just before a crucial vote and once going to
Brussels to meet key MEP committee members. Until last month things
seemed to reasonable: not ideal in terms of the proposed
legislation, but certainly quite a sympathetic UK government line
once our message was across.
Then on 10 February the European Parliament considered the matter.
They savaged the directive in an unpredicatble way. In general they
did not understand it and were dazzled by an advertising campaign by
rightholders. The message got around that in order to support
individual creative artists the EC directive must be tightened up.
As a result all concessions to research, education and libraries
(already more limited than in UK and Irish law) were further
restricted. The Directive is unlikely to survive exactly as amended
by the Parliament, because the Council of Ministers have yet to have
a further say. But achieving improvements now will be quite
difficult as the Parliament's view has to be taken seriously.
Below is a copy of a letter I recently sent to various lobbying
allies in this country giving a description of what we are in for if
the Parliament's amendments survive. Then follows an update from
EBLIDA. - Toby
5 March 1999
Diana Warwick
Chief Executive
CVCP
20 Tavistock Square
London WC1H 9HQ
Dear Diana
Draft EC Copyright Directive: urgent
For the education and research communities, the Directive as it now
stands could hardly be worse. Its final shape seems likely to be
determined within the next month.
Perhaps over-encouraged by our government's generally helpful approach to
the draft Directive, the UK academic and research community has
until now not seen the proposals as specially threatening. But
since its passage through the European Parliament on 10 February the
Directive has taken a new shape which will be difficult change.
Time is short.
In its present form the draft Directive has the following provisions
affecting
UK users of copyright materials. All will add substantial
bureaucracy and expense to education and research.
All use of digitally-published material, because it invariably involves
technical copying, is more tightly controlled. This includes the
reading and consultation of electronic publications. There is clear
potential for pay-per-view of ordinary text-based publications.
Publishers will become more powerful.
Gratis 'fair dealing' photocopying is abolished. All photocopying,
however
trivial in extent or insignificant in economic effect, is subject to
payment to rightholders. (Article 5 (2) a)
Gratis private non-commercial video and audio recording is abolished,
all recording being subject to the payment of compensation to
rightholders. (Article 5 (2) b)
Analogue or digital copying for private study or research, even if the
copy is of trivial extent, is exempt from copyright restrictions
only when effected 'for the sole purpose of illustration', and even
then is subject to the payment of compensation to rightholders (the
exemption from copyright thus being questionable) (Article 5
(3) a)
A totally new concept, important in the digital environment, is that
whenever any copyright material has been protected by a technical
measure, that measure may not be tampered with, regardless of any
statutory concession to the user or reader for a particular purpose.
Thus any statutory concession can be rendered void by a technical
protection device.
The draft Directive sweeps away the UK's tradition of balance in
copyright law (monopoly right balanced by limited concessions to
non-commercial use). It effectively strangles the European
'information society' at birth.
It is vital that the UK academic community attempts to change some
of the above provisions, which go far beyond what is needed to combat
piracy. Actions that might be taken include:
1 asking colleagues in other EU countries to write to the relevant
ministry in their own country: this will be helpful whether the
governments are sympathetic (e.g. in Scandinavia, which overall
carries few votes, in order to strengthen their resolve), whether
they are hostile to copyright exceptions (e.g. in Italy, which has no
tradition of exceptions and cannot see the need for them), or whether
the government stance is indifferent to exceptions (e.g. in Germany,
which has important voting power).
2 writing to Dr Kim Howells, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of
State for Competition and Consumer Affairs, Department of Trade and
Industry, 1 Victoria Street, London SW1H 0ET, supporting the UK
government's positive attitude to exception in the Directive for any
research, educat nal and library copying that carries no economic
disadvantage to rightholders.
3 writing to MEPs pointing out the expense and bureaucracy
promised for education and research
writing to the European Commission (a list of interested
Commissioners is attached)
It appears that the most urgent action required before 25 March is to
try to secure pressure on national governments to gain support for
gratis exceptions to copyright in cases where there is no economic
impact on the rightholder.
Yours sincerely
Toby Bainton
Secretary of SCONUL
cc Professor Martin Harris, Chairman, CVCP
David Anderson-Evans CVCP
Dr K Edwards (CRE), University of Leicester
Professor G Zellick, QMW
European Commissioners with an interest in the Copyright Directive
Commissioner Mario Monti DGXV (Internal Market)
Commissioner Edith Cresson DGXXII (Education, training and youth)
DGXII (Science, research
and
development)
Commissioner Martin Bangemann DGIII
(Information and communication
technology)
Commissioner Marcelino Oreja DGX (Information, culture and
audio-visual policy)
Commissioner Emma Bonino DGXXIV (Consumer policy
European Commission
200 rue de la Loi
B-1029 Brussels
--------Forwarded Message
Follows -------Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 18:37:02 To:
[log in to unmask] From: Barbara Schleihagen
<[log in to unmask]> Subject: Brief Copyright Directive Update
Dear EBLIDA members,
1. The Cabinet of Commissioner Monti, the one who is responsible for the
draft EU Copyright Directive, is planning to present an internal proposal
for an amended text of the Directive this Friday, 5 March, to take the
European Parliament vote into account. The consultation within the
Commission follows the so-called written procedure - once the text is
presented, then Commissioners have 5 days to reply - if no Commissioner
presents objections within 5 days, the text of the revised proposal for a
Directive is deemed adopted. It is expected to be published by the end of
this month.
EBLIDA sent today a fax to the Cabinet of Mr Bangemann asking for a
revised
text on the articles concerning private digital copying (article 5.2.b),
on
the reproduction by specific institutions (article 5.2.c), on the
reproduction for specific purposes (article 5.3.a) and on the
circumvention
of technical protection sytems (article 6.1.). The Commission is more or
less bound by its annoucement of 9 February in the European Parliament's
plenary debate which EP amendments they are prepared to accept and which
they will reject. Therefore we only have limited room for changes at this
stage and focused on the main issues that can still be amended in the
revised proposal.
2. The Council of Ministers Copyright Working Group held a meeting on
23-24
February to generally debate the EP vote. At their next meeting on 29
March
it is expected that the national experts will seriously look into their
national positions. BEST TIME NOW TO LOBBY YOUR NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS. I
would be most grateful for short reports on your contacts and results to
adjust our European lobby activities. The Council of Ministers Working
Group has a lot of possibilities for changes and amendments. I heard that
there will be a Hearing on copyright in Denmark on 11 March, are there any
other activities in other countries?
3. The EBLIDA Copyright Expert group will meet on 15 March to debate the
future European/national lobby direction. In addition we have arranged for
a question/answer session with Mr Joerg Reinbothe, Head of Copyright Unit
in DG XV.
I'll keep you informed of the outcomes.
Best wishes,
Barbara Schleihagen
**********************************************************************
EBLIDA
Barbara Schleihagen, Director
Heidi Hogan, EU Policy Officer
P.O. Box 43300
NL-2504 AH The Hague
Tel: +31-70-309 06 08
Fax: +31-70-309 07 08
email: [log in to unmask]
http://www.eblida.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Toby Bainton SCONUL 102 Euston Street London NW1 2HA England
Tel 0171-387 0317 (international +44-171-387-0317)
Fax 0171-383 3197 (international +44-171-383-3197)
--- End Forwarded Message ---
Jonathan Fairburn
Division of Geography
Mellor Building
Staffordshire University
College Road
Stoke on Trent
ST4 2DE
01782-294015 Direct Line
01782 747167 Fax
01782 294018 Division
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/geography/
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