Council of the
European Union
Brussels, 16 September 2016
(OR. en)
12281/16
PI 102
COMPET 492
TELECOM 172
ESPACE 40
AUDIO 100
CULT 81
COVER NOTE
From: Secretary-General of the European Commission,
signed by Mr Jordi AYET PUIGARNAU, Director
date of receipt: 14 September 2016
To: Mr Jeppe TRANHOLM-MIKKELSEN, Secretary-General of the Council of
the European Union
No. Cion doc.: SWD(2016) 308 final
Subject: COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT EVALUATION of the
Council Directive 93/83/EEC on the coordination of certain rules
concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite
broadcasting and cable retransmission.
Delegations will find attached document SWD(2016) 308 final.
Encl.: SWD(2016) 308 final
12281/16 LK/np
DGG 3B EN
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
SWD(2016) 308 final
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT
EVALUATION
of the
Council Directive 93/83/EEC
on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright
applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission.
{SWD(2016) 309}
EN EN
SECTION 1 – INTRODUCTION
1.1. Purpose of the evaluation
This Staff Working Document (SWD) provides the results of the retrospective evaluation of
the Satellite and Cable Directive (Directive 93/83/EC, hereinafter "the Directive").
The retrospective evaluation was carried out in preparation of the EU copyright modernisation
initiative set out in the Digital Single Market Strategy for Europe 1 (Commission
Communication of 6 May 2015, COM(2015) 192) and the Commission Communication
"Towards a modern, more European copyright framework" 2 (9 December 2015, COM(2015)
626).
In particular, the evaluation contributes to the evidence-base for a decision whether and to
what extent the legal mechanisms similar to the ones established by the Directive could be
used in the envisaged EU copyright modernisation measures.
The evaluation does not arise from an obligation of the Directive but is an initiative under
REFIT, the Commission's Regulatory Fitness and Performance programme. REFIT provides
an evidence-based critical analysis of whether EU actions are proportionate to their objectives
and delivering as expected.
1.2. Scope of the evaluation
The evaluation covered all the core provisions of the Directive establishing, respectively, the
"country of origin" principle for satellite broadcasting and the two-stop-shop copyright
clearing mechanism for cable retransmission (individual licensing by broadcasters combined
with mandatory collective management of all other - "underlying" - rights).
In accordance with the better regulation guidelines, the evaluation covered the provisions
mentioned above from the point of view of effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and
EU added value. The effectiveness and efficiency of the negotiation and mediation
mechanisms - linked to the cable retransmission in the Directive - were evaluated separately,
in line with the different function envisaged for such mechanisms in the plans for the EU
copyright modernisation initiative.
In particular, the assessment was made whether the EU action is still relevant in this area,
whether it is coherent with other EU actions, whether the Directive provided clear added
value as compared to an action taken at the Member States level as well as whether the
application of the Directive mechanisms resulted in any specific costs. As regards
effectiveness, the evaluation considered both whether / to what extent the Directive has
facilitated clearing copyright for the service providers concerned (satellite broadcasters, cable
1
"[…] ensuring cross-border access to legally purchased online services while respecting the value of rights
in the audiovisual sector"
2
"[…] enhancing cross-border distribution of television and radio programmes online in the light of the
results of the review of the Satellite and Cable Directive
Supporting right holders and distributors to reach agreement on licences that allow for cross-border access
to content, including catering for cross-border requests from other Member States, for the benefit of both
European citizens and stakeholders in the audiovisual chain. In this context, the role of mediation, or similar
alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, to help the granting of such licences, will be considered"
1
operators) and whether / to what extent it has facilitated consumer cross-border access to
broadcasting services in the EU / the cross-border distribution of such services.
The evaluation focused on the period after 2002 (the year of the latest Commission's
implementation report) and considered, in particular, the way technological developments in
that period (especially Internet and digital distribution of TV and radio broadcasts) has
affected the functioning of the Directive. The evaluation covered the whole EU, although
some information / data gathering actions covered a more limited sample of the Member
States.
SECTION 2 – THE SATELLITE AND CABLE DIRECTIVE
2.1. Description of the initiative and its objectives
The intervention logic, setting out the rationale and approach for the operation of the
Directive is given in Figure 1. This includes its general and specific objectives, the activities
and inputs required to achieve these objectives, and the outputs, results and impacts that
should be achieved through their implementation. By first understanding how the legislation
is intended to work, the evaluation can more clearly assess what has happened in practice.
2
Figure 1 – the intervention logic
Needs General objectives Activities
- overcome - eliminate copyright-related - establishing licensing
copyright-related barriers to the provision of facilitation mechanisms at
obstacles to free broadcasting services across the EU level
movement of Europe - Member States
services (broadcasts) - a harmonised legislation transposing the mechanisms
- end fragmentation ensuring the same high level into national laws
of rules/unequal level of protection of rightholders - Member States
of protection in the across the EU putting in place mediation
Member States Specific objectives arrangements
concerning cross- For satellite broadcasting: - market players
border distribution of - end the legal uncertainty familiarising themselves
TV and radio regarding the rights to be with the new regulatory
programmes acquired situation and taking it into
- resolve if right - improve access to TV and account when entering into
holders' consent is radio programmes from other new licensing deals
required in the Member States (including in some cases by
country of broadcast For cable retransmission: amending existing
or in each of the - help cable operators to clear agreements)
countries of reception the retransmission rights
- enable cable from every rightholder
operators to clear involved in a TV or radio
multiple TV or radio programme Outputs
retransmission rights - improve access to TV and For satellite broadcasting:
for broadcasts from radio broadcasts from other - the country of origin
other Member States Member States principle
- an exclusive satellite
broadcasting right for
authors
For cable retransmission:
- mandatory collective
management system for
cross-border cable
Impacts Results retransmission rights
For satellite broadcasting: For satellite - mediation mechanism
- increased access to TV broadcasting:
and radio programmes - increased legal
from other Member States certainty
For cable retransmission: - easier clearance of
- increased access to TV rights for satellite External factors
and radio broadcasts from transmission - market and technological
other Member States For cable developments
retransmission: - consumer demand
- increased legal - licensing practices in the
certainty audiovisual sector /
- improved system for territoriality
the clearance of all - encryption mechanisms to
necessary rights avoid access to programmes
from non-targeted countries
- other EU policies: media, e-
commerce, competition
3
In summary, the intervention has involved: (i) the EU establishing, in the Directive, licensing
facilitation mechanisms for, respectively, satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission; (ii)
the Member States transposing the provisions of the Directive into national laws; (iii) the
Member States putting in place mediation arrangements for the potential disputes concerning
cable retransmission; (iv) the market players familiarising themselves with the new regulatory
situation and taking it into account when entering into new licensing deals (including, in some
cases, by amending existing agreements.
Problems / needs
Concerning satellite broadcasting, the legal uncertainty regarding the rights to be acquired
was the main issue at the time discussions on facilitating licensing for satellite broadcasting
started: "due to its technical characteristics, a satellite broadcast covers the territories of
several states (its “footprint”). It was controversial whether the right holders’ consent was
required in the state of broadcast or in each of the states of reception.[…]" 3
Indeed, "in some Member States courts had determined that a satellite broadcast is a
restricted act in all States within the footprint of the satellite, meaning that right holders in
one Member State would be able to block a satellite broadcast intended for the whole of
Europe." 4
Concerning cable retransmission, the difficulty to clear numerous rights in a very short time
frame - "structural problem of rights management" 5 - was the main issue: "[…] the primary
broadcasters determine the timing and the content of the programmes and it was derived from
this circumstance that they had sufficient time to acquire the right holders’ consent on an
individual basis.[…] By contrast, it was impossible for a cable operator to acquire the rights
in the same way, on an individual basis." 6 Taking into account that each retransmitted channel
delivers numerous programmes composed of a multitude of copyright-protected works, that a
typical cable TV service offers multiple channels, that the cable operator has no control over
the use of works in particular channels and no time to obtain licences for those works, the
potential copyright clearing burden for cable operators was important.
This structural problem did not concern the rights held by broadcasters themselves, since it
was not too complicated for the cable operators to deal with a relatively limited number of
easily identifiable broadcasting organisations (only those the channels of which the cable
operator was planning to retransmit).
In addition, the Directive aimed at solving the “outsider problem”: "in many Member States,
collective agreements were concluded to deal with the cable retransmissions of broadcast
programmes (even before the adoption of the directive). However, the cable operators still
faced the uncertainty of “outsiders”, i.e. right holders who are not affiliated to and therefore
not represented by the contracting collecting societies and who therefore still have the
3
Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society
(the "Infosoc Directive"), De Wolf & Partners, p. 59
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/131216_study_en.pdf
4
T. Dreier, P.B. Hugenholtz, "Concise European Copyright Law", p. 263
5
P. Bernt Hugenholtz "SatCab Revisited: The Past, Present and Future of the Satellite and Cable Directive",
IRIS plus 2009-8, p. 13
6
Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society
(the "Infosoc Directive"), De Wolf & Partners, p. 206-207
4
possibility of claiming remuneration or blocking the exploitation by an action for
injunction.[…]" 7
Finally, it was considered that the conclusion of contracts regarding the authorisation of cable
retransmissions (negotiation, renegotiation) could pose a problem.
Those problems were especially affecting the cable operators retransmitting TV / radio
broadcasts from other Member States, since clearing rights with "domestic" right holders is
generally considered to be easier than with "foreign" ones.
The objectives pursued, activities and outputs
As regards the objectives of the intervention, the main purpose of the Directive was to tackle
copyright-related obstacles to cross-border transmission and retransmission of TV and radio
broadcasts by, respectively, satellite and cable.
"The Directive is based on two core principles:
• In order to prevent the European satellite market from being fragmented 8, it established
at Union level a right for communication to the public by satellite 9 and defined that the
act of communication to the public by satellite occurs only in the country of origin of a
satellite transmission. According to the “country of origin principle”, rights only need to
be cleared for the country of origin of the broadcast and not for the countries where the
signals are received. Thus in order to broadcast in other Member States only a licence in
the country of origin of the satellite broadcast is needed;
• The second principle introduced by the Directive is a system of mandatory collective
management of cross-border cable retransmission rights. Under the Directive's rules,
rights-holders, such as film producers and screen-writers, cannot exercise their cable
retransmission rights individually vis-à-vis cable operators. Cable rights may be
exercised only by collecting societies that represent individual rights-holders, except for
the rights held by broadcasting organisations. The system aims to facilitate licensing of
cable retransmissions and to avoid 'black-outs' (or 'black holes') in retransmitted
broadcasts". 10
As regards the activities and outputs of the satellite broadcasting part of the intervention, the
Directive (i) defined the communication to the public by satellite as “the act of introducing,
under the control and responsibility of the broadcasting organization, the programme-
carrying signals intended for reception by the public into an uninterrupted chain of
communication leading to the satellite and down towards the earth” 11; and (ii) determined the
location where such protected act takes place. It occurs “solely in the Member State where,
under the control and responsibility of the broadcasting organization, the programme-
carrying signals are introduced into an uninterrupted chain of communication leading to the
7
Idem, p. 207
8
And to avoid the cumulative application of several national laws to one single act of broadcasting (Recital
14 of the Directive)
9
A legal novelty at the time, see Prof. P. Bernt Hugenholtz "SatCab Revisited: The Past, Present and Future
of the Satellite and Cable Directive", IRIS plus 2009-8, p. 9
10
The survey and data gathering to support the evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive and assessment
of its possible extension (the "SatCab Study"), Section 4.2.2
11
Article 1(2)(a) of the Directive
5
satellite and down towards the earth” 12. If, however, it takes place outside the EU, alternative
criteria are provided to attach it to a Member State (i.e. the uplink station in a Member State
or the establishment of the broadcaster in a Member State). 13
According to the Directive, "the footprint of the broadcast is taken into account for the
calculation of the remuneration, but the broadcaster is not required to secure the right
holders’ authorisation in each Member State of the footprint. […] The effects of
“territoriality” are thus mitigated: the satellite broadcasting takes place in one country of
origin, although it has effects beyond the Member State of origin. The Member States cannot
define other “relevant acts” and consider these act part of the satellite broadcasting right,
thus giving the author the possibility to exercise her right (in addition to the country of
origin)." 14
As regards the activities and outputs of the cable retransmission part of the intervention, "the
Directive was meant to address the problem of the clearing of rights for cable retransmissions
(as described above), in a uniform way (at least for retransmissions coming from another
Member State), i.e. by means of a mandatory collective management of this right. By
consequence, the central exercise of these rights by one or more collecting society was
proposed, “in order to prevent rights in individual programme components from standing in
the way of the cable retransmission operation as a whole”. 15
The Directive has also aimed at solving the problem of outsiders, i.e. right holders who have
not transferred the management of their rights to a collecting society: according to Article
9(2) of the Directive, the collecting society which manages rights of the same category is in
such a situation deemed to be mandated by such a right holder.
The Directive addressed the different situation of the broadcasting organisations by obliging
the Member States to ensure that "Article 9 [mandatory collective management of rights] does
not apply to the rights exercised by a broadcasting organisation in respect of its own
transmission, irrespective of whether the rights concerned are its own or have been
transferred to it by other copyright owners and/or holders of related rights." 16
The solution adopted in the Directive introducing negotiation and mediation mechanisms
"aims at facilitating contracts […] by shaping a system of impartial mediators." 17
Below is a short overview of the provisions of the Directive concerning satellite broadcasting
and cable retransmission:
• Right of communication to the public by satellite: Article 2 requires Member States
to establish an exclusive right for the author to authorise the communication to the
public by satellite of copyright-protected works.
• Country-of-origin principle: Article 1(2) establishes that the copyright relevant act
(communication to the public by satellite) takes place "solely in the Member State
12
Article 1(2)(b) of the Directive
13
Article 1(2)(d) of the Directive
14
Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society
(the "Infosoc Directive"), De Wolf & Partners, p. 59-61
15
Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society
(the "Infosoc Directive"), De Wolf & Partners, p. 207
16
Article 10 of the Directive
17
Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society
(the "Infosoc Directive"), De Wolf & Partners, p. 207
6
where, under the control and responsibility of the broadcasting organisation, the
programme-carrying signals are introduced into an uninterrupted chain of
communication leading to the satellite and down towards the earth".
• The Directive indicates that the country of origin principle does not affect contractual
freedom (Recital 16) and makes it possible "to continue limiting the exploitation of
these rights, especially as far as certain technical means of transmission or certain
language versions are concerned".
• The Directive points to the necessity to ensure that creators and producers of
programmes obtain a fair remuneration and indicates (Recital 17) that in determining
the licence fee for the right of communication to the public "the parties should take
account of all aspects of the broadcast such as the actual audience, the potential
audience and the language version".
• Definition of “cable retransmission”: Article 1 defines “cable retransmission” as
“the simultaneous, unaltered and unabridged retransmission by a cable or microwave
system for reception by the public of an initial transmission from another Member
State, by wire or over the air, including that by satellite, of television or radio
programmes intended for reception by the public”.
• Cable retransmission right: Article 8 requires Member States to ensure that when
programmes from other Member States are retransmitted by cable in their territory,
such retransmissions take place on the basis of individual or collective contractual
agreements between copyright owners, holders of related rights and cable operators.
• Mandatory collective management of rights: Article 9 requires Member States to
ensure that cable retransmission rights may be exercised only through a collecting
society.
• Management of the rights of non-members: Article 9 establishes the principle that
collecting societies shall be deemed to be mandated to manage the rights of right
holders who have not transferred the management of their rights to the collecting
society, as long as the society manages the rights of the same category.
• Exercise of the rights of broadcasting organisations: Article 10 exempts
broadcasting organisations from the provisions of Article 9 in respect of their own
transmissions, irrespective of whether the rights concerned are their own or have been
transferred to them by other right holders.
2.2. Baseline
Situation prior to the Directive
Prior to the adoption of the Directive, "broadcasting" was typically understood as
transmission of TV / radio channels over terrestrial networks using dedicated parts of radio
spectrum, and "retransmission of broadcasts" referred to cable retransmission:
"When the broadcasting right was first adopted, radio and television programmes were
transmitted by Hertzian waves. Cable operators could distribute these programmes by
capturing this broadcast Hertzian signal by means of an antenna and introducing these
signals in their cable networks in order to bring the radio or television programmes to the
connected radio or television sets. At that time it was clear that a “broadcast” was a wireless
7
transmission to a public and that other communications to the public (by cable) were not
“broadcasts”." 18
Broadcasts were already subject to certain international rules 19. When broadcasting by
satellite transmission became widespread, the question of the qualification of such act under
copyright law was raised. A distinction was usually made between direct satellites and
communication satellites.
• Direct satellites. The market players were facing legal uncertainty: whether copyright
was affected only in the country of origin of broadcast or also in all countries of
reception of the satellite signal. While clearing rights for satellite transmissions
broadcasters were trying to reduce the extent of such legal uncertainty by obtaining the
required rights also for those countries of reception where cable retransmission was
envisaged. However, the legal uncertainty still persisted: given wide satellite
footprints, there would inevitably be countries for which copyright has not been
cleared, and right holders in such countries of reception could take legal action to stop
satellite broadcasting in its entirety.
• Communication satellites. In general, broadcasting of programs via communication
satellites was not considered relevant from the copyright point of view, since content
was not usually made accessible to the public. The acquisition of rights was only
relevant in the Member States where it was considered a copyright-relevant act 20: in
France and Spain, where a 'droit d'injection' (a right concerning the beaming of
protected works to a communication satellite) was provided for in national law,
clearance of copyright was facilitated by a legal presumption (it was presumed that a
broadcaster having the rights to broadcast a work territorially had also acquired the
rights for satellite broadcasting). In the United Kingdom, it was necessary to acquire
the rights for broadcasting via a communication satellite.
As regards cable retransmission, a distinction was usually made between (i) terrestrially
broadcast programs and (ii) programs broadcast by satellite.
• Terrestrially broadcast programs. Contracts with the main right holders were
concluded to ensure clearance of rights. There were two problems with this system: (i)
the negotiations might not achieve the result in time and (ii) the 'outsider problem' (i.e.
the fact that cable operators had no guarantee that a (smaller) right holder who is not
party to the contract will not claim individually the right to authorise the
retransmission). To address them, in particular the 'outsider problem', some Member
States (e.g. Denmark and Austria) introduced statutory licences. Some other countries
(e.g. Norway, Sweden and Finland) had excluded individual claims by extending the
application of contracts to outsiders.
18
Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society
(the "Infosoc Directive"), De Wolf & Partners, p. 200.
19
Article 11bis(1)(i) of the Berne Convention already provided for that authors shall benefit from the
exclusive right to authorise "the broadcasting of their works or the communication thereof to the public by
any other means of wireless diffusion of signs, sounds or images". It was generally considered that this
principle applied to satellite broadcasting.
20
In practice, where a broadcaster was acquiring the rights for the subsequent retransmission by cable the
contracts often also included provisions entitling the broadcaster to transmit the works via a communication
satellite.
8
• Programs broadcast by satellite. Cable retransmission rights were usually acquired
(aggregated) by satellite broadcasters from other right holders. Even though this
mechanism benefited cable operators, it did not protect them against claims from
individual outsiders (operators were still liable under copyright law for their
retransmission acts). Some countries developed solutions: Denmark had introduced a
statutory licence for cable retransmission of direct satellite broadcasts. In the UK,
cable operators were exempted from copyright claims filed by holders of
retransmission rights, except for broadcasters. 21
SECTION 3 – EVALUATION QUESTIONS
The questions that will be further examined in Section 6 are the following:
• Effectiveness:
o To what extent has the SatCab Directive (COO principle) facilitated the
clearance of copyright and related rights for cross-border satellite broadcasts,
contributed to ensuring the legal certainty for satellite broadcasters and
improved access to TV and radio programmes from other Member States?
o To what extent has the SatCab Directive (notably, mandatory collective
management) facilitated the clearance of copyright and related rights for the
simultaneous retransmissions by cable of broadcasts from other Member States
while ensuring a high level of protection for right holders and to what extent it
has improved access to TV and radio broadcasts from other Member States?
o Have the negotiation and mediation mechanisms established under the SatCab
Directive contributed to promoting the acquisition of rights?
• Efficiency: Has the application of i) the country of origin principle, ii) the mandatory
collective management and iii) the mediation and negotiation mechanisms resulted in
any specific costs and benefits?
• Relevance: How well do the original objectives still correspond to the needs (including
of EU citizens) within the EU?
• Coherence: Is this action coherent with other EU actions?
• EU added value: Did EU action provide added value as compared to an action taken at
the Member State level?
SECTION 4 – METHOD
The evaluation process was assisted by a Steering Group chaired by the Secretariat-General
and composed of the representatives of selected Directorates General (DGs) including COMP,
TRADE, GROW, JUST, EAC, RTD, JRC, ECFIN, SANTE, ENV, EMPL, EPSC, ESTAT
and the Legal Service. The Group steered and monitored the progress of the exercise,
ensuring the necessary quality, impartiality and usefulness of the evaluation.
The evaluation took place between August 2015 and June 2016 and drew from the data
sources and methods described below.
The following information / data gathering actions were undertaken during the evaluation
period:
21
For more information on the situation prior to the Directive please see the November 1990 discussion paper
"Broadcasting and Copyright in the Internal Market",
http://aei.pitt.edu/1331/1/copyright_broadcast_work_paper_1990.pdf
9
1. The survey and data gathering to support the evaluation of the Satellite and Cable
Directive and assessment of its possible extension was commissioned by the
Commission to EFECTIV consortium in November 2015 (referred to in this SWD as the
"SatCab Study"). The terms of reference ("ToR") of this SatCab Study were designed to
avoid duplication with the previous De Wolf & Partners Study on the application of
Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society (the
"Infosoc Directive") and defined the purpose of the Study as follows:
i. to assess the relevance of the provisions contained in the Satellite and Cable Directive
aimed at facilitating cross-border access to broadcasting services in the current
environment (thus feeding in the ongoing Commission's evaluation of the Directive)
and the need for review/extension of these provisions to new technological means;
ii. to assess the appropriateness of extending the scope of some or all provisions of the
Directive to broadcasters’ online transmissions and to online services other than
broadcasters’ online transmissions; and
iii. to gather facts and figures to help the above assessment.
The SatCab Study focussed on the sample of 11 EU Member States: Denmark, Germany,
Ireland, Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden and United
Kingdom. It relied on a combination of sources and methods, including desk research,
collection of relevant market data, advice from industry experts, interviews with and
structured questionnaires addressed to market players and competent authorities of the
Member States.
2. A questionnaire was sent to all Member States to gather details about the transposition
and application of the Directive in national law / legal orders. The Commission asked
for the indication of the particular provisions that transposed the satellite and cable
regimes as well as the mediation and negotiation mechanisms. The Commission also
enquired about national case law concerning the Directive and, specifically, about
provisions / case law applying to retransmission services other than cable as well as new
transmission practices (such as direct injection, internet etc.). The results of this
information gathering exercise are presented in Annexes 1 and 2.
3. Finally, in accordance with the Better Regulation Guidelines, a 12 week on-line public
consultation was undertaken on the EU Survey website from 24 August 2015 until 16
November 2015 using a questionnaire based on the five criteria and questions of the
mandate. The questionnaire was available in 3 EU languages and attracted 256 responses.
An initial summary report of the findings was published in December 2015, and the full
report of the public consultation was published in May 2016 22.
The other (pre-existing) information / data sources that supported the evaluation include:
• The previous (2002) Report on the application of the Satellite and Cable Directive
(the "2002 Report") 23.
22
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-public-consultation-review-eu-satellite-and-
cable-directive
23
Report from the European Commission on the application of Council Directive 93/83/EEC on the
coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite
10
Its objective was to analyse the transposition into national law and to examine the practical
application of the Directive. In particular, the Report indicated that both the provisions
relating to satellite broadcasting and the provisions relating to cable retransmission had been
correctly transposed in all Member States. It also noted that "generally speaking, it appears
that the mechanisms put in place by the Directive contribute to the cross-border broadcasting
of television programmes", while recognising that "a trend is […] emerging whereby
producers sell their programmes to broadcasting organisations on condition that satellite
transmissions are encrypted so as to ensure that they cannot be received beyond national
borders". In addition, the Report analysed the evolution of television services, but concluded
that a review of the Directive was pre-mature at that stage: "ongoing technological
developments (including digital television and the Internet) will generate a manifold increase
in the possibilities and arrangements for the cross-border provision of audiovisual services.
The audiovisual services that will be offered in the near future will lead to changes in viewers'
habits through providing them with more individualised and personalised access to these
services. It is too early, however, to gauge the content and impact of these changes and,
hence, to determine at this stage whether it is necessary to extend the scope of Directive
93/83/EEC".
• The Commission's Green Paper of July 2011 on the online distribution of
audiovisual works 24.
It included questions on the extension of the right clearance regimes laid down in the
Directive to the online distribution of audiovisual works 25.
• The broad public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules of
December 2013 26.
It included questions on the territorial scope of the rights involved in digital transmissions and
the segmentation of the market through licensing agreements. Some questions specifically
addressed the problems related to the provision of and access to online services across
borders.
• The 2013 Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and
related rights in the information society prepared by De Wolf & Partners 27.
This study addressed, among other things, the content and elements of the Directive.
Concerning the satellite regime, the study included a section on the "making available right"
and its links to the Directive, in particular the implementation of the country of origin
principle together with the territoriality of copyright. The study also contained a detailed
section on the cable retransmission regime, describing the provisions of the Directive,
broadcasting and cable retransmission, COM/2002/0430 final
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/satellite-cable/index_en.htm
24
COM(2011)427final
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/docs/2011/audiovisual/green_paper_COM2011_427_en.p
df
25
The Satellite and Cable Directive concerns not only audiovisual works but all works protected by copyright
and all related subject matter protected by neighbouring rights. It also applies to satellite radio broadcasting.
26
Consultation document: http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-
rules/docs/consultation-document_en.pdf; Report on the responses to this public consultation:
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-rules/docs/contributions/consultation-
report_en.pdf
27
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/131216_study_en.pdf
11
analysing the definition of the cable retransmission right / its constitutive elements and
verifying how the cable retransmission regime had been applied by the national courts.
• The publications and data from the European Audiovisual Observatory, notably the
MAVISE database 28 and IRIS plus 2009-8 "Convergence, Copyrights and
Transfrontier Television" 29.
Limitations – robustness of findings
The intervention provided by the Directive has a particular character: it puts in place tools for
easier clearing of copyright, but does not oblige the market players to achieve any particular
result in terms of cross-border transmission / retransmission of TV and radio broadcasts.
Moreover, the tools provided build on and/or continue to leave the scope for the market
practices that pre-dated the Directive (contractual limitations regarding the exploitation of
rights in the case of satellite broadcasting, and licensing by broadcasters of their own rights as
well as the underlying rights aggregated from other right holders in the case of cable
retransmission). This character, combined with important technological and market
developments that have taken place since the adoption of the Directive but independently
from it, make it difficult to detect clear causal links between the intervention and the evolving
reality. Significant differences between the Member States, both in legal and economic terms,
have further complicated drawing clear conclusions.
Moreover, despite the extensive information / data gathering exercise, it was difficult to
obtain quantitative data. Specifically, the contractors in charge of the SatCab Study obtained
limited quantitative data regarding licensing practices and very limited data regarding
revenues obtained from different licensing practices. It was also not possible to obtain
quantitative data concerning the potential costs and benefits generated by the application of
the Directive. This is mainly due to these factors: (i) the confidentiality of such data; (ii) the
difficulty to extract data concerning the Directive from wider data sets; (iii) the fact that the
Directive has been in place for a long time.
Due to the budgetary and timing constraints, certain information / data gathering actions,
notably the SatCab Study, covered only a sample of Member States.
There are inherent limitations in the findings of the public consultation. Firstly, as in all
surveys, the answers received reflect the views of a sample of relevant stakeholders and not
those of the entire population who has a stake in this domain. Secondly, stakeholders' views
convey an individual rather than a holistic perspective.
Finally, since the Directive does not provide for monitoring arrangements (other than a report
by the Commission), the evaluation lacked evidence covering in a systematic and
comprehensive manner the whole period of its application.
Based on the elements above, this evaluation has been carried out on the basis of the best
available data. Whenever reliable quantitative data is lacking, this is indicated as appropriate
and counter balanced with qualitative analysis and considerations.
28
http://mavise.obs.coe.int/
29
IRIS plus 2009-8, Convergence, Copyrights and Transfrontier Television (Susanne Nikoltchev (Ed.),
European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg 2009):
http://merlin.obs.coe.int/iris/2009/8/article1000.en.html
12
SECTION 5 – IMPLEMENTATION STATE OF PLAY (RESULTS)
According to Article 14(2) of the Directive, Member States were required to transpose the
Directive at national level before 1 January 1995 30.
In 2002, in accordance with Article 14(3) of the Directive, the Commission carried out a
review to assess whether the objectives of the Directive had been achieved (the "2002
Report"). 31
The 2002 Report "revealed that the rules of the Directive were generally satisfactory
implemented in the then 15 Member States. The provisions relating to satellite broadcasting
in the transfer of copyright and related rights were correctly transposed into all national
legislations (i.e. Articles 2 and 3 of the Directive). The opportunity to extend the collective
agreement to rights-holders of the same category not included in the membership of collective
management organisations was only incorporated in the national law of those Member States
where this procedure was already established. Similarly, the provisions related to cable
retransmissions (Articles 8, 9 and 10) concerning payments in respect of cable
retransmissions rights were correctly transposed in all the Member States except Germany,
where the part related to alternative negotiations between collecting societies and cable
operators was defined as considerably weak. Finally, the provisions relating to the principles
of mediation and good faith were correctly transposed at national level." 32
Since then, 13 countries have joined the EU. All 28 Member States have introduced rules
having as their objective the transposition of the Directive. A table detailing the national
transposition laws, together with the relevant national case law from different Member States,
is presented in Annex 1 33.
As regards infringements, the Commission received a number of complaints regarding in
particular the mandatory collective management mechanism set out in the Directive for the
cable retransmission of broadcasts. One infringement procedure was launched against
Denmark, based on the additional conditions imposed by the Danish law on the collective
management organisations as regards exercising the cable retransmissions rights of the right
holders. The law in question required these organisations to represent a significant number of
national right holders. Denmark removed this condition from the law, and the case was closed
in 2001. An on-going infringement procedure against Poland concerns potential non-
compliance of Polish law with Article 10 of the Directive: contrary to the provisions of that
Article, no exemption from mandatory collective management seems to be provided for rights
held by broadcasting organisations.
The Directive appears to have been properly transposed in all the EU Member States subject
to the ongoing infringement and is generating relatively few legal disputes.
30
11 Member States were late to transpose the Directive into national law and communicate their transposition
measures.
31
Report from the European Commission on the application of Council Directive 93/83/EEC on the
coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite
broadcasting and cable retransmission, COM/2002/0430 final.
32
SatCab Study, Section 4.2.3
33
This Annex is based on the questionnaire sent to all Member States to gather details about the transposition
and application of the Directive in national law / legal orders.
13
SECTION 6 – EX-POST EVALUATION OF THE SATELLITE AND CABLE
DIRECTIVE
6.1. Effectiveness
6.1.1. To what extent has the SatCab Directive (COO principle) facilitated the clearance of
copyright and related rights for cross-border satellite broadcasts, contributed to ensuring
the legal certainty for satellite broadcasters and improved access to TV and radio
programmes from other Member States?
As explained above, in order to avoid the cumulative application of several national laws to
one single act of broadcasting, the Directive: (a) introduced a harmonised exclusive right to
authorise satellite transmissions of broadcasts (this right was later subsumed by Article 3 of
Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society - the "Infosoc
Directive"); (b) introduced a principle according to which the copyright and related rights
relevant act of communication to the public by satellite occurs solely in the Member State
from which the programme-carrying signals originate (and the right holders’ consent should
be acquired for this Member State).
Once transposed into national laws (and following the expiry of the transitional period that
lasted until 1 January 2000 for agreements remaining in force beyond the transposition
deadline - 1 January 1995), these provisions started to apply without the need for any
additional action on the part of Member States or the relevant stakeholders (right holders,
satellite broadcasters). They, therefore, almost immediately delivered on the Directive's
objectives to facilitate the clearance of copyright and enhance the legal certainty for satellite
broadcasters.
The research undertaken in the context of the SatCab Study confirmed that the Directive has
largely achieved the objective of eliminating copyright-related barriers to cross-border
satellite broadcasts. The stakeholders interviewed in the context of the study agreed that there
were no particular barriers to clearing such rights. This has been achieved through the
mechanism provided by the Directive by which broadcasters can acquire any underlying
rights that have not been assigned to them by producers or by other rights-holders during the
process of creating an audio-visual product. The Directive has also provided legal certainty
for those rights that broadcasters acquire from producers and other underlying rights-holders.
Finally, the Directive has confirmed that broadcasters and rights-holders have the freedom,
subject to the application of Union law, to determine the territories that are covered by
satellite communications.
Results of the public consultation
The results of the public consultation tend to indicate that the Directive has achieved its
objective of facilitating the clearance of rights for satellite broadcasting. Overall, about half of
the respondents considered that the existing provisions facilitated the clearance of rights at
least to some extent. Very limited evidence of problems in application of the Directive – e.g.
regarding the establishment of the place of transmission or calculation of the remuneration on
the basis of the footprint of the satellite broadcast – was provided. A number of stakeholders
also believed that it contributed to increased access by consumers to satellite services.
14
The synopsis report on the results of the public consultation provides an overview of the
positions expressed by the different types of stakeholders:
- A significant part of consumers and their representatives raised that the current
provisions of the Directive do not sufficiently ensure access to content available in other
Member States. Some consumers underlined that these problems concern not only
premium content (such as sports and films) but also other content, for instance cultural
programmes.
- The majority of Member States' public authorities considered that the country of origin
principle facilitated the clearance of rights. Some of them, however, underlined that the
practical application of this principle is limited for audiovisual 34.
- The majority of right holders did not consider that the application of the country of
origin principle facilitates the clearance of rights. Right holders indicated that multi-
territorial licences were available and that therefore there are no problems with
acquiring them. In their view, cross-border offerings of content are limited because of
insufficient consumer demand, language barriers as well as commercial choices of
service providers. Certain right holders, in particular film/AV producers, argued that the
application of the country of origin principle diminishes the scope of their rights
because it limits their freedom to license the rights as they see fit.
- A significant proportion of collective management organisations (CMOs) considered
that the application of the principle of country of origin has not facilitated copyright
clearance.
- The vast majority of broadcasters considered that the country of origin principle has
facilitated the clearance of rights at least to some extent. Also, they generally considered
that this principle increased consumers' cross-border access to satellite broadcasting
services. A number of commercial broadcasters submitted that there are obstacles to
cross-border access which are not related to copyright. Similarly to right holders, they
mentioned insufficient consumers' demand and language barriers.
- Other service providers (internet service providers (ISPs), internet protocol television
(IPTV) operators, digital terrestrial television (DTT) providers, cable operators,
telecommunication network operators and video on demand (VOD) operators) did not
have much experience with the practical application of the country of origin principle.
Yet, the majority of them considered that it has facilitated the right clearance and cross-
border access by consumers.
Moreover, the feedback collected during the public consultation shows that setting licence
fees for satellite transmissions available under the country of origin principle across borders
has not caused any substantial practical problems (only some respondents pointed to
34
As broadcasters use geo-blocking techniques to reinforce territorial distribution of broadcasts by satellite,
especially for audiovisual productions and sports content
15
difficulties with measuring the audience). In addition, the results of the public consultation
confirmed the absence of concrete substantial risk that broadcasters would relocate their place
of establishment due to the ease of clearing copyright (broadcasters are generally established
in the country where their main audience is located and rely on infrastructures which cannot
be easily relocated).
Concerning the Directive's objective to improve access to TV and radio programmes from
other Member States, as explained above, the Directive has not affected the freedom to agree
on limitations regarding the exploitation of rights to satellite broadcasting 35.
In the 2002 Report the Commission stated that “[c]omplete application of the principle of the
Directive, which involves moving beyond a purely national territorial approach, should […]
be encouraged in order to allow the internal market to be a genuine market without internal
frontiers for rightholders, operators and viewers alike.”
Indeed, "Broadcasters […] perceive that most value is in the distribution on a territorial basis
and acquire rights only for the specific territories that they wish to target. Encryption is then
widely used to prevent the reception of satellite services outside the target market. In
addition, technological advances are improving the ability to target satellite signals on a
specific territory, meaning that the extent of spill-over is reducing." 36
"While satellite services could potentially all be offered on a multinational basis, the analysis
suggests that in practice there are relatively few pan-European services. With the exception of
services such as some news and sports channels, the majority of satellite services are aimed
at specific geographic markets." 37
Nevertheless, satellite channels relying on the country of origin principle for the purpose of
licensing, notably non-encrypted channels, continue to be provided to European consumers:
35
It should be noted that in its 4 October 2011 judgement in Joined Cases C403/08 and C429/08, Football
Association Premier League Ltd v QC Leisure (C-403/08); Karen Murphy v Media Protection Services Ltd
(C-429/08) the Court of Justice of the EU considered, among other things, that the obligations on the
broadcasters not to supply decoding devices for use outside the territories covered by the licence agreements
(absolute territorial exclusivity clauses) constituted prohibited restrictions on competition under Article
101(1) TFEU which cannot be justified by Article 101(3) TFEU.
36
SatCab Study, Section 6.1
37
SatCab Study, Section 2.1.3
16
Free to view satellite channels available in 11 sample EU countries 2015 38
Viewing TV Channels Public or mixed Originating from other
country ownership Member States
Denmark 3 2 2
Germany 124 39 7
Ireland 2 2 2
Spain 22 15 3
France 7 2 3
Italy 110 14 3
Hungary 8 5 2
Netherlands 16 13 2
Poland 22 6 3
Sweden 5 2 2
United Kingdom 144 36 2
TOTAL 463 136 34
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database
informitv analysis
Despite a limited amount of evidence, there are indications that overall the Directive (COO
principle) has facilitated the clearance of copyright and related rights for cross-border satellite
broadcasts and contributed to ensuring the legal certainty for satellite broadcasters, notably
those operating in a particular satellite broadcasting market segment – free to view satellite
TV / radio (that does not include encrypted and territorially limited satellite pay-TV / radio
services). For all these free to view transmissions broadcasters need to obtain rights only for
the Member State of origin. As such, it can be considered that the Directive contributed to
improved access to TV and radio programmes from other Member States to a limited but
tangible extent.
6.1.2. To what extent has the SatCab Directive (notably, mandatory collective management)
facilitated the clearance of copyright and related rights for the simultaneous
retransmissions by cable of broadcasts from other Member States while ensuring a high
level of protection for right holders and to what extent it has improved access to TV and
radio broadcasts from other Member States?
As explained above, the Directive provided for the two-stop-shop copyright clearing
mechanism for cable retransmission: individual licensing by broadcasters combined with
mandatory collective management of all other - "underlying" - rights.
As regards the Directive's objective to facilitate the clearance of copyright for cable
retransmission while ensuring a high level of protection for right holders, the SatCab Study
explains that the Directive has largely achieved its aim of eliminating copyright-related
barriers to cross-border retransmissions via cable. According to the stakeholders interviewed
in the context of the study, the combined application of individual licensing by broadcasters
and mandatory collective management resulted in a well-functioning system for the clearance
of rights: “Some broadcasters acquire most rights from producers and/or other rights-holders
and then make use of Article 10 to assign rights for retransmission to cable operators in other
countries. Broadcasters welcome the contractual freedom that they are allowed under Article
38
SatCab Study, Section 2.3.2
17
10, as well as the right to retain control over their channels and thus determine where and by
whom those channels are retransmitted. For those rights that are not directly cleared by the
broadcaster, mostly music rights but also rights of audio-visual authors and producers, cable
operators are able to make use of mandatory collective management under Article 9. Cable
operators welcome the opportunity to clear rights collectively and in their own country,
rather than on an individual basis with rights-holders in other countries." 39
For certain collective management organisations licensing cable retransmission rights is a
primary activity. In particular, this is the case for organisations belonging to AGICOA (the
Association for the International Collective Management of Audiovisual Works), an
international, not-for-profit organisation representing, collecting and distributing royalties to
independent producers of audiovisual works. For certain other organisations it is an important
activity. For instance, as reported by SAA (Society of Audiovisual Authors), "in many
European countries, cable retransmission royalties represent more than 40% of the
collections of audiovisual authors’ CMOs (Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia,
Finland, Hungary, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Netherlands and the UK). In
these countries, cable retransmission royalties are the authors’ main revenue generated from
the use of their works, in particular from foreign countries." 40
In contrast, retransmission revenue represents a small proportion of annual income of
collective management organisations representing music producers (it appears that, at least in
some Member States, cable retransmission revenue is slightly higher than e.g. IPTV
retransmission revenue): 41
Member State Cable IPTV OTT
(Mandatory (Voluntary (Voluntary
Collective Collective Collective
Licensing) Licensing) Licensing)
ES 3.6% 5.6% (Mandatory and N/A
voluntary licensing)
HU 3.2% N/A N/A
IE 2.1% 0.15% N/A
IT N/A 0.03% 0.22%
NL 5.4% (This includes N/A
cable and IPTV)
PL 3.2% N/A N/A
UK 0.009% N/A N/A
The SatCab Study examined the possible impacts of mandatory collective management on
right holders, in terms of management of rights and licensing revenues, explaining that this
impact strongly depends on the capacity of a right holder to conclude licensing deals with
cable operators: " an individual rights-holder that is well-established in the market place and
supported by appropriate legal expertise could independently reach an agreement with users
that may surpass the revenue potential of the collective approach and take into account
broader strategic considerations to generating revenues from transferring certain rights to
specific users. However, stakeholder feedback suggests that many authors and performers are
39
SatCab Study, Section 6.3
40
SAA contribution to the public consultation
41
SatCab Study, Section 5.3
18
not in this position and this was suggested to cover a large segment of this business
population in terms of the number of operators." 42
As regards the Directive's objective to improve access to TV and radio broadcasts from other
Member States, the available market data points to a significant number of TV channels
retransmitted by cable in different EU Member States 43:
Comparison of international, national or regional channels available on cable
services versus channels established in 11 sample EU countries 2015
Channels established in country
Viewing country DK DE IE ES FR IT HU NL PL SE UK
Denmark 44 17 2 11 3 11 2 46 96
Germany 316 3 32 10 1 7 6 51
Ireland 26 13 5 436
Spain 1 201 28 1 1 1 33
France 34 10 352 14 24 6 2 90
Italy 7 2 23 348 2 2 44
Hungary 14 2 35 2 44 10 1 139
Netherlands 65 2 45 2 165 2 94
Poland 11 34 12 16 122 114
Sweden 3 3 1 18 3 2 11 2 127 134
United Kingdom 5 1 14 1 10 617
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database extract
informitv analysis
Results of the public consultation
The results of the public consultation confirm that the Directive has largely achieved its
objectives as far as cable retransmission is concerned. The majority of respondents considered
that the Directive has facilitated the clearance of rights for the simultaneous retransmission by
cable of programmes broadcast from other Member States and has helped consumers to have
more access to broadcasting services across borders.
The synopsis report on the results of the public consultation provides an overview of the
positions expressed by the different types of stakeholders:
- The few consumers who replied to the questions related to cable retransmission
expressed a rather negative view on the effectiveness of the current provisions and the
degree to which they increased consumers' access to broadcasting services. Some of
them stressed the existence of gaps in the offer of channels on cable networks.
- Member States / public authorities considered that the Directive has facilitated the
clearance of rights for cable retransmission and has helped increasing consumers' access
to broadcasting services across the EU. Some, however, underlined that sometimes it is
not clear which rights are managed by collective management organisations and which
are managed by broadcasters.
42
SatCab Study, Section 5.2.7
43
SatCab Study, Section 2.3.7
19
- The majority of right holders did not think that the current cable retransmission rules
have either facilitated the clearance of rights or have resulted in greater consumers'
access to broadcasting services across the EU. Phonogram producers, music publishers
and audiovisual producers considered that they are adversely affected by these rules,
because they cannot issue licences on fair market terms. Some right holders highlighted
the limited consumer demand for cross-border access to audiovisual content services or
the limited business demand for foreign TV channels or multi-territorial licences.
Respondents representing authors and performers had a much more positive view.
- The vast majority of collective management organisations (CMOs) considered that the
Directive has facilitated the clearance of rights and has helped increasing consumers'
access to broadcasting services across the EU.
- Similarly, a clear majority of broadcasters evaluated positively the current provisions
and their role in ensuring consumers' access to broadcasting services across the EU.
This is especially the case for public service broadcasters. However, some commercial
broadcasters pointed to the scope for double payments in case CMOs assert their rights
to license all rights irrespective whether they have been transferred to broadcasters or
not.
- Finally, the majority of other service providers (including cable operators) also
considered that the Directive has facilitated the clearance of rights and has helped
increasing consumers' access to broadcasting services across the EU. Still, according to
some of them, it is not always clear which rights are managed by CMOs and which by
broadcasters.
Despite a limited amount of evidence, the Directive (notably, mandatory collective
management) can be considered to have largely facilitated the clearance of copyright and
related rights for the simultaneous retransmissions by cable of broadcasts from other Member
States. While some stakeholders prefer individual licensing over collective management, the
Directive has, overall, ensured a high level of protection for right holders. It has also
improved access to TV and radio broadcasts from other Member States for consumers.
6.1.3. Have the negotiation and mediation mechanisms established under the SatCab
Directive contributed to promoting the acquisition of rights?
The Member States have put in place different negotiation facilitation / mediation
mechanisms (Member States typically rely on generic mechanisms - not dedicated to the
Directive only - or "light" approaches, such as drawing a list of potential mediators), and they
have been used to a varying, but overall limited, degree in practice. A table detailing
arrangements for / experience with those mechanisms in different Member States is presented
in Annex 2 44.
Results of the public consultation
According to the results of the public consultation, the Directive has partially achieved its
objectives as far as negotiation and mediation mechanisms are concerned.
44
This Annex is based on the questionnaire sent to all Member States to gather details about the transposition
and application of the Directive in national law / legal orders.
20
Right holders and most of collective management organisations (CMOs), broadcasters and
other service providers such as ISPs, IPTVs, DTTs and telecom operators indicated that the
mechanism has not been used or has been used only occasionally. These respondents listed as
the main reasons for this situation the fact that the negotiations usually bring expected results
and hence there is no need to resort to mediation, the non-existence of the appropriate
mediation mechanism or alternatively the inefficiency of the existing system. On the latter,
the respondents pointed to time-consuming procedures, deficiencies as to the confidentiality
of the process, high costs involved and the fact that the results of mediation are not binding
for the parties.
On the other hand, occasional use of the mechanism and the overall positive role played by
the mechanism was reported by cable operators and a limited number of CMOs. Despite a
very limited practical relevance of the mechanism, some CMOs, broadcasters and IPTV
operators support its application but complemented and reinforced e.g. by a firm timeframe to
ensure efficient process.
The negotiation and mediation mechanisms established under the Directive have been used to
a varying, but overall limited, degree. Nevertheless, they are perceived to have played a
positive role in the few cases where they have been used.
6.2. Efficiency
Has the application of i) the country of origin principle, ii) the mandatory collective
management and iii) the mediation and negotiation mechanisms resulted in any specific
costs and benefits?
6.2.1 Direct costs
The Directive has not imposed any charges on the market players.
As regards administrative costs, the Directive does not provide for any market monitoring
arrangements or reporting obligations to be fulfilled by the Member States (except for
communicating to the Commission national transposition measures) or the market players.
Nevertheless, since the application of the country of origin principle involves calculating the
licence fee on the basis of the actual and potential audience, both in the Member State of
broadcast and in any Member State of reception, satellite broadcasters have to collect such
audience information when they make their broadcasts available in multiple Member States.
The data collected in the context of this evaluation does not allow to determine the
administrative costs resulting from such information collection.
As regards substantive compliance costs, in the business-as-usual scenario the licensing
relationships (the subject matter targeted by the Directive) typically involve transaction costs
(costs required to reach a deal) for both the licensor (right holder) and the licensee (satellite
broadcaster, cable operator), licence fees paid by the licensee to the licensor as well as fees
charged to individual right holders by collective management organisations.
As explained above, once transposed into national laws (and following the expiry of the
transitional period that lasted until 1 January 2000 for agreements remaining in force beyond
the transposition deadline - 1 January 1995), the provisions of the Directive establishing the
country of origin principle started to apply without the need for any additional action on the
part of Member States or the relevant stakeholders (right holders, satellite broadcasters). They
21
could have involved limited one-off costs stemming from the need for the market players to
familiarise themselves with the new regulatory situation, but have not led to any other
(recurrent) substantive compliance costs.
The results 45 of the public consultation showed that a majority of stakeholders consider that
the application of these provisions of the Directive has not resulted in specific costs. In
particular, Member States and public authorities, public and commercial broadcasters, and
phonogram producers agree that the application of the country of origin principle to the
satellite broadcasting has ensured legal certainty and therefore has reduced costs. Some
CMOs signalled costs (from legal and political perspective, but not administrative), and some
AV producers referred to an increase in administrative costs. Finally some CMOs and cable
operators consider that the uncertainty in the application of the principle led to an increase in
legal costs and management time.
The substantive compliance costs stemming from the provisions of the Directive establishing
mandatory collective management consisted (potentially) of (i) costs associated with setting
up collective management organisations to license cable retransmission rights and (ii) fees
paid by individual right holders to CMOs for their collection/distribution services. As regards
the first category, a network of CMOs (and cable licensing arrangements) was largely already
in place by the time the Directive has started to apply. As regards the second category, such
fees usually represent a small part of the licensing revenue collected (e.g. AGICOA network
of CMOs - one of the main licensing entities as far as cable retransmission is concerned -
charged 5% in 2015 46).
Most of stakeholders (Member States and public authorities, public and commercial
broadcasters, CMOs) that replied to the public consultation considered that the mandatory
collective management has not resulted in specific costs.
No substantive compliance costs are generated by the provisions of the Directive on the
mediation and negotiation mechanisms, since the parties to the cable retransmission licensing
relationship have a possibility (but are not obliged) to call upon the assistance of mediators.
Most of stakeholders (Member States and public authorities, public and commercial
broadcasters, CMOs) that replied to the public consultation considered that these mechanisms
(as part of the mandatory collective management regime) have not resulted in specific costs.
However a few reported that the costs (fees paid for the mediation) were one of the reasons
why the mechanisms were not used.
As regards the implementation and enforcement costs, a Member State setting up a mediation
mechanism dedicated to the disputes arising in the field of application of the Directive might
incur both one-off (CAPEX) costs and recurrent (OPEX) costs. These potential costs depend
on the precise nature of the mechanism. For instance, the operating costs of the French cinema
mediator (le Mediateur du cinema 47) amounted to €217.526 euros in 2014. 48 CMOs that
45
Stakeholders were asked specific questions on whether in their view the country of origin principle and the
application of the system of management of cable retransmissions had resulted in any specific costs. They
were asked to further explain their (positive) replies. Despite this fact, we were not able to obtain
quantitative data concerning costs.
46
http://www.agicoa.org/english/about/factsandfigures.html
47
http://www.lemediateurducinema.fr
48
Source: 2014 Activity Report, February 2015.
http://www.lemediateurducinema.fr/Mediateur/Includes/Pdf/rapport_2014.pdf
22
operate alternative dispute resolution mechanisms report that the costs of setting them up
would be in the range of €35.000, and the operating costs - in the range of €11.000 per year.
However, as explained above, Member States typically rely on generic mechanisms (not
dedicated to the Directive only) or "light" approaches (such as drawing a list of potential
mediators). Therefore, in reality these costs are likely to be limited.
6.2.2 Indirect costs
In the public consultation some stakeholders referred to possible negative impacts on the
market functioning of both the country of origin principle (claiming that it could undermine
the territory-by-territory content distribution strategies) and mandatory collective
management (claiming that it does not allow for the licensing of cable retransmission rights
on fair market terms). However no evidence or data were provided to support those claims.
The data collected in the context of this evaluation does not allow drawing firm conclusions
in this regard. Nevertheless, concerning the country of origin principle, the Directive left open
the possibility for contractual limitations regarding the exploitation of rights to satellite
broadcasting, thereby preserving right holders' freedom to choose audiovisual production-
distribution strategies. Concerning mandatory collective management, the EU has recently
taken action to improve the functioning of CMOs, notably by adopting Directive 2014/26/EU
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective
management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical
works for online use in the internal market 49 which, among other, introduces rules on
governance and transparency of CMOs.
6.2.3 Benefits
The main (recurrent) direct regulatory benefit of the Directive has been cost savings for the
licensors and the licensees: where different entities are managing the same (e.g. music) rights
in different territories, the effect of the Directive was to require a single licence in the country
of origin instead of (potentially) multiple licences for the country of origin and the countries
of reception falling within the satellite's footprint. Licence fees were not to be affected, as
they have to be calculated taking into account the actual and potential audience, both in the
Member State of broadcast and in any Member State of reception.
Illustration of the benefits of the country of origin principle for TV broadcasters 50
Two of the six pay TV service providers with the most subscribers are cross-border operators (albeit with the
majority of their subscribers in the country of origin), namely Sky UK and Sky Deutschland (see Table 2.29).
Another example, Modern Times Group serves its audiences almost entirely via cross-border broadcasts: whilst
its signal is uploaded in the UK, this signal is only available to audiences in other countries, i.e. in the Baltics
and Scandinavia.
Illustration of the benefits of the country of origin principle for radio broadcasters 51
The “country of origin” principle is key to enable remuneration by radios of rightholders in an appropriate
manner. Radios are SMEs and therefore need as simple as possible licensing means to be able to clear all the
required rights. Ideally, radio needs to obtain blanket licensing covering all of radios’ activities online and
offline from one-stop-shops. This seems only feasible if a “country-of-origin” principle is applied.
49
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32014L0026
50
SatCab Study, Section 6.1
51
AER contribution to the public consultation
23
Similarly, the impact of the provisions on mandatory collective management of cable
retransmission rights is that individual right holders (e.g. audiovisual producers) need only to
join a CMO instead of managing multiple contracts with cable operators from different
Member States, and cable operators only need one licence for a category of right holders from
a CMO in their country of operation instead of multiple licences from individual right holders
based in different Member States. Change from individual licensing to collective management
of rights can have an effect on licence fees and licensing revenue (rather positive for small
right holders 52, rather negative for big right holders), but the evidence collected in the context
of this evaluation is scarce and inconclusive 53.
Illustration of the benefits of the cable licensing regime 54
Virgin Media (previously UPC Ireland) is retransmitting by cable the TV channels of UK broadcaster ITV in
Ireland. Virgin Media receives the feed of an ITV channel from an English region. This feed includes the
underlying rights for Ireland. Those rights are negotiated in a collective agreement between ITV, Virgin and the
respective collective management organisations. As the licensee, Virgin Media pays all these parties, including
ITV.
Despite a limited amount of evidence, the Directive can be considered to have been a cost-
efficient and beneficial intervention. It has not created administrative burden or significant
compliance / implementation costs for either stakeholders or Member States. The Directive
has helped to reduce the transaction costs for the licensors and the licensees. Certain identified
specific costs resulting from the application of the Directive (CMO fees charged for managing
cable retransmission rights) can be regarded to be outweighed by benefits - savings in
transaction costs. Some right holders referred to the Directive's possible negative impacts on
the market functioning. However, they are not estimated to be significant in the case of the
country of origin principle, since the Directive has left open the possibility for contractual
limitations regarding the exploitation of rights to satellite broadcasting; and, in the case of
mandatory management of cable retransmission rights, since individuals or SMEs, the
category to which most right holders belong, due to their limited capacity to carry out
multiple individual negotiations, are generally considered to be the main beneficiaries of this
copyright clearing approach.
6.3. Relevance
How well do the original objectives still correspond to the needs (including of EU citizens)
within the EU?
Satellite broadcasting
As far as direct satellite broadcasting is concerned (i.e. when a broadcasting organisation
introduces signal into the uninterrupted chain of communication), without the country of
origin principle there would be uncertainty as to whether a satellite broadcast is a restricted
act in all Member States within the footprint of the satellite (in the sense that an authorisation
from right holders in each Member State could be required for cross-border satellite
52
According to Eurostat Structural Business Statistics, in the sector of programming and broadcasting
activities, 98.9% of companies are SMEs (85% micro-companies) generating 17.9% of the value added. In
the sector of film and music production, 99.9% of companies are SMEs (96% micro-companies) generating
85% of the value added (32% by micro-companies).
53
SatCab Study, Sections 5.2.7 and 5.3
54
SatCab Study, Section 5.2.4
24
transmissions). This issue remains relevant for those broadcasting organisations which engage
in 'cross-border' broadcasting, i.e. direct broadcasting from one Member State to another as
otherwise the same uncertainty as to the need to clear rights in the Member State of
transmission or the Member State of reception would continue. It is not relevant for those
organisations that offer satellite packages as these are essentially national. As indicated in the
SatCab Study: "the majority of all satellite channels that are available in Europe are
encrypted pay-television channels. 64% of the television channels available on the main SES
and Eutelsat satellites are pay channels […] available through service providers. In most
cases these encrypted pay channels are offered as part of package of channels, some of which
may also be available free-to-air. Some encrypted channels may be free to view, as part of a
package of channels." 55
In 2009 the European Audiovisual Observatory analysed 56 channels broadcast outside
packages on the 37 active satellites centred on Europe and concluded that among 5,500 or so
channels broadcast by the same satellites in Europe 1,500 channels 57 were broadcast outside
packages. Out of these 1,500 channels, 710 channels were designated as 'European channels'
in the sense that either the channel is licensed or the broadcaster is established in Europe.
Similarly, the SatCab Study identifies the number of non-encrypted satellite TV channels
available in 11 Member States:
Free to view satellite channels available in 11 sample EU countries 2015 58
Free to view satellite channels available
Viewing TV Channels Public or mixed Originating from other
country ownership Member States
Denmark 3 2 2
Germany 124 39 7
Ireland 2 2 2
Spain 22 15 3
France 7 2 3
Italy 110 14 3
Hungary 8 5 2
Netherlands 16 13 2
Poland 22 6 3
Sweden 5 2 2
United Kingdom 144 36 2
TOTAL 463 136 34
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database
informitv analysis
This shows that the provisions of the Directive are relevant for a significant number of
channels in Europe.
As regards the second specific objective with regard to the satellite broadcasting, i.e.
improving access to TV and radio programmes from other Member States, in general, as
55
SatCab Study, Section 2.4.2
56
IRIS plus 2009-8, Convergence, Copyrights and Transfrontier Television (Susanne Nikoltchev (Ed.),
European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg 2009).
57
The various language versions of a channel were considered as being different channels
58
SatCab Study, Section 2.3.2
25
already raised in the 2002 Report, the territorial exploitation of satellite broadcasts, a process
which had already been present prior to the Directive's adoption, has continued. 59 This is not
caused by the territoriality of copyright (as pursuant to the country of origin principle the
rights need to be cleared for one country only) but is a consequence of licensing contracts that
limit the exploitation of works to the territory of a given Member State. Audiovisual (AV)
content is mainly licensed and distributed on a territorial basis. AV producers of premium
content 60 typically grant an exclusive licence to a single distributor/broadcaster/service
provider in each Member State. This form of licensing is considered by right holders to be
important for the financing of European AV works, with rights being often pre-sold at the pre-
production stage. In exchange for an upfront payment to the film producers, distributors
and/or broadcasters often obtain exclusive exploitation rights in a specific territory for a
defined period of time. As a result, TV broadcasters often make their channels available only
in the territory of one Member State.
As indicated in the below table 61, satellite broadcasting remains an important source of TV
and radio programmes for EU citizens: 62
Television homes in thousands by platform in 11 sample EU countries 2015
000s Terrestrial Satellite Cable Telco
Country Free Pay Free Pay All Digital
Denmark 194 307 45 193 1671 999 460
Germany 1777 14034 2020 17300 6158 2562
Ireland 189 237 707 404 363 57
Spain 11735 231 515 1553 1208 1112 1993
France 9020 1038 4861 6816 3136 1095 11907
Italy 15085 2805 1994 4734 231
Hungary 428 117 119 926 1847 734 512
Netherlands 15 441 15 636 4721 3577 1772
Poland 2764 133 727 6334 4350 2411 326
Sweden 26 560 261 628 2347 794 822
United Kingdom 8333 1860 10227 3770 3770 2422
TOTAL 49566 5632 24668 34774 40754 21013 23064
EU-28 57832 6282 28762 41174 56415 30736 28321
Source: Digital TV Research Digital TV World Databook for free-to-air; European Audiovisual Observatory
Yearbook 2015informitv analysis
Therefore, the main objectives of the Directive for satellite broadcasting, i.e. (1) end the legal
uncertainty regarding the rights to be acquired and (2) improving access to TV and radio
programmes from other Member States, have not lost relevance since its adoption.
Cable retransmission
59
See Joined Cases C403/08 and C429/08, Football Association Premier League Ltd, v QC Leisure, (C-
403/08); Karen Murphy v Media Protection Services Ltd (C-429/08) and the Commission's Statement of
Objections on cross-border provision of pay-TV services available in UK and Ireland at
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-15-5432_en.htm
60
Audiovisual content (such as films, series) which is considered as a vital input for broadcasting services
because it attracts substantial audiences and thus generate substantial revenues for right holders.
61
SatCab Study, Section 2.2.9
62
The adoption of satellite subscriptions is forecast by Digital TV Research to remain relatively flat through to
2020, at around 18% of television homes in the current 28 European Union countries, Section 2.4.1
26
The rationale behind the copyright clearing system provided by the Directive is to ensure that
cable operators are in a position to acquire all rights necessary for retransmission of TV and
radio channels and that there are no black-outs in the retransmitted channels or programmes.
At the time of adoption of the Directive it was considered that individual licensing was
impractical in the case of retransmission, while voluntary collective management would not
guarantee the absence of black-outs. 63 This rationale continues to be relevant for cable
retransmissions today (no alternatives to facilitate licensing for cable operators have emerged
in the meantime).
Moreover, the objective of improving access to TV and radio broadcasts from other Member
States remains relevant, whatever the technique, and therefore also for the retransmissions
carried by cable, which remains an important source of TV and radio programmes for EU
citizens (see the table above), including for "foreign" TV channels: 177 such channels are
available to cable subscribers in Germany, 150 in France, 158 in the Netherlands, 143 in
Portugal, 163 in Denmark, 159 in Poland, 168 in Ireland and 232 in Hungary 64.
Therefore, the two objectives - (1) to help cable operators to clear the retransmission rights
from every right holder involved in a TV or radio programme and (2) to improve access to TV
and radio broadcasts from other Member States - remain relevant for retransmissions carried
out by cable.
How well adapted is the intervention to subsequent technological advances?
The main principles of the Directive, i.e. the country of origin for satellite transmissions and
the mandatory collective management for cable retransmission are technology-specific. The
principle of the country of origin does not apply when a broadcaster clears rights for its online
services. For online services offered across borders this potentially implies clearing rights in
multiple jurisdictions. The difficulties related to such clearance of rights may reduce
broadcaster's incentives to provide cross-border services.
The mandatory collective management system is limited to retransmissions by cable and
therefore does not extend to retransmissions by other means such as IPTV 65 or OTT 66. This
means that, depending on the Member State (as national solutions may exist), providers of
retransmission services by means other than cable cannot benefit from the system facilitating
the clearance of relevant rights. Such providers therefore face a heavy rights clearing burden
in order to be able to provide their services.
Since the adoption of the Directive TV and radio, but especially TV, have undergone a digital
revolution thanks to the development of broadband internet access that allows the provision of
high-quality online video and audio services over the internet. TV is still watched in the
traditional manner but the new modes of viewing are increasingly important: 96% of
Europeans watch television every day or almost every day, predominantly on a TV set but
increasingly online (in 2014, 20% of Europeans – but 40% of those aged 15-24 – watched TV
online at least once a week, representing a 3% increase compared to 2012). Analogue TV is
63
The system of mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission of broadcasts is compatible
with Article 11bis(2) of the Berne Convention which allows compulsory licences for any communication to
the public by wire when this communication is made by an organization other than the original one.
64
Data from the European Audiovisual Observatory
65
Internet protocol television
66
Over-the-top or open Internet television
27
switching to digital 67 and broadcasters are now commonly providing online offerings in
addition to their 'traditional' broadcasting services. These offerings include: simulcasting
services (TV/radio channels which are transmitted online alongside traditional broadcasting
by satellite, cable, terrestrial), webcasting services (online only linear channels 68), TV catch-
up services 69 and podcasts, i.e. radio programmes that can be streamed or downloaded as well
as other on-demand services (e.g. VOD).
Nowadays TV and radio channels reach viewers and listeners through several types of
retransmission service providers: cable TV/radio providers, satellite TV/radio (package)
providers, IPTV (TV/radio over closed circuit IP-based networks) providers, digital terrestrial
TV (DTT) providers and also the emerging over-the-top (OTT) TV/radio service providers.
The core business activity of retransmission service providers is to aggregate TV and radio
channels into packages (basic, premium, thematic, etc.) and to provide them to consumers
simultaneously to their initial transmission, unaltered and unabridged, typically against
payment.
IPTV and OTT have been developing at a fast pace recently, which is explained by several
technological and business factors: (i) IPTV and OTT have superior retransmission capacity;
(ii) they are more attractive to consumers due to built-in interactivity of services and can be
enjoyed (in the case of OTT) without the need for a dedicated hardware (such as a set-top-box
and/or a satellite antenna); (iii) they are well promoted by numerous operators and major
Internet platforms.
Finally, in some jurisdictions, 70 broadcasters inject program-carrying signals directly into
cable networks (without any prior broadcast). This way of transmission is known as 'direct
injection' as signals are directly injected by a broadcaster into the media gateway. It is argued
that in such cases no retransmission of signals initially broadcast by another organisation
occurs anymore and that therefore the provisions of the Directive on mandatory collective
management do not apply. In Case C-325/14, SBS Belgium NV v Belgische Vereniging van
Auteurs, Componisten en Uitgevers (SABAM), 71 the CJEU ruled that:
"Article 3(1) of Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of
22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the
information society, must be interpreted as meaning that a broadcasting organisation does
not carry out an act of communication to the public, within the meaning of that provision,
when it transmits its programme-carrying signals exclusively to signal distributors without
those signals being accessible to the public during, and as a result of that transmission, those
distributors then sending those signals to their respective subscribers so that they may watch
those programmes, unless the intervention of the distributors in question is just a technical
means, which it is for the national court to ascertain."
67
The gradual switchover from analogue to digital terrestrial television was completed in 2012. The remaining
analogue cable services in Europe are expected to complete the migration to digital networks by 2020.
68
As of February 2016, BBC Three channel is available only online. On 31 May 2016, RTL II (Germany)
launched its online channel RTL II You, which combines linear services with video-on-demand.
69
The concept of ‘catch-up’ television, enabling consumers to view programmes at the own choice of timing,
is generally based on clearance of the rights for programming within a limited window, typically 7 to 30
days after transmission.
70
E.g. the Netherlands and Belgium, see IRIS plus 2014-4 "Copyright, technology and the exploitation of
audiovisual works in the EU", L. Guibault and J.P. Quintais, p. 20-21
71
http://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?docid=171788&doclang=en
28
Depending on the development of the direct injection mode of transmission, retransmission
by cable may become less significant.
Results of the public consultation
The public consultation asked stakeholders if, in their view, the current EU action was still
relevant in the satellite and cable markets. A large majority of respondents from all sectors
confirmed that EU action was still relevant in both areas.
The Directive remains relevant, both as regards facilitating licensing of satellite broadcasts /
cable retransmissions and as regards improving consumers' access to TV and radio broadcasts
from other Member States. Within the scope of application of the Directive (satellite
broadcasting and cable retransmission) its relevance has been limited by two factors: the
proliferation of territorially-limited satellite pay-TV offerings and the practice to inject
programme-carrying signals directly into cable networks (without any prior broadcast).
Otherwise the Directive - due to the technology-specific nature of its provisions - does not
cover various TV and radio broadcast transmission and retransmission means that have
emerged in recent years.
6.4. Coherence
Is this intervention coherent with other EU actions?
Internal coherence: The country of origin provisions of the Directive facilitate licensing for
satellite broadcasting services thereby stimulating the offer of such services. Similarly, the
cable retransmission regime and the associated mediation and negotiation mechanisms
stimulate the development of cable TV services. Together the two sets of provisions (i) make
it easier to communicate TV and radio broadcasts to audiences in other Member States; (ii)
enable such audiences to have a choice of the technological means to access foreign TV /
radio broadcasts – satellite or cable. The internal coherence is confirmed by the market data:
as explained in other sections of this SWD, both types of services have been successfully
deployed in different Member States, and foreign TV / radio broadcasts are available on both
satellite and cable.
Coherence with other interventions which have similar objectives: The Directive is coherent
with other EU instruments harmonising copyright and its management. Notably, the exclusive
right to authorise satellite transmissions of broadcasts provided by the Directive was
subsumed by Article 3 of the 2001 "Infosoc Directive". Moreover, while the Directive
provides for mandatory collective management of cable retransmission rights, the recent
Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on
collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights
in musical works for online use in the internal market aims at improving the functioning of
CMOs and, at the same time, the efficiency of management of cable retransmission rights.
The Directive is also coherent with other EU harmonisation instruments in the audiovisual
sector. In particular, the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) is aimed at creating
a single market in audiovisual media services (including TV broadcasting services) through
the country-of-origin based regulation. It therefore makes sure that there are no regulatory
obstacles (related to advertising, protection of minors, etc.) to show TV broadcasts to viewers
in other Member States. The Directive considered that "the legal framework for the creation
of a single audiovisual area laid down in Directive 89/552/EEC [the "Television without
29
frontiers directive", the precursor of AVMSD] must […] be supplemented with reference to
copyright" 72, since its achievement "in respect of cross-border satellite broadcasting and the
cable retransmission of programmes from other Member States is currently still obstructed by
a series of differences between national rules of copyright and some degree of legal
uncertainty" 73. Indeed, the AVMSD and the Directive share common history and purpose 74
and provide a legal framework for the free movement of services in the audiovisual sector.
Finally, the Directive is coherent with the EU non-legislative instruments in the audiovisual
sector. Specifically, the Creative Europe's MEDIA Sub-programme provides financial support
for the development, promotion and distribution of European films and other audiovisual
works. Often such works are acquired by TV broadcasters 75. In other words, the sub-
programme helps enriching TV broadcasts which ultimately reach Europeans through satellite
and cable services.
Coherence with wider EU policy: The Directive is coherent with the EU Digital Single
Market (DSM) policy. In particular, the Digital Single Market Strategy 76, adopted on 6 May
2015, aims at ensuring better access for consumers and businesses to digital goods and
services across Europe. The Directive contributes to this objective by making it easier to
access TV / radio broadcasts from other Member States.
Results of the public consultation
Respondents to the public consultation had the opportunity to express their views concerning
the coherence of this action with other EU actions. Most of them consider the Directive to be
coherent with other EU policies.
The Directive is coherent both internally and with other EU interventions pursuing similar
objectives, notably those in the audiovisual and media sectors. Moreover, the Directive's
objectives remain valid in view of the new Commission priorities, including the completion of
the digital single market.
6.5. EU Added Value
Did EU action provide added value as compared to an action taken at the Member State
level?
As the country of origin principle has the objective of localising the copyright relevant act of
satellite transmission in a single Member State, it could have only been introduced at EU
level. In other words: even if a Member State adopted a law stipulating that copyright needs to
be cleared only for that Member State in the scenario where, under the control and
responsibility of the broadcasting organisation, the programme-carrying signals are
introduced in the territory of the Member State into an uninterrupted chain of communication
leading to the satellite and down towards the earth, such law would not bind other Member
72
Recital 12 of the Directive
73
Recital 5 of the Directive
74
See Prof. P. Bernt Hugenholtz "SatCab Revisited: The Past, Present and Future of the Satellite and Cable
Directive", IRIS plus 2009-8, p. 7
75
E.g. the proportion of programme schedule time devoted to European fiction broadcast by the public service
general-interest channels was 57.6% in 2013. See André Lange (ed.), "Fiction on European TV channels
(2006-2013)", European Audiovisual Observatory (Council of Europe), December 2014.
76
COM(2015)192
30
States the authorities (e.g. courts) of which could continue to consider that the act of satellite
transmission takes places in the territories of such other Member States too, if their residents
can access the transmission.
It continues to be so and the potential withdrawal of this intervention would result in a
situation in which satellite broadcasters would be faced with legal uncertainty as to the
clearance of rights for cross-border transmissions.
As regards cable retransmission, national solutions are possible (and, as explained above,
were put in place in some Member States before the adoption of the Directive) but would not
guarantee a uniform application of the rules across the EU and could lead to a fragmentation
of the internal market as far as cable retransmission services are concerned.
As regards satellite broadcasting, the Directive has provided significant added value, since no
action with a comparable result could have been taken at the Member State level. As regards
cable retransmission, action at the Member State level is possible, but the Directive has
provided added value by establishing harmonised rules across the internal market.
SECTION 7 – CONCLUSIONS
Clear-cut conclusions on the performance of this Directive are difficult to draw, as its
evaluation can only rely on very limited evidence. Obtaining data on licensing practices and
licensing costs was especially challenging. It can, however, be observed that all Member
States have introduced rules having as their objective the transposition of the Directive and
that the transposed rules have generated over the years relatively few legal disputes.
The Directive can also be considered to have contributed to fostering thriving TV / radio
broadcasting and distribution markets: 28.7 million EU households receive free-to-air satellite
broadcasting services and 56.4 million – cable retransmission services.
As regards the effectiveness, there are indications that overall the specific mechanisms
introduced by the Directive have facilitated the clearance of copyright and related rights for
(free-to-view) cross-border satellite broadcasts and for the simultaneous retransmissions by
cable of broadcasts from other Member States. Similarly these mechanisms can be considered
to have contributed to ensuring a high level of protection for right holders and have improved,
to different extents, access to TV and radio programmes from other Member States. The
negotiation and mediation mechanisms established under the Directive have been used to a
varying, but overall limited, degree; they were found helpful in the cases where they have
been used.
The Directive can be considered to have been a cost-efficient and beneficial intervention. It
has not created administrative burden or significant compliance / implementation costs for
either stakeholders or Member States. The Directive has helped to reduce the transaction costs
for the licensors and the licensees. Certain identified specific costs resulting from the
application of the Directive (CMO fees charged for managing cable retransmission rights) can
be regarded to be outweighed by benefits - savings in transaction costs. Some right holders
referred to the Directive's possible negative impacts on the market functioning claiming that
the country of origin principle could have undermined the territory-by-territory content
distribution strategies and that mandatory collective management does not allow for the
licensing of cable retransmission rights on fair market terms. However, these concerns are not
estimated to be significant either in the case of the country of origin principle (since the
31
Directive has left open the possibility for contractual limitations regarding the exploitation of
rights to satellite broadcasting) or in the case of mandatory management of cable
retransmission rights (since individuals and SMEs, the category to which most right holders
belong, are generally considered, due to their limited capacity to carry out multiple individual
negotiations, to be the main beneficiaries of this approach).
The Directive remains relevant, as a tool facilitating licensing of (free-to-view) cross-border
satellite broadcasts and cable retransmissions of TV and radio broadcasts from other Member
States as well as, more generally, for improving consumers' access to TV and radio broadcasts
from other Member States. Within the scope of application of the Directive (satellite
broadcasting and cable retransmission) its relevance has been limited by two factors: the
proliferation of territorially-limited satellite pay-TV offerings and the practice to inject
program-carrying signals directly into cable networks (without any prior broadcast).
Otherwise the Directive - due to the technology-specific nature of its provisions - does not
cover various broadcast transmission and retransmission means that have emerged in recent
years.
The Directive is coherent both internally and with other EU interventions pursuing similar
objectives, notably those in the audiovisual and media sectors. Moreover, the Directive's
objectives remain valid in view of the new Commission priorities, including the completion of
the digital single market.
As regards satellite broadcasting, the Directive has provided significant EU added value,
since no action with a comparable result could have been taken at the Member State level. As
regards cable retransmission, action at the Member State level is possible, but the Directive
has provided added value by establishing harmonised rules across the internal market.
In terms of REFIT, since the Directive has not created administrative burden or significant
compliance / implementation costs for either stakeholders or Member States and since its
provisions are, generally, setting out principles rather than procedures, the available
simplification potential is estimated as limited.
32
Annex 1
Transposition of the Satellite and Cable Directive 93/83/EEC by the Member States
Member National legislation transposing the Directive National case-law (if reported by the Member States / in the
State SatCab Study 77)
Belgium Title V of book XI of the Code of economic law (originally - Cour d'appel Bruxelles 9 juin 2015 (Agicoa)
transposed in the former Copyright law of the 30th of June 1994) - Cour Constitutionnelle 12 février 2015 (Telenet)
- Cour d'appel Bruxelles 17 juin 2014 (SBS Belgium C/ SABAM)
- Cour d'appel d'Anvers 4 février 2013 (SABAM c/ Telenet)
Bulgaria The 1993 Copyright and related rights act (SG. 56/29 Jun 1993), as -
amended
Czech Copyright Act No. 121/2000 Coll., as amended by No. 216/2006 Decision of the Regional Court in Brno (OSA v. DIGI Czech Republic,
Republic Coll s.r.o., 23 C 176/2013-129) regarding the interpretation of the terms
“cable retransmission” and “retransmission by microwave system”
Denmark Danish Copyright Code (Consolidated Act No. 1144 of October 23 -
2014)
Germany § 20 a, 20 b, 87(5) of the German Copyright Act (Gesetz über Regional Court of Hamburg judgment of 8 April 2009 in the case
Urheberrecht und verwandte Schutzrechte) Warner and Universal vs Zattoo.DE (nr.308 O 660/08) regarding the
concept of cable retransmission
§ 14d of the German Copyright Administration Act
(Urheberrechtswahrnehmungsgesetz)
Estonia The 1992 Copyright Act RT I 1992, 49, 615, as amended 2013 Estonian Supreme Court decision (Riigikohus) in civil case No 3-
2-1-50-13 (Estonian Authors Society vs VIASAT AS) regarding the
licensing of a satellite service
77
The survey and data gathering to support the evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive and assessment of its possible extension (the "SatCab Study")
33
Ireland Copyright and related rights act, 2000 (No 28), as amended -
Greece Law 2557/1997 (Official Journal FEK A’ 271/24.12.1997) -
Spain Law on Intellectual Property, approved by Royal Legislative -
Decree No. 1/1996 of April 12, 1996 repealing Law No. 28/1995 of
October 11, 1995, on the Incorporation in Spanish Law of Council
Directive (EEC) No. 93/83 of September 27, 1993
France Loi n° 97-283 du 27 mars 1997 portant transposition dans le code
de la propriété intellectuelle des directives du Conseil des
Communautés européennes n° 93/83 du 27 septembre 1993 et n°
93/98 du 29 octobre 1993
Croatia The Copyright and Related Rights Act (“Official Gazette” No. -
167/03, 79/07, 80/11, 125/11, 141/13 and 127/14)
Italy Decreto Legislativo 23 ottobre 1996, n. 581 "Attuazione della Sentenza Corte di Cassazione, 13 ottobre 2011, clarifying the
direttiva 93/83/CEE per il coordinamento di alcune norme in application of Article 2 of the Directive
materia di diritto d'autore e diritti connessi, applicabili alla
radiodiffusione e alla ritrasmissione via cavo" pubblicato nella
Gazzetta Ufficiale n. 270 del 18 novembre 1996 (Rettifica G.U. n.
286 del 6 dicembre 1996)
Legge n. 633/1941
Cyprus Copyright and Related Rights Law 59/1976, as amended -
Latvia The 2000 Copyright Law ("Latvijas Vēstnesis", 148/150), as -
amended
Lithuania The 1999 Copyright and Related Rights Law No. VIII-1185, as -
amended
Luxembourg Loi du 18 avril 2001 sur les droits d’auteur, les droits voisins et les -
34
bases de données (Mémorial A n° 50 du 30.04.2001)
Hungary Act LXXVI of 1999 on Copyright, as amended -
Malta The 2000 Copyright Act XIII (Cap 415), as amended -
Netherlands Wet van 20 juni 1996, houdende wijziging van de Auteurswet 1912 HR 28 March 2014 Norma - NL Kabel regarding the concept of cable
en de Wet op de naburige rechten in verband met richtlijn nr. retransmission
93/83/EEG van de Raad van de Europese Gemeenschappen van 27
september 1993 tot coördinatie van bepaalde voorschriften
betreffende het auteursrecht en naburige rechten op het gebied van
satellietomroep en de doorgifte via de kabel (PbEG L248)
The directive was implemented by amending the Copyright Act and
the Neighboring rights Act. Publication (Stb 1996, 364)
Act on Copyright Contract Law (Wet auteurscontractenrecht, Stb
2015,257), which entered into force on 1 July 2015 (proportional
remuneration for a communication to the public of a film)
Austria Urheberrechtsgesetz (= UrhG)- Novelle 1996 (BGBl I Nr Austrian Supreme Court Judgment of 21 February 2008, 4Ob89/08d
151/1996) regarding the concept of cable retransmission
Section 36 Collective Management Act
Poland Act No. 83 of 4 February 1994 on copyright and related rights, as -
amended
Portugal Decreto-Lei n.o 333/97, 27 November 1997 - Ruling of the Constitutional Court No. 102/2016
Romania Law no. 8/1996 on copyright and related rights, as amended -
Slovenia Copyright and Related Rights Act of 30 March 1995 (Official -
Gazette of the RS No 21/1995), as amended
35
Slovakia Copyright Act (Act No. 185/2015 Coll. on Copyright) -
Act No. 220/2007 Coll. on the Digital Broadcasting of Programme
Services and on the Provision of Other Content through Digital
Transmission, which also amends and supplements certain other
acts (Digital Broadcasting Act)
Act No. 420/2004 Coll. on Mediation, as amended and Act No.
244/2002 Coll. on Arbitration Proceeding, as amended
Finland Copyright Act (Tekijänoikeuslaki 404/1961) -
Arbitration Act 967/1992
Sweden Copyright Act (1960:729) [lag (1960:729) om upphovsrätt till -
litterära och konstnärliga verk]
Act on Mediation in Certain Copyright Disputes (Swedish Statute
book, SFS, 1980:612, with later amendments)
United The Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 1996 (SI - TV Catchup First Judgment [2011] EWHC 1874 (Pat)
Kingdom 1996/2967), which amended the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988 - TV Catchup Second Judgment [2015] EWCA Civ 204
36
Annex 2
Overview of the application of SatCab negotiation and mediation mechanisms in the Member
States
Member Reported arrangements for / experience with the SatCab negotiation and
State mediation mechanisms
AT No practical experience. The “Schlichtungsausschuss” [Arbitration Committee] is an
arbitral tribunal. The Arbitration Committee consists of three members. One member
is appointed by each party; both members elect the chairman. In case that one party
refuses to appoint a member or members appointed by the parties do not elect the
Chairman the Chairman of the Copyright Senate may be requested to appoint them
CY The Copyright Authority decides on differences regarding the amount of fees payable
by the user to the beneficiary/collecting Rights Management Societies. This Authority
is appointed by the Minister of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism and its
decisions are binding on the parties
CZ There is limited experience with the provisions on mediation. There are 5 mediators on
the List of mediators managed by the Ministry of Culture. Since 2001 only 7 cases
have occurred where mediators were involved in a mediation, in 8 cases they were
only contacted but not eventually used. The scope of their competence has been
broadened as it actually covers any form of exploitation
DK The Copyright License Tribunal is the national out-of-court body handling most
disputes in relation to e.g. remuneration to the rights holders in several different areas
such as cable retransmission (latest ruling is from 2002) and use of music in radios
(latest ruling is from 2013). The Copyright License Tribunal passes on average 1-2
rulings a year. The tribunal consists of three members – one of them a judge of the
Supreme Court – and it is appointed for five years at a time
EE In practice, the mediation process has not been used in cases related to the Directive.
Copyright Committee is formed by the Ministry of Justice and serves as a mediation
body that also resolves, at the request of the parties, disputes related to copyright and
related rights by way of conciliation. If, in order to resolve the corresponding rights, a
party has applied to the Copyright Committee, the parties are required to enter into
negotiations through the committee and conduct the negotiations in good faith. The
Copyright Committee is not used often by persons having legal debates on copyright
issues (1-2 applications per year)
EL No practical experience. According to the law, either party may call upon the
assistance of one or more mediators selected from the list of mediators drafted by the
Copyright Organization every two years. The Copyright Organization may consult the
collecting societies and cable operators for the drafting of the said list. Mediators may
submit proposals to the parties. It shall be assumed that all parties accept a proposal if
none of them expresses its opposition within a period of three (3) months from the
notification of the proposal
ES The use of the mediation is voluntary for the negotiating parties, and not many
substantial cases have been raised for mediation so far. The competent body - the First
Section of the Intellectual Property Commission is composed of four members, named
by Government at the proposal of the Ministries of Culture, Economy, Justice and
Industry, among recognised experts in the field of intellectual property. Its resources
are funded by the budget of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport
37
FI It is not public knowledge whether mediation has been used after the implementation
of the Directive. The parties may elect the mediator and the parties pay the mediator’s
fees and other costs
HR Mediation is provided by the Council of Experts, consisting of a president and four
members appointed by the Minister. Until this date there were no cases regarding the
contracts on cable retransmission between the broadcasting organizations and cable
operators. Costs are envisaged to be covered by the parties that initiate the proceedings
HU According to the law, the members of the Mediation Board shall be appointed from
among the members of the Council of Copyright Experts. If no agreement is reached
between the parties, the Mediation Board shall draft a proposal concerning the content
of the agreement which it communicates to the parties in writing. The parties may
accept the agreement expressly or tacitly. It shall be regarded as a tacit acceptance if
no objection is made by the parties to the Mediation Board with regard to the proposal
for agreement within three months from the date of its delivery
LV No practical experience. According to the law, the parties may agree regarding the
candidature of a mediator or regarding the procedures by which a mediator shall be
invited or appointed. If the parties cannot agree, the mediator may be appointed by the
Minister for Culture. The mediator may express proposals to the parties to resolve the
dispute and specify a time period within which the parties approve or reject his or her
proposal. If none of the parties objects to the proposal of the mediator within a period
of three months after receipt of the proposal, it shall be deemed that they have accepted
such proposals
LT Mediation is carried out by a committee (composed of 3 members) appointed by the
Minister of Culture. The Ministry covers organisational and technical costs. In 2011
the mechanism was successfully applied to help finalise the negotiations over a
framework licencing agreement between collective management organisations and
Lithuanian cable operators' associations. It was again applied to facilitate re-
negotiation of the agreement in 2015
NL No practical experience. According to the law, each party can refer the issue to an
independent mediator. The mediator is allowed to make proposals. The proposal is
binding on the parties involved unless objections are made within three months upon
receiving the proposal
PL No practical experience. According to the law, disputes regarding the finally and
bindingly approved tables of remuneration and disputes connected with the conclusion
of the contract for cable retransmission may be settled by means of mediatory
proceedings before the Copyright Commission, an independent arbitrary body
appointed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage
RO According to the law, the Romanian Copyright Office shall convene, within 5 days as
from the requesting of the arbitration, the parties for drawing lots for the appointment
of 5 standing arbitrators that shall form the arbitration panel and of the 3 reserve
arbitrators. The Romanian Copyright Office convenes, at its headquarters, the
appointed arbitrators and the parties, for the establishing of the mediation panel. The
mediation panel shall establish the fee, within the limit of the professional usages for
the activities of arbitration, the first date and the place of mediation and informs the
parties. The two parties in mediation, collective management organizations and,
respectively, the users, contribute equally to the payment of the fee established by the
arbitrators. Arbitrators, within 30 days as from the first date of arbitration, must file
38
with the Romanian Copyright Office the award comprising the final form of the
methodologies subject to arbitration, for the communication to the parties
SE Limited practical experience. According to the law, any of the parties may file a
request for mediation to the Government which then appoints a mediator who shall try
to find a solution on the basis of proposals from the parties. If a final proposal for
solution by the mediator is rejected or the mediator considers himself/herself unable to
find a solution due to lack of cooperation from any of the parties, he or she shall
inform the Government. A proposal by the mediator for solution of the dispute shall be
considered as approved by the parties if none of them opposes the proposal within
three months from the date when the party was informed about the proposal. The
mediator has a right to reasonable remuneration for his/her work and for costs
SK Mediation is not used very often. The parties usually go straight to the court, if any
dispute arises
39
Tere,
Eelmisel aastal Euroopa Komisjoni poolt avaldatud „Digitaalse ühtse turu strateegias“ (COM(2015) 192)
on kirjeldatud mitmeid algatusi, mille eesmärk on luua digitaalse infosisu ja digitaalsete teenuste
siseturg. Strateegiale tuginedes avaldas komisjon 14.09.2016 mitmest dokumendist koosneva mahuka
ettepanekute kogumi, mida saab kokkuvõtvalt nimetada „autoriõiguse reformipaketiks“. Pakett
koosneb järgmistest dokumentidest (kättesaadav ka: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/en/modernisation-eu-copyright-rules):
1) Komisjoni teatis Euroopa Parlamendile, nõukogule, Euroopa majandus- ja sotsiaalkomiteele ning
regioonide komiteele autoriõigustel põhineva õiglase, tulemusliku ja konkurentsivõimelise
Euroopa majanduse edendamine digitaalsel ühtsel turul (COM(2016) 592 final).
2) Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiivi ettepanek, mis käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel
turul (COM(2016) 593 final);
3) Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu määruse ettepanek, milles sätestatakse eeskirjad, mis
käsitlevad selliste autoriõiguste ja nendega kaasnevate õiguste teostamist, mis kuuluvad
kohaldamisele teatavate ringhäälinguorganisatsioonide veebiülekannete ning televisiooni- ja
raadiosaadete taasedastamise suhtes (COM(2016) 594 final);
4) Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiivi ettepanek, mis käsitleb autoriõiguse ja sellega seotud
õigustega kaitstud teoste ja muu materjali kasutamise lubamist nägemispuudega või muu
trükikirja lugemise puudega isikutele ja millega muudetakse direktiivi 2001/29/EÜ autoriõiguse ja
sellega kaasnevate õiguste teatavate aspektide ühtlustamise kohta infoühiskonnas
(COM(2016)596 final);
5) Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu määruse ettepanek, mis käsitleb teatavate autoriõiguse ja
sellega seotud õigustega kaitstud kättesaadaval kujul teoste ja muu materjali piiriülest
vahetamist liidu ja kolmandate riikide vahel nägemispuudega või muu trükikirja lugemise
puudega isikute huvides (COM(2016) 595 final);
6) Commission Staff Working Document „Impact assessment on the modernisation of EU copyright
rules accompanying the Document Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of
the Council on copyright in the Digital Single Market and Proposal for a Regulation of the
European Parliament and of the Council laying down rules on the exercise of copyright and
related rights applicable to certain online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and
retransmissions of television and radio programmes“ (SWD(2016) 301 final), osad 1-3 ning
mõjuanalüüsi lühikokkuvõte;
7) Commission Staff Working Document „Evaluation of the Council Directive 93/83/EEC on the
coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to
satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission“ (COM(2016) 308 final);
8) Commission Staff Working Document „Executive summary of the evaluation of the Council
Directive 93/83/EEC on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related
to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission“ (COM(2016) 309
final).
Nimetatud paketi eesmärgid saab üldistatult jagada kolme gruppi:
1) digitaalse sisu suurem valiku võimaldamine ning selle kättesaadavuse parandamine
internetipõhiselt ja piiriüleselt (vastavad muudatused on tehtud Euroopa Parlamendi ja
nõukogu määruse ettepanekus, milles sätestatakse eeskirjad, mis käsitlevad selliste
autoriõiguste ja nendega kaasnevate õiguste teostamist, mis kuuluvad kohaldamisele teatavate
ringhäälinguorganisatsioonide veebiülekannete ning televisiooni- ja raadiosaadete
taasedastamise suhtes (COM(2016) 594 final) ning Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiivi
ettepanekus, mis käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel turul (COM(2016) 593 final));
2) vaba kasutuse reeglite täpsustamine ehk täiustatud autoriõiguse eeskirjad teadus-, haridus- ja
kultuuripärandi valdkonna asutuste tarbeks ning puudega inimeste kaasamiseks (vastavad
muudatused on tehtud Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiivi ettepanekus, mis käsitleb
autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel turul (COM(2016) 593 final) ning WIPO Marrakeśi lepingust
tulenevate nõuete täitmiseks vajalikes ettepanekutes COM(2016) 595 final ning COM(2016) 596
final);
3) õiglase ja jätkusuutliku turu võimaldamine loovisikutele, loometööstusele ja ajakirjandusele
(vastavad muudatused on tehtud Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiivi ettepanekus, mis
käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel turul (COM(2016) 593 final)).
Kuna pakett on äärmiselt mahukas ning selle läbitöötamine võtab aega, siis saadan Teile info e-kirja teel
välja juba praegu enne Justiitsministeeriumi vastava ametliku kirja valmimist (see jõuab ka esimesel
võimalusel Teieni). Saate hakata nimetatud paketiga tutvuma, kuigi enamus dokumente ei ole paraku
veel eesti keelde tõlgitud. Soovi korral palume Teil oma sihtgrupi huve puudutavad arvamused ja
hinnangud Justiitsministeeriumisse saata võimalusel 19. oktoobriks 2016. a. Teie sisendite põhjal
omakorda saame ette valmistada Eesti seisukohad nimetatud reformipaketile. Kõikidele täpsustavatele
küsimustele vastan hea meelega.
Lugupidamisega,
Kärt Nemvalts
Nõunik
Eraõiguse talitus
Justiitsministeerium
[email protected]
620 8283
Käesolev kiri on konfidentsiaalne ning mõeldud kasutamiseks kirja päises nimetatud isikule. Igasugune käesoleva kirja mistahes viisil
kasutamine või kopeerimine isiku poolt, kes ei ole märgitud selle adressaadiks, on keelatud. Kui te olete saanud käesoleva kirja eksimuse
tõttu, palun teavitage sellest koheselt kirja saatjat ning kustutage saadud kiri koos kõikide lisadega.
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
SWD(2016) 302 final
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
on the modernisation of EU copyright rules
Accompanying the document
Proposal for a
Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council
on copyright in the Digital Single Market
and
Proposal for a
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council
laying down rules on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain
online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and
radio programmes
{COM(2016) 593}
{COM(2016) 594}
{SWD(2016) 301}
EN EN
Executive Summary Sheet
Impact assessment on the modernisation of EU copyright rules
A. Need for action
What is the problem and why is it a problem at EU level?
This IA examines a number of issues linked to the functioning of EU copyright rules in the Digital Single Market. It
considers adjusting existing rules or introducing new rules in three distinct areas: (i) access to content online; (ii)
the functioning of key exceptions in the digital and cross-border environment; and (iii) the functioning of the
copyright marketplace.
In the first area, the problems addressed in the IA are directly related to difficulties encountered with the
clearance of online rights, by broadcasters, retransmission services, Video-on-Demand (VoD) platforms or cultural
heritage institutions (CHIs). Broadcasters face difficulties in particular when clearing rights for making TV and
radio programmes available online across borders; similarly, the clearance of rights can be complex for
retransmission services other than cable operators when they offer channels from other Member States (MS). The
main findings of the evaluation of the functioning of the Satellite and Cable Directive (Directive 93/83/EEC) have
been taken into account when assessing the extent of these problems and the possible solutions. Also, difficulties
in acquiring online rights contribute to the limited availability of European audiovisual works on VoD platforms.
Finally, CHIs face important difficulties when clearing rights for digitising out-of-commerce (OOC) works of their
collections and disseminating them to the public.
In the second area, the legal uncertainty as to the acts allowed under the existing copyright exceptions, in
particular the digital environment, has been identified as a major issue for the functioning of the Digital Single
Market. Teachers and students are affected by legal uncertainty when using content in digitally-supported and
cross-border teaching activities. Researchers face legal uncertainty with regard to the possibility to carry out text
and data mining (TDM) on content they have lawful access to. Preservation of works by CHIs, in particular in
digital forms, may also be hampered by legal uncertainty and disproportionate transaction costs.
In the third area, the IA concentrates on issues related to the distribution of value in the online environment, with
a distinction between the problems faced 'upstream' by right holders when trying to license their content to
certain types of online services and those faced 'downstream' by creators when negotiating contracts for the
exploitation of their works. Right holders face difficulties when seeking to control and monetize the use of their
content by online services storing and giving access to content uploaded by end-users. It has also become difficult
for press publishers to license their publications and prevent unauthorized uses by online services. Also, all
publishers face legal uncertainty as regards the possibility for them to receive a share in the compensation for
uses of works under an exception. Finally, authors and performers (creators) may not always have sufficient
information on the exploitation of their works allowing them to negotiate an appropriate remuneration in
exchange for the exploitation of their rights.
What should be achieved?
Three general objectives have been identified:
(i) allow for wider online access to protected content across the EU, focusing on TV and radio programmes,
European audiovisual works and cultural heritage;
(ii) facilitate digital uses of protected content for education, research and preservation in the single market; and
(iii) ensure that the online copyright marketplace works efficiently for all players and gives the right incentives for
investment in and dissemination of creative content.
What is the value added of action at the EU level (subsidiarity)?
By concentrating on the functioning of EU copyright rules in the digital and online environment, this IA addresses
problems which have an important cross-border dimension.
As regards the first area, national solutions for the above mentioned problems related to online access to content,
including cross-border, may generate further fragmentation in the Digital Single Market. Therefore, in order to
produce clear benefits, a common approach and action should be provided at EU level.
As regards the second area, the existing level of harmonisation limits the possibility for MS to act in the area of
copyright, as they cannot unilaterally alter the scope of the harmonised rights and exceptions. Moreover, EU
intervention is indispensable to guarantee legal certainty in cross border situations. As regards the third area, the
1
rationale for EU action stems both from the harmonisation already in place (notably in terms of rights) and the
cross-border nature of the distribution of content online. Intervention at national level would not be sufficiently
efficient to address the identified problems (notably because it would lack scale) and could create new obstacles
and market fragmentation. Action at EU level is necessary in order to ensure legal certainty for creators and those
investing in content, for distributors and for users. It will also allow right holders to better exercise their rights in
the online environment and guarantee a level playing field in the Digital Single Market.
B. Solutions
What are the various options to achieve the objectives? Is there a preferred option or not? If not,
why?
The options examined for each topic include the baseline option, in most cases a non-legislative option (in the
form of Commission's guidance or recommendation and/or stakeholders’ dialogue) and one or several legislative
options. A preferred option has been identified for each topic.
In the area of access to content online, different licensing regimes, considered as enabling mechanisms to
facilitate the clearance of rights, are examined in the legislative options.
• The preferred option in relation to online transmissions of broadcasting organisations is the application of
the country of origin principle to the clearing of rights for their online services which are ancillary to their
initial broadcast.
• As for the digital retransmissions of TV/radio programmes, the preferred option is the application of the
mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic
communication networks.
• For the licensing of VoD rights, the preferred option includes a European stakeholders' dialogue and a
negotiation mechanism that would facilitate the conclusion of licences for the online exploitation of
audiovisual works by removing contractual blockages.
• Finally, for OOC works, the preferred option is a legislative intervention at EU level enabling MS to put in
place specific legal mechanisms for the conclusion of collective licensing agreements for the use of OOC
works by cultural heritage institutions (CHIs) and on the introduction of a cross-border effect for such
agreements.
In relation to exceptions, the legislative options are designed in a way to complement the existing exceptions (in
the case of preservation and teaching) or introduce a new exception for specific uses (e.g. text and data mining).
Different options are envisaged, with variations on the scope of the exception, the beneficiaries and/or the
relationship with the licensing market.
• The preferred option for teaching activities is a mandatory exception covering digital uses undertaken in
the context of illustration for teaching with the option for MS to make it subject to the availability of
adequate licences covering the same uses (digital and cross border).
• For TDM, the preferred option is a mandatory exception applicable to research organisations acting in the
public interest such as universities or research institutes. The exception would allow them to carry out
TDM on content they have lawful access to, for the purposes of scientific research.
• For preservation of cultural heritage, the preferred option is a mandatory exception for preservation
purposes by cultural heritage institutions (CHIs).
Concerning the functioning of the copyright marketplace, the legislative options considered aim at ensuring a fair
sharing of the value in the online environment, notably through the introduction of specific obligations on certain
types of online services or on those contracting with authors and performers.
• In relation to the use of content by user uploaded content services, the preferred solution is an obligation
on online services storing and giving access to large amount of content uploaded by their users to put in
place appropriate and proportionate technologies, and to increase transparency vis à vis right holders.
• Concerning the rights in publications, the preferred solution is the introduction in EU law of a related right
for publishers covering the digital uses of their press publications and of a provision enabling MS to allow
all publishers (news, books, scientific, etc) to receive a share in the compensation for uses under an
exception.
• In relation to the lack of transparency on the remuneration of creators, the preferred option consists in
the introduction in EU legislation of transparency obligations on the creators' contractual counterparties
(notably producers and publishers), supported by a contract adjustment and dispute resolution
mechanism.
2
What are different stakeholders' views? Who supports which option?
The options considered in this IA would affect a wide range of stakeholders, notably: authors and performers,
collective management organisations, producers, publishers, broadcasters, providers of retransmission services,
distributors, online services, institutional users, researchers, consumers. Stakeholders’ views are very specific to
each topic and are therefore presented in relation to each option in the IA. The results of the public consultations
held in 2013-2016 which support the analysis in this IA are presented in Annex 2.
C. Impacts of the preferred option
What are the benefits of the preferred option (if any, otherwise of main ones)?
The preferred options identified in relation to online transmissions and retransmissions of TV and radio
programmes would reduce the transaction costs linked to the clearance of rights faced by broadcasters for their
cross-border online transmissions and by retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic
communications networks (e.g. IPTV). They are also expected to enhance the cross-border distribution of and
access to broadcasters' TV and radio programmes.
Concerning the licensing of VoD rights, the preferred option would help removing contractual blockages and could
therefore improve the availability of European audiovisual works on VoD platforms.
For OOC works, the preferred option would favour a reduction of transaction costs and make possible the specific
licences required for the digitisation and dissemination of OOC works by cultural heritage institutions, for all types
of works and in all MS, including across borders
The new exception for digital uses of protected content in the context of illustration for teaching would bring full
legal certainty to educational establishments and teachers, which is expected to increase the uptake and quality of
digital technologies and innovative methods in education and provide an enriched learning environment and
improved outcomes for students. The possibility for MS to make the exception subject to the availability of
licences covering the same uses would bring the necessary flexibility without reducing the legal certainty for users
or hampering cross-border uses.
The new TDM exception would increase legal certainty and reduce rights clearance costs for research
organisations, including when research projects are carried with a possible commercial outcome, eg. in the
context of PPPs.
The preferred option for preservation would provide full legal certainty to CHI carrying out preservation
reproductions of works in their permanent collections, including with digital technologies.
In the third area covered by this IA, the preferred options are expected to allow right holders to better exploit and
control the distribution of their content online. The obligation for user uploaded content services to deploy
technical means would allow right holder to better decide on the availability of their content on these services. It
is likely to encourage the conclusion of agreements for the use of content and to generate additional revenues for
right holders.
As for press publishers, the preferred option would increase their legal certainty, strengthen their bargaining
position and have a positive impact on their ability to license content and enforce the rights on their press
publications. The preferred option would also increase legal certainty for all publishers as regards the possibility
for them to receive a share in the compensation for uses under an exception.
The transparency obligations imposed on their contractual counterparties would provide creators with the
information necessary to assess whether their remuneration is appropriate and with the legal means to request,
where necessary, adjustment of the remuneration (contract adjustment mechanism).
What are the costs of the preferred option (if any, otherwise main ones)?
The application of the country of origin to the right clearance for broadcasters' ancillary services online would be a
new situation for right holders when licensing their content to broadcasters for online transmissions. However, it is
a targeted intervention (limited to broadcasters' ancillary online services and not affecting the contractual freedom
of broadcasters and right holders) which is expected to facilitate the development of the market without
disruption of the existing business models and distribution strategies.
The application of mandatory collective management for certain types of digital retransmission services would
affect the right holders' licensing choices in a limited manner. The compliance costs would be marginal as the
same network of collective management organisations (CMOs) which is used to license rights to cable
retransmissions could be used to license rights to retransmissions by means other than cable.
As regards the negotiation mechanism aimed at facilitating the licensing of VoD rights, the implementation costs
would be limited, as MS could rely on existing structures with the necessary expertise. Stakeholders (right holders,
distributors, VoD platforms) may incur some costs for participating in the negotiation mechanism. These costs
3
would however be offset by the efficiency gains deriving from successful negotiation.
The preferred option for OOC works would not imply any direct costs as such. In case the legal mechanisms are
used, CMOs would incur some costs related to transparency requirements, handling of opt-outs and administration
of the licence.
In the area of exceptions, the preferred options are not expected to affect right holders' licensing revenues to any
significant extent. Very limited compliance costs may arise from the need to adapt the scope of existing licences
to take account of the new exceptions.
For teaching, the new exception is not expected to have an impact on the right holders' primary market, notably
because of the purpose and conditions attached to the exception (illustration for teaching, digital uses under
secure electronic networks). It may imply some compliance costs for MS deciding to make the application of the
exception subject to the availability of licences covering the same uses, because of the requirement to ensure
availability and visibility of such licences. However, these costs would allow to significantly reduce the educational
establishments' administrative burden.
In the case of TDM, the lawful access condition foreseen for the use of the exception would ensure that the
preferred option does not affect the right holders' subscription market.
The preferred option for preservation of cultural heritage would not generate particular compliance costs; impact
on revenues for rights holders would be minimum and even negligible, as this exception would only apply to
works that CHIs already have in their permanent collections and have no bearing on the acquisition of permanent
copies into a collection.
For online services distributing content uploaded by end-users, there would be compliance costs deriving from the
technologies to be put in place. These costs would depend on the quantity and the type of content to be
identified. They are expected to be limited by the fact that the technologies to be put in place need to be
proportionate, and that a majority of the services covered already deploy some content identification technologies.
The introduction of a related right covering digital uses of press publications is not expected to generate higher
licence fees for online service providers which already conclude licences covering specifically the use of digital
news content. It would only imply costs for those online services providers which are not concluding licences for
the reuse of publishers' content today when they should in principle do so, pursuant to copyright law. The
possibility for MS to allow all publishers to receive a share in the compensation for uses under an exception is not
expected to generate costs as collecting societies, in charge of collecting compensation for publishers, are already
in place in a majority of MS. For remuneration of creators, the transparency obligations would generate
compliance costs for the creators' contractual counterparties, which are however expected to be reasonable. The
very limited availability of data did not allow for an overall quantification of these costs; however estimates are
included in the IA on the basis of the few examples reported by stakeholders. The contract adjustment
mechanism is expected to generate limited costs (e.g. renegotiation costs) since it is likely to be used mainly as a
leverage in negotiation. MS could use existing structures in order to reduce the possible costs related to setting up
the dispute resolution mechanism.
What are the impacts on SMEs and competitiveness?
The high share of SMEs in the creative industries has been taken into account in the assessment of the policy
options. The preferred options in the area of access to content are expected to benefit SMEs (as TV/radio
broadcasters, service providers or right holders), by reducing the administrative burden linked to the clearance or
licensing of rights. In the case of exceptions, the preferred options constitute solutions which are not expected to
have any significant impact on the licensing market or revenues of SMEs (right holders). An exclusion of micro-
companies has not been considered appropriate as it would create major legal uncertainty for users.
In the third area of this IA, the preferred options would support SMEs (right holders) in concluding agreements
with online content services. Where they would generate obligations for SMEs, exemptions or mitigating measures
have not been deemed appropriate as they may create possibilities for businesses to circumvent the obligations
and would not allow reaching the desired objectives.
Will there be significant impacts on national budgets and administrations?
The preferred options will not generate any significant impacts on national budgets or administrations.
Nevertheless, certain options include specific obligations for MS, e.g. identification or creation of an impartial
instance to facilitate negotiation between the relevant parties for the licensing of VoD rights; measures to ensure
the visibility of licences for educational uses; organisation of stakeholders' dialogues on the reporting to authors
and performers and setting up of a dispute resolution mechanism between authors/performers and their
contractual counterparties. Indications of costs, where available, are mentioned in the relevant sections of the IA.
4
Will there be other significant impacts?
N.a.
Proportionality?
The preferred options have been elaborated in a way to effectively address the original problems without going
beyond what is needed to achieve the objectives. Other options, sometimes with a wider scope, have been
excluded as they would not allow a balanced and proportionate response to the problems presented in this IA.
D. Follow up
When will the policy be reviewed?
Specific indicators have been defined to monitor progress in the achievement of the objectives, with data
collection foreseen to take place every 2 or 3 years. A comprehensive evaluation could take place at the latest 10
years after the adoption of the legislative measures, in order to measure their impacts and added value.
5
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
SWD(2016) 301 final
PART 1/3
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT
IMPACT ASSESSMENT
on the modernisation of EU copyright rules
Accompanying the document
Proposal for a
Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council
on copyright in the Digital Single Market
and
Proposal for a
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council
laying down rules on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain
online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and
radio programmes
{COM(2016) 593}
{COM(2016) 594}
{SWD(2016) 302}
EN EN
1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 6
1.1. EU COPYRIGHT RULES ................................................................................................... 6
1.2. POLICY CONTEXT .......................................................................................................... 7
2. OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE OF THE INITIATIVE............................................. 9
2.1. OBJECTIVES .................................................................................................................. 9
2.2. SCOPE ........................................................................................................................... 9
3. ENSURING WIDER ACCESS TO CONTENT ................................................... 10
3.1. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................ 10
3.1.1. Background ................................................................................................................ 10
3.1.2. Why should the EU act? ............................................................................................. 12
3.1.3. What should be achieved? .......................................................................................... 13
3.1.4. Methodology .............................................................................................................. 14
3.2. ONLINE TRANSMISSIONS AND RETRANSMISSIONS OF TV/RADIO PROGRAMMES ........... 18
3.2.1. Background data on the TV and radio sector ............................................................. 18
3.2.2. Online transmissions of broadcasting organisations .................................................. 20
3.2.3. Digital retransmissions of TV and radio programmes ............................................... 39
3.3. ACCESS TO AND AVAILABILITY OF EU AUDIOVISUAL WORKS ON VOD PLATFORMS .... 52
3.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ........................................................... 52
3.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?............................................ 55
3.3.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ....... 57
3.3.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................... 64
3.4. OUT-OF-COMMERCE WORKS IN THE COLLECTIONS OF CULTURAL HERITAGE
INSTITUTIONS .............................................................................................................. 65
3.4.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ........................................................... 65
3.4.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?............................................ 69
3.4.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ....... 72
3.4.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................... 78
4. ADAPTING EXCEPTIONS TO DIGITAL AND CROSS-BORDER
ENVIRONMENT ..................................................................................................... 80
4.1. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................ 80
4.1.1. Background ................................................................................................................ 80
4.1.2. Why should the EU act? ............................................................................................. 81
4.1.3. What should be achieved? .......................................................................................... 82
4.1.4. Methodology .............................................................................................................. 82
4.2. USE OF PROTECTED CONTENT IN DIGITAL AND CROSS-BORDER TEACHING ACTIVITIES 87
4.2.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ........................................................... 87
2
4.2.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?............................................ 90
4.2.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ....... 93
4.2.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................. 102
4.3. TEXT AND DATA MINING ........................................................................................... 104
4.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ......................................................... 104
4.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?.......................................... 107
4.3.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ..... 110
4.3.1. How do the options compare? .................................................................................. 118
4.4. PRESERVATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE .................................................................. 120
4.4.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ......................................................... 120
4.4.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?.......................................... 123
4.4.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ..... 125
4.4.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................. 129
5. ACHIEVING A WELL-FUNCTIONING MARKET PLACE FOR
COPYRIGHT ......................................................................................................... 132
5.1. INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................... 132
5.1.1. Background .............................................................................................................. 132
5.1.2. Why should the EU act? ........................................................................................... 132
5.1.3. What should be achieved? ........................................................................................ 134
5.1.4. Methodology ............................................................................................................ 134
5.2. USE OF PROTECTED CONTENT BY ONLINE SERVICES STORING AND GIVING ACCESS TO
USER UPLOADED CONTENT ........................................................................................ 137
5.2.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ......................................................... 137
5.2.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?.......................................... 144
5.2.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ..... 147
5.2.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................. 154
5.3. RIGHTS IN PUBLICATIONS .......................................................................................... 155
5.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ......................................................... 155
5.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?.......................................... 161
5.3.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ..... 163
5.3.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................. 172
5.4. FAIR REMUNERATION IN CONTRACTS OF AUTHORS AND PERFORMERS....................... 173
5.4.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem? ......................................................... 173
5.4.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?.......................................... 177
5.4.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected? ..... 181
5.4.4. How do the options compare? .................................................................................. 189
3
6. OVERALL CONCLUSIONS................................................................................ 192
6.1. SUMMARY OF PREFERRED OPTIONS ........................................................................... 192
6.2. ANALYSIS OF THE COMBINED APPLICATION OF THE PREFERRED OPTIONS .................. 193
6.2.1. Impact on stakeholders ............................................................................................. 193
6.2.2. Subsidiarity and proportionality............................................................................... 194
6.2.3. Choice of instrument ................................................................................................ 195
6.3. MONITORING AND EVALUATION................................................................................ 195
6.3.1. Monitoring and evaluation plan ............................................................................... 195
6.3.2. Operational objectives and monitoring indicators ................................................... 197
4
Acronym list
AV Audiovisual
CHI Cultural Heritage Institution
CMO Collective Management Organisation
CoO Country of Origin
DSM Digital Single Market
ECJ / CJEU European Court of Justice / Court of Justice of the European Union
ECL Extended Collective Licensing
EP European Parliament
IA Impact Assessment
IPTV TV/radio over closed circuit IP-based networks
MOOCs Massive Open Online Courses
MS Member State
OER Open Educational Resources
OoC Out-of-commerce (works)
OTT Over The Top
PPPS Public-Private Partnerships
SME Small and Medium-sized Enterprise
STM Scientific, Technical and Medical (Publishers)
SVoD Subscription Video on Demand
TDM Text and Data Mining
TV Traditional Television
TVoD Transactional Video on Demand
VoD Video on Demand
WIPO World Intellectual Property Organisation
5
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1. EU COPYRIGHT RULES
Copyright and related rights are rights granted to authors (copyright) and to performers,
producers and broadcasters (related or neighbouring rights1). They include so-called
"economic rights" which enable rightholders to control (license) the use of their works (e.g. a
novel) and other protected material (such as a record or a broadcast), and be remunerated for
their use. These rights are limited in time (in Europe, between 50 and 70 years). Economic
rights (and their term of protection) are, to a large extent, harmonised at EU level. Authors are
also granted so-called "moral rights" (notably the right to claim authorship and the right to
object to any derogatory action in relation to the work). Moral rights are not harmonised at
EU level.
Copyright systems balance the recognition of rights with exceptions in order to facilitate the
use of protected content in specific circumstances, notably to facilitate the achievement of
specific public policy objectives such as education or access to information. Exceptions
provide a “legal authorisation” to beneficiaries to use protected material without needing to
seek authorisation from the rightholders. The EU copyright rules set out an exhaustive list of
exceptions to rights across various copyright directives. The harmonisation achieved is
however limited: most of the exceptions are optional (Member States may decide to
implement them or not), and broadly formulated, leaving Member States (MS) a relatively
wide margin of manoeuvre when implementing them.
Copyright systems also provide for procedures and remedies against infringements of
copyright (enforcement). These have been partly harmonised at EU level (e.g. evidence-
gathering powers for judicial authorities, powers to force parties commercially involved in an
infringement to provide information on the origin of the infringing goods, provisions on the
payment of damages).
Directive 2001/29/EC2 (the "InfoSoc Directive") was designed to update copyright rules to
the (then nascent) digital networks and to implement the two 1996 WIPO3 Internet Treaties -
the WIPO Copyright Treaty4 and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty5. It
harmonises several exclusive rights that are essential to the online dissemination of works and
other protected subject-matter, notably the right of reproduction, i.e. the right to prevent the
unauthorised copying of protected content and the right of making available, i.e. the right to
prevent unauthorised dissemination of protected content online, as well as exceptions to
exclusive rights.
Licensing is the main mechanism for the exercise of copyright and related rights. Depending
on the relevant right, the type of use and the sector, licences are most often granted directly by
the right holder (e.g. film producer, software producer) or via collective management
1
Related rights (also referred to as neighbouring rights) are rights similar to copyright but do not reward
an author's original creation (a work). They reward either the performance of a work (e.g. by a
musician, a singer, an actor) or an organisational or financial effort (e.g. by phonogram or film
producers and broadcasters), which may also include a participation in the creative process.
2
Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the
harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society (OJ L 167,
22.6.2001, p. 10–19)
3
World Intellectual Property Organization, http://www.wipo.int
4
http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/ip/wct/
5
http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/ip/wppt/
6
organisations (CMOs), representing normally a category of rightholders (e.g. authors) and of
rights (e.g. rights in musical works). Collective management of exclusive rights (these are
typically the most important rights for economic exploitation, e.g. distribution in the physical
world and making available in the online world) is voluntary, except in certain specific cases
allowed by law and copyright international treaties. For example, Directive 93/83/EC6 (the
"Satellite and Cable Directive") imposes mandatory collective management of cable
retransmission rights in order to facilitate the clearance of rights by cable operators.7 The EU
has recently adopted legislation to improve the functioning of CMOs, including in order to
facilitate the provision of multi-territorial licences (Directive 2014/26/EU8- the "CRM
Directive").
Copyright is territorial (referring to national territories) in the sense that the rights granted
under copyright are provided for in national law, and not in the form of unitary rights at EU
level. For example, the author of a book has not a single EU-wide right of reproduction but 28
different national rights of reproduction. The geographical scope of these 28 rights is limited
to the territory of the MS that grants the right in question.
1.2. POLICY CONTEXT
Digital technologies are changing the ways creative content is produced, distributed and
accessed. They create opportunities as well as new challenges for the creative industries9,
authors and artists, the education and research communities, online service providers
including search engines and content distributors, telecommunication operators, cultural
heritage institutions, individual users and other players in the digital economy. These new
uses and opportunities, together with the cross-border nature of digital networks, have brought
to the fore questions related to the degree of harmonisation achieved by the EU copyright
rules.
The Digital Single Market (DSM) Strategy10 adopted in May 2015 called for addressing in
the EU copyright framework a set of key obstacles to the functioning of the DSM and
announced legislation "to reduce the differences between national copyright regimes and
allow for wider online access to works by users across the EU", notably as regards portability
and cross-border access to copyright-protected content services; exceptions, in particular in
the area of education and research; and the role of intermediaries in the distribution of
copyright protected content. It also indicated that the Commission would review the Satellite
and Cable Directive to assess whether it has facilitated consumers' access to satellite
broadcasting services across borders, as well as the possible extension of some of the
Directive principles/mechanisms to the licensing of rights required for certain broadcasters'
online service.
6
Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September 1993 on the coordination of certain rules concerning
copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission
(OJ L 248, 6.10.93, p.15-21)
7
See section 3.2.3.
8
Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective
management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for
online use in the internal market (OJ L 84, 20.3.2014, p. 72–98).
9
See Annex 5 for background information on creative industries in the EU economy.
10
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions "A digital single market strategy
for Europe", (COM(2015) 192 final) of 6 May 2015. http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/digital-single-
market/docs/dsm-communication_en.pdf
7
As a first step to implement the DSM strategy in the area of copyright, the Commission
adopted a proposal for a regulation on the cross-border portability of online content
services11 in December 2015, in order to in order to allow EU residents to travel with the
digital content they have purchased or subscribed to at home.
At the same time, it adopted a Communication "Towards a modern, more European
copyright framework"12 in which it presented a plan including targeted actions and a long-
term vision to modernise EU copyright rules. The Communication highlighted the need to
inject more single market into the current EU copyright rules and to adapt them to new
technological realities. This Impact Assessment (IA) on the modernisation of EU copyright
rules supports the targeted initiatives presented in this Communication, as a second step in the
implementation of the DSM strategy on copyright.
EU action in the area of copyright complements other EU initiatives recently adopted in the
context of the Digital Single Market Strategy, notably on the revision13 of the Audiovisual
Media Services Directive (" the AVMS Directive")14, on measures addressing unjustified
geo-blocking15 and on online platforms.16
The analysis presented in this IA strongly relies on the preliminary work conducted by the
Commission on the review of EU copyright rules between 2013 and 2016.17 The review
process covered a broader set of matters than those presented in this IA. Such a broad exercise
was necessary for the Commission to gain an understanding of the full range of questions
being discussed in the context of copyright policy and digital networks.
However, not all those questions relate to matters requiring legislative intervention or, most
importantly, requiring legislative intervention at this stage. There are issues where the Court
of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) may have provided sufficient clarity to the existing
rules or where cases are pending. There are also issues where the necessity to intervene has
not been established or where there is not the required degree of maturity in terms of evidence
11
Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on ensuring the cross-border
portability of online content services in the internal market (COM(2015) 627 final) of , 9 December
2015.
12
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions "Towards a modern, more
European copyright framework" (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015
13
Proposal for an updated Audiovisual Media Services Directive: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/en/news/proposal-updated-audiovisual-media-services-directive.
The revised AVMS Directive updates the rules applicable to all types of audiovisual media, notably in
terms of promotion of European works, protection of minors, showing of advertisements; it however
does not cover the rules applicable to the licensing of copyright-protected content.
14
Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2010 on the
coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member
States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (OJ L 95, 15.4.2010, p. 1–24).
15
Proposal for a Regulation on addressing geo-blocking and other forms of discrimination based on
customers' nationality, place of residence or place of establishment within the internal market:
http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/16742. The proposal does not cover audiovisual services.
16
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions "Online Platforms and the Digital
Single Market Opportunities and Challenges for Europe", (COM(2016) 288/2)
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/communication-online-platforms-and-digital-single-
market-opportunities-and-challenges-europe.
The Communication outlines the key issues identified in relation to online platforms and presents the
Commission’s position on both the innovation opportunities and the regulatory challenges presented by
them.
17
See Annex 4.
8
of a problem and/or of the effects of intervention. This is notably the case for the issue of
remote consultation of works held in libraries and other relevant institutions and for the issue
of "freedom of panorama", which were both mentioned in the Communication of December
2015. The consultation exception (authorising libraries and other institutions to allow on-
screen consultation of works for research and private study on their premises) has not been
addressed in the context of the IA as the issue needs to be reconsidered in light of the outcome
of a pending case before the CJEU on electronic lending.18On the panorama exception, the
first results of the public consultation do not indicate a need to address problems at EU level,
notably because most MS have incorporated such exception in their national legislation.
Concerning private copying, the Commission will continue assessing the need for action to
ensure that the different levies' systems in place in MS do not raise obstacles in the single
market, as announced in the Communication of December 2015. This assessment needs to
take into account recent and pending cases before the CJEU.
The IA also takes into account the conclusions of the ex-post evaluation of the Satellite and
Cable Directive.19
2. OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE OF THE INITIATIVE
2.1. OBJECTIVES
The key policy objective of this initiative is to ensure a smooth functioning of EU copyright
rules in the Digital Single Market (DSM). This IA covers a number of different areas within
the EU copyright framework that are all relevant for the completion of the DSM.
Three general objectives have been identified: (i) allow for wider online access to protected
content across the EU, focusing on TV and radio programmes, European audiovisual (AV)
works and cultural heritage; (ii) facilitate digital uses of protected content for education,
research and preservation in the single market and (iii) achieving a well-functioning market
place for copyright where rightholders can set licensing terms and negotiate on a fair basis
with those distributing their content (notably as regards new forms of content distribution).
The initiative aims at addressing copyright-related obstacles to meet those general objectives.
The specific objectives of the initiative are described within each section of the IA.
2.2. SCOPE
This IA considers adjusting existing rules or introducing new rules in three distinct areas:
(i) access to content online;
(ii) the functioning of key exceptions in the digital and cross-border environment; and
(iii) the functioning of the copyright marketplace.
These three areas have been identified in the Communication of December 2015, together
with actions on the enforcement of IP rights, which are not part of the initiatives considered
on this IA but for which specific initiatives are being considered separately. This IA focuses
on the targeted actions identified in the Communication within these three areas:
On access to content, the Commission proposed in the above mentioned Communication
"a gradual approach to removing obstacles to cross-border access to content and to the
circulation of works". The proposal for a regulation on portability constituted a first
18
Case C-174/15, Vereniging Openbare Bibliotheken v Stichting Leenrecht
19
See "Ex-post (REFIT) Evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive (93/83/EEC)".
9
important step in this direction. This IA concentrates on further actions in relation to the
cross-border distribution of TV (Traditional Television) and radio programmes online,
the licensing of European AV works and the digitisation and making available of out-of-
commerce works. As indicated in the Communication of December 2015, accompanying
measures aimed at ensuring a wider access to creative content online will be proposed in
the context of the 'Creative Europe' programme and are therefore not covered by this IA.
In relation to exceptions, this IA looks into the exceptions which are relevant for access
to knowledge, education and research, which have been substantially affected by
technological developments and have a cross-border dimension. It examines whether new
exceptions are required in EU rules to cover digital uses in teaching activities, text and
data mining and preservation activities by cultural heritage institutions (i.e. publicly
accessible libraries, educational establishments and museums, as well as archives and
film or audio heritage institutions). Legislative measures are also being considered to
introduce a new exception allowing people with print disabilities to access books and
other print material in formats that are accessible to them. They are not considered in this
IA as they relate to the implementation of EU international obligations (Marrakesh
Treaty20).
On the functioning copyright market place, the IA concentrates on issues related to the
distribution of value in the online copyright value chain, thus responding to the objective
stated in section 4 "achieving a well-functioning market place for copyright" of the
Communication of December 2015. The IA addresses problems faced "upstream" by
rightholders when trying to license their content to online service providers (use of
protected content by online service providers storing and giving access to user uploaded
content and rights in publications) and those faced "downstream" by creators when
negotiating contracts for the exploitation of their works (fair remuneration in contracts of
authors and performers).
3. ENSURING WIDER ACCESS TO CONTENT
3.1. INTRODUCTION
3.1.1. Background
Digital technologies have facilitated the distribution of and access to copyright-protected
content, with 49 % of EU citizens accessing music or AV content online.21 The Internet has
favoured the entry of new market players and the development of new services (e.g. music
streaming services, Video on Demand – VoD - platforms, etc.) providing access to a large
quantity and variety of content online. It has also provided a growth opportunity for
traditional players. TV still remains the most important channel to access AV content,22 but
both broadcasters and retransmission23 service providers (e.g. cable operators) are
20
The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually
Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled, signed on behalf of the EU on 30 April 2014.
21
Source: Flash Eurobarometer 411. 82 % of respondents indicated using the Internet and 60 % of
Internet users indicated having accessed or downloaded music and 59 % AV content at least once in the
last twelve months.
22
In terms of consumers' viewing time. Source: IHS Technology, "Current market and Technology
Trends in the Broadcasting Sector", May 2015.
23
"Retransmission" is used in the meaning of Directive 93/83/EEC to denote simultaneous, unaltered and
unabridged retransmission for reception by the public of an initial transmission from another Member
10
increasingly investing in the development of digital and online services in order to improve
consumers' experience and offer more flexibility. Digital technologies also offer new
opportunities to cultural heritage institutions (CHIs) willing to digitise and disseminate parts
of their collections that would otherwise remain confined to their premises with limited access
to the public.
Despite the rapidly growing variety of online services available to citizens, cross-border
access to and availability of digital content (both in terms of content provided by online
services in other MS and of content produced in other MS) vary. While broadcasters play an
important role in informing, entertaining and educating the general public, their programmes
often remain unavailable online to European citizens living in other MS. In addition, the
variety of TV / radio channels from other MS provided by retransmission services differs
across the EU.24 Also, European films, documentaries and series are often under-represented
in the catalogues of VoD platforms. Finally, only a limited part of the collections of CHIs are
available online and across borders.
The existence of barriers to the portability and cross-border access to content was highlighted
in the Digital Single Market (DSM) Strategy.25 The Commission presented a legislative
proposal on portability in December 201526 and proposed a "gradual approach to removing
obstacles to cross-border access to content and to the circulation of works" in the
Communication "Towards a modern, more European copyright framework" adopted at the
same time.27 In this context, three fields of possible EU legislative intervention were
identified: improving cross-border distribution of TV and radio programmes online;
facilitation of licensing agreements for the online availability of European AV works and
digitisation and making available of out-of-commerce (OoC) works across the EU.28 The
present section of the IA refers to these fields.
The Commission has carried out an evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive29 and in
particular of the effectiveness and relevance of the principle of "country of origin" applicable
to satellite transmissions and of the mandatory collective management applicable to cable
retransmissions. Even though this evaluation, being limited to particular technologies of
transmission (satellite an cable), is not directly relevant for the measures considered in this IA
(online transmissions),30 its main findings have been taken into acccount where meaningful
parallels could be drawn.
In the online environment, players engaged in the distribution and dissemination of content
(notably broadcasters, retransmission service providers, VoD platforms, but also CHIs as far
as the access to the heritage is concerned) may face significant difficulties when trying to
State, by wire or over the air, including that by satellite, of television or radio programmes intended for
reception by the public.
24
See Annex 6B.
25
COM(2015) 192 final.
26
COM(2015) 627 final.
27
COM(2015) 626 final.
28
The present section of the IA focuses on issues related to the making available of out-of-commerce
works in the collections of CHIs. Specific issues linked to the preservation (including digital
preservation) of cultural heritage are presented in section 4.4 of this IA.
29
Directive 93/83/EEC, see "Ex-post (REFIT) Evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive
(93/83/EEC)".
30
The EU harmonised rules facilitating the acquisition of rights for satellite broadcasting and cable
retransmissions of TV and radio programmes from other MS do not apply to online distribution
activities of broadcasters and to retransmissions by means other than cable.
11
clear the rights for the online exploitation of protected works across the EU.31 Also, VoD
platforms willing to enrich their catalogue with European AV works often face problems to
acquire online rights. Finally, OoC works held in the collections of CHIs often remain
unavailable online, due, in part, to significant difficulties in the clearance of rights.
This section of the IA examines how the clearance of rights can be facilitated to improve the
online availability of content across the EU.
3.1.2. Why should the EU act?
Legal basis
The EU's right to act follows from Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union (TFEU), which confers on the EU the power to adopt measures for the
establishment and functioning of the internal market and has provided a legal basis for a wide
range of EU instruments in the area of copyright.
The rights relevant for online dissemination of content (notably the reproduction and making
available rights) have been harmonised in the InfoSoc Directive.32
The definition of harmonised rules simplifying, where appropriate, the licensing of rights for
online transmissions and retransmissions of TV and radio programmes, and for the
dissemination of OoC works by CHIs, would contribute to improving the functioning of the
Digital Single Market, and in particular the distribution of and access to digital content. The
same applies as regards the facilitation of negotiations to acquire online rights for AV content
notably as regards rights for the exploitation in different territories.
Furthermore, Article 167(4) TFEU provides that the EU shall take cultural aspects into
account in its action under other provisions of the Treaties, in particular in order to respect
and to promote the diversity of its cultures. All proposed options take into account the
implications of EU action for cultural diversity.
Subsidiarity and added value
The problems identified in this section of the IA have an important cross-border dimension:
broadcasters face difficulties in particular when clearing rights for making their content
available online across borders; similarly, the acquisition of rights can be complex for
retransmission services other than cable operators when they offer channels from other MS.
MS cannot intervene by legislation in order to establish a uniform regime applicable to the
licensing of rights (which have been harmonised at EU level) for cross-border transmissions
of TV and radio programmes. Concerning the exercise of retransmission rights, national
solutions may generate further fragmentation in the Digital Single Market. Only intervention
at EU level can ensure legal certainty for all retransmission operators and rightholders.
As regards the online availability of European AV works, MS' action may not be sufficient to
improve the online availability of European (including non-national) AV works. The dialogue
between the relevant stakeholders and negotiations for the licensing of online rights need to
be encouraged at EU level in order to have an impact on the diversity of the content offered
31
"Works" is used in this IA to encompass works protected under EU copyright acquis and other
protected subject matter.
32
Directive 2001/29/EC.
12
by online services, and in particular on the presence of European works in catalogues of these
services.33
Regarding OoC works, EU action responds to the need to facilitate the making available to
the public of the heritage held in CHIs, including across borders. Without EU intervention,
such actions would be limited by national borders (and would happen only in some MS, or at
a varying pace). CHIs pointed to the importance to solve the cross-border aspect of this
problem, as also did right holder signatories to the Memorandum of Understanding on Key
Principles on the Digitisation and Making Available of Out-of-Commerce Works, signed on
20 September 2011.
3.1.3. What should be achieved?
The general objective of EU intervention is to allow for wider online access to protected
content by users across the EU, in particular in the following areas: transmissions and
retransmissions of TV and radio programmes; European AV works and cultural heritage.
EU action aims at removing the copyright-related obstacles and at creating the conditions
allowing broadcasters, service providers and CHIs to offer wider online access to content
across the EU. The specific objectives are therefore defined in terms of facilitating clearance
of rights (and negotiation) between the relevant parties.
33
In the framework of the current reform of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (Directive
2010/13/EU), an obligation for on-demand audiovisual media services to include in their catalogue at
least 20% of European works has been introduced (see Article 13.1 of the proposal). The present
initiative aims at solving copyright-related contractual blockages preventing a larger availability of EU
audiovisual works on VoD platforms. The present initiative could help on-demand players to achieve
the 20% threshold provided for in the AVMS Directive reform, but remains independent from the
AVMS Directive reform.
13
3.1.4. Methodology
Problem definition
As illustrated in the problem tree presented below, the problems reported in this section of the
IA are all directly related to difficulties encountered with the clearance of rights: broadcasters
when acquiring the rights for their online services available across borders; retransmissions
services (different from but functioning like cable operators) for the clearance of rights for
retransmissions of TV and radio programmes from other MS; VoD platforms in obtaining
online rights of European AV works; CHIs clearing the rights for digitisation and
dissemination of OoC works in their collections.
The specific drivers and consequences are explained in the following sub-sections. However
certain overarching elements are presented here as they apply to different contexts.
The territoriality of copyright34 and the specific licensing practices existing for certain types
of works are one of the drivers contributing to the complexity of rights clearance in cross-
border contexts. A service provider that is making the content available online in more than
one MS must have the relevant rights to use such content for the relevant territories. Where
the relevant rights for all the relevant territories are held by one single right holder/distributor,
the service provider can obtain a multi-territorial licence covering all territories. As regards
the online rights in musical works, some CMOs license rights on a territorial basis,35 while a
34
Territoriality of copyright means that rights under copyright are granted by national laws and not as a
unitary title at EU level. The geographical scope of each right is limited to the territory of the MS which
has granted it.
35
Rightholders usually transfer their rights for all EU territories to a single CMO and/or a publisher, who
in turn enters into agreements with other CMOs and sub-publishers for representation in separate MS.
See Charles Rivers Associates Study Economic Analysis of the Territoriality of the Making Available
Right in the EU, March 2014 pages 41-42.
14
number of music publishers and CMOs grant multi-territorial licences.36 The multi-territorial
licensing of these rights is facilitated by the CRM Directive.37 Multi-territorial licensing is
widely used for the rights held by record producers. AV content is mainly licensed and
distributed on a territorial basis. AV producers of premium content38 often grant an exclusive
licence to a single distributor/broadcaster/service provider in each MS. This form of licensing
is considered important by the AV industry for the financing of AV works, with rights being
often pre-sold at the pre-production stage. In exchange for an upfront payment to the film
producers, distributors and/or broadcasters often obtain exclusive exploitation rights in a
specific territory for a defined period of time. As regards OoC works in heritage collections,
existing solutions,39 where available, are also territorially confined.
Beyond licensing issues, the limited availability of content online across borders is also the
result of decisions taken by service providers (which may be related to commercial strategies,
regulatory requirements, technological or financial constraints, etc.). As a result, there are
instances where even if multi-territorial licences are granted by rightholders or even if
agreements between rightholders and service providers do not include limitations on territorial
exploitation, cross-border access remains a problem. This is however not a problem that can
be addressed by copyright specific legislation.40 This section of the IA does not directly
address these issues.
Difficulties in clearing rights for online exploitation, including across borders, often result in
less varied content being available online and in consumers facing restrictions when trying to
access content online. There is however consumer interest for content from other MS:
In the Eurobarometer survey carried out in 2011 on cross-border demand for content
services,41 19 % of Europeans indicated they were interested in receiving content from
another EU country, with 15 % interested in TV programmes, 3 % in on-demand services
and 2 % in other types of content;
In the Eurobarometer survey carried out in 2015 on "Cross-border access to online
content",42 almost one in ten Internet users (8 %) indicated they have tried to access
content from an online service meant for users in another MS, while 50% of respondents
who have not tried indicated they would be interested to do so (the most popular type of
content being AV - 29 % of respondents);
36
In June 2015, the CMOs PRS (UK), GEMA (Germany) and STIM (Sweden) received the clearance of
their deal by the Commission with a view to establishing a multi-territorial licensing hub in Europe. EC
press release: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-15-5204_en.htm
37
Directive 2014/26/EU
38
AV content which is considered as a vital input because it attracts substantial audiences and thus
generate substantial revenues for rightholders.
39
For example based on extended collective licensing or presumptions of representation by CMOs. See
Annex 9E for more information on these mechanisms and national examples.
40
Some of these issues are addressed by accompanying measures announced in the Commission
Communication (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015.
41
Special Eurobarometer 366 : Building the Digital Single Market - Cross Border Demand for Content
Services
42
Flash Eurobarometer 411;
http://ec.europa.eu/COMMFrontOffice/PublicOpinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/F
LASH/surveyKy/2059
15
In the 2014 public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules and in the 2015
public consultation on the review of the Satellite and Cable Directive, the vast majority of
consumers argued in favour of cross-border access to online content;43
In the public consultation on the AVMS Directive, 82 % of the respondents who
expressed an opinion on the issue of "Promotion of European works" indicated being
interested in watching more content produced in another MS.
Identification of policy options
The policy options have been developed in relation to the specific issues at stake in each area.
Different licensing regimes, considered as enabling mechanisms to facilitate the clearance of
rights, are examined in the legislative options.
Views from stakeholders, European Parliament and Member States
The views from the different stakeholders are reported after the description of each policy
option.
In its resolution of 9 July 201544, the European Parliament (EP) urged the Commission “to
propose adequate solutions for better cross-border accessibility of services and copyright
content for consumers” while acknowledging the importance of territoriality.
A number of MS45 support the objective of enabling more cross-border access to online
transmissions of TV and radio programmes but call for caution, as in their view a possible
intervention should not undermine contractual freedom, a high level of protection of
intellectual property and the exclusivity of rights.
Concerning retransmissions of TV and radio programmes, a number of MS are in favour of
simplifying rights clearance for services comparable to cable, though some have concerns and
in particular underline the necessity to ensure fair competition.
On out-of-commerce works, only a few MS provided views on the need of EU action in this
area,46 generally to explain national systems and favouring contractual mechanisms. In recent
Council Conclusions,47 they have simply taken note of the Commission’s intention48 to assess
options and consider legislative initiatives in this area.
43
"Report on the responses to the Public Consultation on the Review of the EU Copyright Rules":
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-rules/docs/contributions/consultation-
report_en.pdf. See relevant extracts in Annex 2B.
"Full report on the public consultation on the review of the EU Satellite and Cable Directive":
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-public-consultation-review-eu-satellite-
and-cable-directive. See Annex 2C.
44
European Parliament resolution of 9 July 2015 on the implementation of Directive 2001/29/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of
copyright and related rights in the information society.
45
The views of MS are based on the results of the public consultation on the review of the EU Satellite
and Cable Directive, to which 11 MS replied (DE, EE, ES, FI, FR, HU, IE, NL, PL, SK, UK). See
Annex 2C.
46
Notably during the 2014 public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules. See Annex 2B.
47
Council Conclusions on the role of Europeana for the digital access, visibility and use of European
cultural heritage, 31 May 2016.
48
As outlined in the Commission Communication (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015.
16
Impacts of policy options
Stakeholders affected
The policy options related to online transmissions and retransmissions of TV and radio
programmes would affect, on the one hand, broadcasters (TV and radio), retransmission
service providers and other online service providers, and on the other hand, all rightholders
whose works are used in TV and radio programmes (mainly in the AV, music and visual art
sectors).
Regarding the availability of works in VoD platforms, the policy options examined in the IA
would affect all types of stakeholders in the AV sector (authors, producers, distributors,
broadcasters, VoD platforms, etc.).
The policy options considered in relation to OoC works would have an impact on CHIs such
as libraries, archives, museums and film heritage institutions, and on rightholders in all
sectors (the collections of CHIs contain OoC which can be books, phonograms, AV works,
photographs, etc.).
Impacts on consumers/users are assessed for each policy options, mostly in terms of access to
and availability of online content.
Obligations and costs for MS resulting from the preferred policy options are presented in
Annex 3.
Type of impacts and availability of data
Only the most significant and likely impacts are reported in this IA. The impacts are assessed
by group of stakeholders (e.g. broadcasters, service providers, rightholders), focusing mainly
on economic impacts, notably transaction costs and licensing revenues. In addition, broad
social impacts (e.g. impacts on cultural diversity) and impacts on fundamental rights are
assessed separately. All policy options considered in this section of the IA may have an
impact on copyright as a property right (Article 17(2) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of
the European Union – "The Charter")49 and on the freedom to conduct a business (Article 16).
In addition, impacts on freedom of information (Article 11), freedom of the arts and sciences
(Article 13), and right to education (Article 14) are examined where appropriate. Impacts on
third countries or on the environment are not elaborated upon as the policy options presented
in this section of the IA are considered not to have any substantial impact on them. No
significant impacts on employment have been identified.
Whereas general market data is widely available on the different sectors and distribution
channels examined in this section of the IA (TV market, VoD market50), specific data related
to transaction costs and licensing revenues is not publicly available. Other than in a few cases,
this data could not be obtained from stakeholders despite repeated attempts (through direct
requests to stakeholders or dedicated studies51).
49
Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, OJ C 326, 26.10.2012, p. 391–407.
50
See Annex 8.
51
The "Survey and data gathering to support the evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive
93/83/EEC and assessment of its possible extension" ("SatCab Study") specifically analysed differences
in obtaining remuneration by CMOs and individual licensors for retransmission of TV and radio
programmes over various platforms. However, the findings are rather limited due to limited information
which was made available to the contractor.
17
Impacts on SMEs
The policy options considered in this IA do not target SMEs but may have an impact on them,
as the large majority of companies that may be affected are SMEs. In the sector of
programming and broadcasting activities, 98.9 % of companies are SMEs (85 % micro-
companies) generating 17.9 % of the value added.52 In the sector of film and music
production, 99.9 % of companies are SMEs (96 % micro-companies) generating 85 % of the
value added (32 % by micro-companies).53
The policy options examined in this section of the IA are expected to reduce the
administrative burden faced by TV and radio broadcasters as well as service providers willing
to obtain rights for the online and/or cross-border exploitation of works and would therefore
be positive for SMEs active in this area. Most rightholders may also benefit from the licensing
or negotiation mechanisms examined in the different policy options, in particular individual
rightholders or micro-companies that do not have the capacity to manage individual licensing
deals with a high number of service providers and have a limited market power. Furthermore,
the policy options examined in the different areas covered by this section of the IA could
generate new licensing opportunities for rightholders and possibly additional licensing
revenues. Therefore, mitigating measures in favour of SMEs have not been deemed necessary.
Comparison of policy options
The policy options are compared against the criteria of effectiveness (i.e. to what extent they
fulfil the specific objective), efficiency (i.e. at what cost they do so), impact on the different
groups of stakeholders and coherence with regard to cultural diversity, fundamental rights
and/or other EU policies. Each option is rated between "--" (very negative), "-" (negative), 0
(neutral), "+" (positive) and "++" (very positive).
3.2. ONLINE TRANSMISSIONS AND RETRANSMISSIONS OF TV/RADIO PROGRAMMES
3.2.1. Background data on the TV and radio sector54
Despite the way TV has been transformed by the emergence of digital technologies and the
internet,55 traditional TV remains relevant both economically and as the source of information
and entertainment for viewers. In 2014, the EU-28 TV market was worth around €86 billion.56
In the same year, TV content (linear and time-shifted viewing) equated to 96 % of all video
consumption in six countries (FR, ES, DE, IT, UK and US).57
52
Source: Eurostat Structural Business Statistics, 2012 data for radio broadcasting, television
programming and broadcasting activities.
53
Source: Eurostat, Structural Business Statistics, 2013 data for motion picture, video and television
programme production, sound recording and music publishing activities.
54
See Annex 6 for further details.
55
Annex 6A.
56
This comprises direct revenues from three main sources: pay-television subscriptions (37 %), followed
by advertisement (34 %) and public funding (29 %). Source: European Audiovisual Observatory
Yearbook, 2015. Television maintains the highest share of advertising revenue across all media: global
total TV advertising revenue’s share of global total advertising revenue was 31.5% in 2014, see PWC
the Global entertainment and media outlook 2015 –2019,
http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/entertainment-media/outlook/segment-insights/tv-
advertising.html.
57
According to IHS which tracks the total viewing of France, Spain, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom
and the United States by combining viewing time data from linear televisions, PVR (personal video
recorder), time-shifting, pay TV video-on-demand services and over-the-top (OTT) content- Source:
18
96 % of Europeans watch television at least once a week, predominantly on a TV set but
increasingly online (in 2014, 20 % of Europeans – but 40 % of those aged 15-24- watched TV
online at least once a week, representing a 3 % increase compared to 2012).58 The average TV
viewing time for the whole EU population in 2013 was 223 minutes per day.59 While viewing
patterns are changing, particularly among younger viewers, TV programming still represents
an important part of their video viewing.60
TV and radio remain the main source of news for a large majority of Europeans, compared to
other sources (notably print and online). For example, 72 % of consumers in FR, 69 % in DE,
63 % in DK and 59 % in the UK indicated TV or radio as their main source of news.61 80 %
of the EU population listens to radio for at least 2 to 3 hours a day – and mostly to local or
regional programmes. On average, 6 to 8 % of total listening of radio is done online in
Europe.62
A broadcaster may make a TV or radio channel available directly through a traditional
terrestrial transmission,63 or via a satellite,64 cable65 or other telecommunications network.66
TV and radio channels can also be offered online over the open internet. Many satellite, cable
and IPTV operators offer such services to their subscribers. There are also some online
services of this type provided by entities that do not offer satellite, cable or IPTV
transmissions.67 The following diagram illustrates the functioning of direct, including online,
transmissions of TV and radio programmes (section 3.2.2) and of retransmissions of TV and
IHS Technology, "Current market and Technology Trends in the Broadcasting Sector", May 2015, p.
27.
58
Standard Eurobarometer 82, Media Use in the EU, Autumn 2014:
http://ec.europa.eu/COMMFrontOffice/PublicOpinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/yearFrom/19
73/yearTo/2014/surveyKy/2041
59
The figure includes linear TV as well as short term catch-up. Source: "The development of the
European market for on-demand audiovisual services", European Audiovisual Observatory, March
2015.
60
In the UK, TV programming accounts for 65 % of video viewing among individuals aged 16 to 24.
http://informitv.com/2015/06/18/young-people-still-watch-television/
Truth About Youth, Thinkbox, June 2015
61
FR: TV 61 % radio 11 %; DE: TV 56 % radio 13 %; DK: TV 54 % radio 9 %; UK: TV 51 % radio 8 %.
See Hermes study on the future of European audiovisual regulation 2015, based on Reuters Digital
News Survey 2014 / Hans-Bredow-Institute.
62
Source: AER reply to the public consultation on the SatCab review, 2015.
63
Terrestrial radio and TV services are broadcast from transmission towers and received through an
antenna. Terrestrial channels are generally free to view, although some are available as part of
subscription services (normally as part of a package of channels linked to the basic level of
subscription).
64
Direct to home satellite television and radio channels are uplinked from an earth station or teleport
either directly by a broadcaster, by a third-party facility or by a satellite operator. Some satellite
services are free to air. However, many satellite services are encrypted and therefore users are also
required to pay for a subscription in order to access the content. In most cases these encrypted pay
channels are offered as part of package of channels offered by satellite package providers.
65
Cable television and radio services are generally carried over a co-axial cable. Signals are received at a
cable head end, either via terrestrial or satellite transmissions, and retransmitted via cable to customer
homes. Some channels may be provided free of charge, or as part of a basic cable service tier. Other
channels may be encrypted and are offered on a subscription basis, typically in various bundled
packages.
66
It is now possible for telecommunications companies (which may be either incumbent telephone
companies or competing providers of communications services) to distribute radio and television
channels and other AV services over fixed or wireless broadband data networks using internet
protocols. Such services are sometimes referred to as internet protocol television, or IPTV.
67
For example, YouTube live channels.
19
radio programmes (section 3.2.3). The problems addressed by this IA concern the
transmissions and retransmissions marked by dotted lines below.
3.2.2. Online transmissions of broadcasting organisations
3.2.2.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Broadcasting organisations face practical difficulties with the acquisition of rights
for their online services when they are offered across borders
Description of the problem: As viewing habits of consumers are changing and demand for
access to TV and radio online grows, broadcasters have responded by expanding their
services online and allowing consumers' access through screens such as tablets and
smartphones. The online offerings of broadcasters include simulcasting services (TV/radio
channels which are transmitted online alongside traditional broadcasting by satellite, cable,
terrestrial), webcasting services (online only linear channels68), TV catch-up services69 and
podcasts, i.e. radio programmes that can be streamed or downloaded as well as other on-
demand services (e.g. VoD). Simulcasting and catch-up services are often monetised through
advertising (although some broadcasters charge for access to these services).
In order to make their online services available across borders, broadcasters need to have the
required rights for the relevant territories. This may require engaging in a complex process for
68
For example, YouTube live channels which cover live streams such as gaming, music, sports, news,
technology, nature; iTunes "Beats" radio which offers linear music streaming. Traditional broadcasters
have also started to offer online-only linear TV-like channels: as of February 2016, BBC 3 channel is
available only online; on 31 May 2016, RTL II (DE) launched its online channel RTL II You, which
combines linear services with video-on-demand.
69
The concept of ‘catch-up’ television, enabling consumers to view programmes at the own choice of
timing, is generally based on clearance of the rights for programming within a limited window, typically
7 to 30 days after transmission.
20
obtaining online rights, generating high transaction costs, and may reduce broadcaster's
incentives to provide cross-border services. Despite requests to the relevant stakeholders, no
data could be obtained on transaction costs related to clearing online rights on a cross-border
basis.70 For satellite broadcasting the clearance of rights has been facilitated by the application
of the country of origin principle enshrined in the Satellite and Cable Directive71 according to
which the act of communication to the public by satellite takes place solely in the MS where,
under the control and responsibility of the broadcaster, the programme-carrying signal is
introduced into an uninterrupted chain of communication leading to the satellite and down
towards the earth. Therefore the rights for such satellite transmission must only be cleared for
one MS. This same principle does not apply when a broadcaster clears rights for its online
services.
The need to facilitate the clearance of rights for broadcast-related online services has been
recognised by stakeholders in the music sector72 and in the acquis. Article 32 of the CRM
Directive introduces a derogation from the rules on the multi-territorial licensing of rights in
musical works for the clearance of rights required by broadcasters for simulcasting and other
online transmissions which are ancillary to the initial broadcast of radio or television
programmes. The rationale behind this derogation, as explained in recital 48 of the CRM
Directive, was to leave the required flexibility for the licensing of online rights in musical
works for such transmissions to be licensed via local CMOs (rather than by other EU CMOs
or "hubs" aggregating rights which may not necessarily be in the same MS as the broadcaster
seeking the licence).
70
European Broadcasting Union (EBU) members' experience with archives rights clearance for online
transmissions shows that administrative costs can be €15,000-20,000 in a standard case, while a difficult
case could amount to €60,000-80,000 (EBU reply to the SatCab public consultation). (Note: this
example concerns transaction costs to clear online rights for archive content nationally, to which the
broadcaster previously acquired a licence for broadcasting). EBU explained that these examples of the
clearance costs figures come from the BBC in 2005, adapted to the inflation. In general, “standard”
cases are typically documentaries, current affairs and non-fiction programmes, as they involve less
different rightholders, whereas "difficult" cases are typically dramas, comedy series and other fiction
programmes. The standard/difficult borderline is also determined by the age of the programme (the
older it is, the more difficult it is to clear the rights). See for further information
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140603093549/http://www.ipo.gov.uk/ipreview-c4e-sub-
bbc.pdf.
However, despite requests, neither EBU nor the Association of Commercial Television in Europe
(ACT) provided data on cross-border transaction costs for clearing online rights, as compared to
transaction costs in one jurisdiction.
71
See section 6.1 of the ex-post (REFIT) Evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive (93/83/EEC).
72
The EBU, the European Composers and Songwriters Alliance (ECSA), the International Confederation
of Music Publishers (ICMP) and the European Grouping of Societies of Authors and Composers
(GESAC) have signed on 4 April 2014 a Recommendation for the licensing of broadcast-related online
activities
(http://www.ebu.ch/files/live/sites/ebu/files/News/2014/04/Recommendation%20for%20the%20Licensi
ng%20of%20Broadcast-related%20online%20activities.pdf). This Recommendation sets the principles
which encourage the aggregation of rights for the licensing on a cross-border basis of broadcast-related
online services provided by and under the control and responsibility of a broadcaster which services
have a clear relationship with the broadcaster’s linear offline broadcast services, in particular material
with a thematic relationship with the offline broadcast content. In 2002, the Commission cleared an
agreement between CMOs of record producers concerning one-stop licensing of rights for simulcasting
services of TV and radio broadcasters. Under this agreement, broadcasters can get a multi-territorial
licence from a CMO of their choice for simulcasting services in the EEA rather than secure a licence
from each national CMO (Case No COMP/C2/38.014 — IFPI ‘Simulcasting’). Subsequently further
agreements have been concluded to cover other online related services such as some forms of
webcasting (2005) and catch-up services (2015).
21
Drivers: [High number of works and short timeframe] In addition to content such as films, TV
series or music produced by other parties (for which rights have to be cleared with the
relevant rightholders), broadcasters on a daily basis transmit a very high number of hours of
original TV and radio programmes73 such as news, cultural, political, documentary or
entertainment programmes that they produce themselves, which use variety of content
protected by copyright74 the rights to which have to be cleared. This results in a complex
clearance of rights with a variety of rightholders, including authors (of music, of scripts, of
images, of texts), directors, film producers, performers, record producers. The overall number
of transactions is much higher than for an online content service offering a catalogue of films
or music on demand. Major public service broadcasters conclude more than 70,000 contracts
with rightholders per year.75 For example, one episode of series produced by a broadcaster
may include up to 100 underlying rights.76 Often the rights need to be cleared in a short time-
frame, in particular when preparing programmes such as news or current affairs which
represent an important part of broadcasters' transmissions.77 The relevant rights may be held
by CMOs (e.g. rights in musical works) or by individual rightholders such as producers (e.g.
rights in AV works). With regard to some other works, e.g. pictures and photographs the
situation is mixed as some rights are represented by CMOs and some by individual
rightholders. There can be also situations where one work is embedded in another e.g. music
in an AV work or a picture in a text which further complicates the rights clearance. This
means that in their daily operations TV broadcasters face significant transaction costs related
to the clearance of underlying rights for their programmes. The transaction costs for radio
broadcasters are less significant, since (i) radio broadcasts contain fewer types of works
protected by copyright (notably, no images or AV works) and (ii) there are well-established
collective management structures for the main type of copyright-protected work used in radio
broadcasts, i.e. music, which makes it easier for radio broadcasts to clear rights.78
[Need to clear rights on a territorial basis] These costs and the complexity of the task
increase significantly if broadcasters want to make their online services available across
borders. As described in section 3.1.4, in some cases multi-territorial licences are available
but often broadcasters must clear rights for certain works territory by territory. As regards
radio broadcasting, according to the information provided in meetings with the stakeholders,
agreements between radio broadcasters and local CMOs may allow cross-border
73
For example, EBU members in the EU aggregate up to 10 million broadcast hours per day (Source:
EBU).
74
Such programmes include news, current events, political debates; own documentary/entertainment
productions; culture, science, arts programmes; lifestyle programmes, etc. See examples provided in
Annex 6A.
75
Source: EBU. In Germany, ARD and ZDF conclude at least 150 000 contracts each year.
76
Source: EBU. An example of BBC TV series Doctor Who shows that more than 80 contributions per
episode needed to be cleared, see
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140603093549/http://www.ipo.gov.uk/ipreview-c4e-sub-
bbc.pdf; for ZDF (Germany), a single 30 minutes episode of a TV series can generally involve up to
100 contributions and rightholders (actors, musicians, composer, phonogram industry etc.); for the
documentary “Künstlerportait”, ORF (Austria) needed to clear 32 rights (13 clips) and, in addition,
music rights are cleared with CMOs. (Source: EBU). See for further details Annex 6A.
77
On average, news and current affairs programmes represent 25.9 % of EBU members' programmes
(source: EBU/MIS – on the basis of aggregated data from 2014 concerning 35 broadcasters in 27 EU
countries). 58% of programming of German broadcaster ZDF is dedicated to information.
78
Despite requests addressed to the relevant stakeholders we were not able to obtain more specific
information on potential problems in licensing rights for cross-border online transmissions of radio
broadcasters.
22
transmissions up to certain % of audience (e.g. 5 or 7.5 %) which could explain why there is a
broad offer of online radio services.
Beyond the complexity of rights clearance other factors influence to a different extent the
cross-border accessibility of TV and radio programmes. They are presented below but this IA
is not addressing these particular issues, as they are mostly linked to business models and
commercial strategies. [Territorial exclusivity] Another factor strongly influencing the access
to TV and radio programmes across borders is the fact that the rights in premium content (e.g.
films and TV series of particular interest for the audience), as explained in section 3.1.4, are
generally licensed on the basis of territorial exclusivity. The important role this licensing
plays for the AV industry is also explained in section 3.1.4. Broadcasters willing to serve
audiences across borders may not be able to acquire the relevant rights if the rights in other
territories are granted, on an exclusive basis, to another service provider(s). At the same time,
they may enter into contracts under which they agree to limit or block cross-border access to
premium content to which they have acquired the rights for territories in which they operate.
This is confirmed by initial findings of the Commission’s e-commerce sector inquiry.79
[Remit of public service broadcasters] Some public service broadcasters may be limited in
their possibility of offering certain content in their online services by their national public
service remit. For example in Germany public service broadcasters are not allowed to place
TV-feature films and series purchased from third parties online.80 By contrast, the remit of
other public broadcasters may allow them to serve audiences outside the MS.81
[Commercial decisions of broadcasters] Finally, in some cases, broadcaster’s themselves may
take decision to focus on a specific territory and to tailor their offerings to the specific
audience due to a variety of factors. For example, broadcasters may decide to geo-block
access to their own programming where they see possibilities of licensing it in other
territories. According to the feedback received from stakeholders, other considerations such as
the demand for the services, language spoken by consumers, the complexity of the legal
framework as well as the viability of revenues may result in broadcasters deciding not to enter
certain markets at all.82
Consequences: In consequence of the combination of the drivers described above, TV
broadcasters often make their online services available only in a territory of one MS and put
in place measures which prevent cross-border access to these services such as geo-blocking of
IP addresses from other territories.83 According to the initial findings of the Commission’s e-
79
Respondents have stated that some rightholders make the licensing of their content conditional upon the
fact that the service provider undertakes to apply geo-blocking, or that the cost of making some content
available without geo-blocking would be higher/too high. Licensing agreements for TV drama and TV
series, and films and sports events, appear to include requirements to geo-block more often than
licensing agreements for other digital content categories. 59 % of respondents state that they are
contractually required by rightholders to geo-block. 66 % of all agreements with suppliers of film
content that were referred to by respondents require digital content service providers to geo-block.
80
Capello M. (ed.), "Online activities of public service media: remit and financing", IRIS Special 2105-1,
European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg, 2015, p. 61.
81
For example, according to Article 5(13) of Law No I-1571 of 8 October 1996, the Lithuanian public
broadcaster LRT can broadcast abroad. The Charter of the Irish public broadcaster RTÉ states that
"RTÉ recognises the importance of news and information about Ireland for the Irish abroad in
maintaining contact with Ireland and preserving an Irish dimension to their identity".
82
See Synopsis Report in Annex 2C and also "Survey and data gathering to support the evaluation of the
Satellite and Cable Directive 93/83/EEC and assessment of its possible extension" (the "SatCab
Study"), sections 3 and 4.
83
See Annex 6B and SatCab Study, section 3.
23
commerce sector inquiry published on 18 March 2016,84 82 % of the public service TV
broadcasters and 62 % of commercial TV broadcasters who responded to the inquiry
implemented at least one type of geo-blocking to their online services. As illustrated in Annex
6B, data provided by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) as well as data collected in the
SatCab study85 on cross-border availability of online services of TV broadcasters indicates
that international content such as sports, fiction, documentaries and entertainment, as well as
content based on foreign formats is in principle geo-blocked. The situation with the original
content produced by TV broadcasters is mixed but often broadcasters also block access to
their own content.86 In the case of radio broadcasting both online live streaming and podcasts
are usually not geo-blocked.
How the problem would evolve: Without intervention at EU level addressing the particular
complexity of the clearance of rights this problem would persist as broadcasters would face
the same practical difficulties in clearing rights for cross-border transmissions. EU consumers
would remain limited in their cross-border access to TV programmes such as news, cultural or
political programmes, documentaries or entertainment programmes which due to their
national specificities often cannot be easily replaced by programmes offered in other MS.
3.2.2.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
This IA assesses the baseline scenario, one non-legislative and two legislative options to
facilitate licensing in order to enhance cross-border transmissions of TV and radio
programmes online. The options considered in this IA are enabling options aiming to facilitate
licensing of rights, in order to allow the market to respond gradually to legal and policy
changes.
Baseline
No policy intervention. This option would consist in relying on market players to
progressively offer cross-border access to TV and radio programmes distributed online as
well as on the courts, and notably the CJEU, to clarify the application of the Treaty and of
provisions of EU secondary law relevant to the free movement of services. It would also mean
continuing to rely on the application of competition law to agreements including limitations
on territorial exploitation of content. .
Stakeholders' views87
All public service broadcasters, commercial radios and certain other service providers consider that the baseline
option cannot solve the identified problems. They consider that a heavy administrative task and transaction costs
84
The initial findings from the Commission's e-commerce sector inquiry published on 18 March 2016.
85
EBU data covers public broadcasters from 14 EEA countries; the SatCab Study covers data from 11 MS
(three commercial/public broadcasters' channels from each covered MS).
86
A few examples concerning public broadcasters: LTV (LT) in principle does not geo-block own
produced content while CT1 (CZ), a general channel is fully geo-blocked and CT24, a news and current
affairs channel, geo-blocks sports news; the livestream channel of ZDF (DE), Mediathek, is geo-
blocked and cross-border access is allowed only to selected programmes. A few examples concerning
commercial broadcasters: TV4 Play (SE), geo-blocks all online TV simulcasting services except news,
TV3 (LT) makes available across borders news and own production while international entertainment
programmes are geo-blocked; RTL TV Now (DE) makes simulcasting services available only locally
while live TV News are available internationally (paid services). See also Annex 6B.
87
In this section, the summaries of stakeholders' views are based on the results of the public consultation
on the review of the EU Satellite and Cable Directive, see Annex 2C.
24
linked to licensing rights across borders would remain. Rightholders, CMOs and the majority of commercial
broadcasters88 support this option, arguing that the current framework already offers possibilities to license rights
on a multi-territorial basis and that the limited cross-border supply is driven by a limited consumer demand and
language barriers. Consumers' representatives consider that the current regulatory framework does not
sufficiently ensure access to TV/radio programmes available online in other MS and that market-driven solutions
would not be sufficient to solve this problem.
Option 1 – Voluntary agreements to facilitate the clearing of rights for broadcasters'
online services ancillary to their broadcasts
This option would promote maximising a voluntary aggregation of the rights necessary to
provide multi-territorial licences for broadcasters' online services. It would build on the
voluntary agreements between rightholders and broadcasters which already exist in the
music sector89 and would aim to introduce them in other content sectors important for
broadcasting (such as AV and visual arts) and also with regard to commercial
broadcasters who are not party to the arrangements with authors' CMOs. Based on such
arrangements, broadcasters would be able to acquire from CMOs multi-territorial licences
to aggregated repertoires.
It would focus on online services of broadcasting organisations which are ancillary to the
initial broadcast, i.e. simulcasting (linear simultaneous transmission of a broadcast by the
broadcaster), catch-up TV/radio services (on-demand transmission of a broadcast
available for a limited period of time after it has been broadcast in a linear manner) and
material related to the broadcast (e.g. previews).90
In order to facilitate the clearing of the rights for cross-border transmissions of
broadcasters' online services ancillary to their broadcast, the Commission would assess
the functioning of the existing voluntary agreements in the music sector and foster a
dialogue between the parties (rightholders, CMOs and broadcasters) if there is a need to
improve their functioning. It would also promote similar agreements at EU level for the
AV sector and other content sectors important for broadcasting services (such as visual
arts).
Stakeholders' views
Public service broadcasters are likely to consider that this option is not sufficient to achieve the identified
objective. Commercial broadcasters and some other service providers may favour this option as it would rely
on industry-based solutions. Rightholders and CMOs are likely to support such option. However, in the case of
AV stakeholders, the usual practice for licensing is individual agreements thus it is less likely that they would
support voluntary aggregation of repertoires by CMOs, especially for the premium AV content. Consumers'
representatives consider that market-driven solutions would not be sufficient to solve the identified issues.
Option 2 - Application of country of origin to the clearing of rights for broadcasters'
online services ancillary to their initial broadcast
Introduce a rule providing that as concerns the licensing of rights for certain online
transmissions by broadcasting organisations, the copyright relevant act takes place solely
in the MS where the broadcasting organisation is established. As a result, in order to
provide certain services in the Union, rights would only need to be cleared for the
88
The difference in the opinion between commercial and public service broadcasters may stem from the
fact that the former typically produce more content which is licensed to third parties.
89
See section 3.2.2.1 above.
90
Access to and availability of European audiovisual works on VoD platforms are addressed in section
3.3 of this IA.
25
"country of origin" (CoO) of the broadcasting organisation (and not for the countries of
reception).91
This option would cover the same online services of broadcasting organisations as under
Option 1.92
The CoO rule would enable broadcasters to provide services across borders but it would
not oblige them to do so (Option 2 would not entail any rules limiting the contractual
freedom of broadcasters and rightholders). The application of the CoO rule and the
contractual freedom of broadcasters and rightholders would be subject to the application
of the Treaty as well as to the applicable secondary law (notably, as regards the freedom
to provide services).
The licence fee payable to rightholders would have to take into account all aspects of the
online transmission of the broadcast, including the audience, unless agreed otherwise
with rightholders.93
The Commission would put in place a monitoring mechanism to assess the cross-border
availability of broadcasters' online services covered under this option.
Stakeholders' views
All public service broadcasters and commercial radios support this option. Commercial TV broadcasters are
generally against this option due to the fear that, considered together with the application of the free movement of
services principle and competition law, it may lead to the weakening of territorial licensing or even to mandatory
pan-European licences. They argue that this, in turn, would limit possibilities for smaller broadcasters/
broadcasters operating in smaller markets to obtain licences in premium AV content, as rightholders, without
exclusivity guarantees, would focus on the largest/most lucrative markets. Other service providers than
broadcasters call for a cautious and well-measured approach, ensuring a level playing field. Rightholders and
CMOs are against such option for similar reasons as commercial TV broadcasters, underlining that this may
undermine incentives to invest in AV production. They also raise a possible risk of establishment shopping and
of disaggregation of repertoire. Consumers' representatives support the application of the CoO rule to
broadcasters' online transmissions.
Option 3 – Application of country of origin to the clearing of rights for the services
covered by Option 2 and for TV and radio-like linear online transmissions (and services
ancillary to such transmissions)
This option would cover, in addition to the services covered under Option 2, TV and
radio-like linear online transmissions which are not linked to a broadcast but are online
only transmissions (webcasting) and services ancillary to the webcast (such as catch-up
and previews of the webcasts). The "country of origin" (CoO) rule would apply to such
services.
91
The CoO rule discussed in this IA should be distinguished from the country of origin principle (CoO)
applicable under the AVMS Directive. The CoO under the AVMS Directive establishes the jurisdiction
in terms of the regulatory framework harmonised under the AVMS Directive: providers only need to
abide by the rules of a Member State which is their 'country of origin' as defined in that Directive. Also,
if any Member State adopts national rules that are stricter than the AVMS Directive, these can only be
applied to providers falling under that jurisdiction. The CoO rule discussed in this IA covers licencing
of copyright and related rights and does not concern the matters harmonised under the AVMS
Directive.
92
This approach is aligned with Article 32 of the CRM Directive, see above.
Access to and availability of European audiovisual works on VoD platforms are addressed in section
3.3 of this IA.
93
An equivalent principle is established in recital 17 of the Satellite and Cable Directive for
communication to the public by satellite.
26
TV and radio-like linear online transmissions would be defined as (i) linear services; (ii)
which are provided on the basis of a schedule; (iii) and under the editorial responsibility
of the service provider.
The other main elements of this option would be the same as under Option 2.
Stakeholders' views
Public service broadcasters support the CoO rule for broadcasters' transmissions however do not ask for the
application of the CoO rule beyond that, underlying a special situation of broadcasters. Commercial TV
broadcasters do not support this option for the same reasons as Option 2. Majority of service providers other than
broadcasters underline the importance of a level playing field and some of them call for a technology-neutral
approach. Rightholders and CMOs would oppose this option for similar reasons as commercial TV broadcasters
and underline that, as a result, this option may decrease incentives to invest into AV content. Also, they are
concerned that extending the CoO rule to webcasting services would entail an even higher risk of establishment
shopping by online service providers and encourage "race to the bottom": search of the lowest copyright fees.
This, in turn, may lead to disaggregation of repertoires licensed by CMOs. Consumer representatives support the
application of the CoO rule to all online transmissions.
Discarded options
Overarching CoO rule: The identified objectives could be achieved also by applying the
"country of origin" rule to all communication to the public and making available acts online in
which case the rule would apply also to services such as VoD services,94 on demand music
streaming services, etc. However, such option is not considered in this IA as its scope is
broader than the targeted objective raised in the DSM Strategy: "to tackle […] measures to
ensure enhanced cross-border access to broadcasters' services in Europe". The Copyright
Communication acknowledges the necessity of a gradual approach, in order to allow the
market to adapt to policy and legal changes. As a first step, the initiative will focus on TV and
radio programmes which are a main way to access content in the EU, in particular as regards
news and cultural programmes. Linear transmissions offer to consumers the ability to
consume content as it happens which is extremely important for event driven programming.95
The Commission will continue monitoring the situation in the market, following its long-term
vision.96
Restrictions to contractual freedom: Options which, in addition to establishing the CoO rule,
would prohibit contractual arrangements concerning territorial exploitation of content were
discarded. Such options could de facto result in pan-European licences. Many operators,
including SMEs, may not have financial means to acquire pan-European licences. If the
market does not have a possibility to adapt to changes gradually such options could push
smaller operators out of this segment of the market. Also, such options may impact the way
how the creative, especially AV, content is financed and distributed.97
3.2.2.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected?
Approach
The above options would affect broadcasters, webcasters and other online service providers as well as
rightholders whose works are used in TV and radio programmes. They would also affect consumers. The
impacts affecting these groups of stakeholders are presented separately.
94
VoD services have different characteristics than broadcasting services, described in Annex 8. Access to
and availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms is covered under section 3.3 of this IA.
95
See p. 29 of the IHS Technology report Current Market and Technology Trends in the Broadcasting
Sector, 2015.
96
See the Commission Communication (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015.
97
See section 3.1.
27
For broadcasters, the following economic impacts have been considered: impacts on transaction costs linked
to clearing rights, on possibilities to offer services across borders and, where relevant, impacts on licensing
costs (licence fees paid by broadcasters to rightholders directly or through CMOs).
The same types of impacts have been examined for webcasters in Option 2.
In addition, the impacts on the competitive situation with other service providers (not covered by the options)
were considered.
For rightholders, the main economic impacts are on licensing models (in particular, a possibility to exploit
rights on an exclusive territorial basis) and on licensing revenues. The impacts would vary depending on the
sector: the AV works are more often distributed on the basis of territorial exclusivity as compared to other
works used in TV and radio programmes (such as music, literary works, artistic works, e.g. photographs).
Therefore, impacts are assessed separately for AV, music and visual arts sectors.
For consumers, the impacts on access to online transmission services across borders have been considered, as
well as impacts on prices (where relevant).
The majority of commercial broadcasters as well as Rightholders and CMOs are concerned that the intervention
may oblige broadcasters to provide consumers with cross-border access to their online services.98 As explained
above, the options considered in this IA would not oblige broadcasters to provide services across borders and
would not entail any rules limiting the contractual freedom of broadcasters and Rightholders. The same
stakeholders also underline a risk that introducing the CoO rule for online transmissions will weaken territorial
licensing of rights (or even lead to mandatory pan-European licensing). They argue that the establishment of the
CoO rule in combination with the application of the free movement of services principle and competition law
would have a detrimental effect on territorial licensing. As it is not possible to predict the future effects that the
application of the free movement of services principle and competition law may have on the territorial licensing
of rights, this IA does not attempt to assess impacts that the proposed intervention may have in combination with
these rules.
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, as the publicly available data or data that could be obtained from
stakeholders on licensing revenues and transaction costs is limited.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Broadcasters
Impacts on transaction costs: Under the baseline scenario, broadcasters would continue facing
high transaction costs linked to licensing of rights for cross-border online transmissions,
including for their own programmes. Existing voluntary initiatives aimed at promoting the
aggregation of rights and the granting of multi-territorial licences, as mentioned in section
3.2.2.1, could nevertheless contribute to facilitating the clearance of rights for musical works
and phonograms used in in radio and TV broadcasts.
Impacts on possibilities to offer services across borders: Due to persisting difficulties in
acquiring underlying rights for online cross-border transmissions, broadcasters are likely to
continue geo-blocking access to their own programmes.
AV premium content is likely to continue being licensed on a territorial basis and with either
the entire programme being geo-blocked or certain parts of the programme being blacked-out.
These agreements based on territorial exclusivity would be subject to the application of EU
law, notably as regards the application of the free movement of services principle and
competition law.99 However, it is not possible to predict the future effects that developments
98
See for example "The Impact of cross-border access to audiovisual content on EU consumers" (May
2016), a report by Oxera and O&O, prepared for a group of international audiovisual industry members,
analysing the effects of the full cross-border access.
99
In the Premier League ruling (Judgment of 4 October 2011, C-403/08 and C-429/08, EU:C:2011:631)
concerning satellite broadcasting services, the CJEU concluded that, in view of the specific facts in the
case, licensing agreements between rightholders and service providers may include provisions on
territorial exclusivity, but cannot establish absolute territorial exclusivity; that would be in breach of
competition law and the freedom to provide services in the Internal Market. Following this judgment;
28
in these areas of law may have on the licensing of rights and the cross-border access to online
TV and radio programmes.
As concerns music, availability of multi-territorial licences is expected to increase due to the
implementation of the CRM Directive. As for visual arts, no significant changes to the current
licensing practices are expected.
Other service providers
The baseline option would not have any impacts on the competitive situation between
broadcasters and service providers other than broadcasters.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing models and revenues: The baseline option would not have any impact on
licensing models applied by rightholders or on the licensing revenues received from
broadcasters or webcasters. In particular, the AV sector would continue to be able to collect
revenues based on the territorial licensing of rights (subject to EU rules). However, other
rightholders whose content is distributed in limited geographic areas by broadcasters may lose
opportunities to have their content reaching audiences across borders. The potential of the
Digital Single Market for some creative content may remain underexploited, especially for
content which does not rely on exclusive territorial licensing.
Consumers
Impacts on access to online transmission services: Consumers are likely to continue facing
restrictions to cross-border online access to TV and radio programmes. This is in contrast with
consumers' demand for cultural, information and entertainment content from other MS.100
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The baseline scenario would not affect the production of new cultural content. However,
access to cultural diversity may remain limited under this option, as consumers would
continue facing restrictions to access TV and radio programmes online from other MS
(including as regards access to content such as news, current events or other non-fiction TV,
which represent a significant proportion of broadcaster's programming101). This situation
would affect the role of broadcasters as key players for linear transmissions of current events
and of cultural programmes.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The baseline scenario would not have any impact on copyright as property right or on the
freedom to conduct a business, as recognised in the Charter (Articles 16 and 17). It may have
on 13 January 2014, the Commission initiated formal proceedings on territorial licensing restrictions for
pay-TV content, see http://ec.europa.eu/competition/antitrust/cases/dec_docs/40023/40023_842_3.pdf.
100
See indications of consumer interest for content from other MS in section 3.1.4 According to a study
carried out in 2012 (The economic potential of cross-border pay-to-view and listen audiovisual media
services), the number of hours of non-national EU fiction as a proportion of total fiction hours in the
schedules of a sample of broadcasters varies from 2 % to 35 % in the countries for which data is
available.
101
News and current affairs represent 25.9 % of public broadcasters' programming while programmes on
arts, culture, education and science account for 14 % of their programming. (Source: EBU – on the
basis of aggregated data from 2014 concerning 35 broadcasters in 27 EU countries). According to the
initial findings from the Commission's e-commerce sector inquiry, 23 % of agreements require
providers to geo-block news (including current events) and 50 % to geo-block other non-fiction TV. See
also Annex 6B (Availability of broadcasters' online services across borders).
29
an indirect impact on the freedom of information enshrined in the Charter (Article 11), to the
extent that this option would not facilitate further development of access to information.
Option 1 – Voluntary agreements to facilitate the clearing of rights for broadcasters'
online services ancillary to their broadcasts
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Broadcasters
Impacts on transaction costs: Option 1 could facilitate the clearance of rights and reduce
transaction costs for cross-border online transmissions only on the basis of voluntary
agreements concluded between rightholders, CMOs and broadcasters. The effectiveness of
such agreements would depend on the sectors' willingness to license rights collectively (which
may be limited in the case of AV works).
As mentioned above, voluntary initiatives have already been developed in the music sector to
facilitate licensing of broadcasters' online services. A recommendation, signed by music
composers and songwriters, music publishers, authors' CMOs and public broadcasters,
provides guidelines for the aggregation of rights in CMOs.102 The CMOs representing major
and independent record producers have set up a network of reciprocal representation
agreements that allows for the granting of multi-territorial licences for broadcasters online
related activities by a single CMO. The first of such agreements covered only simulcasting
and was cleared by the Commission in 2002.103 Subsequently further agreements have been
concluded to cover other online related services such as some forms of webcasting and catch-
up services.104 Option 1 would allow to assess the functioning of these practical tools
developed by the industry, resolve possible blockages and identify ways in which they could
be further used. An increased use of such voluntary agreements could reduce transaction costs
for the clearance of underlying rights in radio and TV programmes (e.g. broadcasters could
clear online music rights with one single CMO instead of negotiating with CMOs and
rightholders in each territory). This would be particularly relevant for broadcasters' original
productions but in some cases could be also important for third-party content.
The dialogue foreseen under Option 1 could allow exploring the need for and feasibility of
similar agreements for other types of works, notably AV content and visual art works and, as
regards authors' rights in musical works, also for commercial broadcasters. However, this
would mainly depend on the willingness of rightholders to enter such dialogue. As explained
below, rightholders in the AV sector are likely to be reluctant to engage into such agreements.
Impacts on possibilities to offer services across borders: By facilitating the clearance of
underlying rights, the voluntary agreements fostered under Option 1 could help broadcasters
to make part of their own programmes available online and across borders. The type of
programmes and the availability of different services (simulcasting, previews, catch-up)
would depend on the feasibility and functioning of such voluntary agreements as well as the
conditions foreseen in them. The cross-border availability of programmes, in particular
102
Recommendation for the licensing of broadcast-related online activities of 4 April 2014. The
Recommendation's objective is to ensure, by way of voluntary aggregation of rights and reciprocal
representation agreements among CMOs, that CMOs can license the broadcaster not only the rights
relevant for broadcasts but also all the rights it needs for its online broadcast-related activities including
across borders.
103
Case No COMP/C2/38.014 — IFPI ‘Simulcasting’.
104
The reciprocal agreements have currently 21 EU based signatory CMOs. 17 CMOs have reported they
have licensed broadcasters' Catch-up' services either for multi-territory or for mono-territory reception.
30
through catch-up services, is likely to remain limited. Option 1 is not expected to have any
impact on the possibility to offer premium content across borders.
Impacts on licensing costs: Option 1 is not expected to have any direct impact on licensing
costs for broadcasters. To the extent that voluntary agreements could lead to multi-territorial
licences, licence fees would be adjusted taking account of the audience in different territories.
Other service providers
Impacts on the competitive situation: Option 1 would encourage and facilitate discussions
between broadcasters, rightholders and CMOs for the licensing of certain online rights, but it
would not grant a special licensing regime to broadcasters. Therefore, it would not have any
impact on the competitive situation between broadcasters and other service providers (who
would be in a position to negotiate similar licensing schemes with CMOs and rightholders).
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing models and revenues: Option 1 would encourage rightholders to
aggregate their rights with CMOs for the purpose of licensing broadcasters' online ancillary
services; however it would not impose any licensing regime (e.g. mandatory collective
management) and would not affect their contractual freedom.
Rightholders in the music sector are expected to support a further development of
voluntary agreements with CMOs and broadcasters. It is not excluded, however, that
rightholders may be reluctant to aggregate at CMOs certain rights (e.g. for catch-up
services or music channels) in order to protect their revenues in the on-demand market.
Producers of AV works which are not distributed on the basis of exclusivity may see an
interest in such agreements, as it could increase the exposure of their works and generate
additional revenues. They could for example decide to transfer their online rights, for the
purpose of licensing broadcasters' online ancillary services, to CMOs which currently
manage their cable retransmission rights. Such arrangements based on collective
management of rights are more likely to be developed for simulcasting than for catch-up
services (rightholders may be more reluctant to license rights for catch-up through CMOs
in order to optimise licensing of their on-demand rights).
Rightholders in the AV sector who rely on territorially based licensing models are likely
to be very reluctant to engage in licensing practices based on aggregation of rights or
multi-territorial licensing.
This option could encourage visual arts industry to enter into agreements with
broadcasters based on the aggregation of their rights with CMOs, in particular those who
already rely on the collective management of rights.
Consumers
Impacts on access to online transmission services: Depending on the feasibility and effective
implementation of the voluntary agreements signed between rightholders and broadcasters,
Option 1 could result in consumers having access across borders to more content through
broadcasters' online ancillary services (in particular broadcasters' own productions ). Access
to premium content through simulcasting or catch-up services would most likely remain geo-
blocked.
31
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 1 would not affect the production of new cultural content. It may have a limited
positive impact on access to cultural diversity, if more TV and radio programmes from other
MS are made available online.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Option 1 would not have any impact on copyright as property right. It may have a slight
positive impact on the freedom of information, to the extent that it could facilitate cross-
border access to information.
Option 2 – Application of country of origin to the clearing of rights for broadcasters'
online services ancillary to their initial broadcast
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Broadcasters
Impacts on transaction costs: This option would simplify the clearance of rights needed for
cross-border online transmissions: broadcasters would only need to clear the rights for the
country of origin while they would be able to offer their services in the entire EU. It would
lead to important savings in transaction costs105 and would also enable broadcasters to clear
rights more swiftly, which is in particular important for time-sensitive programming. Such
savings in transaction costs would be beneficial to both large broadcasters with large number
of licensing contracts and to smaller broadcasters whose resources to carry out the
administrative task associated with obtaining licences covering multiple territories are limited.
However, Option 2 entails a limited risk of disaggregation of repertoire currently managed by
CMOs (see below under 'impacts on rightholders'), which would have a negative effect on
transaction costs (broadcasters would have to negotiate with individual rightholders instead of
CMOs).
Impacts on possibilities to offer services across borders: While this option would facilitate
clearance of rights, the ultimate outcome in terms of offering programmes across borders
would depend on the business decisions by broadcasters and rightholders. Option 2 does not
entail any obligation on broadcasters to provide services across borders (broadcasters could
still decide to restrict the provision of the service to a particular MS), but it would open new
opportunities for them to do so, in particular as concerns content which does not rely on
territorial exclusivity. This in particular covers original productions of broadcasters for which
they clear underlying rights.106 Thanks to reduced transaction costs, broadcasters would be
enabled to target new markets and enlarge their audiences. Such opportunities would in
particular apply to broadcasters who transmit TV and radio programmes in languages which
are widely understood in other MS. 37 % of Europeans say that they regularly use foreign
languages when watching films/television or listening to the radio.107 Also other broadcasters
105
It is not possible, however, in this IA to quantify such savings in transaction costs. As explained above,
despite requests, neither EBU nor ACT provided data on cross-border transaction costs for clearing
online rights, as compared to transaction costs in one jurisdiction.
106
Such programmes in particular include news, current events, political debates; own
documentary/entertainment productions; culture, science, arts programmes; lifestyle programmes, etc.
Out of 5720 EU TV channels listed in MAVISE database, 243 channels are listed as "general", 226
channels as "documentary", 188 as "lifestyle/specific leisure", 156 channels as "news", see SatCab
study, table 2.17.
107
Most widely spoken foreign EU languages are English (38 %), French (12 %), German (11 %), and
Spanish (7%). See Special Eurobarometer 386 (2012)
http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf
32
could expand their audiences, for example, by serving linguistic minorities in other MS or
offering services to Europeans who live in other EU MS than their MS of origin. About 4
million EU citizens are members of linguistic minorities.108 13.6 million EU citizens live in an
EU MS other than their country of citizenship.109 These people may have an interest to keep
up with the developments in their linguistic/home country as well as maintain cultural links
with that country and therefore would constitute a potential audience for broadcasters. By
enlarging their audience across borders broadcasters would be able to collect additional
revenues.110
As concerns premium AV content, it is not expected that Option 2 would change its cross-
border distribution by broadcasters in a short or medium term. Rightholders and broadcasters
are likely to continue relying on territorially based exploitation of this content (see below).
Also, broadcasters may continue to geo-block premium AV content across borders. However,
such agreements between rightholders and broadcasters would be subject to the application of
EU and national law.
Impacts on licensing costs: Licence fees are expected to be an important element in
broadcasters' decisions to make their programmes available across borders and in rightholders'
decisions to grant licences.111 If broadcaster's audience would grow due to cross-border
transmission facilitated by the CoO rule, licence fees are expected to be adjusted (to reflect
the larger audience). In accordance with this option licence fees should be set taking into
account all aspects of the broadcast, including the actual audience, the potential audience and
the language version. The feedback collected during the public consultation shows that setting
licence fees for satellite transmissions under the CoO rule available across borders has not
caused any substantial practical problems. Some respondents to the consultation pointed to
difficulties with measuring the audience, a task which is significantly easier for online
services.
Other service providers
Impacts on the competitive situation: Option 2 would not significantly affect the on-demand
services market because it would not apply to broadcasters' on-demand services, which are
not ancillary to the initial broadcast. For example, if a broadcaster creates a VoD library, it
would need to acquire rights according to the same rules as VoD service providers. Therefore,
on-demand service providers would continue competing on an equal footing with broadcasters
offering such services.
108
For example, in SK 8.8 % of the population has Hungarian as the mother longue; in LT - 5.3 % Polish;
in FI - 5.1 % Swedish. Source: study on The economic potential of cross-border pay-to-view and listen
audiovisual media services (2012).
109
Eurostat data from April 2013, http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-
explained/index.php/EU_citizenship_-_statistics_on_cross-border_activities
110
In the study The economic potential of cross-border pay-to-view and listen audiovisual media services,
it was estimated that in 2009 potential willingness to pay for subscription based cross-border AVMS
among intra-EU migrants was between €760 million and €1,610 million annually in the EU based on
the proportion of online survey respondents who were “very likely” and “fairly likely” to pay
respectively (the total EU pay-TV market size was €28.6 billion). NB: this survey concerned all
subscription-based cross-border AV media services.
111
For example, according to the initial findings from the Commission's e-commerce sector inquiry
published on 18 March 2016, 68.9 % of digital content providers replied that costs of purchasing
content for territories other than those in which the provider operates is the most important factor for not
making the service available across borders. In addition, broadcasters may need to take into account
other possible costs: with online distribution, there are variable costs for the service provider that
increase with usage, see further the SatCab study.
33
Yet, there may be a partial overlap between on-demand services (such as VoD) and
broadcasters' online catch-up services, which in fact are on-demand services for a limited
duration.112 However, catch-up services do not constitute a complete substitute to VoD
services as they are limited in time and are linked to the initial broadcast transmitted
according to a schedule. Moreover, rightholders would be able to address this issue by
negotiating with broadcasters limitations to catch-up services.
Other service providers than broadcasters, which transmit linear TV or radio-like channels
only online (operators of webcasting services) would not benefit from Option 2. However
neither would a broadcaster offering an online-only channel (webcast) and therefore such
broadcasters would compete with such service providers on an equal basis.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing models and revenues: The introduction of the country of origin would
constitute a new constraint for rightholders when licensing their content to broadcasters for
online transmissions. However, considering its scope of application (limited to online services
by broadcasting organisations which are ancillary to the broadcast) and the fact that it does
not restrict the contractual freedom of the parties, Option 2 is not expected to fundamentally
disrupt the existing licensing models and the distribution of revenues between rightholders
and broadcasters. Rightholders would remain free to determine whether granting a licence to
broadcasters for online services such as simulcasting and catch-up services and could adapt
the conditions of the licence in view of the application of the country of origin (e.g. for
instance by defining the time in which the content may be available through catch-up
services) as well as the licence fees. Furthermore, the introduction of the country of origin
principle would on its own not affect the possibility for rightholders to agree with
broadcasters on territorial limitations concerning the exploitation of their rights.
The impacts would vary by type of content, depending on the existing licensing practices:
Option 2 is not expected to impact the licensing of premium AV content (rightholders
would be able to continue licensing their rights on a territorial basis, subject to the
requirements of EU and national law). However, it could be beneficial to those AV
rightholders whose productions attract smaller audiences and who do not rely on
territorial exclusivity: the CoO rule would facilitate the possibility for broadcasters to
make such content available across borders and could result in additional revenues for
rightholders.
Option 2 is likely to have a concrete effect on how rights are licensed by rightholders
who do not rely on a geographic distribution of their content, such as music and visual
arts. This option may have a positive impact on their revenues thanks to a larger audience
facilitated by the CoO rule. Rightholders are likely to adapt the licensing mechanisms to
ensure that the revenues match the exploitation of their content (if this leads to a
measureable increase in audience/revenues of that broadcaster). However, where the
tariffs are already calculated on the basis of usage or the volume of audience, for example
a percentage of broadcaster's revenues, no change to the contractual arrangements may be
necessary. Moreover, in contrast with the "traditional" broadcasting, online distribution
can offer accurate measurement of actual usage.
As regards the rights managed by CMOs, there is a risk that rightholders would like to
exercise more control over the licensing of rights under the CoO rule and would decide to
112
Currently, the standard duration of broadcaster's catch-up services varies between 7 and 30 days.
34
withdraw rights from CMOs. This could cause disaggregation of repertoires currently
managed by CMOs. However, this risk is limited under Option 2, as the online services
covered only concern ancillary services to the initial broadcast. Furthermore, the feedback
received during the public consultation have not identified any concrete substantial risk that
broadcasters would relocate their place of establishment due to the reasons linked to licensing
of copyright and related rights. This is mainly due to the fact that broadcasters are generally
established in the country where their main audience is located and rely on infrastructures
which cannot be easily relocated. Therefore, this option would not create any substantial risks
that the revenues of rightholders would suffer due to "establishment shopping" by
broadcasters.
Consumers
Impacts on access to online transmission services: Option 2 is expected to result in
consumers having access to more broadcasters' programmes across borders, especially to
content which is distributed without territorial exclusivity. However, as this option would not
oblige broadcasters to transmit TV and radio programmes across borders, the availability of
their programmes to consumers would depend on a number of factors including agreements
between broadcasters and rightholders (subject to applicable laws) and broadcasters'
commercial decisions. As concerns premium AV content, restrictions to cross-border access
may continue to apply, as explained above.
Impacts on consumer prices: The impact on prices would depend on broadcasters' business
models and on their decision to make their online transmissions accessible on a cross-border
basis for free (or on ad-financed basis) or for payment. The increased cross-border availability
of broadcasters' online services could have an impact on consumers' decisions related to their
consumption of TV programmes, e.g. on whether to take a package service (retransmission
services) or not. As consumers would have more choice in terms of available programmes
across borders, they may better structure their consumption depending on their needs.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Benefits may be expected in terms of enhanced access to information and cultural content, in
particular news, current events and cultural programmes. As a result, consumers would be
able to better satisfy their diversified interests for programmes originating from other MS,
including cultural, educational (e.g. learning languages) and entertainment. This is in
particular relevant for non-fiction content, which is less available to consumers through means
other than broadcasters' programmes.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
By establishing the licensing regime applicable to certain types of cross-border online
transmissions, Option 2 would have a slightly negative impact on copyright as property right,
limited by the targeted scope of the proposed intervention (broadcasters' online ancillary
services). It would have a positive impact on the freedom of information, to the extent that
this option would facilitate access to information.
35
Option 3 – Application of country of origin to the clearing of rights for the services
covered by Option 2 and for TV and radio-like linear online transmissions (and services
ancillary to such transmissions)
The core difference between Options 2 and 3 is that Option 3 also covers online linear TV and
radio-like transmissions (webcasting services)113 and online services ancillary to webcasting.
The impacts discussed below are linked to these additional services. One general challenge in
assessing impacts of this option is the fact that webcasting market (in the sense of online-only,
linear TV or radio-like services) is at a development stage and not yet fully formed. As
opposed to settled rules pertaining to broadcasting organisations, the acquis and national
regulatory frameworks regarding webcasting services are only developing, including the very
definition of these services.
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Broadcasters
The impacts of Option 3 on broadcasters could in principle be comparable to the ones
described under Option 2. In addition, broadcasters would be able to rely on the CoO rule for
their webcasts. However, the higher risk of content disaggregation identified under Option 3
(see 'impacts on rightholders' below) is likely to have a negative impact on transaction costs
(even if licensing would be required only for one territory, the number of individual
transactions may increase) and undermine the effectiveness of Option 3 in terms of facilitation
of licensing.
Webcasters
Option 3 would align webcasters' licensing regime to that of broadcasters. Webcasters could
in principle save transaction costs for their online transmissions and have better possibilities
to offer their services across borders in the same way as in the case of broadcasters described
under Option 2. However, they may also be negatively affected by the risk of disaggregation
of repertoire brought about by this option (see 'impacts on rightholders' below).
Other service providers
Impacts on the competitive situation: Option 3 could substantially impact the competitive
situation between service providers offering on-demand services (VoD, music on demand,
which would not be covered under this option) and service providers offering webcasting
services. Increasingly, webcasting services can directly compete with on-demand services.
Especially over time, the boundary between on-demand services and online linear
transmissions may be even more blurred. Services offered to consumers by new entrants have
evolved: service providers such as Spotify and Deezer do not only offer on-demand services
on the basis of catalogues but also online radio-like services, offering to consumers special
programming (e.g. 'artist radio' or 'channels') which are often partly interactive (e.g. the
subscriber may influence the transmission by indicating his or her preferences and dislikes).
Similar services are being developed by platforms such as YouTube. With these new models
emerging, it becomes more difficult to distinguish what constitutes an online linear
transmission and an on-demand service. Therefore, Option 3 could create a grey area, where it
would not be clear whether certain online services would be covered by the legal intervention
or not. As a result, it would not provide to the market players the necessary legal certainty nor
would it ensure an even competitive situation.
113
For example, webcasting services include YouTube live channels or iTunes "Beats" radio-like linear
services.
36
Furthermore, online service providers can relocate their services more easily than traditional
broadcasters and therefore they can gain a competitive advantage over broadcasters by
relocating their establishment to a jurisdiction with lower copyright fees.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing models and revenues: Under Option 3, the application of the CoO rule to
webcasters could lead to new forms of content exploitation (e.g. similar to near on-demand
services) which would be fundamentally different from broadcasters' online ancillary services.
For example, it is possible to imagine linear streaming services providing access to a limited
range of content (one or several films, one or several recordings) in a near on-demand manner
over certain period of time - such services would be competing with on-demand services
(where the latter would not be able to rely on the CoO rule).
Option 3 would generate market uncertainty for rightholders and significantly increase the
risk of content disaggregation of rights currently held by CMOs. As mentioned above, it is
easy for online operators to relocate their establishment in the EU, for instance in order to
lower fees paid to rightholders or for reasons not related to copyright (e.g. taxes or the
regulatory regime). The risk of "establishment shopping" would in particular apply when
rights are managed by CMOs (especially music). As rightholders cannot directly control the
tariffs fixed by CMOs for the licensing of rights, there is a risk that service providers, who
heavily rely on music content, would establish in territories with lower tariffs.114 Thus it
could encourage "race to the bottom" in terms of copyright fees. This would be detrimental to
rightholders and could trigger withdrawal of their rights from local CMOs in order to protect
their revenues. Also, as the application of the CoO principle to a market which is not yet fully
formed and where boundaries with on-demand (such as VoD) services are not clearly
delineated would be likely to drive rightholders to withdraw rights from CMOs in order to
exercise more control over the licensing.115 As a result, this could lead to disaggregation of
repertoires managed by CMOs, contrary to the objective of the CRM Directive.
Consumers
Impacts on access to online transmission services: Impacts on consumers would depend on
the effects that this option would have in the effective facilitation of licensing. In addition to
the positive impacts mentioned under Option 2, consumers could benefit from cross-border
access to webcasting services, notably with regard to content distributed without territorial
exclusivity. However, due to a risk of negative impact on broadcasters' transaction costs
explained above, there is a risk that the impact on consumers may be negative.
Impacts on consumer prices: would be similar to the impacts described under Option 2, as
long as this option leads to more availability of cross-border services.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The risks associated with Option 3 may result in this option, as explained above, having a
neutral or even negative impact on the distribution of and access to cultural content.
114
E.g., according to the available examples, for commercial radios copyright fees in various MS may vary
between 9 % of broadcaster's revenues in NL to 2.2 % in EL; for related rights: from 7 % in FI to 1 % in
IT. Note: this information represents an average in each country and was updated last in 2012/2014
(Source: AER).
115
Such risk was raised by certain CMOs in response to the SatCab public consultation. E.g. GESAC
submitted that an extension of the CoO rule to VoD services could discourage the re-aggregation of
repertoires promoted by the CRM Directive and even cause further fragmentation of repertoires in the
market.
37
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Because it would impose a licensing regime for cross-border transmissions to a wider range of
services (compared to Option 2), Option 3 would negatively affect copyright as property right.
Its impact on the freedom of information would depend on the extent to which this option
would facilitate access to information.
3.2.2.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on stakeholders Social impacts and
fundamental rights
Baseline (0) Limited (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts on (0) No direct impact
availability of TV associated with the stakeholders would on cultural diversity
and radio baseline option depend on developments (0) No direct impact
programmes across in the licensing market on fundamental
borders would rights
persist
Option 1 – (0/+) Would (0/-) Possible one- (0/+) Limited reduction (0/+) Limited
Voluntary enhance access to off costs linked to of transaction costs for positive impact on
agreements to broadcasters negotiation of broadcasters due to the cultural diversity
facilitate the online voluntary possibilities of (0) Neutral impact on
clearing of transmissions agreements but aggregation of rights; the right of property
rights for across borders to expected to be better opportunities to (0/+) Limited
broadcasters' a limited extent limited offer their online services positive impact on
online services across borders the freedom to
ancillary to (0) Neutral impact on information
their other service providers
broadcasts (0/+) Impacts on
revenues of rightholders
expected to be neutral or
adjusted according to the
usage
(0/+) Limited
improvement to cross-
border availability of
content for consumers
Option 2 – (+) Would (0/-) Possible one- (+) Reduced transaction (+) Positive impact
Application of enhance access to off costs linked to costs for broadcasters on access to
country of broadcasters renegotiation of due to simplified information and
origin to the online contracts clearance of rights; wider cultural content
clearing of transmissions opportunities to offer (-/0) Limited
rights for across borders their online services negative impact on
broadcasters' across borders the right of property
online services (0/-) Neutral or marginal (+) Positive impact
ancillary to negative impact on other on the freedom of
their initial service providers information
broadcast (0/+) Impacts on
revenues of rightholders
expected to be neutral or
adjusted according to the
usage
(+) Improved cross-
border availability of
content for consumers
Option 3 – (-) Market (-) Possible high (+/-) Simplified (0/-) Risk of negative
Application of uncertainty and compliance costs clearance of rights impact on access to
country of risk of linked to the risk of applying to webcasts but cultural content
origin to the disaggregation of disaggregation of risk of negative impact (-) Negative impact
clearing of repertoire may repertoire on transaction costs on the right of
38
rights for the hamper the (-) Legal uncertainty on property
services effectiveness of the application of the (0/-) Risk of negative
covered by the Option CoO rule to certain impact on the
Option 2 and online services freedom of
for TV and (-) Impacts on protection information
radio-like of rightholders interests
linear online expected to be negative
transmissions due to the risks of
(and services "establishment shopping"
ancillary to (0/-) Risk of no effect (or
such negative effect) on
transmissions) cross-border availability
of content for consumers
Option 2 is the preferred option, as it facilitates cross-border transmission of
broadcasters' TV and radio programmes online, while preserving a balanced landscape
taking into account the interests of rightholders. The baseline option would not allow
reaching the objectives identified in this IA. Option 1 could enhance online and cross-border
access to some of the broadcasters' programmes but its outcome would be more uncertain than
the one of Option 2. While Option 3 seems more 'technologically neutral' than Option 2, it is
likely to create legal uncertainty as it would be very difficult to draw the boundary between
services covered by the intervention and not (i.e. on-demand services), in particular in a
future-proof manner. It also entails risks of establishment shopping and may lead to a
fragmentation of rights (notably those managed by CMOs).
Proportionality of the preferred option and impacts on MS: Option 2 is based on an enabling
mechanism (introduction of the country of origin) which is expected to significantly
reduce the broadcasters' transaction costs associated to the clearance of rights for online
transmissions. It constitutes a targeted intervention (limited to broadcasters' ancillary
online services and not affecting the contractual freedom of broadcasters and
rightholders) which is not expected to have disruptive effects on rightholders. It is
therefore a proportionate approach to facilitating online access to TV and radio programmes
across borders. The limited impacts of Option 2 on copyright as a property right would be
justified in view of the Treaty fundamental freedom to provide and receive services across
borders.116
Option 2 will not impose any administrative burden on MS; it will require the application in
the MS copyright system of specific rules for the licensing of rights for the services covered
by this option.
3.2.3. Digital retransmissions of TV and radio programmes
3.2.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Providers of retransmission services face practical difficulties with the acquisition
of rights for retransmission of TV and radio channels from other Member States by means
other than cable
116
Article 52(1) of the Charter allows for restrictions interfering with the exercise of the freedoms of the
Charter: those restrictions (i) must be provided for by law and (ii) respect the essence of those rights and
freedoms. In addition, the limitations are (iii) “subject to the principle of proportionality” and “may be
made only if they are necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognised by the
Union or the need to protect the rights and freedoms of others”.
39
Description of the problem: Nowadays TV and radio channels reach viewers and listeners
through several types of retransmission service providers: cable TV/radio providers, satellite
TV/radio (package) providers, IPTV (TV/radio over closed circuit IP-based networks)
providers, digital terrestrial TV (DTT) providers and also the emerging over-the-top (OTT)
TV/radio service providers.117 The core business activity of retransmission service providers
is to aggregate TV and radio channels into packages (basic, premium, thematic, etc.) and to
provide them to consumers simultaneously to their initial transmission, unaltered and
unabridged, typically against payment.
Retransmission of TV and radio channels has proved to be a highly successful means to
enable Europeans to access broadcasts from other MS: e.g. 177 "foreign" TV channels are
available to cable subscribers in DE, 150 in FR, 158 in NL, 143 in PT, 163 in DK, 159 in PL,
168 in IE and 232 in HU.118
IPTV and OTT have been developing at a fast pace recently, which is explained by several
technological and business factors: (i) IPTV and OTT have superior retransmission capacity;
(ii) they are more attractive to consumers due to built-in interactivity of services and can be
enjoyed (in the case of OTT) without the need for a dedicated hardware (such as a set-top-box
and/or a satellite antenna); (iii) they are well promoted by numerous operators and major
Internet platforms.
When distributing TV and radio channels and programmes running on them, retransmission
service providers routinely engage in a copyright-relevant act of communication to the public.
The Satellite and Cable Directive provides for a system of mandatory collective management
for retransmissions by cable of TV and radio broadcasts from another MS. This means that
the right of cable retransmission with regard to TV / radio broadcasts from other MS cannot
be exercised by rightholders individually but may only be exercised by a collective CMO119.
The only exception is made for the rights exercised by broadcasting organisations in respect
of their own transmissions.
The rationale behind this system is to ensure that cable operators are in a position to acquire
all rights necessary for retransmission of TV and radio channels and that there are no black-
outs in the retransmitted channels or programmes. At the time of adoption of the Directive it
was considered that individual licensing was impractical in the case of retransmission, while
voluntary collective management would not guarantee the absence of black-outs.120 The
system provided for in the Satellite and Cable Directive is limited to retransmissions by cable
117
Such OTT retransmission services are a relatively recent phenomenon. "Zattoo", based in the US and
Switzerland, is the pioneer of this type of retransmission services – was launched in 2006 and is now
available in six countries: DE, CH, ES, DK, LU and the UK. Swedish provider "Magine" launched its
service in 2013 and is currently available in Sweden, Germany and the UK. Telecom operators are
exploring this market too: Dutch KPN launched an OTT service called "Play" in November 2015, and
Telekom Austria launched an OTT service "A1 Now" in March 2016.
118
Data from the European Audiovisual Observatory.
119
Under collective management, authors and other rights owners mandate an entity (e.g. a CMO) to act on
their behalf to grant authorisations, to collect and distribute remuneration, to prevent and detect
infringement of rights, and to seek remedies for infringement. The collective management of rights
allows commercial users to clear rights for a large number of works, in circumstances where individual
negotiations with individual creators would be impractical. As far as exclusive rights are concerned,
collective management is normally voluntary (i.e. based on the mandate voluntarily granted by
rightholders). In limited cases, legislation allows for mandatory collective management.
120
The system of mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission of broadcasts is compatible
with Article 11bis(2) of the Berne Convention which allows compulsory licences for such
retransmissions.
40
and therefore does not extend to retransmissions by other means such as IPTV or OTT. This
means that, depending on the MS (see below), providers of retransmission services by means
other than cable cannot benefit from the system facilitating the clearance of relevant rights. 121
Such providers therefore face a heavy rights clearing burden in order to be able to provide
their services.
Drivers: [Complex clearance of rights] Taking into account that each channel delivers
numerous programmes composed of a multitude of copyright-protected works, that a typical
retransmission service provider offers multiple channels, that the retransmission service
provider has no control over the use of works in particular channels and no time to obtain
licences for those works, the potential copyright clearing burden for retransmission service
providers is important.
Example:
Belgian IPTV provider Proximus offers around 100 TV channels in its basic package, among them a channel of
ZDF, German broadcaster. ZDF handles approximately 70,000 contracts with rightholders each year.122 Since
ZDF has 9 generalist and thematic channels in total,123 each channel can be said to represent (approximately) the
"copyright clearing burden" of 7,700 contracts. Extrapolating this "copyright clearing burden" to 100 TV
channels offered by Proximus and considering that 15 of these channels are retransmitted in both standard and
high-definition quality, the potential copyright clearing burden for Proximus can be estimated at approximately
650,000 contracts per year ((100-15)x7,700).
In other words, providers of retransmission services offered on satellite, IPTV, mobile, DTT
or OTT platforms face the same problems the cable operators once faced, in particular when
they retransmit TV and radio broadcasts from other MS.
The problems are mitigated (but not solved) by the practice of some broadcasters whereby
they aggregate retransmission rights from other rights holders (e.g. AV producers) and grant
the "all-rights-included" licences124 to retransmission service providers.
The licensing problems described above mainly concern TV. They affect radio retransmission
to a much lesser extent, since (i) radio broadcasts contain fewer types of works protected by
copyright (notably, no images or AV works) and (ii) there are well established collective
management structures for the main type of copyright-protected work used in radio
broadcasts, i.e. music, which makes it easier for the retransmission services other than cable
to obtain the required retransmission licences.
[Legal or practical solutions available only in certain MS] Legislation in some MS have
considered retransmissions over "closed"125 electronic communications networks (e.g.
Slovakia, Austria) or over a particular network (e.g. DTT in IE) as equivalent to cable (and
hence under the mandatory collective management system).
In some MS, in addition to the mandatory collective management implemented for cable
retransmission, voluntary collective licensing schemes are in place to license other
121
As indicated in the Ex-post Evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive (93/83/EEC), the system
provided by the Satellite and Cable Directive for cable retransmissions has proven to be generally
effective. At the same time, it was observed that other technological means of retransmission have
emerged for which the Satellite and Cable Directive is not relevant due to its technology-specific
provisions.
122
EBU contribution to the public consultation.
123
Data from the European Audiovisual Observatory.
124
Such licences protect retransmission service providers against potential claims by 3rd party rightholders
concerning the use of works included in the broadcast.
125
Meaning that a retransmission service can only be accessed by a consumer through an electronic
communications network, dedicated fully or partially to the retransmission service (as opposed to access
through "open" Internet / any electronic communications network giving access to the Internet).
41
retransmission services: e.g. IPTV in IE, NL, FR, PL, BE, DE and ES or satellite in FR and
PL. Certain MS (DK, FI, SE) have in place extended collective licensing systems for
retransmissions by all technical means (cable, satellite, DTT, IPTV, mobile or OTT). Annex
7A provides a full overview of the licensing facilitation regimes available in MS for
retransmissions by means other than cable.
Finally, in some MS (e.g. EL, EE, HR, LV, LU, RO) there are neither legal nor practical
solutions facilitating licensing of retransmission of TV and radio broadcasts by means other
than cable. In these MS the providers of such other retransmission services have to rely on
multiple licensing tools: the "all-rights-included" licences from broadcasters, collective
licensing (only in the content sectors where it is available, mainly music) and individual
licensing (notably by rightholders of AV works).
[Commercial decisions] Apart from the licensing difficulties, the choices of digital
retransmission service providers when it comes to including or not TV / radio channels into
the packages provided to consumers are driven by these two factors: (i) the perceived demand
by a typical audience in a particular territory (in practice IPTV services often follow the
patterns established by cable TV) and (ii) the fees charged by the respective broadcasters.
Consequence: The lack of mechanisms facilitating the licensing of rights for retransmission
services using means other than cable leads to a limited access to TV and radio channels from
other MS (as the offer of such channels is limited). A comparison of the total number of TV
channels (from other MS) available through cable retransmission with the total number of TV
channels (from other MS) available through IPTV retransmission in 10 EU MS (DE, HU, IE,
PL, NL, DK, SE, UK, ES and FR)126 has shown that there are more TV channels (from other
MS) on cable TV than IPTV in all but 1 MS (FR).
How the problem would evolve: The fragmentation of rules applying to the clearance of rights
for retransmissions by means other than cable is likely to become more problematic with the
uptake of IPTV retransmission services in the coming years, expected to account for 16% of
EU 28 TV households in 2020 (up from 13 % in 2015).127 The extent of use of cable
retransmission services and satellite transmission / retransmission services is forecast to
decline or remain stable.
126
See Annex 7B.
127
The projections for the Western European markets show very similar trends (e.g. the growth of IPTV
from 15% of TV households in 2015 to almost 19% in 2021):
http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2016/04/12/iptv-overtakes-pay-satellite-tv-in-western-europe/
42
Pay TV subscriptions for EU28 to 2020
EU 28 Countries*
% Television Homes
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Satellite Digital Cable Analogue Cable IPTV
Source: Digital TV Research, Global Pay TV Operator Forecasts 2015, October 2015
*Data not available for Cyprus and Luxembourg
3.2.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
Non-regulatory options are not considered because they would not be sufficient to achieve the
objectives. Their effectiveness would be similar to the baseline scenario, and they would not
provide the necessary degree of legal certainty.
Baseline
No policy intervention. This option would mean relying on the market players - rightholders,
including CMOs, and retransmission service providers - to work out and agree on the
appropriate licensing arrangements and/or relying on the MS to establish the appropriate
licensing facilitation mechanisms.
Stakeholders' views128
While most of individual rightholders and commercial broadcasters support this option, consumer
representatives, CMOs, public service broadcasters,129 cable and telecoms operators consider that it cannot solve
the identified problems as only legislative intervention can ensure that retransmission service providers are in a
position to acquire all necessary rights.
Option 1 - Mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission of TV / radio
broadcasts by means of IPTV and other retransmission services provided over "closed"
electronic communications networks
Option 1 would introduce mandatory collective management for simultaneous, unaltered
and unabridged retransmission of TV / radio broadcasts by IPTV retransmission services
and other retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic communications
networks.130
128
In this section, the summaries of stakeholders' views are based on the results of the public consultation
on the review of the EU Satellite and Cable Directive published online attached hereto as Annex 2C.
129
The difference in the opinion between commercial and public service broadcasters may stem from the
fact that the former typically produce more content which is licensed to third parties.
130
Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on a common
regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services (the Framework Directive)
(OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 33–50) : 'electronic communications network' means transmission systems
and, where applicable, switching or routing equipment and other resources, including network elements
which are not active, which permit the conveyance of signals by wire, radio, optical or other
43
As a result, Option 1 would concern IPTV131 and other retransmission services (satellite,
mobile, DTT) that can only be accessed by a consumer through an electronic
communications network, dedicated fully or partially to the retransmission service (as
opposed to access through "open" Internet / any electronic communications network
giving access to the Internet).
Option 1 would concern retransmission of TV / radio broadcasts originating in other MS.
Just as in the case of the cable retransmission regime, broadcasters would be able to
directly license to the retransmission service providers concerned the rights exercised by
them in respect of their own broadcasts, irrespective of whether the rights concerned are
broadcasters' own or have been transferred to them by other copyright owners and/or
holders of related rights.
As a result, the retransmission service providers concerned would have to obtain licences
only from two categories of rightholders - broadcasters and CMOs.
Stakeholders' views
Most rightholders - phonogram producers, music publishers and many AV producers – as well as commercial
broadcasters are against this option due to the potential disruptive effect on the markets, which, according to
them, function well. Cable and telecoms operators, consumer representatives, CMOs and public service
broadcasters tend to be in favour of the possible application of the mandatory collective management regime to
IPTV / other retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic communications networks and consider
that it could improve the availability of TV / radio broadcasts across Europe.
Option 2 – Mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission of TV / radio
broadcasts by means of any retransmission services, irrespective of the retransmission
technology or network used, as long as they are provided to a defined number of users
(subscribers, registered users)
The main elements of Option 2 are the same as those of Option 1 except that Option 2
would introduce mandatory collective management for a wider range of retransmission
services.
In particular, Option 2 would also apply to OTT retransmission services, as long as they
are provided to a defined number of users (subscribers, registered users). It would not
cover the OTT retransmission services which do not require subscription or registration
(and typically rely on business models, e.g. advertising-based, that are different from
most other retransmission services).
Stakeholders' views
They are the same as on Option 1, though many supporters of the application of the mandatory collective
management regime to the retransmission services other than cable (most of CMOs and public service
broadcasters, some cable / telecoms operators) emphasise that such application should be limited to the
retransmission services provided over closed networks / in closed environments and/or functioning in a
territorially-limited way.
electromagnetic means, including satellite networks, fixed (circuit- and packet-switched, including
Internet) and mobile terrestrial networks, electricity cable systems, to the extent that they are used for
the purpose of transmitting signals, networks used for radio and television broadcasting, and cable
television networks, irrespective of the type of information conveyed.
131
ITU’s definition of IPTV refers to “multimedia services such as
television/video/audio/text/graphics/data delivered over IP based networks managed to provide the
required level of quality of service and experience, security, interactivity and reliability”.
44
3.2.3.3 What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be affected?
Approach
The options described above would affect retransmission service providers, consumers and rightholders -
individual rightholders whose works are used in TV and radio broadcasts, CMOs and broadcasters. The impacts
affecting these groups of stakeholders are presented separately.
For retransmission service providers, the following economic impacts have been considered: impacts on the
variety and quality of TV / radio retransmission services, on costs (transaction costs linked to clearing of
rights and licensing costs linked to fees paid to rightholders) and on competitiveness.
For rightholders, the main economic impacts considered are on the management of rights and on licensing
revenues (with a particular focus on the impacts in the AV industry, given the specificity of this industry - its
reliance on the business / distribution models based on territorial exclusivity).
For consumers, the main impact areas considered are the choice of retransmission services and prices of
services.
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, as the publicly available data or data that could be obtained from
stakeholders on the licensing practices and transaction / licensing costs is limited.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Retransmission service providers
Impacts on the variety and quality of TV / radio retransmission services: The legal uncertainty
as to whether all rights relevant for the retransmission have been cleared faced by the
retransmission service providers other than cable is expected to persist under the baseline
option. As a result, those service providers can be expected to continue limiting their
retransmission offers. Moreover, in view of the legal uncertainty, some market players might
hesitate to launch innovative retransmission services or delay the launch in order to deal with
licensing.
Impacts on costs of retransmission service providers: The baseline option would not have any
direct impacts on costs. But neither would it alleviate the additional transaction cost burden
for the retransmission service providers other than cable, resulting from the fact that they have
to obtain licences not only from broadcasters and CMOs (like cable operators), but also from
all the rightholders who have chosen to exercise their rights individually rather than
transferring them to a broadcaster or mandating a CMO.
The impacts described above could be eliminated or mitigated in some MS, notably those in
which the collective management regime already applies, as a result of national law
(mandatory / extended collective management) or practical arrangements by the market
players (voluntary collective management), to retransmission services other than cable or
might become applicable to them in the future.132
However, these solutions have led and are likely to continue leading to (i) lack of legal
certainty in the market; (ii) fragmentation across the EU (different retransmission services
falling within the scope of different licensing facilitation solutions in different MS) and (iii)
significant time gaps between the emergence of an innovative retransmission service and the
application of licensing facilitation mechanisms to it, if at all.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing revenues: Under the baseline option, the ability of rightholders to
generate revenues from the retransmission services other than cable would continue to vary
132
See Annex 7A for the overview of the current state of play.
45
depending on several factors: (i) whether a particular type of retransmission service falls
within the scope of (mandatory or voluntary) collective management arrangements in a
particular MS; (ii) the relative size of the right holder and his capacity to manage a network of
licensing deals with numerous foreign retransmission service providers as well as the extent to
which the right holder transfers his retransmission rights to broadcasters; (iii) the extent to
which the providers of retransmission services other than cable actually enter into licensing
deals with those rightholders who choose to exercise their rights individually or, on the
contrary, rely on the "all-rights-included" licences granted by broadcasters.
Consumers
Impacts on the choice and prices of retransmission services: In the scenario of no policy
intervention, consumers could continue facing a sub-optimal market offer of TV / radio
retransmission services. In particular, as explained above, the choice of channels is expected
to be more limited than it could be if a clear legal framework facilitating licensing was in
place for the different retransmission services. Consumers could be paying a higher
subscription price due to a lesser choice of retransmission services than the one resulting from
the situation of effective competition between a variety of existing market players and new
entrants. However, as there are more elements that affect prices (e.g. whether premium or
non-premium content is included, whether the service is bundled with other services), the
concrete impact on the prices is difficult to predict.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The access to a wide range of TV / radio channels is an important element to promote cultural
diversity, media pluralism and to respond to social and cultural needs of EU citizens. The
baseline option is not expected to contribute to these objectives.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option would not have any impact on copyright as a property right (Article 17 of the
Charter) or the freedom to conduct a business (Article 16), as it would not expand the scope
of the mandatory collective management.
Option 1 – Mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission of TV / radio
broadcasts by means of IPTV and other retransmission services provided over "closed"
electronic communications networks
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Retransmission service providers
Impacts on the variety and quality of TV / radio retransmission services: Option 1 would
enhance the level of legal certainty for the benefit of a specific category of retransmission
services - those provided over "closed" electronic communications networks - and can be
expected to contribute to a better offer of such services, depending on market situations in
particular MS. It could also be an incentive for the retransmission service providers concerned
to expand the range of TV / radio channels offered to their subscribers. The actual impact of
Option 1 in the different MS would depend on whether collective management regime already
applies to IPTV and other similar services as a result of national law or practical arrangements
by the market players.
Impacts on costs of retransmission service providers:
Transaction costs: this option is expected to reduce the transaction costs linked to the
clearance of rights for the retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic
communications networks, in particular in MS where the collective management of right does
46
not apply to this type of retransmission services. Providers of the services concerned would
only need to deal with two licensing "sources" - broadcasters and CMOs.
The extent of reduction would depend on the market practices prevailing currently in the
different MS, in particular: (i) whether different categories of individual rightholders usually
transfer retransmission rights to producers and/or broadcasters and whether broadcasters grant
the service providers concerned the "all-rights-included" licences; (ii) the set up and practices
of collective management organisations (e.g. even without a mandatory collective
management regime applying to them, IPTV providers are usually licensed by the music
sector CMOs; it is not excluded that, upon the introduction of mandatory collective
management, they might need to obtain licences from additional CMOs, e.g. those
representing film producers, notably in the scenario where film producers' retransmission
rights cannot be cleared with broadcasters as part of the "all-rights-included" licences).
Licensing costs: due to the confidentiality of information concerning specific licence fees it is
not possible to draw conclusions regarding the impacts of Option 1 in this regard.
Impacts on competitiveness: It could be argued that Option 1 would benefit a specific
category of retransmission services - those provided over "closed" electronic communications
networks - and that other retransmission services (OTT) would be subject to a less favourable
licensing regime, resulting potentially in a competitive disadvantage for them. However, due
to the experimental / niche nature of OTT retransmission services, it is questionable whether
they are equivalent to retransmissions over "closed" electronic communications networks.
Rightholders
Impacts on the management of rights: Option 1 would imply a shift from individual licensing
to collective management of rights for retransmissions over IPTV and closed networks.
Considering that mandatory collective management already applies to cable retransmissions,
Option 1 would mainly constitute an incremental change for rightholders. Furthermore, as
explained above, the collective management of rights for these types of retransmissions is
already in place in a number of MS (on the basis of legal mechanisms or market practices). In
other MS, the shift to mandatory collective management may limit the rightholders' ability to
determine licensing conditions and fees (see below).
The compliance costs would be marginal as the same network of CMOs which is used to
license rights to cable retransmissions could be used (and actually is already used in some
MS) to license rights to retransmissions by means other than cable.
Impacts on licensing revenues: Overall, since Option 1 is expected to help increase the
number of the retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic communications
networks as well as the number of TV / radio channels they offer, it is likely to generate
additional licensing opportunities for the rightholders and have a positive impact on their
licensing revenues.
As regards individual rightholders, Option 1 would have no direct impact on the licensing
revenues of those individual rightholders whose retransmission rights are already managed by
CMOs as a result of national law or practical arrangements by the market players (voluntary
collective licensing). In particular, when collective management is a standard practice in the
music sector (for authors' rights and, often, producers' rights), Option 1 is not expected to lead
to a change in licence fees and, consequently, licensing revenues.
Option 1 may have an impact on the licensing revenues of the individual rightholders (e.g.
AV producers) whose retransmission rights are not currently managed by CMOs and this
impact may differ depending on the relative size of the right holder and his capacity to
47
manage a network of licensing deals with numerous foreign retransmission service providers.
On the one hand, a relatively big right holder (e.g. a major US film studio, a large record
label) with resources to manage numerous licensing deals might be able to earn more from
direct licensing of retransmission rights to retransmission service providers compared to the
revenues stemming from the mandatory collective management. Such rightholders may prefer
to retain control over licence fees and other licence terms. Due to the confidentiality of
information concerning specific licence fees it is not possible to draw concrete conclusions
regarding the extent of a change between individual licensing and collective management in
licensing revenues. On the other hand, a relatively small right holder (e.g. AV script writer)
might not be getting revenue from the retransmission rights at all and, therefore, would
benefit from the introduction of mandatory collective management. Despite these benefits,
especially for smaller rightholders, most of rightholders who responded to the public
consultation indicate that they are against this option due to the potential disruptive effect on
the markets.
Option 1 is also expected to have a positive impact on the licensing revenues of broadcasters:
even if their rights would be excluded from the mandatory collective management regime,
just as in the case of cable retransmission, it would be easier for broadcasters to have their
programmes exploited abroad without having to clear themselves the underlying rights of
other rightholders for the countries concerned.
Option 1 is not expected to affect the territory-by-territory content financing and distribution
models of AV rightholders, notably because most of the retransmission services provided over
"closed" electronic communications networks rely on the infrastructures located in the
territory of a particular MS.
As regards CMOs, Option 1 would have a positive impact on them (e.g. on CMOs
representing AV producers for the purpose of cable retransmission), as it would allow them to
grant retransmission licences to and obtain licensing revenue from additional types of
retransmission service providers – IPTV, mobile, satellite and DTT. The extent of the impact
would depend on the number of licences granted to such providers and the licence fees paid
by them, but a positive factor in this respect is that CMOs could extend their licensing
activities at a low cost by applying the existing cable licensing arrangements. One-off
compliance costs linked to extending these licensing agreements to new retransmission
service providers could occur but they are expected to be limited.
Consumers
Impacts on the choice and prices of retransmission services: Option 1 is expected to play an
important role in facilitating the launch of new services, and thus enabling consumers to have
a better choice of different retransmission services (these include IPTV which is predicted to
grow, but also e.g. satellite retransmission services). Easier copyright clearing mechanism
could also result in consumers being able to watch / listen to a greater variety of TV / radio
channels from other MS, e.g. those tailored to specific preferences of particular groups of
consumers. This, in turn, could lead to more intense competition between different
retransmission services and, potentially, lower prices for consumers. However, as there are
more elements that affect the decision by operators to launch new services and their prices
(e.g. whether premium or non-premium content is included, whether the service is bundled
with other services), the concrete impact on the prices is difficult to predict.
48
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 1 is expected to contribute to promoting cultural diversity, media pluralism and to
respond to social and cultural needs of EU citizens by putting in place a legal framework
enabling access to a wider range of TV / radio channels.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Since Option 1 would expand the scope of the mandatory collective management and,
therefore, limit the licensing choices of the rightholders, it would have an impact (a limited
one, due to its scope of application) on copyright as a property right (Article 17 of the
Charter) and on the freedom to conduct a business (Article 16). However, Option 1 would
have a positive impact on the freedom of information (Article 11 of the Charter).
Option 2 – Mandatory collective management of rights to retransmission of TV / radio
broadcasts by means of any retransmission services, irrespective of the retransmission
technology or network used, as long as they are provided to a defined number of users
(subscribers, registered users)
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Retransmission service providers
Impacts on the variety and quality of TV / radio retransmission services: Option 2 would
enhance the level of legal certainty for the benefit of a wide range of retransmission services -
IPTV, OTT, satellite, DTT, mobile - and can be expected to both (i) contribute to a greater
variety of such services and (ii) provide an incentive to the retransmission service providers to
expand the range of TV / radio channels offered to their subscribers.
Impacts on costs of retransmission service providers:
Transaction costs: this option is expected to reduce the transaction costs linked to the
clearance of retransmission rights in the same way as Option 1.
Licensing costs: As in Option 1.
Impacts on competitiveness: Option 2 would benefit different types of retransmission services
but could be seen as creating a competitive distortion between OTT services, depending on
their business models (OTT retransmission services which do not have subscribers or
registered users and rely on advertising would not benefit from the facilitation of rights
clearance).
Rightholders
Impacts on the management of rights: The effects of the wider scope of Option 2 compared to
Option 1 (OTT retransmission services covered) are difficult to assess due to the experimental
/ niche nature of those retransmission services. However, Option 2 may negatively affect
rightholders that rely on individual or voluntary collective management of their rights and for
which it is important to control the online retransmission of their content (notably, but not
only, the AV industry). As explained in Option 1, big rightholders may prefer to retain control
over licence fees and other licence terms. Given the importance, the experimental/niche
nature of the OTT market and its potential large scale, the preference for control over the
licensing of rights to OTT retransmission is stronger than in the case of retransmissions over
"closed" networks.
The OTT retransmission services are by their very nature not firmly linked to a particular
territory, and their ability to ensure a controlled environment is limited if compared e.g. to
cable or IPTV (which are normally limited to national or regional territories). Also, content
49
delivered over the open internet can be more easily intercepted than content delivered over
"closed" networks such as IPTV.133 Finally, as such services are not linked to any particular
infrastructure, their number can potentially be very high.
Impacts on licensing revenues: As Option 2 would extend to a wide variety of retransmission
services (notably OTT) it could pose a risk that rightholders would not always be able to
choose the optimum business strategies in order to obtain the return on investment made. This
risk is especially relevant for retransmissions via OTT services. In particular, the same content
could be made available in a territory at the same time through different services, as a result
of right holder's exclusive distribution deals as well as retransmission of foreign TV channels
(for example, a premium TV series being available at the same time through a Subscription
VoD (SVoD) service and through an online service retransmitting foreign channels). This in
principle is not different from Option 1 but the impact of such cases could be much greater
given the cross-border nature of OTT services, their potential big scale (as they are not linked
to any particular infrastructure), the fact that they have a more limited ability to ensure that
consumers from other territories will not be able to access the service and the fact that OTT
services are more prone to illegal interception. This could reduce the value of exclusive
distribution deals based on different windows of exploitation and undermine the territory-by-
territory distribution strategies. Due to the possible overlap between different windows (pay
TV, VoD, SVoD and free TV) rightholders may become reluctant to license their content for
the free window, since such content could be retransmitted online in other MS through
mandatory collective management.
As regards CMOs, Option 2 is likely to have a positive impact on them (e.g. on CMOs
representing AV producers for the purpose of cable retransmission), as it would allow them to
grant retransmission licences to and obtain licensing revenue from a wider range and greater
number of retransmission service providers (at a low cost - by applying the cable licensing
arrangements).
Consumers
Impacts on the choice and prices of retransmission services: Just as Option 1, this option is
expected to contribute to more intense competition between different retransmission services
and a greater choice of TV / radio channels from other MS and hence, potentially, to lower
prices for consumers. However, the risk of overlap between different windows of exploitation
mentioned above may result in less premium content being available through free-to-air TV.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 2 is expected to promote cultural diversity, media pluralism and to respond to social
and cultural needs of EU citizens by putting in place a legal framework enabling access to a
wider range of TV / radio channels. The possible impact in terms of licensing of premium
content to free-to-air broadcasters may nevertheless negatively affect the access to cultural
diversity and in turn have a negative effect regarding addressing social and cultural needs of
EU citizens.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Since Option 2 would expand the scope of the mandatory collective management and,
therefore, limit the licensing choices of the rightholders, it would have a significant impact on
copyright as a property right (Article 17 of the Charter) and on the freedom to conduct a
133
Source: IHS Technology, "Current market and Technology Trends in the Broadcasting Sector", May
2015, p.19.
50
business (Article 16). However, Option 2 could have a positive impact on the freedom of
information (Article 11 of the Charter) depending on the willingness of rightholders to license
their content for the free window.
3.2.3.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on stakeholders Social impacts and
fundamental rights
Baseline (0/-) Sub-optimal (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts on (0) No direct impact
availability of TV stakeholders would on cultural diversity
and radio depend on market (0) No direct impact
broadcasts from developments on fundamental
other MS on rights
different
retransmission
services
Option 1 – (+) Would (0/-) Possible one- (+) Reduced transaction (+) Positive impact
Mandatory enhance the off costs linked to costs for retransmission on cultural diversity
collective availability of concluding service providers (0/-) Limited
management of different licensing (0/+) More licensing negative impact on
rights to retransmission agreements revenue for those the property right
retransmission services and TV / between individual rightholders (+) Positive impact
of TV / radio radio broadcasts retransmission that do not have the on the freedom of
broadcasts by from other MS service providers possibility to license information
means of IPTV and CMOs, but rights individually
and other expected to be (especially small) and
retransmission limited CMOs
services (+) Better choice of
provided over different retransmission
"closed" services and TV / radio
electronic broadcasts from other
communications MS for consumers
networks
Option 2 – (+) Would (0/-) Possible one- (+) Reduced transaction (+/-) Positive impact
Mandatory enhance the off costs linked to costs for retransmission in terms of access to
collective availability of concluding service providers, a variety of channels
management of different licensing including certain types of may be undermined
rights to retransmission agreements OTT by the reduced
retransmission services and TV / between (-) Risk of undermining availability of
of TV / radio radio broadcasts retransmission rightholders' exclusive premium content on
broadcasts by from other MS service providers online rights and free-to-air TV
means of any and CMOs, but distribution strategies, (-) Negative impact
retransmission expected to be leading to a reduction of on the property right
services, limited licensing revenue (0/+)Moderately
irrespective of (+/-) Better choice of positive impact on
the different retransmission the freedom of
retransmission services and TV / radio information
technology or broadcasts from other
network used, as MS for consumers, but
long as they are risk of limited
provided to a availability of premium
defined number content through free-to-
of users air TV
(subscribers,
registered users
Option 1 is the preferred option, as it would enhance the availability of different
retransmission services and TV / radio broadcasts from other MS, while limiting the
impacts on rightholders. By contrast, the baseline option would not allow reaching the
51
objectives identified in this IA and Option 2 entails risks for rightholders in terms of
distribution strategies and licensing revenues, which may affect the availability of content for
consumers.
Proportionality of the preferred option and impacts in MS: Option 1 is a proportionate
intervention to the objective of enhancing access to retransmission services and to TV
and radio programmes from other MS. It affects the licensing choices of rightholders in
a limited manner, by extending the mandatory collective management of rights only to
certain types of retransmission services provided over closed networks. The impacts of
Option 1 on copyright as a property right would be justified in view of the Treaty fundamental
freedom to provide and receive services.
Option 1 would require limited changes in a number of MS, where legal or practical solutions
are already in place to facilitate licensing of retransmission of TV and radio broadcasts by
means other than cable. The impact of Option 1 would be stronger in other MS, where such
solutions do not yet exist.
3.3. ACCESS TO AND AVAILABILITY OF EU AUDIOVISUAL WORKS ON VOD PLATFORMS
3.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Access to and availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms is still
limited.
Description of the problem: The on-demand market of audiovisual works134 is becoming
increasingly important. Consumers' spending on digital video increased by 42.8 % in 2013
and reached a total of €1.97 billion.135 The SvoD market evolves more rapidly than other VoD
markets. The revenues of the SVoD market have grown from €40.7 million to 844 million
between 2011 and 2014.136 The number of VoD services in Europe is also increasing, with
around 2,000 services in Europe.137 It is expected that the VoD market will continue to
increase significantly in the 5-10 next years.138 However, access and availability of EU AV
works on VoD platforms remain limited. At EU level, only 47 % of EU films released in
cinemas between 2005 and 2014 are available on at least one VoD service.139 All works are
not equally affected by the limited online availability: small productions are more affected
than big productions that benefited a theatrical release and promotion efforts. Apart from
classical works, old works are less available than new ones.140 The type of VoD also has an
influence on the availability of works: works are more often and quickly available on TVoD
(in particular EST), than on SVoD. This is generally due to the release windows system, in
which SVoD comes last.141 Finally, the offer on VoD platforms greatly varies from one MS to
134
The on-demand market of audiovisual works (or Video-on-Demand ('VoD') market) as understood here
includes (i) Subscription VoD ('SVoD') and (ii) Transactional VoD ('TVoD') which itself includes buy
services (EST- Electronic self-through) and rental services (DTR – Download to rent). It also includes
AVoD (Advertising-supported Video-on-Demand) and FVoD (Free Video-on-Demand).
135
European video: the industry overview – International video federation, 2014.
136
EU Observatory- Study on-demand markets in the European Union – 2014 and 2015 developments.
137
Data for February 2014. European Audiovisual Observatory, Study on on-demand audiovisual markets
in the European Union, 2014.
138
EU Observatory – On-demand markets in the European Union – 2014 and 2015 developments.
139
In comparison, 87 % of US films are available on VoD. See C. Grece, "How do films travel on VoD
and in cinemas in the European Union – A comparative analysis", May 2016.
140
As it has been highlighted in recent reports, see Annex 8A.
141
Traditionally, first comes the theatrical release, then DVD and TVoD, then pay TV and free TV and
coming last, SVoD. See Annex 8B for an overview of the main actors in the audiovisual industry.
52
another and European AV works are not often available on platforms outside their home
country. For instance, a recent study shows that EU films are in average available on VoD in
only 2.8 countries.142
VoD platforms are likely to become essential in terms of access to AV works.143 Therefore it
is necessary that EU AV works benefit from this new channel of distribution. Moreover, this
also constitutes an opportunity to develop legal offer that could help fighting piracy.144
Several reasons related to the licensing of online rights contribute to limit availability of
European AV works on VoD platforms.
Drivers:
[Difficulties in the acquisition of rights] A first important difficulty derives from, contractual
blockages generally linked to licensing practices145 based on exclusivity of exploitation rights
and on the release windows system. They limit the online availability of AV works on VoD
platforms. A typical situation is where all the rights (including VoD rights) to a specific work
have been granted on an exclusive basis to an entity who is not interested in the online
exploitation of the work (e.g. a broadcaster to whom exclusivity was granted as a counterpart
for the financing of the work). Another situation is when a right holder decides to hold back
online rights as long as the rights for a theatrical release have not been licensed, in order to
keep open its chances to get the highest revenues. Some rightholders want indeed to keep
maximum flexibility as regards exploitation rights, even if this leads to no exploitation on
VoD platforms. In those cases, the online exploitation of the work remains blocked for an
indefinite time. When digital exploitation occurs, rightholders often decide to enter the VoD
exploitation only when revenues from other windows have been secured.146 For instance,
broadcasters often insist upon full or partial holdbacks against either TVoD or SVoD
exploitation during the period covered by their licence.147 In those cases, the online
exploitation of a work occurs at the very end of the release windows.148 This may negatively
impact the attractiveness of VoD offers.
[Complex clearance of rights] Secondly, clearance of rights for VoD exploitation can be
complex. It is not always easy to determine who owns the digital rights (e.g. lack of any
licence from the initial author149 or succession issues) or whether all the rights for the VoD
142
In comparison, US films are available in 6.8 countries. See C. Grece, "How do films travel on VoD and
in cinemas in the European Union – A comparative analysis", May 2016.
143
59 % of Internet users (respondents) have accessed or downloaded audio-visual content (films, series,
video clips, TV content, excluding sports) in the last 12 months. Eurobarometer 411 (August 2015).
30% of respondents have paid for that access or downloading.
144
See Annex 8A – VoD as a means to fight piracy.
145
For an overview of the value chain and digital distribution, see Annex 8C.
146
Study "Multi-territory licensing of audiovisual works in the European Union", October 2010.
147
Study on the fragmentation of the single market for on-line video-on-demand services: point of view of
content providers, study commissioned by the European Commission (DG CONNECT) and prepared
by iMinds (SMIT), p. 36: "(…) some sector stakeholders, in particular pay TV channels, use release
windows as a means to hamper the VoD market's development. By imposing 'unreasonable' holdback
periods, these pay TV players negatively impact the attractiveness of legal VoD offers".
148
This is particularly true for SVoD (contrary to EST).
149
In France, this situation has been addressed by the conclusion of an agreement ('protocole d'accord')
between the SACD and organisations of producers. This agreement was extended to the whole sector in
2007 (see 'Arrêté du 15 février 2007'). This agreement provides for a standard clause to be included in
the contracts to allow VoD exploitation. This agreement also includes a presumption of licence for
previous contracts. This aims at lifting obstacles at the very beginning of the chain of exploitation
(initial authors) and at providing remuneration to initial authors.
53
exploitation have been cleared. For instance, it has been reported that the rights to music
included in a film had not been cleared for SVoD exploitation, leading to the impossibility for
a VoD platform to include this work in its SVoD catalogue.
[Lack of efficient licensing model] A third and more significant obstacle is the lack of efficient
licensing model for online exploitation rights. This mainly derives from the poor return on
investment linked to making the works available on VoD platforms.
As regards the rightholders and distributors, the exploitation on VoD platforms is still an
emerging market150 and, at least for SVoD, it comes at the end of the release windows.
Therefore the remuneration that is collected for this mode of exploitation remains limited.151
The revenues will depend on the sales models and the VoD type. For instance, SVoD is
generally remunerated via a flat fee (around 3,000-10,000 for 18 months) when TVoD will be
remunerated by a percentage of the sale price.152 A study153 shows that a right holder received
approximately €1.5 from each VoD rental, but a sale of the same film on DVD or Blu-ray
came with at least three times higher revenues.154 Currently, revenues from theatrical
exploitation largely outweigh VoD revenues.155 This low remuneration could by itself prevent
rightholders and distributors from exploiting VoD rights, in particular if there is a risk that the
availability of works on VoD platforms undermines revenues from more profitable
distribution channels (e.g. DVD, Blu-ray).
In view of the low revenues, transaction and technical costs156 can be too heavy, in particular
for small productions, old works or in the absence of traditional commercial distribution of a
work in a given territory.157 Rightholders therefore need a highly efficient licensing model
(i.e. easy contact, negotiations kept to a minimum and standard contracts) to limit the costs. In
this respect, big studios (mainly American studios) are better equipped than small or even
medium producers. This could explain why only 27 % of films available on VoD and 30 % on
SVoD in the EU are European.158
As regards VoD platforms and aggregators, several costs affect their ability to include more
works in their catalogue. Firstly, the price of the works can prevent them from including these
works in their catalogue. With limited budgets, VoD platforms have to make choices and
would only pay high licence fees for highly valuable works.159 Secondly, transaction costs
can be important, in particular when contracting with small or medium producers. Except for
highly valuable works, VoD platforms generally prefer to conduct negotiations with big
studios covering a whole catalogue than individual negotiations with small or medium
150
See Annex 8A.
151
On the revenue streams in the VoD sector, see Annex 8D.
152
See the study commissioned by uniFrance films, "New French and European film markeys – Digital: a
new growth driver for intra-community circulation and export?", Ernst& Young, March 2015.
153
Study carried out for the European Commission "Analysis of the legal rules for exploitation windows
and commercial practices in EU Member States and of the importance of exploitation windows for
business practices", p. 36 (2014).
154
Mission sur le développement des services de vidéo à la demande et leur impact sur la création: centre
national du cinéma et de l'image animée, Hubac, S. (2010).
155
See Annex 8A.
156
Technical costs are briefly described in Annex 8A.
157
Many European works are not released in all EU Member States. VoD exploitation could compensate
this absence. However, in the absence of any previous distribution scheme in a given territory,
transaction costs would be particularly high as they would only concern VoD exploitation.
158
Compared to 59 % of US films on VoD and 60 % on SVoD (based on the number of cumulative film
titles). Sample of 75 VoD and 16 SVoD catalogues. "Origin of films in VoD catalogues in the EU".
European Audiovisual Observatory. November 2015.
159
For which exclusivity plays a role, see Annex 8A.
54
producers covering only few titles. With multiple individual negotiations come diverse and
multiple demands from rightholders. Aggregators, acting as intermediaries, facilitate contacts
and agreements between rightholders, their representatives and VoD platforms.160 However,
aggregators face similar issues: a burdensome licensing process and title-by-title
negotiation.161 To some extent, technical costs162 can also affect VoD platforms and
aggregators negatively.
Consequences: All above-mentioned obstacles, either by themselves (e.g. a contractual
blockage) or as a combination (contractual blockage reinforced by a poor return on
investment) can explain why some European AV works, in particular small productions, are
not available on VoD platforms. Only half of European AV works released in cinemas are
indeed available on VoD platforms and VoD platforms' catalogue do generally not include
more than 30 % of European works.
How the problem would evolve: In conclusion, despite the growing number of online content
services, many AV works (and among them, many European works) would not find their way
to online exploitation. Evolution of the market could improve the availability of these works
on VoD platforms, however obstacles, including related to the licensing of rights, are likely to
persist.
3.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
The options below focus specifically on the licensing problems and the difficulties of
acquisition of rights limiting the availability of European AV works on VoD platforms,
described above. The rest of the issues will be addressed in parallel by the accompanying
measures as described in the Communication "Towards a modern, more European copyright
framework"163 and in the framework of the 'Creative Europe' programme.
Baseline
No policy intervention. This option would rely on the natural evolution of the VoD market.
As VoD will become an increasingly important way to access AV works in the coming years,
it is likely to gain in financial attractiveness for rightholders.
Stakeholders' views
Following discussions and meetings with stakeholders' representatives, it appears that producers and distributors
(and to a certain extent, aggregators) would in general support this option since most of them consider that the
VoD market is still emerging and can regulate itself. Nevertheless, as it appears from meetings with some
stakeholders' representatives, authors, some producers and VoD platforms generally consider that this option
would not be sufficient to solve the obstacles leading to the limited availability of AV works on VoD platforms.
This view is likely to be shared by consumers since they will continue to face limited availability of EU AV
works on VoD platforms.
160
Since 2015, the MEDIA programme supports "ready-to-offer" catalogues of European films – see
Annex 8E. On the role of aggregators, see also Annex 8D.
161
Some of these issues will be addressed by accompanying measures announced in the Commission
Communication (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015.
162
Which are to a large extent similar to the ones for rightholder. See Annex 8A.
163
Commission Communication (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015. See also Annex 8E.
55
Option 1 – Stakeholders' dialogue focusing on licensing issues and aiming at improving
the proportion of EU audiovisual works available on VoD platforms
Under this option, a stakeholders' dialogue would be put in place with the following elements:
A multi-party stakeholders dialogue aimed at exploring ways to improve the availability
of EU AV works on VoD platforms.
The dialogue would take place at European level.
This stakeholder dialogue would focus only on licensing issues and related legal and
contractual difficulties (e.g. unblocking of VoD rights). The main participants will
therefore be authors, producers, sales agents, distributors, broadcasters, aggregators, VoD
platforms (including telecom operators offering VoD services), with the underlying idea
to gather together parties that do not enter directly into commercial agreements with each
other.
This dialogue would be part of the accompanying measures announced in the
Communication "Towards a modern, more European copyright framework" to ensure a
wider access to content across the EU and, more particularly, to intensify the dialogue
with the AV industry to find ways for a more sustained exploitation of existing European
films. These measures will address consumers' expectations, including by encouraging
MS to promote legal offer and to develop search tools to make EU AV works more
findable and prominent.
The result could be the adoption of self-regulatory measures for improving the
availability (for a more sustained exploitation) of EU AV works, including on VoD
platforms.
Stakeholders' views
It is likely that stakeholders would support this option, as some individual initiatives from different stakeholders
are already trying to address ways to improve availability of AV works (specifically European). This option
would bring all stakeholders, at European level, around the table with that same objective. If successful, the
stakeholder dialogue would help streamlining licensing practices as regards digital exploitation. Following
meetings with stakeholders' representatives, it appears that authors and VoD platforms in particular would
support this measure but could consider it insufficient as it does not give a tool to solve individual difficulties
(including contractual blockages). Consumers would support an option aiming at enlarging the catalogue of EU
AV works on VoD platforms.
Option 2 – Stakeholders' dialogue (Option 1) + Obligation for Member States to
establish a negotiation mechanism to overcome obstacles to the availability of
audiovisual works on VoD
This option would maintain the European-level dialogue from Option 1 and will add the
obligation for MS to introduce in their legislation a mechanism/process to facilitate
negotiations aimed at facilitating the exploitation of EU AV works on VoD platforms, with
the following elements:
The negotiation mechanism put in place by MS will help addressing individual cases. The
stakeholders' dialogue will address problems of availability in a general framework and
try to find solutions agreed by a multiplicity of parties.
The negotiation mechanism will aim at helping solving specific cases where licensing
obstacles limit and/or block the availability and exploitation of an (or several) AV
work(s) on VoD platforms (e.g. a producer whose work is not exploited on VoD
platforms; a VoD platform that wants to make available a particular AV work).
56
The parties who can resort to negotiation will be those wishing to exploit VoD rights and
those holding the rights.
MS will have to create a negotiation mechanism with the following essential elements:
MS will identify an impartial instance that will facilitate negotiations between parties
(without prejudice of the possibility to go to Court). The negotiation mechanism (i) will
be determined by each MS after having consulted with the relevant stakeholders
(practical issues such as the bearing of costs and timeline will therefore be left to MS);
(ii) will be on a voluntary basis; and (iii) will require the parties' commitment to negotiate
in good faith. The selected impartial party will (i) actively work towards reaching an
agreement and facilitate negotiations; (ii) bring professional experience that can
contribute to the conclusion of more commercial agreements.
The expected outcome would be commercial agreements leading to an increase of EU
AV works being available on VoD platforms. There is no obligation for the parties to
reach an agreement.
Stakeholders' views
Authors, aggregators and platforms would support this mechanism, as they generally favour measures addressed
to unblock contractual blockages and/or solve disputes leading to the unavailability of works. Following
meetings and discussions with stakeholders' representatives, it appears that producers, distributors, sales agents
would support this option as well because it respects their contractual freedom while providing a framework to
help solving individual cases. Consumers would support an option aiming at enlarging the catalogue of EU AV
works on VoD platforms.
Discarded options
Restrictions to contractual freedom: Options imposing obligations that would restrict the
stakeholders' contractual freedom were discarded. Such options would be more constraining
on the parties since parties would have no choice but to start negotiations or to allow the
exploitation of the works. However, their practical implementation and real impact on the
market remain unclear. It is for instance unclear whether forced negotiations (even in good
faith) could reach more agreements than negotiations on a voluntary basis. As regards any
obligation to exploit, it would have been very difficult to determine the conditions under
which such obligation could take place without expropriating the concerned person's rights.
These options would heavily hinder the contractual freedom of the parties, which now freely
negotiate and agree on the different types of exploitation that rightholders want to license, e.g.
theatres, pay and free broadcasting, DVD, VoD.
3.3.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would affect all stakeholders in the VoD exploitation chain of EU AV works.
Theses stakeholders include:
Rightholders and distributors: This category includes rightholders (director of a movie, screenwriter, producers -
to whom the rights to a work are generally assigned- and other possible rightholders), and broadcasters. This
category also includes distributors and sales agents. For them, the following impacts have been considered: (i)
impacts on the incentives for the exploitation of online rights (ii) impacts on costs.
VoD platforms and aggregators: The following impacts have been considered: (i) impacts on availability of
works in their catalogue; (ii) impacts on costs.
Consumers: The impact on the availability of EU AV works on VoD platforms has been considered.
Only the most significant and likely impacts are reported in this IA. The assessment is mainly qualitative, as the
data available is very limited because of confidentiality issues.
The assessment of Option 2 also includes an analysis of the impacts on Member States, in terms of
implementation costs.
57
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
The limited availability of EU AV works on VoD platforms is expected to persist under the
baseline option.164 The maturity of the VoD market in terms of revenues has not been reached
yet. In the absence of any intervention at EU level, contractual blockages are likely to persist.
In many cases, the licensing process for EU AV works would remain burdensome.
Rightholders and distributors
Impacts on the incentives for the exploitation of online rights: Most successful/mainstream
works would find their way to VoD platforms. For other AV works (including numerous
European works), low revenues and high costs would in many cases continue to prevent any
online exploitation. The rightholders' business model based on exclusivity deals and release
windows would not be affected under this option. Rightholders would only have limited
incentive to intensify the online exploitation of their works. Apart from increased revenues, a
possible incentive could be if the VoD market grows to the point that it becomes essential
from the rightholders' point of view (e.g. as a marketing tool or as the main distribution
channel). However, this is not likely to happen in the short term.
Impacts on costs: The development of intermediaries (such as aggregators) in the VoD market
could have a positive outcome on transactions costs for rightholders. Aggregators could help
rightholders concluding agreements on the digital exploitation of their works. This would
particularly be true for small producers and distributors who do not always have the resources
to start direct negotiations with VoD platforms. However, this positive impact would be
limited as intermediaries would continue to face high transaction costs, which could prevent
their development.
VoD platforms and aggregators
Impacts on the availability of works in their catalogues: VoD platforms and aggregators
would have no leverage under this option to unblock contractual blockages except for the
growing importance of the VoD market (and revenues linked to it). Upstream, VoD platforms
and aggregators are likely to face less clearance of rights issues. To facilitate clearance of
rights, initiatives as the ones already launched in some countries could be launched in other
countries. However, this would rely on individual initiatives, at national level. Downstream,
even if reduced, costs would continue to be important (see infra). It would therefore still be
difficult and expensive for VoD platforms and aggregators to conclude agreements with small
and medium producers (and by consequence include their works in their catalogue).
Impacts on costs: With the development of the VoD market, VoD platforms and aggregators
could gain in bargaining power and bring forward in the negotiation standard contractual
practices (such as "block-agreements"165). This could lead to some reduction of transaction
costs. For some categories of works, VoD platforms and aggregators would also be able to
better bargain the licence cost as VoD market gains in importance. Development of the VoD
market could also lead to an increase of the licences prices but in proportion with an increase
of the revenues. Under this option, VoD platforms would still face technical costs (when not
borne by rightholders).
164
Only 32 % of respondents are able to find the audiovisual content they are looking for. Eurobarometer
411, August 2015.
165
Meaning that VoD platforms and aggregators could engage in negotiations with several rightholders at
a time for a catalogue of works.
58
Consumers
Impact on the availability of EU AV works on VoD platforms: As the VoD market evolves,
consumers would be offered a larger choice of AV works. However, this choice would be
limited to some extent as access to some categories of works would remain limited: (i) works
whose rights are blocked by rightholders; (ii) works (mainly small productions) for which
transaction costs would be too high) and (iii) works that VoD platforms are not willing to
include in their catalogue. Costs for consumers to access catalogues of VoD platforms would
remain unchanged.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The baseline option will not sufficiently contribute to increase the availability of European
AV works on VoD platforms, which participate in the cultural diversity. As a consequence,
the visibility and circulation of European AV culture across the European Union would
remain limited. This would constitute a lost opportunity for European AV works to reach a
larger public.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The baseline scenario would not have any impact on copyright as property right (Article 17(2)
Charter) or on the freedom to conduct a business (Article 16), as it would not alter the current
licensing system.
Option 1 – Stakeholders' dialogue focusing on licensing issues and aiming at improving
the proportion of EU audiovisual works available on VoD platforms
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Having a platform to meet and discuss licensing issues preventing availability of EU AV
works on VoD platforms (e.g. exclusivity issues; release windows), at European level, could
contribute to reach agreements (self-regulatory measures) for a more sustained exploitation of
EU works, which would benefit all stakeholders involved. In particular, by setting the
dialogue at European level, participation of representative European organisations will be
secured and will produce a European effect of the potential self-regulatory measures that they
will adopt. However, chances of reaching concrete agreements would depend on the
willingness of the stakeholders to engage in constructive discussions and to take
commitments.
Rightholders and distributors
Impacts on the incentives for the exploitation of online rights: The rightholders' business
model based e.g. on exclusivity deals and release windows would not be affected under this
option. The stakeholders' dialogue could lead to some agreement as regards the streamlining
of licensing practices (for instance, development of standard clauses that could easily be
included in contracts). This could encourage rightholders intensifying digital exploitation of
their works. The stakeholder dialogue could also raise awareness as to the importance of
clearing the rights for the producers. This could have a positive impact on distributors and
other intermediaries down the contractual chain, and ultimately, on the availability of works
on VoD platforms.
Impacts on costs: The stakeholder dialogue could contribute to reduce costs linked to VoD
exploitation (e.g. if the stakeholder dialogue help defining contractual standards that would
streamline the licensing process and reduce transaction costs).
59
VoD platforms and aggregators
Impacts on the availability of works in their catalogues: As mentioned above ('rightholders
and distributors'), the stakeholder dialogue could have a positive impact on the streamlining
of the licensing process and the clearance of rights.166 This could help increasing the number
of works available in the VoD catalogues, in particular European works. However, by its
nature, the stakeholder dialogue would only concern collective solutions and could not solve
individual issues. Therefore, the impact of this option on works blocked in exclusivity deals
are expected to be limited. It would indeed be necessary to start individual negotiations to
obtain from a right holder that it renounces to its exclusivity. As regards release windows, this
option could have a positive impact by bringing more flexibility. For instance, stakeholders
could discuss under what conditions an earlier availability on SVoD platforms would be
possible (for instance, stakeholders could discuss the possibility for rightholders to stop –
even temporarily – the exploitation on SVoD in case of another, more valuable, distribution
opportunity). Finally, the stakeholder dialogue could facilitate contacts between small and
medium rightholders (or their representatives) and aggregators/VoD platforms. They could
work together on ways to improve the inclusion of their works in an aggregator's or VoD
platform's catalogue.
Impacts on costs: The stakeholder dialogue could help reducing transaction costs. If
successful, the stakeholder dialogue could lead to an agreement on new contractual standards.
This could facilitate licences negotiation.
Consumers
Impact on the availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms: Under this option, if
the stakeholder dialogue helps reducing transactions costs and facilitating contacts between on
the one hand, VoD platforms and aggregators, and on the other hand, rightholders (in
particular producers), consumers would be able to enjoy a larger choice of works, including
small productions (which are typically European works, as described in Section 3.3.1). They
could also benefit from earlier access to some works on VoD platforms. It is likely that costs
for consumers to access VoD services would remain unchanged or would only slightly
increase in cases where SVoD platforms offer a substantially larger catalogue.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 1 is expected to contribute to the objective by enabling a dialogue that could facilitate
access to a wider range of European AV works. This would in the medium/long term increase
the number of works available on VoD platforms. This would positively affect the visibility
and circulation of European AV works across the European Union.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The Option 1 scenario would not have any impact on the property right or on the freedom to
conduct a business.
Option 2 – Stakeholders' dialogue (Option 1) + Obligation for Member States to
establish a negotiation mechanism to overcome obstacles to the availability of
audiovisual works on VoD
Impacts of the stakeholder dialogue, which is also part of Option 2, have been assessed under
166
As regards clearance of rights, initiative as the one launched by the SACD in France (see supra) could
be discussed in the framework of the stakeholders' dialogue. This would allow a discussion and possible
similar solution at European level.
60
Option 1. The impacts assessed below concern only the negotiation mechanism. The
negotiation mechanism would exclusively address copyright-related issues and would
complement measures provided for in the AVMS Directive review for the promotion of
European works.167 Successful negotiations unblocking licensing difficulties would contribute
to reach or to go beyond the 20% minimum share of European works in catalogues of VoD
platforms.168 Moreover, the negotiation mechanism would also have a beneficial effect on the
type and variety of works making their way to VoD platforms.
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
The negotiation mechanism would address individual cases of lack of availability and
complements the general approach pursued by the stakeholder dialogue. Due to the specific
nature of the European AV market (mainly composed of small and medium film producers
and a number of small VoD platforms operating at national level), Option 2 would
particularly benefit European stakeholders, as the difficulties in the acquisition of the
necessary rights are more acute in their case.169The intervention of an impartial instance is
likely to facilitate negotiations in general and, as regards negotiations with major producers
and VoD platforms, contribute to equilibrate their bargaining power. The nature of the
negotiation process could lead to flexible solutions. Any potential guidelines or standards
decided following the stakeholder dialogue could also be helpful to reach solutions.
Rightholders and distributors
Impacts on the incentives for the exploitation of online rights: Under Option 2, the
rightholders' business model based on exclusivity deals and release windows would not be
affected. However, online exploitation of a work could be discussed in the framework of the
negotiation mechanism. Since the negotiation mechanism would work on a voluntary basis,
this would prevent possible abusive demands from VoD platforms and aggregators. This
negotiation body could also benefit rightholders. For instance, a producer having assigned
rights to a broadcaster not willing to exploit the work on VoD could rely on the negotiation
mechanism to try unblocking the situation. Rightholders could also use the negotiation
mechanism to try unblocking situations of systematic refusals from VoD platforms or
aggregators to include their works in the VoD catalogues. The intervention of an impartial
instance/moderator could facilitate discussions and help finding solutions. The moderator
could help unblocking the situation by providing objective and professional input. He could
also submit proposals. More generally, the moderator would help rationalise discussions. The
obligation of negotiation in good faith would also play a role. In view of the voluntary basis
and the necessity to negotiate in good faith, parties would refrain from entering into
negotiations unless there is a strong will to reach an agreement. This also means that the
negotiation mechanism would not provide a solution to all cases and obviously will not lead
to more availability of all films. In some cases, VoD platforms may be reluctant to start
negotiations. Indeed, VoD platforms are not willing to include all and any AV work in their
catalogue. They carefully select the works that will be part of their catalogue and find the
right balance between costs and benefits. Even when costs are not particularly high, they
would still need to be recovered by means of a minimum amount of viewers. Some works
would never achieve this threshold and VoD platforms would therefore not include them in
167
In the framework of the current reform of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (Directive
2010/13/EU), an obligation for on-demand audiovisual media services to include in their catalogue at
least 20 % of European works has been introduced (see Article 13.1 of the proposal).
168
The number of European AV works available on VoD/SVoD is one of the indicators that will monitor
the achievement of the objectives.
169
See Section 3.3.1 for description of the problem.
61
their catalogue. Even for works that could achieve this threshold, some platforms, in
particular those investing in original content such as Netflix, generally wish to limit the size
of their catalogue to avoid any 'cannibalisation risk'.170
Impacts on costs: The participation in the negotiation mechanism may entail some limited
costs for rightholders and distributors (depending on how MS decide to finance operational
costs). These costs may however be offset by the efficiency gains deriving from the
negotiation mechanism (it is expected to speed up the negotiation process and therefore
reduce transaction costs) and by the possible additional licensing revenues linked to the
exploitation of online rights. The negotiation mechanism could also contribute to develop
more efficient licensing practices in the long term.
VoD platforms and aggregators
Impacts on the availability of works in their catalogues: This option is likely to have a
positive impact on the possibility for VoD platforms and aggregators to overcome obstacles
linked to exclusivity rights and exploitation rights, release windows and clearance of rights.
The flexibility of the negotiation mechanism, the participation of different parties and the
intervention of a moderator could help parties finding suitable solutions (see supra
'Rightholders and distributors'). The obligation to negotiate in good faith would prevent any
obstruction from rightholders (or other stakeholders). The experience gained from the
negotiation mechanism could be reused in other negotiations. VoD platforms would for
instance be able to conclude other agreements with stakeholders, based on the previous
agreements obtained via the negotiation mechanism. Since the negotiation mechanism would
entail some costs (i.e. costs linked to the involvement of parties negotiating), it would mainly
be used in cases where there is a common will to make the works available online but where
negotiations are difficult. This negotiation mechanism is likely to be used to unblock the
rights to a catalogue of works or to facilitate contractual collaboration between parties. In
view of the voluntary basis of the mechanism, the positive impact on VoD platforms and
aggregators would materialise where rightholders are willing to negotiate.
Impacts on costs: As this is the case for rightholders and distributors, VoD platforms and
aggregators may have to bear some limited costs linked to the participation in the negotiation
mechanism. However, they would also benefit from easier and quicker negotiation with
rightholders or distributors, which could allow them to enrich their catalogue and attract more
viewers. Since the negotiation mechanism would be used to address individual licensing
blockages cases, it would not have an impact on technical costs.
Consumers
Impact on the availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms: If the negotiation
mechanism achieves unblocking some situations and facilitating collaboration between some
parties, consumers could benefit from a larger catalogue of works, in particular European, on
VoD platforms. Impact on the costs for consumers would be similar as the one under Option
1.
170
For instance, as regards EST or TVoD, it is important to keep the number of 'cheap' movies limited, to
avoid any cannibalisation of the 'expensive' movies (to avoid that viewers opt for the cheaper films on a
regular basis). This is also applicable for SVoD services (e.g. Netflix considers that "instead of trying to
have everything, we should strive to have the best in each category"- see Netflix long term view
document, p. 5, available on
http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/NFLX/2441659654x0x656145/e4410bd8-e5d4-4d31-ad79-
84c36c49f77c/IROverviewHomePageLetter_4.24.13_pdf.pdf). SVoD services with original content
also do not want to see their own productions cannibalised by cheaper works.
62
IMPACTS ON MEMBER STATES
Impacts on implementation costs: MS would need to set up the negotiation mechanism, which
would entail some one-off costs. However, MS already have different bodies171 with expertise
and experience in the AV sector, on which they could rely to implement the negotiation
mechanism. The costs would therefore vary according to the scope of existing structures, but
are expected to be relatively low. For example, when the implementation of dispute resolution
mechanisms aimed at solving disputes arising between CMOs and their members was
assessed, it was reported that the costs of establishing such mechanisms would be in the range
of €35,000.172
The operating costs linked to the functioning of the negotiation mechanism would vary
depending on the structure of the negotiation body, on the choices made by each MS on
whether these costs should be born – partially or totally – by the parties resorting to the
negotiation mechanism and on the number of cases submitted. The limited scope of the
negotiation mechanism (aimed at addressing individual blockages), the voluntary nature of
the process and the necessity to negotiate in good faith would limit the number of cases and
make sure that the mechanism is used by stakeholders only where there is a strong will to
reach an agreement. Examples of existing arbitration or mediation mechanisms help to
estimate the range of operating costs involved. On a low end estimate, CMOs that operate
alternative dispute resolutions report that the operating costs would be in the range of €11,000
per year. At the other end of the scale, the operating costs of the French cinema mediator (le
Mediateur du cinema) amounted to €217,526 euros in 2014.173 However, the scope of activity
this body is different from the negotiation mechanism envisaged here.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 2 would have a positive impact on cultural diversity, as resolution of individual cases
would contribute to enriching the catalogues of European works available to consumers
(including the ones for which the rights were blocked). This would in the medium/long term
increase the visibility and circulation of European AV works across the European Union.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Option 2 scenario would not have any impact on the property right or on the freedom to
conduct a business since the participation in the negotiation mechanism would be on a
voluntary basis.
171
For instance, Member States have national film agencies (e.g. the Austrian Film Institute or
'Österreichisches Filminstitut'; the Lithuanian Film Centre, the Irish Film Board, in France, the Centre
National du Cinéma et de l'image, the Estonian Film Institute, etc.). Each Member State also has an
audiovisual regulator, which are part of the European Regulators Group for Audiovisual Media Services
('ERGA'). ERGA advises and assists the Commission in the implementation of the AVMS Directive,
facilitate collaboration between regulatory bodies and facilitate exchange of good practices in the
sector. A list of the national regulatory bodies can be found on the following link:
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/list-eu-audiovisual-regulators
172
See the impact assessment accompanying the document Proposal for a Directive of the European
Parliament and of the Council on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-
territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online uses in the internal market (p 119, 176)
173
Source: 2014 Activity Report, February 2015.
http://www.lemediateurducinema.fr/Mediateur/Includes/Pdf/rapport_2014.pdf These costs concerned
year 2014 during which 74 cases were dealt with by the Médiateur.
63
3.3.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on stakeholders Social impacts and
fundamental rights
Baseline (0) Contractual (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts on (0) No direct impact
blockages, clearance associated with the stakeholders would on fundamental
issues, issues linked baseline option. depend on the evolution rights.
to strict release of the VoD market. (0)No direct impact
windows and on cultural diversity
burdensome licensing and the visibility and
processes would circulation of EU AV
persist. works.
Option 1 – (0/+) Could result in (0/-) Limited costs (0/+) Main impacts on (0) No direct impact
Stakeholde some improvements linked to the stakeholders would on fundamental
rs' dialogue as regards the organisation of the depend on the possible rights.
clearance of rights, stakeholders' changes introduced by (0/+) Positive impact
and the streamlining dialogue. the stakeholders' on cultural diversity
of the licensing dialogue. If the and the visibility and
process. To some stakeholders' dialogue circulation of EU AV
extent, it could leads to the adoption of works provided that
provide some some standards and the stakeholder
flexibility as regards practices (e.g. dialogue leads to
release windows. contractual clauses) and more works available
Contractual more flexibility, there on VoD platforms.
blockages linked to would be a possible
exclusivity deals reduction of licensing
would persist. and clearance costs.
Option 2 – (+) In addition to (0/-)Limited costs (0/+) Possible reduction (0) No direct impact
Stakeholde collective solutions linked to the of licensing and on fundamental
rs' dialogue that could be brought organisation of the clearance costs (cf. rights.
and by the stakeholders' stakeholders' supra). (+) Positive impact
negotiation dialogue, individual dialogue and (+) Possibility to use the on cultural diversity
mechanism cases could also be possible negotiation mechanism and the visibility and
addressed. This participation in the to unblock individual circulation of EU AV
would provide a negotiation cases (e.g. contractual works thanks to the
framework for mechanism. blockages) and to greater availability of
stakeholders to solve (0/+) Possible facilitate contractual EU AV works on
contractual blockages reduction of collaboration between VoD platforms
and other licensing transaction costs by stakeholders. (which would also
individual issues. speeding up the include AV works
negotiation process. for which the rights
were blocked).
Option 2 is the preferred option, as it would allow reaching the objective of improving
the availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms. Under this option, solutions
to both collective and individual cases are envisaged. The stakeholders' dialogue, if
successful, could lead to the adoption of some contractual standards that could benefit all
stakeholders in the AV sector. This would have a positive impact on the licensing process.
The stakeholders' dialogue could also increase flexibility in licensing VoD rights and facilitate
to some extent contacts between small and medium rightholders (or their representatives) and
aggregators/VoD platforms. As regards individual cases, the negotiation mechanism could
help parties finding suitable solutions to allow the licensing of VoD rights. In contrast, Option
1 would not address these individual situations and would therefore be less effective. Since
the negotiation mechanism would be on a voluntary basis, this solution would heavily rely on
the will of parties to reach agreement. All blockages could therefore not be solved under this
solution. The compliance costs related to Option 2 are expected to be compensated by the
benefits it would generate for the parties, e.g. by speeding up the negotiation process. This is
64
all the more the case since the participation in the negotiation mechanism would be on a
voluntary basis, stakeholders would be protected against abusive demands from other
stakeholders. Finally, Option 2 has no impact on the rightholders' business model based on
exclusivity deals and release windows. The impact on the right to property is therefore
neutral.
Proportionality and impacts on MS: Option 2 allows reaching the policy objective in a
proportionate manner, focusing on facilitating contacts and negotiations between
stakeholders without interfering with their contractual freedom.
Depending on the approach adopted, MS may have to introduce the negotiation mechanism in
their legislation and set up the related body, which would entail some limited costs, as
explained above.
3.4. OUT-OF-COMMERCE WORKS IN THE COLLECTIONS OF CULTURAL HERITAGE
INSTITUTIONS
3.4.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Digitisation and dissemination of out-of-commerce works held by cultural heritage
institutions, including across borders, in 'mass digitisation' projects, is adversely affected by
difficulties in clearing rights
Description of the problem: As part of their dissemination missions, cultural heritage
institutions (CHIs) are willing to digitise works held in their collections and disseminate them
to the public, notably online, including across borders.174 This activity is particularly relevant
when collections are out-of-commerce (OoC),175 as OoC works are not available via any other
channel but can still hold great cultural, scientific, educational, historical and entertainment
value.176
The digitisation and dissemination of in-copyright OoC works as part of 'mass digitisation'177
efforts is however faced by distinct difficulties and high transaction costs for clearing the
relevant rights.178 This problem contrasts with the inherently low current commercial value of
the works at stake. CHIs have generally reported problems with mass digitisation projects
despite the large demand for online access to all types of works in their collection.179
174
The cultural importance of digital heritage collections is reflected in the well-established EU policy on
the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material, notably as outlined in the Recommendation
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 November 2005 on film heritage and the
competitiveness of related industrial activities (2005/865/CE), the Commission Recommendation on the
digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and digital preservation (2011/711/EU), the
Council conclusions on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and digital
preservation (10-12 May 2012), the Commission Communication "Towards an integrated approach to
cultural heritage for Europe" (COM(2014) 477 final), and the creation of the Europeana project.
175
OoC works are works still under copyright protection, copies of which are not commercially available
to the public through the customary channels of access and are not expected to become available in the
future. See more specific definition of OoC works under Options 1 and 2 below.
176
Numerous institutional respondents to the 2013-2014 public consultation pointed to a large demand
from citizens, teachers, students and researchers for the digital availability of works in heritage
collections, particularly from the 20th century (which are likely to be still protected by copyright in most
cases).
177
'Mass digitisation' refers here to large-scale projects for the digitisation and making available online of
collections or parts of collections of a given CHI.
178
These are the reproduction and making available rights for online dissemination, but might also include
the broader communication to the public right and the distribution right.
179
Including in the 2013-2014 public consultation.
65
The collections of European CHIs are very large: for example, a 2010 study estimated that
archives held 26.98 billion pages of archival records and that there were 10.81 million hours
of audio materials in European CHIs.180 It is very difficult to give an estimation of the number
of works that remain locked within the walls of CHIs as a direct consequence of copyright-
related issues, as the feasibility of mass digitisation projects depends on a variety of factors.181
In a recent survey of cultural institutions carried out in the context of the Europana project,
respondents estimated that only 55 % of their digital collections182 are available on their
institutional website, 28 % in a national online aggregator183 and 22 % on Europeana.184 These
data do not distinguish between in-copyright and public domain works and among the
different possible causes. It is however reasonable to expect that if only copyright-protected
works were considered, the level of works available online would be lower. Furthermore,
practitioners in this field say that the relative underrepresentation of works from the 20th
century (known as the '20th century black hole'), particularly its second half, and, generally
speaking, of sound recordings and AV works185 in online collections is an illustration of the
correlation between the copyright status of works in CHIs collections and their availability
online. For example, only 10.93 % of works in a recent sampling made by the Europeana
Foundation of works showing up in the Europeana portal belong to the second half of the 20th
century.186
Drivers: [Size of OoC collections, age and type of works] Difficulties in rights clearance and
transaction costs affecting mass digitisation are mainly related to the nature of the works
involved:
The size of OoC collections that CHIs wish to digitise and further disseminate is often
large,187 multiplying the resources that are required for rights clearance.188 For example,
180
See Annex 9A for estimations and data on the magnitude of CHIs collections at aggregate and
institutional level.
181
Copyright-related issues are only part of the factors influencing the feasibility of digitisation projects by
CHIs. Among other aspects is a significant funding challenge. In 2010, it was estimated that digitising
the collections of Europe's museums, archives and libraries would cost €100 billion (N. Poole, "The
Cost of Digitising Europe's Cultural Heritage. A Report for the Comité des Sages of the European
Commission", November 2010). The cost of digitising the whole European film heritage would range
between €500 million and 2 billion (T. Baujard et al.,"Challenges of the Digital Era for Film Heritage
Institutions", December 2011). Other organisational, legal (notably data protection) and skill-related
questions also play a crucial role in determining the feasibility of digitisation projects. On copyright and
digitisation, see also Annex 9B.
182
Intended as comprising both digital reproductions of analogue works and born-digital works, and the
related metadata.
183
See Annex 9A for more information on aggregators.
184
G.J. Nauta – W. van den Heuvel, DEN Foundation on behalf of Europeana/ENUMERATE, "Survey
Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2015", June 2015.
185
The latter are considered the most expensive to digitise in the first place, but also likely to be in-
copyright in larger numbers than other types of work given the much more recent development of these
modes of production.
186
The sample covered works from 1800 to today. See Annex 9C for more on this specific figure and
illustrations of the '20th century black hole' and the presence of sound and audiovisual works in online
digital collections.
187
See Annex 9A for data and examples on the extent of cultural heritage collections in Europe (data do
not distinguish between in-copyright and public domain works, or between OoC and non-OoC works,
but give a clear indication of the scale of digitisation efforts).
188
The cost of clearing rights can be reduced by the effect of innovative tools and projects like ARROW
and FORWARD, and the database foreseen by the Directive 2012/28/EU of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on certain permitted uses of orphan works (OJ L 299,
27.10.2012, p. 5–12), "the Orphan Work Directive". Except for orphan works, these tools are however
66
in a project on the history of genetics carried out in the UK on a collection of books from
the 20th century, 5,459 individual authors were identified for 1,620 works, with 5 % of
the works having more than 10 authors.189
Works are often old190 and have been, by definition, out of circulation. This means
rightholders (or those who can clear the rights on their behalf) may be difficult to find
and that the chain of title can be considerably long, complex and subject to uncertainty.191
The type of many of the works that are important from a heritage perspective – for
example newsreels, photos, unpublished materials, or works that have never been
intended for commercial circulation, such as political leaflets or trench journals192 –
means that rights may have never been managed in any way.
Time-demanding rights clearance means high transaction costs for CHIs: attempts to quantify
such costs in a general way are difficult as each collection and process is different.
Quantifications can however be based on individual case studies; available ones, mainly
provided by CHIs, suggest figures varying between approximately €50 and €100 for a single
book, between €5.70 and €50 for a single poster, between €0.70 and €1.70 for a single
photograph, around €27 for a short amateur film, and €10 for mixed collections.193
[Suitable licensing mechanisms only available in some MS and for some types of works]
Collective licensing, whereby single contracts are concluded with a CMO for entire
collections of works, can be an evident answer to the transaction costs problem mentioned
above. Yet, collective management of rights is not available for all types of works194 and
CMOs may only grant licences for the rights mandated to them by the rightholders that they
only of assistance in the identification of the copyright status, of the rightholders and the available
licensors of the rights, and of determining whether they are in or out of commerce), but not in obtaining
authorisations to use works and in the negotiation of licences as such. Their scope extends to certain
types of works only (see Annex 9I for more information).
189
For more information on this project, see Annex 9D and R. Kiley, "Clearing rights to digitise books
published in the 20th century: a case study prepared by the Wellcome Library, the Authors' Licensing
and Collecting Society and the Publishers Licensing Society", June 2013.
190
As regards for example, their date of publication.
191
This can be a typical problem in Central and Eastern European MS that underwent transitions into and
out of socialist economic systems.
192
Trench journals are works authored by and distributed among military personnel engaged in conflict,
notably during WW1. Other types of relevant works that the Commission services came across in
preparation of this IA include maps, postcards, posters, calendars, advertisement material, menus,
school yearbooks, letters, annual reports, broadcasts, documentaries, screenplays, correspondence,
cartoons, plans, drawings, herbaria, experimental and amateur films, sound recordings (including old
formats like shellac records and wax cylinders), pamphlets, leaflets, government publications, ancillary
and publicity materials related to other works, in addition to films, phonograms, books, newspapers and
magazines, sheet music, paintings, sculptures, and other artistic objects.
193
Further data is presented in Annex 9D. Data in this area was only available in the form of case-studies
using different methods and assumptions and they were mainly provided by CHIs. Available data
specific to the transaction costs related to copyright clearance in the context of mass digitisation
activities are scarce and differences among cultural sectors and individual situations make them
unsuitable for comparisons or aggregation. The figures provided above and in Annex 9D should
therefore not be compared, or considered and quoted as having general validity.
194
In the print sector, for instance, collective management plays an important role in licensing, as does for
musical compositions. It is less widespread for visual works. In the audiovisual sector, on the other
hand, licensing mostly takes place on an individual basis, which is the preferred licensing mechanism,
including for the use in question, according to a large number of film producers who responded to the
2013-2014 public consultation. See Annex 9F for an overview of collective management practices per
sector.
67
represent. Given the nature of the works at stake, however, it is quite common that part of
their rightholders are not represented in the relevant CMOs. This makes it impossible for the
latter to issue a licence that also comprises the rights of such 'outsider' rightholders. This
situation undermines the usefulness of collective licensing in many of the cases at hand,
leaving, again, individual rights clearance as the only solution for many works.
Some MS have addressed the latter problem by establishing in national law, for example
through extended collective licensing (ECL) or presumptions of representation, that licences
issued by a CMO can apply to works of outsiders, under certain conditions, including the
possibility for individual rightholders to 'opt out' their works from these licences.195 Under
such legislation, CMOs can issue licences that cover entire collections, including works of
outsiders, in full legal certainty. This means, for example, that if a CHI wishes to digitise and
make available a collection of OoC books and part of the rightholders in the collection is not
represented in the relevant CMO, that CMO will be allowed by the law, under certain
conditions, to grant a licence to the CHI covering the full collection, except for rightholders
that express their opposition to their works to be used. These mechanisms are however not
available in all MS for the uses in questions and for all kinds of works.196
[Lack of cross-border effect of national solutions] Where licensing mechanisms exist, they
only apply within the MS that has enacted them, in practice limiting access to works licensed
under this type of mechanisms to one national territory.
Some of such national developments follow a 2011 Memorandum of Understanding197
(hereafter: 'the 2011 MoU') agreed between right holder and library representatives under the
auspices of the European Commission to facilitate the clearance of rights in OoC books and
learned journals.198 The 2011 MoU however only applies to some categories of works.199
Successful national legislative and contractual solutions have also been preceded by
stakeholder consultation processes, sometimes reflected in model contracts.200 Such
experiences point to the important role played by stakeholder cooperation and engagement
195
See Annex 9E for more information on these mechanisms and actual examples.
196
See also European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of Commission Recommendation
2011/711/EU – 2013-2015", 2016.
197
Memorandum of Understanding on Key Principles on the Digitisation and Making Available of Out-of-
Commerce Works, signed on 20 September 2011
(http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/copyright-infso/20110920-mou_en.pdf).
198
The MoU acknowledges the need that MS adopt legislative measures backing collective management
schemes for rights clearance, foreseeing safeguards for non-represented rightholders, and calls for the
European Commission to intervene to ensure legal certainty in a cross-border context as follows:
"Calling on the European Commission, to the extent required to ensure legal certainty in a cross-border
context, to consider the type of legislation to be enacted to ensure that publicly accessible cultural
institutions and collective management organisations which enter into a licence in good faith applying
these key principles are legally protected with regard to licensed uses of works of rightholders who
have been presumed to be within the scope of the licence".
199
The potential of the 2011 MoU to act as a model for other types of works was recognised by the
Commission Recommendation of 11 October 2011 on the digitisation and online accessibility of
cultural material and digital preservation (2011/711/EU), which invited MS to create "the legal
framework conditions to underpin licensing mechanisms identified and agreed by stakeholders for the
large-scale digitisation and cross-border accessibility of works that are out-of-commerce".
200
For example, model contract terms based on extended collective licensing (ECL) for the digitisation and
making available of images contained in CHI collections were finalised in October 2015 in SE. This
was the outcome of stakeholder working groups set up in 2013 with the involvement of the national
secretariat for national coordination of digitisation, digital preservation and digital access to cultural
heritage (Digisam) and visual CMO Bildupphovsrätt (BUS). The model contract terms are not specific
to OoC works only.
68
with public authorities on the field in the achievement of practical solutions, but this has
occurred in some specific areas and MS only.201
Consequences: CHIs regularly report that difficulties in clearing rights can be, and often are, a
defining barrier for proceeding with a project at all, or in selecting the works that will be
included in one. This causes projects to be skewed toward public domain and pre-20th century
works, or newer collections) or OoC collections remaining simply unavailable beyond CHI's
premises, and not accessible across borders.202 More broadly, this situation means that the
societal and economic benefits of the digitisation and dissemination of digitised cultural
heritage are missed,203 including for certain rightholders in terms of better discoverability of
'dormant' works that can lead to further exploitation and therefore revenue possibilities.
How the problem would evolve: The difficulties and costs of clearing rights in this area are
influenced by various factors, but they are likely to persist for the foreseeable future.
Although in the wake of the 2011 MoU and of EU recommendations204 the number of MS has
increased that have national provisions allowing for collective licences also covering the right
of 'outsiders', these solutions are not expected to develop across the EU in a uniform way. The
main observed trend is for them to cover literary works only. Furthermore, cross-border
barriers will remain as those solutions only have national application.
3.4.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
Baseline
No policy intervention. CHIs would continue to rely mainly on individual licensing, or
collective licensing where possible. Collective licensing would be supported by national legal
mechanisms to cover the rights of outsiders only in a limited number of MS.205 Licences
resulting from these mechanisms would be limited to one national territory. The 2011 MoU
would continue to call on MS to adopt such mechanisms for books and learned journals, and
to provide a basis for further collective licences for this category of works.
Stakeholder views
CHIs consider the status quo insufficient and would not support lack of policy action, as wouldn't individual end
users/consumers. Within the cultural industries, views would be more mixed with some players, for example
among film producers and commercial broadcasters, supporting no intervention at EU level, while others, such
as authors and CMOs, favourable to EU intervention to varying degrees (at least to address uncertainty in cross-
border contexts).206
201
See also Annex 9G for more information on the role of stakeholder cooperation in this area.
202
See R.Peters – L.Kalshoven, "What rights clearance looks like for Cultural Heritage Organisations – 10
case studies", Europeana Factsheet, 23 June 2016, for concrete examples provided by CHIs.
203
See Annex 9J for more information on the social and economic impact of digitisation.
204
Notably the Commission Recommendation on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural
material and digital preservation (2011/711/EU), which encouraged MS to create "the legal framework
conditions to underpin licensing mechanisms identified and agreed by stakeholders for the large-scale
digitisation and cross-border accessibility of works that are out-of-commerce", and a similar call in the
Council Conclusions on the digitisation and online preservation of cultural material and digital
preservation of 10-11 May 2012.
205
For examples of MS where this is already possible, via ECL, presumptions of representations or similar
mechanisms, see Annex 9E. See also European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of
Commission Recommendation 2011/711/EU – 2013-2015", 2016.
206
These stakeholder views are also evidenced by the 2013-2014 public consultation.
69
Option 1 – EU legislative intervention (i) requiring MS to put in place legal mechanisms
to facilitate collective licensing agreements for OoC books and learned journals207 and to
foster national stakeholder frameworks, and (ii) giving cross-border effect to such legal
mechanisms.
Type of mechanisms: MS would be required to provide for adequate mechanisms in their
legal system ensuring that voluntary collective licensing agreements between CHIs (i.e.
publicly accessible libraries and museums, as well as archives and film or audio heritage
institutions) and CMOs for the digitisation and dissemination of OoC books and learned
journals (including embedded images) in their collections can also apply to the works of
outsiders.
Scope of the mechanisms: (i) OoC books and learned journals first published in the MS
where the licence is sought, (ii) the rights of reproduction, communication to the public
(including making available) and distribution, and (iii) non-commercial uses.208 Books
and learned journals would be considered OoC as defined in the 2011 MoU.209 MS would
have the possibility to establish further national-specific criteria for works to be eligible
for the mechanisms in question,210 which will have to be done in consultation with
concerned rightholders and users.
Safeguards for rightholders: these mechanisms would have to reflect a set of features
established at EU level to provide for adequate safeguards for rightholders, notably
outsiders, as regards: (i) sufficient representativeness of the licensor CMO of rightholders
in the relevant category of works, rights and uses in the MS where the licence is sought,
(ii) the possibility for outsiders to opt out of licences prior and during licence terms, (iii)
equal treatment of CMO members and outsiders, and (iv) transparency/publicity
obligations. MS would otherwise remain free to choose the suitable mechanism according
to their legal traditions, practices or circumstances.211
Cross-border effect: the legal possibility for the part of the licences that relates to
outsiders to apply across borders in the EU would be established by EU law. Such cross-
border effect would kick in after adequate information on the collections of works
covered by the licence has appeared on a publicly accessible European transparency web
portal for a sufficient period of time, except for works of authors that might have opted
out during that period.
Stakeholder frameworks: MS would also be required to foster national stakeholder
frameworks and dialogue at national level with a view to facilitate the practical
implementation of the licensing mechanisms deriving from the obligation defined above,
beyond purely legal aspects, and to achieve similar outcomes as the 2011 MoU in other
sectors.
207
In line with the scope of the 2011 MoU.
208
With the possibility for CHIs to generate revenues but only to cover and recoup their costs.
209
Under this definition, a work is considered out-of-commerce when the whole work, is, in all its versions
and manifestations, no longer commercially available in customary channels of commerce, regardless
of the existence of tangible copies of the work in libraries and among the public, including through
second hand bookshops or antiquarian bookshops.
210
For example a cut-off date, i.e. books published before a certain date (as it is the case in DE), or an
original language criterion, like in PL legislation where the OoC rules are not applicable to works
written in a foreign language and translated into Polish.
211
See Annex 9E for a description and examples of possible mechanisms, which include for example
presumptions of representation or ECLs.
70
Stakeholder views
Most CHIs would consider this option not satisfactory because it covers books and learned journals only (as
would individual users/consumers),212 even if they would welcome legal certainty as regards the cross-border
effect.213 Views within the right holder constituencies would vary. Some, like certain authors and CMOs, would
welcome the option as it ensures cross-border effect to the licensing mechanisms foreseen by the 2011 MoU.
Others, especially outside of the books and journals sector, would consider it irrelevant or oppose this approach.
Some right holder sectors might be willing to engage in stakeholder dialogues with a view to voluntary
solutions.214
Option 2 – EU legislative intervention (i) requiring MS to put in place legal mechanisms
to facilitate collective licensing agreements for all types of OoC works and to foster
national stakeholder frameworks, and (ii) giving cross-border effect to such legal
mechanisms.
Same as Option 1, but:
Covering all types of OoC works, with a similar attachment to a single MS as in Option
1. Licences would have to be sought in the MS of first publication or, in the absence of
publication, first broadcast, or – in the case of cinematographic or AV works – the MS
where the headquarters or habitual residence of the producer is located.215 In cases where
attachment to a MS (or to a third country, in which case the mechanism could not be
used) cannot be established with certainty after reasonable efforts, the licence would have
to be sought in the MS where the CHI is established.
A work would be considered OoC when the whole work is, in all its translations, versions
and manifestations, not being communicated, made available or distributed to the public
through customary channels of access, and cannot be reasonably expected to become so.
MS would have the same possibility as in Option 1 to establish further national-specific
criteria.
Stakeholder views
A number of CHIs and CHI professionals, notably national librarians, would be positive about this option as the
intervention covers all categories of works and is in line with certain national experiences that they consider
successful. Others would still not find it satisfactory, given their preference for an exception.216 Some
rightholders, for instance among authors and CMOs would also find the large scope of the option satisfactory,
and engage in the stakeholder processes that the option foresees. Other segments of the industry, for example
newspaper publishers, commercial broadcasters and film and record producers, would not support this option,
also in view of its reliance on collective management.217
212
As resulting from those individual users/consumers and consumer organisation who responded on this
specific matter in the 2013-2014 public consultation.
213
This view was very frequent among CHI responses to the 2013-2014 public consultation.
214
An overall strong preference for voluntary and licence-based solutions is clear from right holder
submissions to the 2013-2014 public consultation.
215
Similarly to the rules determining the MS where a diligent search must be undertaken before a work can
be established as being an orphan work for the purposes of the Orphan Works Directive.
216
CHIs in the 2013-2014 public consultation stressed the importance of solutions covering all types of
works and many of them indicated their preference for an exception, as generally did individual end
users/consumers and consumer organisations. CHI respondents also referred to collective management
solutions, notably ECL, as an alternative.
217
These various views are present in right holder responses to the 2013-2014 public consultation.
71
3.4.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would mainly affect institutional users (CHIs) (and by extension people with an
interest in accessing digitised cultural heritage through them, i.e. end-users), as well as rightholders in OoC
works held by CHIs (and, by extension, CMOs). The impacts affecting these two groups are presented
separately.
For CHIs, the impact on lower transaction costs and the possibility to carry out-cross-border uses was
assessed, with reference to the possibility for CHIs to obtain collective licences with that effect. These
effects are both economic and social in nature, as they influence the availability of digitised cultural
heritage in the EU.
For rightholders, the following impacts, economic in nature, were assessed: impacts (i) on revenues, (ii) on
the exercise of rights (in other words, on their freedom not to have their works exploited or to exploit them
directly and in ways other than by CHIs), and (iii) on possible administrative burden.
The policy options are also assessed in relation to their general social impacts (cultural diversity, the possibility
for end users to have access to digitised cultural heritage, and influence on the general societal impacts of
digitisation)218 and as to the impacts on fundamental rights (property right, freedom of the arts and sciences,
and right to education).
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, as suitable data was not available to produce quantitative
assessments. Quantitative examples of the transaction costs that the considered options aim to reduce are
included in Annex 9D. Practical impacts are also illustrated in a dedicated case study under each of the three
options, which can be found in Annex 9H.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
CHIs
Transaction costs and cross-border uses: This option would not have any direct impact on
rights clearance and transaction costs and would entirely depend on the solutions available at
national level. CHIs in MS whose legal frameworks already allow for licences also covering
the rights of outsiders for the digitisation and dissemination of OoC works219 would already
benefit from the possibility of substantially lower transaction costs. The issues described in
the description of the problem above would persist in the majority of MS, as that possibility is
present in only a few MS, and mainly for books and other literary works (there are legal
frameworks which could also be used for other types of OoC works in an even smaller group
of MS).220 In the absence of EU intervention, licences concluded via these mechanisms
covering outsiders, be them specific to certain types of works or not, would be valid for a
single MS territory (at least as regards the rights of outsiders). Opportunities would be larger
for literary works than in other sectors also because suitable licensing structures are
widespread in this area and much less in others, like for film and audio-visual works.221
Irrespective of the broader category of works, possibilities to obtain suitable collective
licences could be limited for works that CMOs do not traditionally license, for example
218
Given the difficulty in identifying and quantifying precise impacts on the latter aspect, reference is
made to Annex 9J, which elaborates on the general social and economic impacts of the digitisation of
cultural heritage.
219
See Annex 9E for a description and examples of possible mechanisms (ECLs, presumptions of
representation or similar).
220
Notably in MS that have general extended collective management systems, i.e. whose scope in terms of
uses and types of works is not limited a priori by law.
221
Both in terms of the existence of CMOs and of the mandates they have or can expect to have from
rightholders to proceed with licensing that go beyond the specific functions that are traditionally
assigned to them (e.g. management of cable retransmission rights).
72
because they have never been intended for commercial use,222 due for example to lack of
familiarity of CMOs with them and their rightholders.
Other MS might decide in the future to adapt their legal frameworks. Such evolution is
however entirely dependent on the will of individual MS, and would probably not take place
in a systematic manner, particularly beyond books and learned journals (where the 2011 MoU
has generated momentum). Resulting licences would still be limited territorially.
Rightholders
Revenues: Possibilities for rightholders, including outsiders, to receive new or extra revenue
from collective licences for OoC works which already exist in MS can take the form of
payments generated by the initial licences with CHIs, and from subsequent licensing
opportunities stemming from the exposure of works that are otherwise not easily visible.
Under the baseline scenario, these opportunities would not increase and be subject to the same
limitations as regards MS territories and categories of works as discussed under "CHIs".
Impact on the exercise of rights: There would be no change for rightholders. In those MS and
for those categories of works for which mechanisms exist through which licences between
CMOs and CHIs can also cover the rights of outsiders and suitable licensing structures are in
place, rightholders should still retain the freedom to decide on the exploitation of their works
through the opt-out possibilities that such schemes normally foresee.223
Possible administrative burden: Existing licensing mechanisms in some MS for the
digitisation and dissemination of OoC works may result in costs for rightholders in relation to
the exercise of their opt-out possibility. Licensor CMOs can also incur specific costs related to
the use of the existing mechanisms, for example related to publicity/transparency, the
handling of opt-outs and the distribution of remuneration to outsiders.224 The baseline
scenario would have no impact as such in this area either, as these costs are only relevant
where the mechanisms referred to in the previous paragraph already exist today.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
No impact on cultural diversity in terms of access by people to a larger and more diverse set
of works held in CHIs and of incentives for creators to keep creating works.
Additional opportunities for end-users to access their cultural heritage would be limited, as
regards MS and types of works, as outlined under "CHIs" above. The same limitations would
more broadly apply to the social and economic impacts associated to digitisation.225
No specific contribution to the EU's policy on digitisation and online accessibility of cultural
heritage.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
No impact on copyright as a property right, as recognised by Article 17(2) of the Charter, nor
any substantial impact on the arts and scientific research, relevant for the freedom of the arts
and sciences (Article 13), and on education, protected under Article 14.
222
For example political leaflets, sketches, non-commercial sound recording or amateur footage.
223
See Annex 9E for more on opt-outs as part of this type of licensing.
224
These costs can vary depending on the design of each mechanism and the associated administrative
procedures (notably to opt works out). Costs for CMOs only apply if the CMO decides to use those
mechanisms, which remain voluntary. See Annex 9H for an illustrative case study and a table
illustrating impacts on the different stakeholder categories.
225
For more on the possible social and economic impacts of the digitisation of cultural heritage see Annex
9J.
73
Option 1 – EU legislative intervention (i) requiring MS to put in place legal mechanisms
to facilitate collective licensing agreements for OoC books and learned journals226 and
to foster national stakeholder frameworks for these and other works, and (ii) giving
cross-border effect to such legal mechanisms.
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
CHIs
Transaction costs and cross-border uses: Option 1 would deliver solutions in all MS for books
and learned journals. These could take the form of ECLs, presumptions of representations or
similar systems, depending on national circumstances. Combined with the large availability of
collective licensing practices and CMOs in this sector, this would mean that the possibility for
CHIs to benefit from lower transaction costs to obtain comprehensive licences for OoC books
and learned journals would exist largely across Europe for this category of works. For
example, the transaction costs emerged in the digitisation project on the history of genetics
mentioned in section 3.4.1, estimated at approximately GBP 45,000 for 987 works made
available, could be reduced to the costs of negotiating one licence with the relevant CMO,227
and this would be legally possible everywhere in the EU.
The possibility to actually use those legal frameworks would be accelerated by the
stakeholder frameworks that MS would have to put in place, helping to address practical
issues, like for example the absence of suitable licensing structures in certain MS, CMOs' lack
of familiarity with types of works that they do not traditionally license, the need for literary
and visual works CMOs to work jointly (for embedded visual works), and other licensing
aspects. Given the current estimations concerning individual rights clearance for books,228
savings in transaction costs that this option would entail for CHIs across the EU are expected
to be meaningful.
The above impacts would however only materialise in a substantial way for books and learned
journals. For other works, the situation would be similar to the baseline scenario in the short
term.229 In the long term, the stakeholder frameworks that the MS would have to foster could
improve the situation to some extent, through processes similar to the 2011 MoU. These
developments, which are difficult to predict precisely, could in turn, but only in the even
longer term, induce MS to adapt their legal frameworks at national level. The resulting
licences would however still be limited territorially as this option would only give cross-
border applicability to licences for books and learned journals.
Rightholders
Revenues: New revenue opportunities for rightholders as described under the baseline
scenario would potentially emerge in all MS for books and learned journals. Such
opportunities would however not increase for rightholders in other types of works, or only in
the long term as a consequence of the stakeholder frameworks which MS would have to
foster.
226
In line with the scope of the 2011 MoU.
227
No data could be found to assess such cost, however it is expected to be lower than GBP 45,000.
228
See Annex 9D for available examples and estimations as regards books.
229
CHIs will be in the position to ask for collective licences covering the rights of outsiders only in the
limited number of MS and, within that group, with more opportunities for music and, to a lesser degree,
for visual arts than for film audiovisual works, and scarce or inexistent opportunities for works that
CMOs are not used to licensing, like works in CHI collections that have never been intended for
commercial use.
74
Impact on the exercise of rights: Option 1 would increase the scope for collective licensing, as
opposed to individual licensing, for the digitisation and dissemination of OoC books and
learned journals by CHIs. However, the mechanism introduced by this option would remain
of voluntary use and rightholders in books and learned journals would retain the possibility to
prevent the dissemination of their works by a CHI. While members of licensor CMOs would
do so by the normal management of their mandates to the CMO, outsiders would rely on the
opt-out possibilities that licensing mechanisms foreseen by this option would have to ensure.
These would be compounded by adequate transparency/publicity measures on relevant
licences and opt-out possibilities, which MS would also be obliged to ensure. Foreign
rightholders would not be at a substantial disadvantage as only rights in books and learned
journals first published in the country where the licence is sought could be licensed under
such mechanisms. Apart from strengthening the representativeness of the respective CMO,
this requirement serves as a safeguard to ensure that the mechanisms are not applied to works
from third countries. The obligation to publish adequate information on the collections of
works to be used in a publicly accessible European transparency web portal for an appropriate
period of time would mitigate the risk of licensing works against the will of individual
rightholders, including foreign ones, or of works that are OoC in a MS but still in commerce
in another MS.
Possible administrative burden: Given the widespread use of collective management for the
type of works covered by this option (books and learned journals), costs for rightholders and
CMOs related to the development of collective licensing schemes for the digitisation and
dissemination of OoC books and learned journals by CHIs (such as costs related to opt-out
and transparency mechanisms and the administration of the licence, including the distribution
of remuneration to outsiders) would be limited. The transparency/publicity obligations
foreseen by this option would however help keeping burden to a reasonable level for
rightholders. The number of opt-outs that is reported from current experiences with extended
collective licences, presumptions of representations or similar mechanisms at national level
suggests that costs would overall be limited. For example, the German CMO that licences
OoC books as part of the DE system based on a presumption of representation has not
received any objection to the licensing from any right holder,230 and only about 1.8% of the
total book titles digitised and made available by the National Library of Norway as a result of
an ECL licence (in a project that also covers books in commerce) were opted out.231
The effects described above for books and learned journals would extend to other types of
works at the same pace and to the same extent as described under "CHIs" and not be present
as regards the cross-border effect of licences.232
The European transparency web portal of OoC works would be built on the existing Orphan
Works Database infrastructure, which is run by the European Union Intellectual Property
Office (hereafter: 'EUIPO'). Thanks to the use of existing infrastructure and resources, it is
estimated that the building cost of the portal infrastructure could range between €500,000 and
700,000, with its annual maintenance amounting to approximately 15 % of the building cost
(i.e. in the range of €75,000-105,000).233 This cost would be covered by the budget of
230
Data as of July 2016, provided to European Commission services by DE CMO VG WORT.
231
Data as of July 2016, provided to European Commission services by Norwegian CMO Kopinor. See
Annex 9E for more on opt-outs in this case and other figures.
232
See Annex 9H for an illustrative case study and a table illustrating impacts on the different stakeholder
categories.
233
These costs correspond to a first estimation based on existing experience with the Orphan Works
Database.
75
EUIPO.234
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Positive impact on cultural diversity, as a larger set of books and learned journals that would
otherwise remain confined to the premises of CHIs is expected to become available to the
public, while incentives for authors to create new works would not be substantially affected.
Opportunities for end-users to have access to cultural heritage would increase, but mainly as
regards OoC books and learned journals and not for other types of works. The same limitation
would apply to the broader social and economic impacts of digitisation.235
Positive contribution of this option to the objectives of EU's policy on digitisation and online
accessibility of cultural heritage, as it increases the possibilities for OoC works to become
available for end-users. These benefits will mainly concern literary works in the short term,
with a possible positive impact for other works but only in the longer term.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
There would be a limited impact on copyright as a property right, as recognised by Article
17(2) of the Charter. Possible positive impact on the arts and scientific research, relevant for
the freedom of the arts and sciences (Article 13) and on education (right to education
protected by Article 14), as more creative and learned material will be accessible.
Option 2 – EU legislative intervention (i) requiring MS to put in place legal mechanisms
to facilitate collective licensing agreements for all types of OoC works and to foster
national stakeholder frameworks, and (ii) giving cross-border effect to such legal
mechanisms.
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
CHIs
Transaction costs and cross-border uses: Under Option 2, the presence of legal frameworks
everywhere in the EU that allow for licences issued by CMOs to also cover the rights of
outsiders would give CHIs the possibility to see their related transaction costs diminish
considerably everywhere in the EU for the digitisation and dissemination of works. This
would apply to all types of works, like photographs, for which, for example, an available case
study236 calculated individual rights clearing costs to be incurred for a collection of about
27,800 items by a CHI at approximately €15,000. Under this option, it would be possible for
the CHI to reduce that cost to the one of negotiating a single licence with a CMO. Licences
concluded on the basis of such legal frameworks could have cross-border effect for all works
too.
The stakeholder processes that MS would have to put in place would have the same purpose
as in Option 1, i.e. lay the ground for a conducive environment, in practical and organisational
terms, for such legal mechanisms to be used in practice. These would be particularly relevant
in those MS and for those sectors where licensing structures are not widely available and
collective management not widespread. In some sectors (e.g. audio-visual), without proper
stakeholder engagement convened by public authorities, the practical effects of this option
would not easily materialise, at least in the short term. It is expected that the presence in all
MS and for all types of works of adapted legal frameworks would provide momentum for
234
The creation of and budget allocation to the possible portal would be subject to decisions taken on the
basis of the governance rules of EUIPO.
235
See Annex 9J on these aspects.
236
See Annex 9D. In this case, the clearance process did not take place.
76
such stakeholder frameworks to produce results, especially when combined with the
consultation with rightholders and uses that MS would have to organise if they decide to
introduce national-specific criteria for works to be eligible for the envisaged schemes.
Rightholders
Impacts on rightholders would be the same in nature as in Option 1, but would extend to a
higher number of rightholders because all types of works would be covered in all MS.
Revenues: Opportunities are expected to arise concretely at different paces for different
categories of works depending on the availability of suitable licensing structures as explained
under "CHIs".
Impact on the exercise of rights: The adaptations in rights management systems that this
Option might entail will depend on the extent to which collective management is already a
widespread practice in different sector.237 The use of the mechanisms introduced by this
Option would in any event remain voluntary. The safeguards for rightholders, including from
other MS and from outside of the EU, foreseen in Option 1 would also, mutatis mutandis, be
present under this option, for works other than books and learned journals. The freedom to
decide on the type of exploitation of works that may be held by CHIs is for example important
in the cinema sector, where old films considered part of cultural heritage can attract renewed
commercial interest and new commercial exploitation.238 The systems envisaged under this
option would not affect those possibilities because of the opt-out and the fact that works re-
entering commercial channels would not be eligible anymore (as not OoC anymore).
Possible administrative burden: The use of the mechanisms introduced by Option 2 would
require to rely on collective licensing structures, which would need to be developed or
consolidated in certain sectors, e.g. the AV sector (see Annex 9F on collective management in
different sectors). This would entail some one-off costs for rights holders and CMOs, but
could result in the long term in more efficiency in the management of rights for the purpose of
licensing OoC works. The impact for individual rightholders and CMOs would be the same in
nature as in Option 1, but apply to all types of works.
The costs described under Option 1 for the setting up and management of the European
transparency web portal of OoC by the EUIPO would apply under this option too. The use of
the portal for all types of works could also lead to efficiency gains in the long term.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Positive impact on cultural diversity as it would facilitate access to all types of OoC works,
while not substantially affecting incentives for authors to create new works.
Opportunities for access to digitised cultural heritage by end-users would increase and extend
to all types of works. This would, accordingly, have a broader influence on the social and
economic benefits associated to the digitisation of cultural heritage.239
237
See Annex 9F on collective management of rights in different sectors.
238
Using a definition of heritage films as films that were produced at least 10 years ago, a study by the
European Audiovisual Observatory indicates that 20 % of total films on release are heritage films (they
however have a very small share of total admissions and are significantly released only in one or two
markets), as are 47 % of film broadcast on a sample of TV channels (G.Fontaine – P.Simone, "The
Exploitation of Film Heritage Works in the Digital Era", European Audiovisual Observatory, June
2016). A commercial distribution sector specialised in heritage films (films de patrimoine) has for
example developed in FR in the last few years.
239
See Annex 9J on these aspects.
77
Very positive contribution to the objectives of the EU's policy on digitisation and online
accessibility of cultural heritage.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The limited impact on copyright as a property right mentioned in Option 1 would affect more
rightholders. Impact on the arts and scientific research, as well as education could be even
more positive as all types of OoC works could become available.
3.4.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on Social impacts
stakeholders and fundamental
rights
Baseline (0) relevant licensing (0) No direct costs. (0) Impacts on (0) No impact on
opportunities only stakeholders would cultural diversity.
present in some MS depend on No substantial
and for books and developments at impact on the
literary works national level but not possibility to
principally, with no address territoriality access cultural
multi-territorial issues. heritage by end-
applicability. users. No
contribution to EU
policy objectives
on digitisation and
online accessibility
of cultural
heritage. No
impact on
fundamental rights.
Option 1 – (+) Relevant (-) Costs related to (+) Opportunities for (+) Positive impact
Mechanisms to licensing the set-up and reduced transaction on cultural
facilitate mechanisms, with management of the costs for CHIs and diversity and on
collective multi-territorial European more OoC books and the possibility for
licensing application, in place transparency web learned journals people to access
agreements for everywhere in the portal. becoming available cultural heritage as
OoC books and EU for books and to the public. more OoC books
learned journals; learned journals (not (0/+) Potential and learned
cross-border for other works). revenue journals can
effect of such opportunities for become available.
mechanisms; rightholders while Positive
stakeholder retaining their contribution to EU
frameworks. freedom to exploit policy objectives
their works on digitisation and
otherwise. online accessibility
(0/-) Some costs of cultural
related to the heritage.
management of opt- (-) Limited
out costs, expected to negative impact on
be limited. fundamental rights.
Option 2 – (++) Relevant (-) Costs related to (++) Opportunities (++) Positive
Mechanisms to licensing the set-up and for reduced impact on cultural
facilitate mechanisms, with management of the transaction costs for diversity as more
collective multi-territorial European CHIs and more works are likely to
licensing application, in place transparency web works becoming be made accessible
agreements for all everywhere in the portal. available to the and therefore on
OoC works; EU for all types of public. the possibility for
cross-border works. (0/+) potential people to access
effect of such revenue cultural heritage.
mechanisms; opportunities for (++) Very positive
78
stakeholder rightholders while contribution to the
frameworks. retaining their EU policy
freedom to exploit objectives on
their works digitisation and
otherwise. online accessibility
(0/-) Some costs of cultural
related to the heritage.
management of opt- (-) Limited
out costs, expected to negative impact on
be limited. fundamental rights.
Option 2 is the preferred option is as it would, on the one hand, put in place legal
frameworks conducive to a reduction of transaction costs and make possible the specific
licences required for the digitisation and dissemination of OoC works, for all types of
works and in all MS, including across borders. On the other hand, it would not affect
the interests of rightholders to any tangible extent, or imply additional costs for them,
for example in terms of missed revenues or licensing opportunities (it creates on the
contrary potential opportunities for new revenue and exposure). The baseline option
would not be effective and Option 1 would be effective only for certain types of works. As
applying to all types of works, Option 2 is the most effective and efficient.
Proportionality and impacts on MS: Option 2 is proportionate, including its impacts on
fundamental rights, in that it addresses the underlying problem without generating
particular compliance costs (the mechanisms introduced would be an enabling element
which remains subject to voluntary use) or putting disproportionate obligations on
stakeholders.
Option 2 would require some adjustments in the MS that already have national legislation in
place allowing for licences issued by CMOs to also apply to the rights of unrepresented
rightholders (a list of examples is available in Annex 9E), notably as regards the scope of their
legislation (for example, when it only covers certain types of OoC works). Where national
legislation already covers a broader scope than what is foreseen by Option 2 (for example in
the cases of general ECL), the need for adjusting national legislation will be more limited. MS
that do not already have national law supporting mechanisms like those foreseen by the
preferred option will be required to introduce them. In all cases, however, MS will retain
flexibility in the way they comply with the EU obligation introduced by Option 2 in the
choice of the kind of mechanism (for example ECL or presumption of representation) and by
establishing additional national criteria for different categories of works to be considered OoC
for the purposes of the mechanisms.
79
4. ADAPTING EXCEPTIONS TO DIGITAL AND CROSS-BORDER
ENVIRONMENT
4.1. INTRODUCTION
4.1.1. BackgroundThe EU copyright legal framework harmonises rights of authors
and neighbouring rightholders and seeks to harmonise “exceptions and limitations” 240 to these
rights, although most of them are optional for the MS to implement. An “exception”241 to an
exclusive right means that a right holder is no longer in a position to authorise or prohibit the
use of a work or other protected subject matter242: the beneficiary of the exception is already
authorised by law to do so. Exceptions are provided for in order to facilitate the use of
protected content in specific circumstances (for example where the transaction costs involved
in acquiring authorisation outweigh the economic benefits of doing so) and/or to facilitate the
achievement of specific public policy objectives such as education and research. Beneficiaries
of the exceptions may be individuals or institutions.
This section of the IA focuses on exceptions that play a central role to achieve important
public policy objectives at EU level but that at the same time are not fully adapted to the
current digital and cross-border environment. While no formal evaluation of the EU legal
framework for copyright exceptions has been conducted, the review process carried out
between 2013 and 2016 allowed to gather information and evidence on the implementation of
exceptions in MS and their functioning in the digital environment.243
The need to facilitate use of copyright-protected material for specific purposes in this context
has been acknowledged in the Digital Single Market Strategy.244 Further to the review process
and the Communication "Towards a modern, more European copyright framework" of
December 2015245, three possible areas of intervention have been identified: education,
research and preservation of cultural heritage. Specific copyright exceptions, optional for MS,
exist in EU law for "specific acts of reproduction"246 (often used for preservation) and
"illustration for teaching or scientific research".247 In these areas, digital technologies have
allowed to explore new types of uses (e.g. digital preservation, digital and online educational
activities, text and data mining (TDM)) which are not always clearly allowed under the
current copyright rules. This legal uncertainty negatively affects the functioning of these
exceptions in the digital environment and the way in which users can benefit from the
240
Exceptions are set out in the InfoSoc Directive (Directive 2001/29/EC, Article 5), the Software
Directive (Directive 2009/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the
legal protection of computer programs (OJ L 111, 5.5.2009, p. 16–22)., Articles 5 and 6), the Database
Directive (Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on the
legal protection of databases (OJ L 077, 27.03.1996, p. 20-28), Articles 6 and 9), the Directive on
Rental Right and Lending Right (Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 12 December 2006 on rental right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the
field of intellectual property (OJ L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 28–35), Articles 6 and 10) and the Orphan
Works Directive (Directive 2012/28/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October
2012 on certain permitted uses of orphan works (OJ L 299, 27.10.2012, p. 5–12), Article 6).
241
"Exceptions" is used in this IA to encompass “exceptions and limitations” to copyright.
242
"Works" is used in this IA to encompass works protected under EU copyright acquis and other
protected subject matter
243
The results of the review process are presented in Annex 4 (The copyright review process: summary of
the main relevant findings).
244
Commission Communication (COM(2015) 192 final) of 6 May 2015.
245
Commission Communication (COM(2015) 626 final) of 9 December 2015.
246
Article 5(2)c of the InfoSoc Directive.
247
Article 5(3)a of the InfoSoc Directive and Article 6(2)b of the Database Directive.
80
potential of these technologies. Furthermore, while cross-border activities are increasingly
important for the activities of libraries, education establishments and research institutions, the
current EU legal framework does not allow users to benefit from the exceptions on a cross-
border basis. In the Communication of December 2015, the Commission also highlighted the
exception authorising libraries and other institutions to allow on-screen consultation of works
for research and private study on their premises and the need to assess its functioning in the
digital environment. This assessment would need to take into account the outcome of a CJEU
case on the closely inter-twined issue of electronic lending by libraries which is currently
pending;248 it is therefore not part of this IA.
4.1.2. Why should the EU act?
Legal basis
The EU's right to act follows from Article 114 of the TFEU, which confers on the EU the
power to adopt measures for the establishment and functioning of the internal market and has
provided legal basis for a wide range of EU instruments in the area of copyright.
In the InfoSoc Directive, the EU exercised its competence as regards the rights which are
relevant for online dissemination (notably the reproduction and making available rights) and
the exceptions applicable to such rights. Article 5 provided for an exhaustive list of
exceptions, including the exception for preservation, teaching and research mentioned above.
Any change in the harmonised framework concerning the scope of exceptions or the
introduction of their cross-border effect would need to rely on the same legal bases.
Finally, Article 167(4) TFEU provides that the EU shall take cultural aspects into account in
its action under other provisions of the Treaties, in particular in order to respect and to
promote the diversity of its cultures. All proposed options take into account the implications
of EU action for cultural diversity.
Subsidiarity and added value
The existing level of harmonisation limits the possibility for MS to act in the area of copyright
as they cannot unilaterally alter the scope of the harmonised rights and exceptions. Therefore,
the need to update some of the existing exceptions or to introduce new exceptions, in
particular to reflect new digital uses, makes the amendment of EU legislation inevitable.
Moreover, EU intervention is indispensable to achieve one key objective of the copyright
modernisation, which is to guarantee legal certainty in cross-border situations. This can only
be achieved by making the relevant exceptions mandatory for MS to implement, increasing
their level of harmonisation, and, when relevant, recognising their cross-border effect. None
of this can be achieved by MS legislation. Without intervention in EU law, beneficiaries of
the exception would face legal uncertainty and may not be able to rely on the exception in
cross-border situations (for example teachers in distance learning programmes making content
available under the teaching exception in one MS would need to verify whether the same acts
are allowed under the exceptions in MS where the students are located, and if not, may have
to obtain authorisation from rightholders). Therefore, MS acting alone could not sufficiently
address these problems and the objectives can be only achieved by EU action.
248
Case C-174/15, Vereniging Openbare Bibliotheken v Stichting Leenrecht.
81
4.1.3. What should be achieved?
The general objective of EU intervention is to facilitate digital uses of protected content for
education, research and preservation in the Single Market. Through this objective, EU
intervention should contribute to promote digital innovation in education and research, foster
the international competitiveness of European research and encourage the preservation of
cultural heritage.
Achieving this general objective requires adapting the relevant copyright exceptions to enable
digital and cross-border uses, while maintaining a high level of protection of rights. Changes
to existing rules should aim at providing legal certainty for the use of protected content in
digitally-supported teaching activities, for text and data mining in the context of scientific
research and for digital preservation by cultural heritage institutions.
4.1.4. Methodology
Problem definition
The problems described in this section of the IA are closely linked to the specificities of the
EU legal framework for exceptions described above. As illustrated in the problem tree below,
legal uncertainty on the acts allowed under the existing copyright exceptions, in particular in
relation to digital and cross-border uses, has been identified as a major issue in several areas.
82
This legal uncertainty is often the result of a restrictive implementation of copyright
exceptions for "specific acts of reproduction" and "illustration for teaching and research" in
certain MS and/or of the fragmentation of copyright rules and licensing conditions. It can
result in a suboptimal use of protected content in the digital environment. The table below
illustrates the main differences in the implementation of the exceptions in MS.249
Exception Implementation in Main differences in the implementation in
Member States Member States
Teaching Exception implemented in all MS Application of the exception to digital uses
Implemented through extended Categories of beneficiaries (public or
collective licensing in DK, FI, SE private education bodies, teachers and
Exception subject to the availability students, etc.)
of licences in UK, IE Exclusion of certain types of works (e.g.
sheet music or cinematographic works)
Exclusion of textbooks or other works
made explicitly for educational purposes
Extent of works that can be used under the
exception (fragments, extracts, specific
limitation, etc.)
Payment of a compensation or
remuneration under ECL/licence (required
– at least partially – in 16 MS)
TDM A specific TDM exception only in the The national implementations of the
UK (FR has a legislative draft at research exceptions across MS do not
advance stage) specifically take into account/mention
Research exception implemented in TDM.
most but not all MS (notably not in
ES, NL).
Specific acts of Exception implemented in all MS Purpose of the exception (preservation,
reproduction conservation, archiving, other non-
249
For further details, see the tables provided in Annex 4.
83
by libraries preservation related etc.)
and similar Exclusion of certain beneficiary institutions
institutions (e.g. archives only)
(preservation) Exclusion of certain types of works (e.g.
print works, videograms or phonograms
etc.)
Limits to the number of copies allowed
Exclusion or unclear status of certain types
of acts (e.g. format shifting, digital copies)
Conditions (e.g. restoration or repairing
damage only).
Identification of policy options
The policy options examined in each of the three areas include the baseline option, a non-
legislative option (in the form of Commission's guidance, peer review mechanism and/or
stakeholders’ dialogue) and one or several legislative options. Non-legislative options have
been developed taking into account the specificities of each exception (implementation in MS,
relation with licences, stakeholders concerned). Legislative options are designed to
complement the existing exceptions (in the case of preservation and teaching), or to introduce
a new exception (in the case of TDM, supplementing the existing research exception).
Views from stakeholders, European Parliament and Member States
The views from the different stakeholders are reported after the description of each policy
option.
In its resolution of 9 July 2015,250 the EP called on the Commission "to examine the
possibility of reviewing a number of the existing exceptions and limitations in order to better
adapt them to the digital environment”. In particular, the EP favours an exception for research
and education purposes, covering online and cross-border activities, provided that a fair
balance between the different categories of rightholders and users of protected content is
maintained The recommendation also stressed the need to "assess the enablement of (…) text
and data mining techniques for research purposes, provided that permission to read the work
has been acquired". Finally, it asked the Commission to "assess the adoption of an exception
allowing libraries to digitalise content for the purposes of consultation, cataloguing and
archiving" and indicated that the exceptions for the benefit of libraries, museums and archives
should be strengthened in order to facilitate access to cultural heritage.
MS are generally in favour of adapting exceptions in order to facilitate digital and cross-
border uses of protected content for the purposes of education, research and preservation.
They would support further harmonisation of existing exceptions where the uses have a clear
cross-border dimension, but are likely to require some flexibility for implementation at
national level. Their support to the different policy options will also depend on the balance
ensured between the interests of users and rightholders.251
250
European Parliament resolution of 9 July 2015 on the implementation of Directive 2001/29/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of
copyright and related rights in the information society
251
MS discussed ongoing Commission's work towards the modernisation of copyright exceptions in a
Council Working Party (23/02/2016)
84
In the 2014 public consultation on the review of EU copyright rules,252 several MS suggested
to clarify the scope of the teaching exception, in particular in relation to online uses, and some
other MS favoured a greater harmonisation which would require making the teaching
exception mandatory across the EU. Certain MS however indicated that there is no need to
further harmonise or extend the scope of the existing teaching exception.
On TDM, MS are expected to be overall supportive of an intervention at EU level, as some of
them have tried to address this issue at national level but can only do it within the boundaries
of the current research exception.
In relation to preservation, some MS explained in the 2014 public consultation that there is no
need to alter the current legal framework, while others did not express themselves against
changing the status quo, with some emphasising the need to consider technological neutrality
as regards the exception.
Impacts of policy options
The revision of existing exceptions or the introduction of new exceptions need to be assessed
in relation to, one the one hand, how they facilitate the access to and use of protected works
by certain specific categories of users (educational establishments, research institutions,
cultural heritage institutions); on the other hand, how they affect rightholders' revenues and
incentives to create or to invest in the creation of new works. More generally, it is important
to highlight that exceptions need to comply with the 'three-step test', enshrined in the main
international treaties on copyright,253 which provides that exceptions may only be applied (i)
in certain special cases, (ii) which do not conflict with a normal exploitation of a work or
other subject matter, and (iii) do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the
right holder. The three-step test is also established in Article 5(5) of the InfoSoc Directive.
Preferred options would be those bringing social gains without reducing incentives to create.
A thorough understanding of the licensing market and a precise definition of the scope and
conditions of application of the exceptions is necessary to achieve this balance.
Stakeholders affected
The main stakeholders affected by the different policy options are certain users and
institutional users (teachers, researchers, educational establishments, research institutions,
cultural heritage institutions) and rightholders. The analysis presented in this IA focuses
mainly on the impact on rightholders in the print sector (authors and publishers), as text
documents (books, newspapers, scientific journals) and images are the type of documents
mostly used in education and research and are an essential part of the collections of cultural
heritage institutions. Impacts on rightholders in other sectors (music, AV) are mentioned
where relevant.
Impacts on MS, notably in terms of obligations deriving from the preferred policy options and
related costs, are presented in Annex 3.
Type of impacts and availability of data
Only the most significant and likely impacts are reported in this IA. The impacts are assessed
by group of stakeholders (users and rightholders). In addition, broad social impacts (impacts
252
The views of MS reported here are based on the results of the 2014 public consultation on the review of
EU copyright rules, to which 11 MS replied (DE, DK, EE, FR, IE, IT, LV, NL, PL, SK, UK). See
Annex 2B.
253
WTO TRIPS Agreement Article 13; WCT Article 10; WPPT Article 16; Beijing Treaty Article 13 and
Marrakesh Treaty Article 11.
85
on education, research, preservation of cultural heritage and cultural diversity; no significant
impacts on employment have been identified) and impacts on fundamental rights are assessed
separately.
Economic impacts are examined for each group of stakeholders, including impacts on
transaction costs, in particular costs related to the clearance of rights where a given use
requires the authorisation of rightholders; as well as impacts on licences' costs (for users) and
on licensing revenues or licensing opportunities (for rightholders). In this regard, it is
important to note that the policy options developed in the area of exceptions should not have a
direct impact on rightholders' primary market (e.g. acquisition of books by educational
establishments or libraries, subscriptions to scientific journals), but on the licensing of further
uses of their content for specific purposes (e.g. digital copying for preservation, scanning, text
and data mining). Therefore, the analysis focuses mainly on assessing the impacts on this type
of licensing. Possible indirect impacts on rightholders' primary market are mentioned where
relevant.
The data available on transaction costs linked to right clearance is limited, since education,
research and cultural heritage institutions generally do not engage in a systematic evaluation
of these costs in relation to their uses of copyright protected content. In addition, these costs
are highly variable depending on the type and number of works and the MS concerned.
Data on licences' costs and licensing revenues are provided where available. This type of data
is generally not publicly available but has been provided by stakeholders (notably
rightholders) for the purpose of this IA, sometimes on a confidential basis. The available data
does not always exactly correspond to the uses contemplated in this IA. For instance, digital
uses for illustrating teaching or text and data mining are generally part of wider licences
acquired by education or research institutions. It can therefore be very difficult to assess the
costs related to these specific uses and the corresponding revenues for the rightholders.
The social and economic impacts of the different policy options strongly depend on the scope
and conditions of application of the exceptions. In this context, one important element is the
relation between exceptions and licences. In certain cases, it may be necessary to prevent
contractual override of the exception in order to achieve the desired social objectives. In other
cases, making an exception subject to the availability of licences may be required to mitigate
the economic impact of an exception or to avoid eroding well-functioning national systems.
All policy options considered in the area of exceptions may have an impact on fundamental
rights, in particular on copyright as a property right (Article 17(2) of the Charter). In addition,
impacts on scientific research and academic freedom (Article 13) and on the right to
education (Article 14) are considered where appropriate. Impacts on other fundamental rights
are not mentioned as there is either no or insignificant impact on them.
Impacts on third countries or on the environment are not elaborated upon as the policy options
presented in this section of the IA are considered not to have any substantial impact on them.
Impacts on SMEs
SMEs are the backbone of Europe's economy. They represent 99 % of all business in the EU.
In the past five years they have created around 85 % of new jobs and provided two-third of
the total private sector employment in the EU. The exceptions analysed in this section of the
IA are exceptions to the rights hold by natural persons or legal entities, including SMEs and
micro-enterprises. The policy options considered in this IA do not target these entities but
may have an impact on them, notably as the large majority of rightholders affected by the
exceptions are SMEs.
86
99.4% of European companies active in the book publishing sector (books, newspapers,
journals) are SMEs, of which 90 % are micro-companies (0-9 employees). SMEs generate
49% of the value added of the sector (including 10% from micro-companies).254 In the sector
of film and music production, 99.9 % of companies are SMEs (96 % micro-companies)
generating 85% of the value added of the sector (32 % by micro-companies).255
Therefore, the impacts of the different policy options on rightholders are assessed taking
account of the high number of SMEs. The impacts on the licensing market and on licensing
revenues are for example key criteria when comparing the options. Micro, small and medium-
sized companies may be proportionately more strongly affected by a reduction of licensing
revenue than large companies with a more varied range of products.
Excluding micro-companies would not be appropriate, considering the purpose of the
initiative. By defining the scope of copyright exceptions, the legislative options in this
initiative would contribute to define the scope of copyright as a property right, which cannot
vary according to the size of the entity holding this right. None of the existing exceptions in
the EU legal framework differentiates its scope of application according to this criterion. In
addition, excluding micro-companies would make it impossible to achieve the objectives
defined in section 4.1.3, since the exceptions considered in this IA would not apply to all
relevant content but only to the fraction which is not held by micro-enterprises. This would
create major legal uncertainty for users and would not allow ensuring a consistent
implementation of rights and exceptions, regardless of the type of works and/or rightholders.
Since none of the policy options would result in administrative obligations for SME,
mitigating measures for SMEs have not been proposed. Certain options may generate one-off
compliance costs related to the need to adapt existing licences, however these costs are
expected to be marginal.
Comparison of policy options
The policy options are compared against the criteria of effectiveness (i.e. to what extent they
fulfil the specific objective), efficiency (i.e. at what cost they do so), impact on the different
groups of stakeholders (users and rightholders) and coherence with regard to cultural
diversity, fundamental rights and/or other EU policies. Each option is rated between "--"
(very negative), "-" (negative), 0 (neutral), "+" (positive) and "++" (very positive).
4.2. USE OF PROTECTED CONTENT IN DIGITAL AND CROSS-BORDER TEACHING
ACTIVITIES
4.2.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Teachers and students face legal uncertainty when using content in digitally-
supported teaching practices, in particular across borders
Description of the problem: A huge variety of content (text, images, music, video), often
protected by copyright, is used in teaching activities. While reference textbooks or academic
books are usually bought by educational establishments or directly by students, other
materials used to illustrate or complement teaching are generally shown in the classroom by
254
Source: Eurostat, Structural Business Statistics, 2013 data for publishing of books, periodicals and other
publishing activities.
255
Source; Eurostat, Structural Business Statistics, 2013 data for motion picture, video and television
programme production, sound recording and music publishing activities.
87
teachers, copied or distributed to students. Digital technologies are offering new opportunities
to use a wide range of media and content in order to enrich teaching activities. However,
many users in the education field consider that the conditions for using protected content in
digital or online teaching activities are unclear. According to a recent survey, only 34 % of
educators and 26 % of learners declared that the conditions under which copyrighted works
can be used for learning/teaching purposes are very clear to them. Furthermore, 24 % of
educators indicated they come across copyright-related restrictions in their digital teaching
activities at least once a week.256 Teachers and students facing legal uncertainty or specific
restrictions frequently refrain from using protected content, in particular when this content has
to be accessed by students through online means and from different MS.257 In some cases
legal uncertainty may result in unauthorised uses. Many respondents to the 2013-2014 public
consultation brought forward difficulties in cross-border uses.258
Drivers: [Restrictive implementation of the exception] The use of protected works for the
purpose of illustration for teaching is covered by exceptions in the InfoSoc Directive259 and
the Directive 96/9/EC260 (the "Database Directive"). The notion of "illustration for teaching"
can be understood as allowing a teacher to use a work to give examples, to explain or support
his/her course.261 The illustration for teaching exception ("the teaching exception") has been
implemented in all MS, with significant differences as to the type of works covered and the
type of educational uses allowed.262 The legal uncertainty faced by teachers in the digital
environment may arise from the restrictive implementation of the teaching exception in
certain MS, where the exception does not clearly allow digital uses (e.g. by allowing only
reproduction on paper or distribution of physical copies263) or where strict conditions apply to
these uses (e.g. imposing a low resolution for the making available of images264).265 Feedback
256
Survey carried out in the context of the study on 'Assessment of the impact of the European copyright
framework on digitally-supported education and training practices' –
http://bookshop.europa.eu/en/assessment-of-the-impact-of-the-european-copyright-framework-on-
digitally-supported-education-and-training-practices-pbNC0115883/. Survey sample composed of about
2000 respondents in 9 MS.
257
This is confirmed by the survey carried out in the context of the above-mentioned study: when faced
with copyright restrictions on the use of certain works, 62 % of educators and 60 % of learners chose
not to use protected works in order to avoid any possible problems. 41 % of educators and 60 % of
learners looked for alternatives whereas uses without authorisation were reported by 21 % of learners
and 14 % of educators. See Annex 10B for additional data on the perception of copyright-related
obstacles in education.
258
Respondents mentioned for instance problems faced by universities with campuses abroad, by
universities located close to a national border and attracting students from several MS, or by education
bodies involved in Erasmus+ programmes with a cross-border audience. See Annex 2B.
259
Article 5(3)a of Directive 2001/29/EC.
260
Article 6(2)b of Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on
the legal protection of databases (OJ L 077, 27.03.1996, p. 20-28)
261
The condition of illustration has often been interpreted to define the extent of a work that can be used
under the exception, which may vary depending on the types of works (e.g. part of a novel but an entire
work if it is a poem or a photograph). For further explanations, see J-P. Triaille et all., "Study on the
application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society", De
Wolf & Partners, December 2013,,p. 359-362.
262
Certain types of works are out of the scope of the exception (e.g. textbooks in FR, ES, DE, AT) or their
use is allowed under specific conditions (e.g. audiovisual works can be used after two years upon
release in DE). The types of uses allowed under the exception (e.g. anthologies, exams, public
performances) also vary from a MS to another. See J-P. Triaille et all., "Study on the application of
Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society", De Wolf & Partners,
December 2013, p. 368 et s.
263
HR and EL
264
IT
88
from educational users also highlights the concrete obstacles faced in certain MS in digital
education practices.266
[Heterogeneous implementation and lack of cross-border effect] The uncertainty is reinforced
in a cross-border context by the diversity of the conditions established in national laws
combined with the lack of cross-border effect of the exception. Teachers who use protected
materials for the purpose of illustration under the terms of an exception in one MS may run
the risk of infringing copyright in another MS when they make material available to students
across borders. When asked about the type of copyright-related problems encountered in
cross-border education, educators point out the lack of information on copyright rules in other
MS, the differences in the application of the exception and the national scope of the
licences.267
The practical implementation of the teaching exception differs from a country to another.268 In
certain MS (notably FR, DE, ES, NL), collective agreements are in place to organise the
compensation of rightholders that may be required in national laws for uses under the
teaching exception. In other MS (UK, IE), licensing schemes for uses of protected content in
teaching activities prevail over the exception. Finally, educational uses are allowed under
extended collective licensing (ECL) in DK, FI and SE.269
[Insufficient licensing mechanisms] These different types of licensing schemes are very
common in the print sector270 and usually define authorised uses precisely; however, the type
of digital uses covered may vary271 and cross-border uses are not always allowed.272
Collective licensing schemes for educational uses are less widespread in other sectors (e.g.
AV) or for certain types of works (e.g. digital educational resources). In such cases,
educational establishments need to negotiate and obtain a licence directly with the
rightholders, generating significant transaction costs.
Consequences: The legal uncertainty on digital uses of protected content in teaching activities
265
Further examples of restrictive implementation of the exception are presented in the study 'Assessment
of the impact of the European copyright framework on digitally-supported education and training
practices'.
266
"5 outrageous things educators can’t do because of copyright", by COMMUNIA:
https://medium.com/copyright-untangled/5-outrageous-things-educators-can-t-do-because-of-copyright-
ac447dcc6e09#.lbbqxa2ki
267
See Annex 10B for additional data on the perception of copyright-related obstacles in education.
268
See Annex 4 for further details on the implementation of the teaching exception in MS.
269
See Annex 10C for a description of compensation and licensing schemes for educational uses.
270
Text documents and images are the type of material most widely used in education. The survey carried
out in the context of the study 'Assessment of the impact of the European copyright framework on
digitally-supported education and training practices' (p.58) showed that images and text documents are
used at least once a week by about 70 % of educators whereas other types of works including audio and
video media are used by about 45 % of educators.
271
Digital uses include notably scanning (digitisation from an analogue copy), digital copying (copying
from an original in electronic format or from Internet downloads), inclusions in presentations or in
course packs, projections to electronic whiteboards, posting to internal networks and Virtual Learning
Environments, storing in internal databases. The types of digital uses allowed depend on the scope of
the licensing scheme. For instance, the collective licensing schemes based on a legal licence in CZ, HU,
PT, SK, SI and PL include copies from Internet downloads and other digital copies as long as they are
presented on print but other digital uses are subject to voluntary collective licensing agreement (source:
IFRRO).
272
Certain licensing schemes in the print sector allow cross-border uses under certain conditions for the
purpose of distance learning, while others don't allow such uses. See Annex 10C for further details.
Licences granted for the use of audiovisual works in the context of education generally do not cover
cross-border uses.
89
may, on the one hand, negatively impact the further development of digitally-supported
educational practices in primary and secondary education, where digital resources are mainly
used to complement face-to-face teaching.273 On the other hand, it is likely to affect higher
education institutions more strongly, due to a more pervasive use of digital resources in this
context274 (e.g. use of digital course packs, access to resources through the university's
intranet, etc.) and to the rapid development of cross-border and online education. An
increasing number of universities are proposing distance learning modules online or
delivering Joint Degrees, while many others collaborate on developing shared curricula using
online content. The number of individuals taking online courses has doubled between 2007
and 2013, reaching more than 10 % in certain MS.275 The ability for teachers and students to
use and access material online from any MS – through the university's intranet or virtual
learning environment – is essential in this context.
How the problem would evolve: Without intervention at EU level, educational establishments
and teachers in a number of MS would continue to face legal uncertainty when using
protected content to support digital teaching and learning activities, unless these MS
unilaterally decide to amend their legislation to allow such uses. The scope of existing
collective licences may be widened in order to cover digital uses. However, obstacles to
cross-border uses of content are likely to remain, and distance and online students would
continue to be disadvantaged as regards the access to teaching materials.
4.2.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
The general and specific objectives are described in section 4.1.3.
Baseline
No policy intervention. In MS where digital uses are not clearly allowed under the national
teaching exception, this option would consist in relying on market developments (e.g. further
development of collective licensing schemes, publishers' digital offers) to offer solutions that
allow teachers and students to use protected content in teaching activities supported by digital
tools or taking place online. At the same time, certain MS could decide to amend their
national exceptions – based on the optional teaching exception in Article 5(3)a of the InfoSoc
Directive, which allows digital uses– to clarify the extent to which certain digital uses are
covered in their MS.
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders are likely to support the baseline option. Institutional users in the education area (educational
establishments, teachers) would consider that this option cannot solve the identified problems.
273
The survey on the use of ICT in schools carried out in 2011/2012 shows that 1 in 4 primary schools
students is in a school with a virtual learning environment (VLE), whereas this number rises to almost
two-thirds in vocational schools. Also, 30 % of secondary school students use digital textbooks and
multimedia tools once a week or almost every day. Source 'Survey of Schools: ICT in Education:
benchmarking access, use and attitudes to technology in Europe’s schools, Final study report, February
2013'. See Annex 10A for background data on the development of digital and online education.
274
In a 2013 survey by the European Universities Association on e-learning, 80 % of responding
institutions indicated that they use digital courseware such as digital textbooks, curricula and reference
materials. 82 % of institutions also indicated that they offer online courses. In 40 % of the institutions at
least half of the students are engaged in e-learning; http://www.eua.be/Libraries/Publication/e-
learning_survey.sflb.ashx. See Annex 10A for background data on the development of digital and
online education.
275
Source: Eurostat (Internet use and activities). In 2015, 6 % of individuals (and 9 % of individuals aged
16 to 29) in EU 28 had used the Internet for an online course of any subject in the last 3 months before
the survey (13 % in FI, 11 % in ES and UK, 10 % in LU). This covers all types of online courses.
90
Option 1 – Guidance to MS and stakeholders' dialogue on raising awareness in the
education community on the use of protected works for teaching purposes
Under this option, the Commission would issue guidance to MS as to the extent to which
protected content can be used in the digital environment under the existing teaching
exception, in line with the three-step test. Such guidance would encourage MS to make
sure, when required, that their national exception applies to digital resources used for
teaching purposes and to online activities undertaken by educational establishments or
teachers.
In addition, the Commission would encourage discussions between rightholders and
educational establishments to explore ways to raise awareness in the education
community on the uses allowed under the exception or under specific licences.
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders are expected to be rather supportive of this option, as it would not imply any further harmonisation
of the existing teaching exception; would leave sufficient space for licensing mechanisms and could contribute to
a better understanding of copyright rules among teachers and students.276 While certain institutional users may
support Option 1 as an intermediate solution,277 most of them would consider that it does not sufficiently address
the practical problems encountered when using protected works in distance or cross-border education.
Option 2 – Mandatory exception with a cross-border effect covering digital uses in the
context of illustration for teaching
This option would make mandatory for MS the implementation of an exception to the rights
of reproduction and making available to the public, with the following elements:
Beneficiaries: educational establishments.
Subject-matter covered: all types of works or other protected subject-matter, including
resources produced specifically for education (e.g. textbooks, academic books,
educational documentaries).
Permitted uses: teachers and students affiliated to educational establishments would be
allowed to use protected works for non-commercial purpose to illustrate teaching
through digital means in the classroom (e.g. whiteboards) or online under the educational
establishment's secure electronic network (e.g. virtual learning environment, intranet).
Digital uses which would result in making protected content available on the open
internet (e.g. uses beyond quotation of protected content in Open Educational Resources -
OERs278 or in Massive Open Online Courses - MOOCs279) would not be covered under
this option.280
276
In the public consultation on the review of EU copyright rules carried out in 2013/2014 (referred to as
the "2013/2014 public consultation"), the large majority of respondents representing authors and
publishers considered that there was no need to modify the teaching exception in the EU legal
framework and that individual and collective licensing solutions should be encouraged. Several CMOs,
and in particular reproduction rights organisations, asked for a clarification of the exception at EU and
national level, notably as regards the notion of illustration for teaching. See Annex 2B.
277
In the 2013/2014 public consultation, certain institutional users considered that in the short term the
Commission should clarify the scope of the teaching exception to encourage MS to use the flexibility
offered by the current rules.
278
Open Educational Resources are any type of educational materials that are in the public domain or
released under an open licence. The nature of these open materials means that anyone can legally and
freely copy, use, adapt and re-share them. OERs range from textbooks to curricula, syllabi, lecture
notes, assignments, tests, projects, audio, video and animation (UNESCO definition).
91
Relationship with the licensing market: the uses allowed under the exception would not
be subject to the availability of licences.
Compensation: MS would remain free to determine whether they require compensation
for the uses under the exception. In MS opting for compensation, it would be applied to
the uses undertaken by educational institutions (and their affiliated teachers and students)
established in that MS, irrespective of where such uses actually would take place.
Interaction with the current exception: outside the scope of this mandatory exception, the
existing (optional) teaching and research exception under Article 5(3)a of the InfoSoc
Directive would continue to apply. For teaching, this would be relevant mainly for
analogue uses.
Cross-border uses: The cross-border effect of the exception would be ensured through a
legal fiction which would provide that the uses made under the conditions of the
exception are deemed to take place only in the MS where the educational body is
established. Such provision would make sure that the content made available under the
exception by beneficiary institutions can be lawfully accessible to affiliated teachers and
students located in other MS.
Stakeholders' views
This option is expected to be supported by institutional users in the education area, which are generally in favour
of a broad mandatory teaching exception for digital uses.281 It would be strongly opposed by rightholders whose
works are used in the teaching context (in particular educational publishers, considering the impact that this
exception would have on their primary market) and by certain MS using licences-based systems, including ECL,
for authorising educational uses.
Option 3 – Mandatory exception with a cross-border effect covering digital uses in the
context of illustration for teaching, with the option for MS to make it (partially or
totally) subject to the availability of licences
This option would be similar to Option 2 but would leave MS the possibility to decide
that the exception would come into play only if licences covering the same uses are not
available in the market.
In order to reduce the administrative burden for educational establishments related to the
need to check the availability of licences, MS opting for this approach would have to take
measures to ensure that licences covering relevant uses are available, sufficiently visible
and easy to use for educational establishments.282 They would be required to notify to the
Commission the measures taken in this respect.
279
MOOCs are online courses aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the internet. In many
cases, participants need to register in order to have access to the online courses; however they don't
need to be affiliated to any educational body or to comply with any admission requirements.
280
The option of introducing a mandatory exception covering all types of digital educational uses carried
out for non-commercial purpose (including in OERs and MOOCs) has been discarded, as it would make
it difficult to control the dissemination of protected content online (users would be allowed to copy
protected content and make it widely available online through education blogs or websites).
281
This was reflected in the results of the 2013/2014 public consultation. See Annex 2B.
282
Such measures could differ from MS to MS as long as the result is achieved in terms of availability,
visibility and user friendliness. They could consist, for example, in promoting specific educational
licensing schemes to which rightholders could adhere on a voluntary basis and/or in developing online
tools allowing educational establishments to easily check the availability of licences allowing to use
different types of works to illustrate teaching activities.
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Cross-border uses: the legal mechanism described under Option 2 would also apply to
equivalent licences (the uses carried out under these licences would be deemed to occur
only in the MS where the educational body is established).
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders and CMOs are expected to favour this option, as it would allow MS to keep or to introduce the
possibility of licences for educational uses. On the other hand, the education community may find it insufficient
to create full legal certainty for teachers and students.283
4.2.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would affect institutional users (educational establishments) and users in the
education area (teachers, students) as well as rightholders whose works are used as illustration in teaching
activities. The impacts affecting these two groups are presented separately.
For users, the following social impacts have been considered: impacts on legal certainty for digital and
cross-border teaching activities. Economic impacts are examined in terms of transaction costs (related to the
negotiation and management of licences) and licensing costs (licence fees paid to rightholders or CMOs) for
educational establishments.
For rightholders, the most relevant impacts are economic impacts related to licensing revenues. Since
educational publishers play a particular role in the production of educational content (including content
developed and distributed in a digital form), specific impacts on the educational publishing market are
considered where relevant.284
The policy options are also assessed in relation to their social impacts on cultural diversity, digital education and
digital skills, as well as to their impacts on fundamental rights (property right and right to education).
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, as the data publicly available or that could be obtained from
stakeholders on compensation or licensing of educational uses is limited. Quantitative estimates are elaborated
where possible, on the basis of available data.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Institutional users and other related users (educational establishments, teachers,
students)
Impacts on legal certainty for digital and cross-border education: The legal uncertainty faced
by educational establishments and teachers in certain MS for digital uses is expected to persist
under the baseline option. Only reforms at national level or developments in the licensing
market could contribute to reduce it. A certain number of MS (e.g. ES, UK) have recently
amended their legislation to clarify that the teaching exception applies to content used in
secure electronic environments. Other MS may follow, however it is unlikely that all MS
would engage in similar reforms and in any event such reforms would not result in an
exception applicable across borders. In MS where specific educational licensing schemes are
in place, CMOs may propose to review the scope of the licences to better respond to the needs
of educational establishments, for example as regards digital and online uses. However they
may not always be able to licence cross-border uses (if they don't have the rightholders'
283
Certain stakeholders in the education community consider that licensing cannot be an adequate solution
to provide access to protected content. See "COMMUNIA policy paper on exceptions and limitations
for education": http://www.communia-association.org/policy-papers/leveraging-copyright-in-support-
of-education/
284
Educational publishing is a very important component of the publishing sector, the largest cultural
industry in Europe with a retail market value of about €40 billion, representing between 18 and 20 % of
the market at EU level. It reaches higher figures in some countries: 25 to 30% in ES, close to 30% in
Flanders, more than 60 % in IE, 22 to 25 % in IT, 25 to 30 % in PL (source: Federation of European
Publishers - FEP).
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mandate for all EU territories). Furthermore, solutions based on collective licensing may not
be fit for all types of works (e.g. AV works). In the MS where the uncertainty would persist,
teachers would be deterred from using protected content in digital teaching activities, beyond
what is allowed for under existing licences. They may instead increasingly use OERs
available under open licences, which however may not fully cover their needs, in terms of
quality and variety of educational materials.285
Under this option, cross-border uses of protected content would remain subject to legal
uncertainty. This aspect would constitute a significant obstacle for higher education
institutions proposing distance learning programmes followed by students located in other
MS.286 Enrolled students may be disadvantaged by having a limited access to teaching
materials.
Impacts on costs for educational establishments: The baseline option would not have any
direct impacts on costs. Where digital and cross-border uses are not allowed under the
teaching exception or under specific licensing schemes, educational establishments would
continue facing transaction costs to obtain the necessary authorisations.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing revenues: Under the baseline option, the ability of rightholders to
generate revenues from educational uses would continue to vary from a MS to another,
depending on the scope of the teaching exception, the mechanisms foreseen for the
compensation of rightholders for uses under the exception, and the licences covering
additional uses.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The legal uncertainty on the use of protected content could contribute to slow down the
development of digital and cross-border education and indirectly the acquisition of digital
skills, which are essential in the information society; however many other factors may more
strongly influence such development (e.g. availability of broadband connections in schools,
IT equipment, teachers' digital skills, etc.).
The access to a wide range of cultural materials to illustrate or complement teaching is an
important element to promote cultural diversity. The baseline option may, to a minor extent,
negatively affect cultural diversity as it could limit the ability of teachers to use such
illustrative content in digital teaching practices.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option would not have any impact on copyright as a property right (Article 17 of the
Charter), as it would not expand the scope of the existing teaching exception. It may have an
impact on the right to education, as enshrined in Article 14 of the Charter, only to the extent
that the legal uncertainty faced by educational establishments would constitute an obstacle to
the further development of distance learning. Distance learning plays a role in facilitating
285
Only 27.4 % of users or their representatives agree that open licence materials can fully cover their
educational needs. Stakeholders' survey carried out in the context of the 'Assessment of the impact of
the European copyright framework on digitally-supported education and training practices'. See Annex
10B on the perception of copyright-related obstacles in education.
286
When developing such programmes, educational establishments would have to ascertain whether the
use of copyrighted works is authorised or not in the different countries where the enrolled students are
located, and if not, they would have to seek licences for such uses or could decide to limit cross-border
access.
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access to education, for example for people with disabilities that cannot be present on the
premises of educational establishments or people pursuing further education while working.287
Option 1 – Guidance to MS and stakeholders' dialogue on raising awareness in the
education community on the use of protected works for teaching purposes
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Institutional users and other related users (educational establishments, teachers,
students)
Impacts on legal certainty for digital and cross-border education: Option 1 would allow
reducing, to a certain extent, the current legal uncertainty faced by educational establishments
and teachers in the digital environment. The actual impact would depend on actions taken by
MS following the guidance provided by the Commission. In the best-case scenario, Option 1
could result in digital uses being allowed under the national implementations of the teaching
exception; however this would not be sufficient to provide cross-border effect for the use of
protected content under the exception.
Efforts to raise awareness among teachers and students on the scope of the exception and the
uses allowed under licences could bring positive results and are likely to be well accepted. In
fact, teachers are often not aware of the licences purchased by their educational
establishment.288 Measures aimed at raising awareness on copyright rules were the type of
solutions that gathered strongest support both from users and copy rightholders in a recent
survey.289
Impacts on costs for educational establishments: the transaction costs described in the
baseline option could only be reduced if MS clarify the application of the exception to digital
uses on the basis of the Commission's guidance.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing revenues: The impacts of this option on rightholders are expected to be
rather limited and would mainly depend on the possible changes introduced in MS legislation.
On the one hand, this option may limit the rightholders' ability to license certain types of
educational uses (e.g. digital copying, scanning, posting on the school's intranet - if digital
uses become covered by national exceptions). On the other hand, the dialogue with users in
the education community may bring positive results in the medium to long term by reducing
the cases of unauthorised uses.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 1 could have a positive impact on the further development of digitally-supported
education practices and indirectly on the acquisition of digital skills. The obstacles to cross-
border education would nevertheless persist. There may be some positive impacts in terms of
287
For example, the Open University in the UK, has more than 250,000 students, 12,000 of whom have a
disability, health condition, mental health difficulty or specific learning difficulty (such as dyslexia).
288
Just more than a half (53.2 %) of educators report that they know their education institution is covered
by licensing agreements allowing digital uses of protected content. Survey carried out in the context of
the study on 'Assessment of the impact of the European copyright framework on digitally-supported
education and training practices' (p.120). Concerning licences allowing the use of films in school, only
21 % of teachers of primary and secondary education report that their school have licence agreements
whereas the majority report that their school has no agreement or was unable to say. Source: "Showing
films and other audio-visual content in European Schools - Obstacles and best practices" – May 2015.
289
Survey carried out in the context of the study on 'Assessment of the impact of the European copyright
framework on digitally-supported education and training practices' (p.35).
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wider access to cultural works as a result of teachers' extended ability to use protected content
in digital teaching practices (depending on the extent to which MS follow the guidance and/or
the success of stakeholders' discussions).
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Option 1 would have no direct impact on the right of property, as it would not expand the
scope of the existing teaching exception but provide guidance on the conditions of use of
protected content under the existing exception. The impact on the right to education would be
similar to the baseline option.
Option 2 – Mandatory exception for digital uses for the purpose of illustration for
teaching, including across borders
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Institutional users and other related users (educational establishments, teachers,
students)
Impacts on legal certainty for digital and cross-border education: Option 2 would bring a high
degree of legal certainty to educational establishments and teachers across all MS. This could
lead in the short term to an increased use of illustrative resources and an enriched learning
environment for students. The actual impacts on education institutions would vary between
MS, depending on how the optional teaching exception has been implemented so far and on
the licensing mechanisms in place. The impact of Option 2 would be stronger in MS where
the scope of the existing teaching exception is currently limited or unclear (e.g. where the
teaching exception does not clearly apply to digital uses or where it applies only to certain
types of works and media). Importantly, Option 2 would allow in particular higher education
institutions to gain legal certainty for cross-border uses. Distance and online students,
including those located in other MS, would be able to access the materials used and made
available by teachers under the same conditions as on-site students.
However, the legal certainty offered by Option 2 to educational establishments and teachers
may be undermined in the long term by a reduced quality and variety of educational
resources, which could result from the application of the exception to textbooks and other
resources produced specifically for education (see 'impact on rightholders' below). In a recent
survey, a majority (54.6 %) of educational users reported that they used licensed works more
because they offer better quality and/or variety than open licence alternatives.290
Impacts on costs for educational establishments:
Transaction costs: Option 2 would significantly reduce the transaction costs supported by
educational establishments when digital and cross-border uses are not allowed under the
national teaching exception or under a collective licensing agreement. These transaction costs
include staff costs for providing guidance to teachers on the use of specific resources,
identifying rightholders and obtaining the necessary authorisations; they may be particularly
high when authorisation need to be obtained on a work-by-work basis (which may often be
the case for using AV works). No evidence could be found to quantify these costs.
290
Stakeholders' survey carried out in the context of the 'Assessment of the impact of the European
copyright framework on digitally-supported education and training practices'. See Annex 10B on the
perception of copyright-related obstacles in education.
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Licensing costs (licence fees paid by educational establishments): Option 2 could result in a
reduction of licensing costs in MS where secondary uses291 of protected content in education
are currently allowed under collective licensing schemes (including ECL). Part of the uses
(digital uses for illustrating teaching) would become covered by the new EU exception.
Educational establishments would therefore be in a position to renegotiate their agreements
with CMOs which may be constrained to review the scope of their licences and reduce licence
fees.292 Data collected for a few MS on the cost of licensing for educational establishments
(where educational uses are allowed under a licence or an ECL) tend to show that these costs
are relatively low: in the UK, according to a report prepared for Copyright Licensing Agency,
copyright licensing payments (covering analogue and digital uses) make up less than 0.1 % of
an educational establishment’s expenditure;293 in Denmark they amount to less than 1 %.294
The reduction of licensing costs under this Option would therefore be limited, in particular if
MS introduce an obligation to compensate rightholders for the uses under the new exception.
Option 2 would also significantly reduce opportunity costs associated to materials not being
used due to legal uncertainty or budgetary constraints on educational establishments.
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing revenues: the impact of Option 2 would vary between MS, depending on
how the optional teaching exception has been implemented so far and on MS decision to
require compensation for the uses under the new EU exception or not.
In MS where the current teaching exception already encompasses digital uses for all types of
works (e.g. BE and NL),295 no impact is expected on rightholders' revenues. The authorisation
of cross-border uses, in the conditions foreseen under Option 2, is not expected to prejudice
the rightholders' interests, as it would not result in the uncontrolled dissemination of content
online (cross-border uses under the exception would be limited to distance students enrolled
with a specific educational establishment and accessing through a secure network). Therefore,
it is not expected to affect the amount of the compensation required in certain MS.
In MS where the current teaching exception is limited to analogue uses or does not clearly
allow digital uses (notably HR, IT, PL), rightholders may be negatively affected only to the
extent their current revenues rely on the licensing of digital educational uses. This may be the
cases in certain countries, where digital uses are subject to voluntary collective licensing
291
"Secondary uses" designate uses to illustrate and complement teaching, such as copying and making
available extracts of protected works to students.
292
Licensing schemes could remain an attractive option for educational establishments if they allow more
flexible uses compared to the exception.
293
Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (UK), Learning and Skills Council, Department for
Education, PwC analysis in 'An economic analysis of education exceptions', March 2012, PWC, report
commissioned by the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA), a UK non-profit organisation established by
the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society and the Publishers' Licensing Society to perform
collective licensing on their behalf. Available at: https://www.pwc.co.uk/assets/pdf/an-economic-
analysis-of-education-exceptions-in-copyright.pdf
294
Source: FEP. Additional data provided by IFRRO illustrate the standard per page rate for copying in
education: €0.0142 (LV), €0.011-0.045(NL), €0.0256-0.0512 (BE), €0.033-0.036 (EL), to €0.04 (FR,
DK). These costs do not include the transaction costs mentioned above (mainly staff costs, e.g. for
negotiating and managing licences).
295
In many other MS, digital uses are allowed under the national teaching exception but certain types of
works are excluded from the scope of the exception e.g. resources specifically intended for education
are excluded from the exception in AT, DE, ES, FR; sheet music in FR, IT, ES; recently released
cinematographic works in DE.
97
agreements.296 However, it seems that in the past the restrictive implementation of the
exception did not favour the development of licences.297 Therefore, in this case the impact of
Option 2 is expected to be limited. It could nevertheless reduce licensing opportunities in the
medium term.
Significant impact is expected in MS where digital secondary uses of content for teaching
activities currently require a licence., i.e. MS using ECL (DK, FI, SE) and MS where the
exception is subject to the availability of licences (UK, IE). In these cases, rightholders would
not be able anymore to exercise their exclusive rights to authorise or prohibit digital uses of
their works for illustrating teaching. They would be able to continue offering licences only for
print copies and digital uses which would go beyond the scope of the new exception (e.g. in
terms of extent of copying). This would imply a significant loss of secondary licensing
income.298 One can reasonably assume than Option 2 would affect at least half of the
secondary licensing revenue currently stemming from digital uses.299 Estimates established on
this basis and considering the relative importance of digital uses in several MS300 show that
Option 2 would lead to a reduction of 14 % to 25 % of the total revenues currently collected
by CMOs (in the print sector) from educational establishments.301 This proportion is likely to
increase over the next years, with the uptake of digital teaching practices at all education
levels.
In those MS, rightholders would be differently affected depending on how much their works
are used in the teaching context. Considering that text documents and images are the types of
content currently most widely used in education, rightholders in the print sector (writers,
visual artists, publishers) are likely to be more affected than others. The strongest impacts
would be felt by educational and academic authors and publishers, whose works are
intensively used by educational establishments. A large part of the volume of copies made in
the context of teaching (analogue and digital copies) is based on copies from textbooks or
other educational resources: 90 % in IE, 80 % in FR, 67 % in DE.302 Such impact would also
be felt by educational publishers in MS where textbooks and other educational resources are
excluded from the scope of the national teaching exception (notably FR, DE, AT, ES).303 Data
collected for FR, DE, UK and SE indicates that secondary uses of textbooks account for 1 to 4
% of the educational publishers' turnover in those countries.304 A reduction of 14 to 25 % of
296
For example in CZ, HU, PT, SK, SI and PL. Source: IFRRO.
297
For example, the narrow implementation and interpretation of the exception in Italy did not lead to a
large recourse to licensing mechanisms or contractual agreements but created a situation of uncertainty
for educational establishments and rightholders. See: "Copyright and educational uses: the unbearable
case of Italian law from a European and comparative perspective", Giuseppe Mazziotti. Available at:
http://cadmus.eui.eu/bitstream/handle/1814/19697/LAW_2011_17_Mazziotti.pdf?sequence=1
298
"Secondary licensing income" refers to the revenue generated by licences authorising the secondary
uses of protected content in teaching activities.
299
The exact share of the revenues that would be affected would depend on the current scope of the
licensing schemes in terms of extent of digital and online uses allowed.
300
See Annex 10D for data on the share of digital uses in the revenues collected by CMOs.
301
This includes revenues from all types of education establishments. The revenues from licensing to
higher education institutions are expected to be more strongly affected.
302
Source: data collected by FEP from ICLA (IE – the figure mentioned above relate to post-primary
education only), CFC (FR - the figure mentioned above relate to secondary education only), VG Wort
(DE) on the basis of reporting/surveys of users. In ES, 26 % of the copies made are from textbooks and
39 % from academic books. IFRRO also indicated that non-fiction works, including textbooks and
academic books, are the works mostly used by educational establishments.
303
The rationale for excluding this type of works from the teaching exception is linked to the fact that
educational users constitute their primary market.
304
See Annex 10D for data on the share of secondary uses in the revenues of educational publishers.
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this source of revenue would therefore have a non-negligible impact on the industry.
Academic and Scientific, Technical and Medical Publishers ("STM publishers") would also
be strongly impacted by the reduction of licensing income from higher education
institutions.305 Furthermore, the negative impact would extend to educational authors for
whom this source of income constitutes a constant revenue stream compared to more variable
revenues from primary sales. A study carried out in the UK in 2011 reported that for UK
educational authors a 20 % reduction of the secondary licensing income would result in a 29
% decline in output (which would mean 2,870 less new works being created annually).306 The
possible compensation that may be imposed at national level would not ensure the level of
revenues that rightholders can obtain when exercising their exclusive rights on the market.307
Impacts on competitiveness and innovation in the educational publishing industry: The
reduction of secondary licensing revenue is expected to have a direct impact on educational
publishers' incentive to invest in new content.308 It is likely to hit first digital educational
resources, whose market is not profitable yet, notably because of the high fixed costs
associated to the development of digital products and educational resources platforms.309
Evidence collected in the UK from a sample of educational publishers indicated that revenues
from secondary licensing equate to 19 % of their investment in content development.310 In the
long term, the lack of sufficient investment in digital products could affect the
competitiveness of the European educational publishing industry, including at international
level. International sales of textbooks and academic books are important notably for the UK
and French educational publishing industries (sales in English/French-language markets).
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The legal certainty provided by Option 2 would result in a positive impact on the further
development of digital and cross-border education and indirectly on the acquisition of digital
skills. Option 2 would allow a wider and more flexible use of protected content in education,
which may contribute to promote cultural diversity among students. However, the impact of
this option on rightholders in certain MS could affect the incentive to invest in the production
of new content, in particular resources produced specifically for the educational market. If
305
In 2015, STM and academic publishers in the UK received about 22 % of CLA licensing revenue
distributed to publishers. Source: CLA/ALCS/PLS.
306
'An economic analysis of education exceptions in copyright', PWC, March 2012,
http://www.pwc.co.uk/en_UK/uk/assets/pdf/an-economic-analysis-of-education-exceptions-in-
copyright.pdf
307
Indications on the amount of compensation required in certain MS for uses under the existing teaching
exception and on the remuneration stemming from educational licensing schemes existing in other MS
are provided in Annex 10C. For example, the compensation required at national level on annual basis
for uses of print works is €1,7 million in FR (covering only digital uses, by all types of educational
institutions). By contrast, the remuneration collected for digital uses of print works in education
institutions the UK amounted to about €9,3 million in 2014/15.
308
Most are developing digital solutions alongside traditional textbooks, in order to accompany the
transition towards digital education while meeting the continuing demand for print works.
309
For example, in IT, digital textbooks represent the 34.4 % of the offer but just the 0.8 % of textbooks
actually adopted by schools. In FR, educational publishers have invested 25 million euros in digital
textbooks over the last 3 years, despite a very small market (less than 1 % of the print market).
Currently, producing digital textbooks costs 20 to 50 % more than print books, considering the costs of
additional digital rights and digital maintenance. Source: data collected by FEP.
310
'An economic analysis of education exceptions in copyright', PWC, March 2012,
http://www.pwc.co.uk/en_UK/uk/assets/pdf/an-economic-analysis-of-education-exceptions-in-
copyright.pdf: "In 2011, a sample of seven major educational publishers received £3.6 million in PLS
revenue (19% of their annual investment in new materials)."
99
investment in new content decreases, the quality and variety of educational resources used to
illustrate and complement teaching may decline.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Option 2 would affect the right of property, with some uses which currently require the
authorisation of rightholders in certain MS being covered by a mandatory exception. On the
other hand, it would have some positive impacts on the right to education as it will support the
further development of distance education.
Option 3 – Mandatory exception with a cross-border effect covering digital uses in the
context of illustration for teaching, with the option for MS to make it (partially or
totally) subject to the availability of licences
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Institutional users and other related users (educational establishments, teachers,
students)
Impacts on digital and cross-border education: Option 3 would have the same positive effects
as Option 2 in terms of possibility of use of protected content digitally and online for
illustrating teaching, including across borders. Legal certainty for such uses would be ensured
either via the mandatory exception, or via licences providing for at least equivalent conditions
of use (in practice, licences would probably cover uses tailored to the needs of different types
of educational establishments, including uses which would go beyond the exception). For
most teachers it is irrelevant to know whether the uses are allowed under an exception or
under a licence, as long as the conditions for use are equivalent.311
Impacts on costs for educational establishments:
Licensing costs: In MS deciding to use the possibility offered under this Option to make the
application of the exception subject to the availability of licences,312 educational
establishments would have to pay licence fees for digital uses of protected content (where
such licences are available). However, as illustrated under Option 2, data collected from
certain MS where educational uses are allowed under a licence or an ECL show that these
costs are rather limited if compared to establishments' overall costs. Furthermore, licences
covering cross-border uses are not expected to be more costly, as they would not extend the
number of users (licence fees are generally defined according to the number of students).
In MS opting for implementing the new exception with an obligation of compensation,
educational establishments may incur some costs related to compensation. Considering the
current level of compensation in certain MS, these costs are expected to be marginal. For
example, the compensation required in FR for digital uses of print works is €1.7 million by
year, for 14.7 million pupils/students. The recently negotiated compensation in ES amounts to
€3.2 million for digital uses of print works in higher education (covering about 1.2 million
students).313
Transaction costs: The possible transaction costs for educational establishments related to the
need to check the availability of licences are expected to be reduced by the measures MS
would have to take to ensure the availability, visibility and user-friendliness of licences
311
This argument was developed in the study "Showing films and other audio-visual content in European
Schools – Obstacles and best practices"– May 2015.
312
This possibility is likely to be used by MS to maintain the mechanisms in place (e.g. ECL in DK, FI, SE
and exception subject to licences in UK and IE) and could be used by other MS as well.
313
http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2016/03/15/actualidad/1458066248_393225.html
100
covering secondary uses of protected content in education. The development of specific
educational licensing schemes314 could for example contribute to significantly reduce
transaction costs, even if different schemes may coexist for different types of works. Since
these schemes may not fully remove the need for educational establishments to take up
individual licences,315 it may also be necessary for MS to develop online tools allowing to
check the licences available for a given work. Option 3 may also generate administration costs
for educational establishments, linked to the negotiation and management of licences. Such
costs could be reduced if MS decide to centralise, at national or regional level, the acquisition
of licences for educational establishments.316
Rightholders
Impacts on licensing revenues: Option 3 would have the same effects on rightholders as
Option 2 if all MS decide to implement the EU exception as such. However, the possibility to
make the exception subject to the availability of licences is very likely to be used by MS to
maintain the mechanisms in place (e.g. ECL in DK, FI, SE and exception subject to licences
in UK and IE). It could also be introduced in other MS for certain types of works (e.g.
textbooks and educational resources), notably in countries where they are currently excluded
from the teaching exception (AT, DE, FR, ES). Such mechanism would allow to favour
licensing for resources which are primarily intended for the educational market, but would
nevertheless offer the necessary legal certainty where licences are not available. Under this
scenario, the negative impacts described under Option 2 would not materialise under Option
3.
In MS using ECL or making the exception subject to the availability of licences, rightholders
would need to give sufficient visibility to their licensing offers317 if they want to be
remunerated for the uses of their works in the teaching context. This may generate some costs,
in particular for SMEs, which are however expected to be compensated by licensing revenues.
The need to make licensing solutions widely available and adapted to the needs of educational
establishments could encourage rightholders to sign up into specific educational licensing
schemes that may be developed by MS. Other rightholders may prefer developing their own
licensing solutions online, in particular for digital resources.318
The legal mechanism allowing cross-border uses is not expected to have any impact on
rightholders' licensing revenues (as explained under Option 2, licence fees are generally
defined according to the number of students, which will remain unchanged) nor to reduce
their possibility to licence their works to educational establishments in other MS.
314
Such schemes would be based on voluntary collective management: interested rightholders would give
a mandate to a CMO to license their works for uses in the context of illustration for teaching.
315
Certain rightholders may decide not to participate in educational licensing schemes based on collective
management; or such schemes may not be developed for certain types of works, for which individual
licensing would apply (e.g. AV works, digital textbooks). Licensing bodies increasingly tend to propose
online tools allowing to check permitted uses. See Annex 10C.
316
This has been done recently for state funded schools in England. See:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/copyright-licences-information-for-schools
317
Rightholders would have to propose specific licensing solutions for secondary uses of their content in
teaching activities.
318
Many educational publishers are licensing their digital products via online platforms, for example in
France through a single entry portal called "Wizwiz", which offers a catalogue of all digital educational
resources from over 60 French publishers, or in DE, through the online platform "digitale-
schulbuecher" which gathers a variety of digital textbooks from different publishers.
101
Impacts on competitiveness and innovation in the educational publishing industry: this option
is likely to have a limited impact on the competitiveness of the publishing industry, as it
leaves to MS the possibility to favour the use of licences over the exception for digital uses in
education. MS where the current exception does not apply to textbooks and other educational
resources are expected to use the flexibility of Option 3 to make this type of works subject to
the availability of licences. This would allow educational publishers to continue investing in
the development of digital resources.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 3 would have a positive impact on the further development of digital and cross-border
education and indirectly on the acquisition of digital skills. It would allow to promote cultural
diversity through wider and more flexible uses of protected content in education. In addition,
to the extent MS use the flexibility foreseen under this Option to make the resources
developed specifically for education subject to the availability of licences, the impact of this
option on rightholders is not expected to affect the production of new content.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The impact of Option 3 on the right of property would be mitigated by the possibility for MS
to decide that licences prevail over the application of the exception. Option 3 will have
positive impacts on the right to education as it will support the further development of
distance education.
4.2.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on stakeholders Social impacts and
fundamental rights
Baseline (0) Legal (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts on (0) No direct impact
uncertainty for associated with the stakeholders would on cultural diversity
digital/online and baseline option depend on reforms at and on the
cross-border uses national level or development of digital
would persist developments in the and cross-border
licensing market education
(0) No direct impact
on fundamental rights
Option 1 – (0/+) Could result (0/-) Limited costs (0/+) Main impacts on (0/+) Possible positive
Guidance in some linked to the stakeholders would impact on cultural
and improvements in organisation of the depend on the possible diversity and the
stakeholder certain MS but stakeholders' changes introduced in development of digital
s' dialogue would not allow to dialogue MS legislation and cross-border
ensure legal education, depending
certainty across the on MS action
EU (0) No direct impact
on fundamental rights
Option 2 – (++) Would ensure (-) High compliance (+) Full legal certainty (+/-) Positive impact
Mandatory legal certainty for costs in MS using and possible reduction of on cultural diversity in
exception digital uses, licence-based licensing costs for the short term; in the
for digital including across mechanisms for educational medium/long term,
for the borders educational uses establishments could negatively affect
purpose of (need to review the (-) Possible reduction of the production of
illustration functioning and the quality and variety educational resources
for scope of these of educational resources (+/-) Positive impact
teaching, mechanisms in in the medium/long term on digital and cross-
including view of the (--) Significant loss of border education may
across introduction of a licensing income for be undermined by
borders mandatory rightholders in certain lower quality and
exception) MS variety of educational
resources in the
102
medium/long term
(-) Negative impact on
the right of property
(+) Positive impact on
the right to education
Option 3 – (++) Would ensure (0/-) Compliance (+) Full legal certainty (+) Positive impact on
Mandatory legal certainty for costs for certain MS for educational cultural diversity
exception digital uses, related to the need establishments if MS (+) Positive impact on
with option including across to take measures to take the appropriate the development of
for MS to borders ensure the measures to ensure the digital and cross-
make it availability and availability and visibility border education
subject to visibility of of licences (-/0) Limited negative
licences licences. (-/0) Depending on the impact on the right of
choice made by MS, property, depending on
possible licensing and the choice made by
transaction costs for MS
educational (+) Positive impact on
establishments, but the right to education
expected to be limited
(0) Impacts on
rightholders expected to
be neutral
Option 3 is the preferred option, as it would allow reaching the objective of full legal
certainty for digital and cross-border uses in education for the benefit of educational
establishments, teachers and students, while limiting negative impacts on rightholders.
In contrast, Option 1 would not be sufficiently effective and Option 2 would entail significant
foregone costs for rightholders in several MS, with a possible negative impact on the quality
and variety of educational resources in the long term. Option 3 could imply some compliance
costs for MS deciding to make the exception subject to the availability of licences, because of
the requirement to ensure availability and visibility of such licences. However, these costs are
expected to be lower than the compliance costs associated with Option 2 (need for certain MS
to thoroughly review the way in which educational establishments make use of protected
content in order to implement the exception). Also, such compliance costs from MS would
allow to significantly reduce administrative burdens and related transaction costs for
educational establishments. Finally, the impacts on cultural diversity and fundamental rights
are more balanced under Option 3 compared to Option 2.
Proportionality and impacts on MS: Option 3 responds to the policy objective in a
proportionate manner, by focusing on uses which have a cross-border dimension (digital
uses) and leaving sufficient flexibility for MS to choose the most suitable mechanism
(exception or licensing).
The implementation of Option 3 will require certain MS to adapt their national legislation in
order to clarify that the exception covers digital uses carried out in the context of illustration
for teaching. Other MS, where such uses are already allowed under their national teaching
exception, will only need to make more limited amendments to reflect the specific conditions
defined under Option 3 (e.g. uses under secure electronic networks, all types of works
covered). All MS would need to amend their national laws in order to allow for cross-border
uses. The flexibility foreseen for the implementation of the exception will allow MS to
maintain to a large extent the existing arrangements (e.g. ECL or exception subject to the
availability of licences).
103
4.3. TEXT AND DATA MINING
4.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Description of the problem: Text and Data Mining (TDM) is a term commonly used to
describe the automated processing ("machine reading") of large volumes of text and data to
uncover new knowledge or insights.319 TDM can be a powerful scientific research tool to
analyse big corpuses of text and data such as scientific publications or research datasets.320
The current level of TDM in the EU is difficult to quantify.321 Attempts have been made by
some studies on the basis of proxies,322in particular the number of journals publications on
TDM which suggest a slow but constant increase over the years (around 10 % per annum
worldwide in 2010-2014 and similar trends in EU MS)323 with the EU MS covering 28,2 % of
worldwide publications on TDM, Asia 32,4 % and Northern America 20,9 %.324 All
stakeholders generally agree that TDM is still a nascent tool, in particular in the non-business
sector, i.e. for research carried out by organisations such as universities or research institutes
(generally referred in this IA as "public interest research organisations"). Researchers are
generally convinced of the potential of TDM but they put forward legal uncertainty, caused by
the current copyright rules, as one of the reasons for the slow development of TDM in the EU
(in addition to aspects unrelated to copyright, such as lack of awareness and skills,
infrastructural challenges, etc.). A recent survey reported that less than 20 % of researchers
had used TDM techniques to analyse journal literature in a sample of EU MS (24 %
worldwide).325 Rightholders – notably scientific publishers - report from their side a relatively
limited number of TDM requests from universities and other public interest research
organisations (around 15 % of publishers in the UK had received TDM requests in 2014 to
mid-2015 according to one survey).326
Drivers: [Current research exceptions in EU law not fully adapted to TDM] Together with the
above mentioned non-copyright related drivers, which are not addressed in this IA, copyright
issues contribute to the slow development of TDM in EU research. Copyright is relevant in
this context as TDM may often involve copying (e.g. downloading) of the content to be
319
See Annex 11B for a description of the technical processes of TDM.
320
In addition to researchers in public interest organisations such as universities, TDM is increasingly used
by companies, notably life-science and technology companies, in the context of their “in house”
research. TDM or similar data analysis tools, such as web-scraping, are also used by businesses at a
wider scale, as part of or basis for their commercial activities going beyond scientific research
(marketing, mining of customers' data, etc).
321
See the UK impact assessment no. BIS0312 (2012), "Exception for copying of works for use by text
and data analytics",
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/308738/ia-exception-
dataanalytics.pdf
322
See in particular two studies carried out by the Lisbon Council in 2014 and 2016: S. Filippov,
"Mapping Text and Data Mining in Academic and Research Communities in Europe" 2014, and S.
Filippov, P.Hofheinz "Text and Data Mining for Research and Innovation", 2016 that use as indicators
the number of publications containing "data mining" in the title or anywhere in the text as well as
patents granted in data mining. The publications indicator has also been used in the 2016 PRC survey,
"Text Mining of Journal Literature" – May 2016, www.publishingresearchconsortium.com. See Annex
11E.
323
PRC survey, 2016 based on Scopus journals data.
324
Filippov, Hofheinz, 2014, page 10.
325
PRC, "Text Mining of Journal Literature" – May 2016, www.publishingresearchconsortium.com. Two
third of respondents to the survey indicated that they would be interested to learn more about TDM.
326
The survey covered the period immediately before and after the adoption of the UK exception, it is
therefore difficult to draw conclusions on this basis.
104
analysed, which can be protected by the "right of reproduction" under copyright law.327 The
current EU copyright rules lay down exceptions permitting the use of content for the purposes
of non-commercial scientific research.328 However, a considerable level of legal uncertainty
exists in practice. Research organisations do not always know whether TDM is copyright-
relevant at all, whether it may be covered by an exception or whether a specific rightholders'
authorisation is required.
[Diversity of licensing practices generating transaction costs]: Researchers consider this
situation to be particularly problematic as regards protected content to which they already
have lawful access to on the basis of a subscription purchased by their library or institution.
Subscriptions to scientific publications may currently include or not the authorisation to
perform TDM, prohibit it altogether, or leave it unclear. As a result of the commitments taken
in the 2013 "Licences for Europe" dialogue329 STM publishers have gradually started to
include TDM for non-commercial purposes in their subscription licences for academic
institutions and to develop common infrastructures to facilitate access to the content to be
mined (notably in the framework of the "Cross Ref" mining service – See Annex 11B).330
However, researchers have generally not received favourably these developments (their
representatives left "Licences for Europe" considering that only legislative changes, as
opposed to a voluntary approach, would allow to fully address their problems) and generally
point out that making TDM subject to specific authorisation in addition to the subscription
risk to always make them subject, at least potentially, to different conditions and policies of
different publishers, something which they see as particularly problematic in view of the large
scale of material which has to be mined in the context of scientific research.331 These different
conditions may give rise to transaction costs for research organisations having to clarify to
what extent they are allowed to perform TDM on the basis of their subscriptions and possibly
to renegotiate them to make sure they can do so in full legal certainty. In some cases,
individual researchers may need to take up licences for TDM if their organisation's
327
See Annex 11C. The Commission commissioned a "Study on the legal framework of text and data
mining" – J.P. Triaille, March 2014. See also "Standardisation in the area of innovation and
technological development, notably in the field of text and data mining" – Report to Commission, 2014.
328
Article 5(3)(a)of the Infosoc Directive and Articles 6(2)(b) and 9(b) of the Database Directive. The
"transient copies" exception in Article 5(1) of Infosoc Directive may also be relevant for some TDM
techniques which do not involve permanent copying.
329
See: http://www.stm-assoc.org/2013_11_11_Text_and_Data_Mining_Declaration.pdf. On that occasion
a group of 13 STM publishers issued a declaration ("A statement of commitment by STM publishers to a
roadmap to enable text and data mining (TDM) for non-commercial scientific research in the European
Union") where they committed in particular to include TDM clauses in subscription contracts for no
additional cost to users and to develop further technological solutions to facilitate TDM licences. See
also the Commission document “Licences for Europe: ten pledges to bring more content online”
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/licences-for-europe/131113_ten-pledges_en.pdf. On
Cross Ref, see http://tdmsupport.crossref.org/. See Annex 11D
330
This is for example the case of Elsevier (https://www.elsevier.com/about/company-
information/policies/text-and-data-mining) Springer (https://www.springer.com/gp/rights-
permissions/springer-s-text-and-data-mining-policy/29056?token=prtst0416p) and Wiley
(http://olabout.wiley.com/WileyCDA/Section/id-826542.html). Usually TDM is gradually included in
subscription licences when they are renewed (for example one major publisher indicated that in 2014
around 25% of their non-commercial licences included TDM – the proportion is probably higher in
2016). http://rue89.nouvelobs.com/sites/news/files/assets/document/2014/11/marche_elsevier.pdf.
331
In the UK, before the 2014 TDM exception, of the 15 publishers in the NESLi2 scheme (scheme for
central journal negotiations on behalf of the UK academic community), 11 had clauses permitting
TDM, and the 4 other publishers were silent as to whether TDM was permitted or not under the
subscription licence.
105
subscriptions do not cover it.332 Before the adoption of a TDM exception in the UK, a large
research university indicated that the costs for them to check the compliance of their TDM
activities with the different applicable licences could amount to up to GBP 500,000 per
year.333
[Fragmentation of rules in the single market]: Fragmentation in the single market is also an
emerging problem as MS have started to adopt national TDM exceptions referring to the
research exceptions in the current EU rules. The UK adopted a specific TDM exception in
2014334 and some other MS are currently discussing possible national solutions.335
Consequences: The above factors together have led to a situation where in practice, whether a
prior authorisation for TDM in addition to the authorisation to access the content is required
or not depends on the factual circumstances of each case and on the copyright legal
framework in the MS where the research activity takes place. Together with other non-
copyright related issues such as skills, technology and infrastructure which also play a
significant role, lack of certainty in the current copyright framework contributes to the current
situation of slow development of TDM in European research.
How the problem would evolve: TDM is likely to become an increasingly important research
tool over time, as technology improves and becomes more widespread, researchers acquire
new skills and digital research sources increase. Almost all scientific journals are already
available online, and a total of around 2.5 million scientific articles are published every
year.336 It has been calculated that the overall amount of scientific papers published worldwide
may be increasing by 8 to 9 % every year and doubling every 9 years.337 In some instances,
more than 90 % of research libraries' collections in the EU are composed of digital content.338
While this trend is bound to continue, without intervention at EU level, the legal uncertainty
and fragmentation surrounding the use of TDM, notably by research organisations, will
persist. Market developments, in particular the fact that publishers may increasingly include
TDM in subscription licences as a result of the commitments taken in the above mentioned
2013 Licences for Europe dialogue to may partly mitigate the problem. However,
fragmentation of the Single Market is likely to increase over time as a result of MS adopting
TDM exceptions at national level which could be based on different conditions, which is
likely to happen in the absence of intervention at EU level.
332
The JISC 2012 report "Value and Benefits of Text Mining to UK Further and Higher Education"
highlights the significant time cost for an individual researcher wishing to mine numerous publications
which relates to identifying the rightholders and seeking permissions to mine, see
https://www.jisc.ac.uk/reports/value-and-benefits-of-text-mining
333
Source: UCL (University College London). The UCL has 9000 researchers and produces more than
11,000 articles per year. For more examples, see section 4.3.3, Option 2.
334
The Copyright and Rights in Performances (Research, Education, Libraries and Archives) Regulations
2014: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/1372/contents/made
335
Eg. DE, EE, FR, IE.
336
STM report, March 2015.
337
L. Bornmann, R. Mütz, "Growth rate of modern science"
http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1402/1402.4578.pdf
338
For instance, 94 % of journals and 24 % of books held by the University College London are digital.
79% of the Stockholm University's budget goes into digital content (source: LIBER).
106
4.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
The general and specific objectives are described in section 4.1.3.
Baseline
Without EU intervention, TDM will continue to be based on rightholders' prior
authorisation and its development would depend on the development of market-based
initiatives to facilitate TDM licensing, including following the already mentioned
commitment of STM publishers in the 2013 "Licences for Europe" process. At the same
time an increasing number of MS could decide to adopt national TDM exceptions in the
context of the current research exceptions (Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive and
Articles 6(2)(b) and 9(b) of the Database Directive).
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders would support the baseline option as they are generally opposed to an intervention in this area.
Researchers consider that legislative intervention is needed and would therefore strongly criticise a lack of EU
action (See the report on the results of the 2013/14 public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules in
Annex 2B)
Option 1 – Fostering industry self-regulation initiatives without changes to the EU legal
framework
Non-legislative option. The Commission would encourage stakeholders, notably
publishers and researchers, to identify collaborative solutions to facilitate TDM, in
particular for content subscribed to by research organisations.
Structured dialogues between researchers and publishers would be organised to allow
both sides to express their views, notably with regard to researchers' needs and the
technical safeguards publishers could use to ensure the protection of their content without
creating unnecessary or disproportionate burden for researchers. Building on existing
initiatives such as "Cross Ref" (see above: problem definition), this option could also
support and promote further technical solutions, such as platforms facilitating TDM in
practice to allow researchers to access publishers' data at one go, promoting common
standards for data formats or the creation of trusted intermediaries ensuring a safe
environment for the mining of content.
The Commission would monitor the implementation of the commitments made by
publishers to allow TDM for scientific purposes and to amend their licences respectively.
If no substantial improvements are achieved in the mid-term, the Commission would
consider proposing legislative changes as described in Options 2 to 4.
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders would support this non-legislative option. STM publishers in particular have asked the Commission
to pursue a self or co-regulatory approach on TDM following up on the Licences for Europe dialogue. They
consider that collaborative solutions identified together with non-commercial researchers would be a balanced
way forward and could yield concrete results more quickly. On the other hand, researchers are not in favour of
additional stakeholder dialogues if not accompanied by legislative changes (researchers' representatives left the
dialogue considering that licences-based solutions were not an appropriate way to fully solve the problems and
foster the development of TDM). 339
339
Idem.
107
Option 2 – Mandatory exception covering text and data mining for non-commercial
scientific research purposes.
This option would make mandatory for MS the implementation of an exception to the rights
of reproduction and of database extraction,340 with the following elements:
Beneficiaries: any user who has lawful access to content protected by copyright or by the
sui generis database right (e.g. a subscription to a scientific journal). Lawful access
would cover access to content through authorisation by content owners (e.g. subscriptions
to scientific journals) as well as access to publicly available content (e.g. open access
content).
Permitted uses: lawful users would be permitted to carry out the reproductions which are
necessary for the TDM process, as long as the TDM is carried out for non-commercial
scientific research purposes (within the meaning of the current research exceptions in the
EU copyright rules which are subject to the "non-commercial purposes" condition).341
The exception would not permit any communication to the public of the content being
mined.
Relationship with the licensing market: given that lawful access will often be granted
through contracts,342 legislative intervention would also make clear that contractual terms
that prevent or restrict uses permitted under the exception are null and void. At the same
time, rightholders would be allowed to apply proportionate measures which are necessary
to guarantee the security of the content as long as this does not unduly hamper uses
covered by the exception. Additionally, the legislative instrument would encourage
stakeholder dialogues aiming at setting up best practices and mutually agreed technical
solutions with regard to security aspects.
Compensation: the exception would not be subject to the payment of fair compensation to
rightholders as its specific features, notably the lawful access condition, allow
rightholders to keep generating revenues from the access to their content, notably through
subscription licences.
Interaction with the current exceptions: the current research exceptions in the InfoSoc and
Database directives would remain untouched and continue to apply outside the scope of
the new TDM exception. The exception under this option would also be without
prejudice to the transient copies exception under Article 5(1) of the InfoSoc Directive.
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders, publishers in particular, are strongly opposed to a legislative intervention introducing a TDM
exception at EU level. Their main concern is an exception would facilitate the misuse and piracy of their content
and make them lose business opportunities in future. This option would be the least opposed by rightholders
among the legislative options as it is clearly limited to TDM carried out for non-commercial research purposes.
While it would go some way in addressing the problem (and to pursue their the "right to mine is the right to
read" objective) researchers are likely to consider it insufficient to provide full legal certainty for TDM because
of the "non-commercial" condition, in particular when research projects are carried out by public interest
research organisations in partnerships with commercial operators.343
340
Article 2 of the Infosoc Directive and Articles 5(a) and 7(1) of the Database Directive.
341
Also to be noted that, consistently with current EU rules (e.g. recital 36 of the Database Directive), the
term scientific research covers both the natural sciences and the human sciences.
342
This is the case of lawful access through subscription contracts. The situation is different notably for
open access content and publicly available websites.
343
To be noted that similar discussions arose in the context of the 2014 TDM exception adopted in the UK,
which is very similar to the EU exception considered under Option 3.
108
Option 3 – Mandatory exception applicable to public interest research organisations
covering text and data mining for the purposes of both non-commercial and commercial
scientific research
As Option 2 for all the points344 except for the beneficiaries of the exception and the purpose
of the scientific research which would be as follows:
The exception would only apply to research organisations carrying out research in the
public interest as opposed to commercial companies that would not be beneficiaries of the
exception under this option. The concept of research organisations would be defined in
the legal instrument to encompass different organisations across MS which have as their
primary goal to conduct scientific research either on a non-for profit basis or pursuant to a
public interest mission. This will cover for example universities, research institutes and
similar research organisations.
At the same time, the exception would go beyond Option 2 in the sense that it would
permit research organisations as defined above to carry out TDM on content they have
lawful access to irrespective from the non-commercial or commercial purpose of their
scientific research. This would cover notably research projects carried out in the
framework of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs, which may have an ultimate commercial
outcome).
Stakeholders' views
Researchers generally consider this option favourably as it would increase legal certainty for their organisations
to perform TDM, including in the context of PPPs. At the same time part of the research community has
expressed the concern that the concept of public interest organisation could be difficult to define and, more
generally that a TDM exception should be extended to anybody who has lawful access and covering both non-
commercial and commercial research. Rightholders are against any legal intervention, but they may favour this
option as compared to a broader exception as the intervention would be limited to public interest research
organisations.
Option 4 – Mandatory exception applicable to anybody who has lawful access (including
both public interest research organisations and businesses) covering text and data
mining for any scientific research purposes.
Main elements:
As Option 2 but under this option the exception would permit any user who has lawful
access to carry out TDM for the purposes of both non-commercial and commercial
scientific research. Differently from the other legislative options, the exception would not
be limited to non-commercial use (Option 2) nor to specific beneficiaries (Option 3). In
practice this intervention would cover TDM for scientific research beyond public
research area, notably when carried out by commercial operators such as life science
companies.
Stakeholders' views
The research community supports this option as it would fully pursue their objective that anybody who has
lawful access should be entitled to mine the content without additional authorisation or conditions. This option
would be strongly opposed by rightholders. Publishers in particular take the view that such a large exception
would significantly interfere with the TDM licensing market in the commercial sector, mainly in the area of life
science. Commercial companies carrying out scientific research have generally not raised problems with
commercial TDM licences, nor have generally requested the Commission to take action in this area.
344
In particular, the reasons explained under Option 2 which justify the fact that the exception should not
be subject to compensation are also valid under this option.
109
4.3.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The assessment below is mainly qualitative. Quantitative market data have been provided by stakeholders with
regard in particular to costs for researchers arising from legal uncertainty and current licensing practices of
rightholders (in particular scientific and press publishers). The options are assessed both as regards their
economic and social impacts. They are expected to mainly affect two majors groups of stakeholders - researchers
seeking to carry out TDM and rightholders whose content is analysed through TDM. The impacts affecting these
two groups are presented separately and focusing on most significant and likely impacts for each category. The
impacts on technology companies (data analytics service providers) are not specifically described below as these
services are deemed not to be directly affected by the options proposed. Indirectly, intervention on TDM is
expected to have a positive impact on technology service providers, including SMEs and start-ups, notably as the
proposed intervention aims at creating a better legal framework for TDM in the EU which in turns should
increase the market opportunities for these players as technology partners or service providers of research
organisations performing TDM. SMEs performing research activities will also indirectly benefit from the
intervention as private partners in PPPs with "public interest" research organisations.
For researchers, the impacts assessed relate to the legal uncertainty around the use of TDM for scientific research
purposes and the related transaction costs, notably finding out what is permissible under existing licences or
under national law, including the laws of different MS for cross-border projects. The assessment mainly covers
researchers in "public interest" research organisations which have been identified as those for whom there is the
strongest evidence of a problem.345 The impacts on the usage of TDM for in-house scientific research by
commercial companies such as life science or technology ones are described only for the option that affects them
indirectly (Option 3) or directly (Option 4).
For rightholders, the impacts assessed are mainly on their licensing revenues and on the security and protection
of their content. The impacts on the licensing revenues comprise TDM licences, both for commercial and non-
commercial use, as well as impact on revenues from the subscriptions market. Impacts are mainly assessed as
regards rightholders in the publishing sector, since this is currently by far the main area for TDM carried out for
scientific research purposes. This includes in particular scientific publishers, who largely generate revenues
from access to their content via subscriptions agreements which may allow or not TDM346. Other relevant
rightholders include news publishers who possess important databases, notably archives, which may be of
importance for certain areas of research (notably languages and humanities). However, the commercial value of
the press archives and other news content is expected to remain untouched due to the "lawful access" condition
and the fact that none of the options considered in the IA allows the communication to the public of the mined
content. TDM-based research may in some cases be carried out also on copyright protected content other than
text-based publications (i.e. AV and music347) However, we have not yet found evidence of significant impact in
these areas, which are therefore not specifically analysed in the IA. Open access publications are an increasingly
important channel of scholarly publications. Since open access licences generally do not limit TDM, the impact
on "pure" open access publishers is not discussed in detail either (see below on the coherence of the options
with EU open access policy). Finally, TDM could be used by researchers on copyright protected content publicly
accessible on the internet. The impact on rightholders in content freely available online is not discussed as it is
considered to be marginal since all the options relate to content to which the user has lawful access.
Social impacts are examined in relation to the benefits of European research for society and to the EU
attractiveness as a research area. The policy options presented are coherent with and support another important
area of EU policy, i.e. open access policy that aims at greater sharing of public-funded research results and
thereby improve scientific research, as well as the European Open Science Cloud and Innovation Union.348 The
345
See problem definition.
346
Scientific publishers, including those who traditionally published only under a subscription model, are
increasingly publishing part of their content under open access licences. However, subscriptions remain
at the moment an essential part of the business model and revenues sources of many scientific
publishers. See Annex 11A.
347
For example, the British National Library reported some projects using mining of music recordings; in
the audio-visual sector, the French National Audiovisual Institute (INA) has developed mining tools for
audio and video content (see e.g. http://www.otmedia.fr).
348
See Annex 11A. The impact on open access is increasingly positive going from Option 1 to 4 and is
therefore not specifically mentioned in the assessment of the various options below.
110
options all concern scientific research and are not expected to affect cultural diversity. Impact on fundamental
rights is explained for relevant options and with regard to fundamental freedoms which would be impacted.349
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Researchers
Impact on legal certainty and transaction costs: problems faced by public interest research
organisations are likely to remain largely unsolved under this option. Publishers' market
driven initiatives aiming at facilitating mining for non-commercial purposes on the basis of
licences will continue to be developed.350 Over time more publishers are likely to include
TDM clauses in their subscriptions or provide open access solutions.351 This would improve
legal certainty for researchers to some extent. However different licensing terms and
conditions would stay at least in part.352 Researchers' resistance to TDM offers based on
licences is likely to continue for the reasons mentioned above (see problem definition):
Fragmentation in the single market as a result of different TDM laws across MS would also
remain unsolved and is likely to worsen as more MS are likely to adopting national TDM
exceptions in the absence of EU intervention. Overall, the objective of ensuring full legal
certainty for researchers seeking to mine the copyright-protected content they have lawful
access to would not be achieved.
Rightholders
Impact on TDM licensing market and the revenues thereof: TDM may increasingly be
included in subscription licences that scientific publishers conclude with public interest
organisations such as universities and licensing-based tools may be developed further (see
above). However, these developments are not likely to result in substantial increase in
revenues for publishers, given on the one hand the resistance of researchers to these offers and
on the other hand the unlikely increase of licensing fees due to the inclusion of TDM in
subscription licences.353 The adoption of national TDM exceptions by an increasing number
of MS could progressively erode publishers' ability to licence TDM across the EU. However
national exceptions would have to be limited by the "non-commercial" condition set out in the
current EU rules and, if drafted along the lines of the 2014 UK precedent ("lawful access"
condition, exception limited to the reproduction right) they would not directly affect the
publishers' subscription market. Under the baseline scenario, scientific publishers are likely to
continue to expand the TDM licensing offers for the commercial market (e.g. pharmaceutical
and life-science companies) – often in the context of added value packages including not only
TDM as such but also providing additional facilities (e.g. pre-formatting of data, direct
injections into existing databases etc.). Revenues from commercial licences are likely to
increase substantially over time (see Option 4).
349
Notably copyright as a property right, freedom of art and science. Privacy (Articles 7 and 8 of the
Charter of fundamental rights of the European Union) is not impacted as none of the options concern
access to or further communication of content, and privacy and personal data protection rules continue
to apply.
350
See Annex 11D. STM indicated that end 2015 around 50 % of STM journal content was minable
through Cross-Ref (by licensed users).
351
See problem definition.
352
Including different TDM policies as regards for example content that can be mined in a given amount of
time, download speed, etc.
353
STM publishers committed in Licences for Europe to include TDM in their subscriptions licences with
universities "at no additional costs". We have not found evidence of a substantial increase of price of
subscription licences with non-commercial users that include TDM.
111
Impact on the protection of content: publishers would continue to be able to use licences as a
mean to impose technical and contractual means to protect their content (ensure that only
authorised users can access and carry out TDM and protect their databases from massive
downloads).
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The persisting copyright related problem slowing down the development of TDM in European
research would, at least in part, remain unsolved. This could contribute to Europe losing
attractiveness as a research area on a worldwide scale, for example as regards EU universities'
ability to attract and retain top quality scientists.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The baseline would have no impact resulting from EU action on copyright as a fundamental
right and on research, protected under the fundamental right of freedom of art and science
under Article 13 of the Charter.
Option 1 – Fostering industry self-regulation initiatives without changes to EU legal
framework
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Researchers
Impact on legal certainty and transaction costs: Public interest research organisations could
potentially benefit from more legal certainty as a result of a convergent industry approach to
TDM fostered by the Commission through structured stakeholder dialogues. This could also
limit to some extent the right-clearance costs. However, the effectiveness of this option is
largely dependent on the willingness of the different parties to reach mutually satisfactory
solutions. A voluntary approach to TDM was already tried at the time of "Licences for
Europe" without achieving satisfactory results for researchers as explained in the problem
definition. Despite market-related progresses following the commitments taken by STM
publishers as a result of Licences for Europe there is no indication that a voluntary approach
would be more successful now, given the substantial reluctance of researchers' representatives
to engage in discussions based on a licences-based approach to TDM for the reasons
explained above (potential persistence of different TDM conditions required by different
publishers in the face of the large scale of content which has to be mined in the context of
research)In addition, problems related to the risk of increasing fragmentation in the single
market as a consequence of MS adoption TDM exceptions, under different conditions, at
national level cannot be solved by a voluntary approach and require, by definition, legislative
intervention at EU level.
Rightholders
Impact on TDM licensing market and the revenues thereof: this option is likely to result in
some increase in costs for rightholders (notably publishers) because of the additional efforts
they would have to undertake under a structured self-regulatory approach to develop mining
infrastructures (notably "Cross Ref") and licensing offers. However, since public interest
research organisations are not likely to react favourably to these efforts (see above), this
option is not likely to bring about additional licensing opportunities for publishers. The
commercial market would not be addressed by stakeholder dialogues and therefore the impact
on publishers as regards commercial revenues would remain the same as for the baseline.
Impact on the protection of content: Cooperation with researchers in the context of structured
stakeholder dialogues may improve to some extent the convergence and users' acceptance of
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technical safeguards applied by publishers in the context of licences. As above, publishers
may incur additional costs arising from the technical safeguards acceptable to the researchers.
However, given the fact that the voluntary approach is not likely to result in commonly agreed
solutions as explained above, the overall impact of this option on the protection of content is
likely to be similar to the baseline.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Similar to the baseline as measures under this option have a voluntary character and are
therefore not expected to fully solve the legal uncertainty faced by researchers as regards
TDM.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Impact on copyright is the same as for the baseline. The impact on the right of freedom of art
and science would be only slightly positive.
Option 2 – Mandatory exception covering text and data mining for non-commercial
scientific research purposes
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Researchers
Impact on legal certainty and transaction costs: positive impact on researchers as legislative
intervention introducing a harmonised exception would increase legal certainty and reduce
rights clearance costs. Researchers would be able to mine scientific publications subscribed to
by their institution in full legal certainty as long as this is done for non-commercial scientific
research. In addition, transaction costs for public interest research organisations could be
considerably reduced. Comprehensive quantitative data on the transaction costs incurred by
research organisations seeking authorisation for TDM are not available. However, some
quantitative estimation of the costs saving can be generated on the basis of case-studies
provided by researchers' representatives.354 These examples point to costs ranging between
3,399 and 18,630 GBP for a research project based on mining 3,000 articles published in 187
journals by 75 different publishers.355 On a yearly basis, these transaction costs (and the
related savings) have been estimated to go up to 500,000 GBP for a large research
university.356 There is also some first indication of a positive impact on scientific research
projects based on TDM of the exception for non-commercial TDM introduced in the UK in
2014,357 which has comparable features to the exception considered under this option.
Quantitative data on the impact of the UK law are not available yet.
354
The case studies all refer to the UK before the adoption of the 2014 exception and also predate the
developments following the Licences for Europe dialogue.
355
Wellcome Trust, 2012, Box 2 p.10, cited in the study Assessing the economic impacts of adapting
certain limitations and exceptions to copy-right and related rights in the EU,
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/140623-limitations-economic-impacts-
study_en.pdf, pp. 68-69. In other cases researchers have given examples of mining projects requiring
authorisation from 120 different publishers: Ross Mounce: presentation in Licences for Europe (2013):
http://www.slideshare.net/rossmounce/content-mining
356
Source: ECL. Data calculated on the basis of a team of 10 extra staff plus academic time needed to
ensure that researchers are compliant.
357
New projects have been reported by researchers representatives in the UK to the UK IPO after the UK
TDM exception was introduced in 2014, notably in the field of medicine and biology. These include
Mining academic literature for molecular pathways found in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disears to
identify new targets for drug development; National Centre for Text Mining (NaCTeM) collaboration
with US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to mine biomedical tests to look for
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In spite of the positive impact of this option for public interest research organisations, some
legal uncertainty could remain because of the "non-commercial scientific research purposes"
condition. Researchers have raised the concern that a significant grey area would remain as
regards research projects carried out by public interest research organisations which may
eventually have a commercial outcome (as a result of a transfer of technology agreement or
other). This grey area may cast doubts in particular on research organisations' partnerships
with private operators (PPPs) which represent a large part of publicly funded (at EU or
national level) research projects.358
This option may in theory lead to an increase in subscription fees for public interest research
organisations if publishers raise the subscription fees to compensate for possible losses caused
by the exception (i.e. publishers may try to absorb the value of TDM in the subscription fee).
However, there is no evidence of any significant rise in the fees of subscription licences which
have included TDM over the last few years.359
Rightholders
Impact on TDM licensing market and the revenues thereof: Under this option rightholders,
notably scientific publishers would no longer be able to authorise or prohibit TDM of the
content they give researchers access to (as long as this is done for non-commercial scientific
purposes). However, this impact would largely be reduced by the "lawful access" condition,360
i.e. by the fact that the exception would not affect publishers' ability to continue to authorise
or prohibit access to their content and to generate revenues from selling subscriptions to
universities and other research organisations.361 As a consequence this option is not likely to
result in substantial changes to the publishers' business model, in particular as regards their
subscriptions market. Publishers would in principle lose the ability to licence TDM as a self-
standing use; however there is currently no evidence of a specific TDM market separate from
the subscription market in the academic/non-commercial context.362 The trend over the last
few years has been for STM publishers to gradually include TDM in the subscription licences
without significant increase of licences fees (as mentioned above). This seems to confirm the
absence of a significant extra value of TDM in the context of current subscription licences.
Similarly to STM publishers, the "lawful access" condition would substantially mitigate the
impact on other rightholders whose content could be relevant for mining purposes. Press
publishers have brought forward some examples of licences with research organisations
new cancer pathways; and Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Counsil (BBSRC) funded
project to mine images to extract phylogenetic relationships (relating to evolutionary history and
biology) from journal figures/illustrations to draw new conclusions in the field. The positive impact on
TDM activities of UK TDM exception has also been reported by LIBER at their intervention at the
European Commission Roundtable on TDM, February 2015:
http://libereurope.eu/blog/2015/02/23/liber-argues-for-pan-european-tdm-exception/
358
In the context of the 7th Research Framework Programme, about 34 % of all consortia included at least
one private for profit entity together with non-commercial players (e.g. universities or research
organisations). Roughly 67 % of the EC contribution was spent for these mixed consortia. It is likely
that these projects will be excluded from the scope of the exception.
359
See also baseline. Data on the impact on the subscription fees of the legislative reform in the UK which
has introduced a TDM exception are not yet available.
360
CRA study "Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and exceptions", May
2014, p.73.
361
Subscription licences with public interest research organisations represent around 70 % of STM
publishers global revenues. The main revenues linked to journal publishing are generated by academic
library subscriptions (68-75 %), see STM 2015 report.
362
CRA study, p. 77.
114
permitting TDM in addition to access to their content.363 In some fields, such as linguistic
research, newspapers may be an important source for analysis, and TDM may be the main
feature of licences (i.e. users primarily want to mine the content rather than to read it). In
these cases newspaper publishers (and other rightholders that may be in a comparable
situation) would in any case be able to factor in the value of TDM in the licence fee, given
that they would remain in control of the decision whether authorise or prohibit access to the
content.
Impact on the protection of content: Today rightholders may impose on users, through TDM
licences clauses, technical conditions which they consider important, among other things, to
prevent unauthorised uses of the content being mined and protect the technical stability of
their databases. As described in Annex 11B, these measures are, for example, APIs for
automated downloading, access limited to a determined range of IP addresses or other user
authentication measures, limits on the speed or number of downloads, etc. In view of the
current limited self-standing economic value of TDM in licences with universities/public
research organisations (see above), the possibility for STM publishers to impose such
conditions is often invoked as a key reason for them to retain the ability to licence TDM.
These rightholders' concerns would be mitigated by the introduction in legislation of a
provision allowing content owners to apply proportionate measures necessary to guarantee the
security of their systems without unduly hampering TDM. Additionally, stakeholder dialogues
would encourage the identification of mutually agreed technical solutions and best practices
(see the description of the option above).
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Positive impact as the harmonisation of the EU legal framework for researchers carrying out
TDM is expected to contribute to improving Europe's potential as a research area on the
worldwide scale, including its ability to retain and attract top quality researchers, with the
ensuing positive consequences in terms of scientific and societal progress. The research
productivity gains which could be triggered by a clarification of the EU rules applicable to
TDM have been estimated by some at 2 % and the impact on GDP growth at 0.26 %.364
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
There would be an impact on copyright as a fundamental right but the current balance
between rights and exceptions will not be substantially altered by this option, as EU law
already contains exceptions allowing uses of IP protected content for the purposes of non-
commercial scientific research. The impact on freedom of art and science would be positive.
363
Comprehensive data and information on the size and value of the TDM licensing market for press
publisher is not available. However, the Commission has received information from specific press
publishers indicating that at least in their cases TDM licences constitute a relevant business opportunity.
These revenues would remain unaffected under this option due to the lawful access condition.
364
See Chapter 3 in the Expert Group Report (2014) on "Standardisation in the field of Text and Data
Mining, http://ec.europa.eu/research/innovation-union/pdf/TDM-report_from_the_expert_group-
042014.pdf
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Option 3 – Mandatory exception applicable to public interest research organisations
covering text and data mining for the purposes of both non-commercial and commercial
scientific research
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Researchers
Impact on legal certainty and transaction costs: Similar positive impact as under Option 2 as
regards both legal certainty and reduction of transaction costs, as a result of the introduction
of an exception harmonised at EU level. Additional positive impact as this option would
remove the legal uncertainty and the grey area as regards the research projects carried out by
public organisations with a possible commercial outcome, including in cooperation of these
organisations with private partners (PPPs).
Corporate research users
Commercial companies are not among the beneficiaries of the exception under this option.
They have generally not asked EU intervention in this area as a B2B licensing market exists
(see Option 4). This option is not expected to have a significant indirect impact on these
players as their needs in relation to TDM are generally different than those of universities and
other public interest research organisations (see Option 4).
Rightholders
Impact on TDM licensing market and the revenues thereof: The legal technique to define the
scope of the exception is different, however this option is not expected to have a substantially
different impact on rightholders than Option 2. In particular, the fact that the exception would
not be subject to the "non-commercial purposes" condition is compensated by the application
of the exception only to research organisations. The mitigating effect of "lawful access"
condition would apply also under this option (see above) and as a result the intervention is not
expected to result in significant changes to the publishers' business models, in particular as
regards their subscription market. Like Option 2, this option would leave untouched the
purely commercial TDM market which constitutes an important source of licensing revenues
for STM publishers (e.g. licences with life science companies- see Option 4).
Impact on the protection of their content: Similar to Option 2.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Similar or larger positive impacts than under Option 2 because of increased legal certainty for
researchers under this option.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Increased impact on copyright since the present option is not limited to non-commercial
purposes. However, the impact is mitigated by the “lawful access” condition and the fact that
the beneficiaries would not include commercial operators. In all the current balance between
rights and exceptions in the area of research is only going to be altered in the margins by this
option. On the other hand this option would have an incremental positive impact on the
freedom of art and science.
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Option 4 – Mandatory exception covering applicable to anybody who has lawful access
(including both public interest research organisations and businesses) covering text and
data mining for non-commercial and commercial scientific research purposes.
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Researchers
Impact on legal certainty and transaction costs: The impact of Option 4 on research
organisations is similar to Option 3.
Corporate research users
Differently from the other options, because of the broader scope of application of the
exception, Option 4 would specifically benefit researchers in commercial companies as they
would no longer need a specific licence to mine content to which they have lawful access to.
However, corporate users, notably life-science companies, benefit today from a functioning
licensing market for TDM of scientific publications and they have not requested any
intervention at EU level. TDM is often licensed to these users as part of a wider licensing
agreement with rightholders including several uses and services that go well beyond what the
exception would allow them to get for TDM purposes (notably in terms of formats, structured
data, getting direct feeds into their own databases etc.). Therefore corporate users are likely to
continue to purchase value added services from content owners. This option also entails a risk
that publishers may increase the subscription fees for commercial users to compensate for the
loss of TDM related revenues (this is more likely to happen with corporate users than with
universities because of the different purchasing power, at least as regards larger commercial
operators).365
Rightholders
Impact on TDM licensing market and the revenues thereof: This option would have a more
significant negative impact on rightholders. As a consequence of the broad scope of the
exception, STM publishers would no longer be able to licence TDM for scientific research
purposes to commercial players, which represent an essential market for them, notably in
areas such as life science and pharmaceutical.366 Industry estimates the value of the
commercial TDM market (in Europe) to be worth more than 56 million euros by 2019.367 Two
major STM publishers alone currently have 302 existing TDM licences with life science
companies, which is a significant figure given the characteristics of the market.368Publishers
indicate that the use of TDM is also increasing outside the life science and pharmaceutical
industry, including in sectors such as financial services and chemical manufacturing.369
Similarly to the other legislative options, this option would in principle not remove
rightholders' ability to generate revenues from selling access to their content. However, deals
between STM publishers and corporate users usually include TDM as part of comprehensive
agreements covering a whole series of usage rights and added value services mentioned
365
In that sense, it is noteworthy to mention (at least as an indication) that some open access publishers
already charge more for a CC-BY licence (allowing commercial use) than for a CC-BY-NC licence (not
allowing commercial use), in order to compensate the loss of revenue linked to commercial reuse (See
STM report (2015), p. 21).
366
According to the 2015 STM report "TDM is most common in life sciences research, in particular within
pharmaceutical companies, but relatively little used elsewhere" (2015 STM report, p. 146). Increase
though is reported in the chemical manufacturing sector (See Annex 11A).
367
Source: STM.
368
Publishing industry sources.
369
For more information, see Annex 11A.
117
above. The introduction of an exception would lower the value of these agreements, since
TDM rights as such can no longer be subject to licence. Rightholders may try to compensate
the value lost as a consequence of the legislative intervention by raising licences fees for
access and other uses/value added services. However, it is not clear whether and to what
extent they would manage to do so. Therefore this option is likely to bring about compliance
costs and more significant changes to rightholders' business models than under the previous
legislative options. The impact is likely to be all the more significant given the TDM
commercial market's growth potential.
Impact on the protection of their content: Similar as Option 2 but the level of the impact
would be higher due to a wider range of users potentially covered by this option.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Similar to Option 3.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
There would be a more negative impact on copyright as a fundamental right as the current
balance between rights and exceptions in the area of research set by the current EU legal
framework would be altered more substantially. The impact on freedom of research would be
positive.
4.3.1. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on Social
stakeholders Impact/Impact on
Fundamental
Rights
Baseline (0) Legal (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts on (0) No direct social
uncertainty for associated with the stakeholders would impact or or impacts
digital/online and baseline option depend on reforms at on fundamental
cross-border uses national level or rights as a
would persist developments in the consequence of EU
licensing market action.
Option 1 – (0/+) Not likely to (0/-) Limited costs (0/+) Main impacts (0/+) Problems
Fostering be effective due to for rightholders on stakeholders which contribute to
industry self- unwillingness of the who take would depend on slow down Europe
regulation parties to find commitments (need commitments taken as a research area
initiatives mutually to change existing by industry. likely to remain
without changes satisfactory licensing to allow largely unsolved
to the EU legal solutions on the TDM for scientific (0) No impact on
framework basis of the current research purposes). copyright.
legal framework. (0/+) Slightly
positive impact on
the right of freedom
of art and science.
Option 2 – (+) Would ensure (-) Limited (+) Increase in legal (+) Positive social
Mandatory increased legal compliance costs certainty and impact on Europe's
exception certainty for for rightholders reduction of attractiveness as a
covering text researchers carrying because of the need transaction costs for research area.
and data mining out TDM for non- to adapt licences researchers carrying (-) Limited negative
for non- commercial with public interest out TDM for non- impact on the right
commercial purposes research commercial purpose. of property
scientific organisations Some legal (+) Positive impact
research following the uncertainty persists on the right of
introduction of the for PPP research freedom of art and
exception. projects. science.
(-) Limited negative
118
effect on publishers'
TDM licensing
market
Option 3 – (++) Would ensure (-)Limited (++) Increase in legal (+) Positive social
Mandatory legal certainty for compliance costs certainty and impact on Europe's
exception public interest for rightholders reduction of attractiveness as a
applicable to research because of the need transaction costs for research area
public interest organisations to adapt licences researchers, including (-) Limited negative
research carrying out TDM with public interest for research carried impact on the right
organisations both for research out via PPPs of property
covering text commercial and organisations (-) Limited negative (+) Positive impact
and data mining non-commercial following the effect on publishers' on the right of
for the purposes purposes introduction of the TDM licensing freedom of art and
of both non- exception market. science.
commercial and
commercial
scientific
research
Option 4 – (++) Would ensure (--) High (++) Increase in legal (+) Positive social
Mandatory legal certainty for compliance costs certainty and impact on Europe's
exception researchers, for publishers who reduction of attractiveness as a
applicable to including may need to transaction costs for research area
anybody who researches in renegotiate a researchers carrying (--) Negative impact
has lawful access commercial entities, significant number out TDM both for on the right of
(both public carrying out TDM of business commercial and non- property
interest both for agreements with commercial purposes (+) Positive impact
organisations commercial and their commercial (--) As the exception on the right of
and businesses) non-commercial customers would cover all freedom of art and
covering text purposes researchers, including science.
and data mining commercial
for any scientific customers, this option
research would have a
purposes of both considerable negative
non-commercial effect on publisher's
and commercial TDM licensing
scientific market
research.
Option 3 is the preferred option. This option would create a high level of legal certainty
and reduce transaction costs for researchers with a limited impact on rightholders'
licensing market and limited compliance costs. In comparison, Option 1 would be
significantly less effective and Option 2 would not achieve sufficient legal certainty for
researchers, in particular as regards PPPs.
Proportionality and impact on MS: Option 3 allows reaching the policy objectives in a more
proportionate manner than Option 4, which would entail significant foregone costs for
rightholders, notably as regards licences with corporate researchers. In particular, Option 3
would intervene where there is a specific evidence of a problem (legal uncertainty for
public interest organisations) without affecting the purely commercial market for TDM
where intervention does not seem to be justified. In all, Option 3 has the best costs-benefits
trade off as it would bring higher benefits (including in terms of reducing transaction costs) to
researchers without additional foregone costs for rightholders. The preferred option is also
coherent with the EU open access policy and would achieve a good balance between
copyright as a property right and the freedom of art and science.
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All MS would need to adopt legislation to implement the new exception on TDM in their
legal orders. Those MS who have adopted specific TDM exceptions at national level may
have to adapt them in order to take into account the scope of the EU exception.
4.4. PRESERVATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE
4.4.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Preservation by cultural heritage institutions (CHIs) faces legal uncertainty in the
new technological environment
Description of the problem: An important function of libraries, archives, museums and other
institutions is to preserve cultural heritage: 90 % of cultural heritage institutions (CHIs)
responding to a recent survey carried out on behalf of Europeana declared that they have
collections that need to be preserved for future generations.370 As in many cases preserving
works requires copying them, the societal importance of preservation371 is reflected in
national exceptions to the reproduction right for preservation purposes, which implement an
optional EU exception for "specific acts of reproduction" by certain institutional users.372 The
space allowed for preservation activities under national exceptions is however sometimes
narrow, unclear, not adapted or explicit enough to cover preservation in digital environments
and of works in digital form. It varies from MS to MS. This creates legal uncertainty for CHIs
and can lead to desirable preservation activities not taking place. CHIs have generally
reported problems with this situation.373
Preservation copying addresses for example the degradation of the original material and the
disappearance of the technologies and devices underpinning its readability. The British
Library, for instance, estimates that many of the 6,500 items that make up its sound collection,
which come in 42 different physical formats, will become unreadable within 15 years in the
absence of action.374 Technology allows for 'digitisation', i.e. the creation of digital
equivalents or so-called 'surrogates' of works originally on analogue supports (for example
paper), which is also done for preservation purposes.375 Furthermore, 'digital preservation', i.e.
the preservation of works in digital form, both resulting from digitisation and 'born-digital'
370
G.J. Nauta – W. van den Heuvel, DEN Foundation on behalf of Europeana/ENUMERATE, "Survey
Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2015", June 2015. See Annex 9A for
an overview and examples of CHIs in Europe and their holdings.
371
The importance of cultural heritage preservation is reflected in EU policy on digital cultural heritage,
notably as outlined in the Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16
November 2005 on film heritage and the competitiveness of related industrial activities (2005/865/CE),
the Commission Recommendation on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and
digital preservation (2011/711/EU), the Council conclusions on the digitisation and online accessibility
of cultural material and digital preservation (10-12 May 2012), and the Commission Communication
"Towards an integrated approach to cultural heritage for Europe" (COM(2014) 477 final).
372
The exception applies to publicly accessible libraries, educational establishments and museums, as well
as archives (Article 5(2)c of the InfoSoc Directive). Its implementation in MS covers preservation or
similar notions (like 'conservation'), but can also apply to other or less defined library activities, like
'internal purposes of the institution' or 'administration and organisation' of the collections.
373
Notably in the 2013-2014 public consultation.
374
British Library, "Living Knowledge: the British Library 2015-2023", September 2015.
375
On the concept and purposes of 'digitisation', as applied to preservation and to the digitisation and
dissemination of out-of-commerce works in the collections of CHIs (section 3.4), see Annex 9B.
120
works,376 raises specific issues. Those works can be subject to quicker degradation than
content in analogue form, often with no notice to the human eye, and to quick technological
obsolescence.377 Digital content can then require media migration and 'format-shifting', i.e.
copying content onto more adequate media or formats.378 It can also warrant proactive
preservation from the day works are acquired into a collection. Digital preservation is also
seen as a continual process, rather than a series of discrete and occasional interventions. More
generally, digitisation and digital preservation confront CHIs with complex, open technical
questions and can imply considerable costs.379 CHIs indicate that a number of these
challenges cannot be addressed by individual institutions, many of which will not have the
resources to undertake digital preservation on their own. This is reflected in ongoing
collaborative R&D and standardisation efforts, and an increasing interest in sharing
infrastructure and work in networks, including across MS.380
The holdings of CHIs in the EU are vast: it was estimated that, for example, European
libraries hold between 59 and 95 million individual book titles and museums almost 75,43
million works of art.381 Data on the copyright-protected portion of these is difficult to obtain,
especially at aggregate level, but it is expected to be substantial, particularly for certain types
of works: a study382 estimated the amount of public domain works, (i.e. those that are not
protected by copyright) in CHI collections at only 12 % for books (in general in the EU), at 18
% for the British Library Sound Archive and at 30 % for musical compositions in the
Cambridge University Library. It can therefore be expected that the problems described above
potentially concern a large number of works in Europe.
Drivers: [Variable, unclear and narrow implementation of the preservation exception in MS]
The implementation in national laws of the current, optional EU exception applicable to
preservation varies and can be limited and/or unclear in scope.383 This can be the case for the
376
'Born-digital works' are works that were created directly in digital form, as opposed to a conversion
from an analogue source.
377
The British Library's "Digital Preservation Strategy 2013-2016" (March 2013) describes these
characteristics as the "inherent instability and transient nature" of digital content.
378
These practices are for example acknowledged as "essential" for preservation purposes in the 2012
"Statement on the Implementation of (Statutory and Voluntary) Deposit Schemes for Non-Print
Publications" by the Conference of European National Librarians (CENL) and the Federation of
European Publishers (FEP). The choice of the best media or formats for preservation purposes depends
on a variety of factors like for example the level of their adoption, any dependencies on other formats
and systems, size and complexity aspects etc.
379
A recent study estimated in €500 million the cost of preserving the DE film heritage alone ("DE 2015-
2013 national report on the implementation of the Commission Recommendation on Digitisation and
Online Accessibility of Cultural Material and Digital Preservation"). A cultural heritage expert
described digital preservation to Commission services as "a new science".
380
This aspect, along with issues related to the national implementation of the current exception for
'specific acts of reproduction' emerged frequently in institutional user responses to the 2013-2014 public
consultation.
381
See Annex 9A for estimations and data on the magnitude of CHIs collections at aggregate and
institutional level.
382
R. Pollock – P. Stepan, "The size of the EU public domain", 2009. The study only aimed at providing a
gross estimation of the public domain in Europe and is based on a number of approximations. See also
J. Boulanger et al., "Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and exceptions to
copyright and related rights. Analysis of specific policy options", Charles River Associates, May 2014.
383
See J-P. Triaille et all., "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related
rights in the information society", De Wolf & Partners, December 2013, European Commission,
"Report on the Implementation of Commission Recommendation 2011/711/EU – 2013-2015", 2016,
and European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of the European Parliament and Council
Recommendation on Film Heritage 2012-2013", 2014.
121
categories of beneficiary institutions: for example the exception only refers to archives in DE.
Certain categories of works can also be excluded from the scope of the national exception,
like in IT where record and film archives can only reproduce phonograms and videograms.
The specific purposes and uses allowed and other applicable conditions also change: the
possibility of making digital copies, like in EE, or format shifting, like in NL, is rarely
explicitly covered in other MS. This can for example prevent a library from creating a digital
equivalent of a sound recording from an analogue support. The number of copies that may be
made can be limited to one, like in IT, contrasting with the need of multiple copies that is
often inherent to digital preservation.
[Disproportionate transaction costs] Where an exception is not applicable, the potential
transaction costs implied by the need for CHIs to obtain authorisation from rightholders can
be disproportionate: if on the one hand the time and resources required to establish the
copyright status of works, find and contact rightholders and obtain their authorisation can be
considerable,384 on the other hand the likelihood that rightholders refuse authorisations or seek
remuneration is low as suggested by relevant case studies.385 The economic value of a
possible licence only covering this use is likely to be insignificant, considering the limited
economic interest for rightholders of copies that are made for no other purpose than
preservation of works that CHIs already have.
The authorisation of rightholders for preservation copying is in some particular cases
explicitly foreseen. However, this normally occurs as part of broader licences or agreements
that are first and foremost concerned with access to works by CHIs (and its final users) and/or
their acquisition of permanent copies (which they can then permanently host, e.g. on their
servers, for subsequent preservation). These licences do not have as their primary focus the
conditions of preservation (the problem addressed here), and exist in some specific contexts
only, notably in instruments on voluntary deposit of works386 concluded between certain
categories of rightholders and CHIs, and in scientific publishing licences. The latter can
alternatively also refer preservation to well-established third-party specialised
384
These transaction costs can be reduced by the effect of innovative tools and projects like ARROW and
FORWARD (see more in Annex 9I), and the database foreseen by the Orphan Works Directive. Except
for the Orphan Works database, these tools are however only relevant for a part of the relevant
transaction costs and are only available for certain types of works.
385
For example, in a project carried out by ANLux, the national archives of Luxembourg, related to
photographs from the 1950-1970s, most authorisations sought from 22 photographers (or their heirs)
were provided for free. In a separate example, only one out of the 17 rightholders that gave
authorisation to digitise their work asked for a fee (see: B. Stratton, "Seeking new landscapes. A rights
clearance study in the context of mass digitisation of 140 books published between 1870 and 2010",
2011). As being about digitisation and making available of works (rather than preservation), these
examples belong to the uses treated under section 3.4, and are used here by analogy on the reasonable
assumption that the value for rightholders of making available of a work online is higher than that of
simple preservation copying. They are illustrated more in detail in Annex 9D.
386
For example the 2012 "Statement on the Implementation of (Statutory and Voluntary) Deposit Schemes
for Non-Print Publications" by the Conference of European National Librarians (CENL) and the
Federation of European Publishers (FEP), and the 2010 Framework Agreement to Establish Procedures
for Voluntary Deposits of Film with Preservation Archives concluded between the Association of
European Film Libraries (ACE) and the International Federation of Film Producers Associations
(FIAPF) and the associated template for bilateral agreements. The acquisition of copies by CHIs does
not require agreements with rightholders where deposit is a legal obligation. This type of agreements
can however still be relevant in that context for other aspects, like for example cooperation between
parties on delivery methods or formats, and conditions for access of works by end-users.
122
organisations.387 Rightholders often referred to these solutions as responding well to the
current preservation needs.388
Consequences: The lack of timely preservation of works is first and foremost a cultural and
social concern, and the extent of the problem is difficult to quantify. Variations in the scope of
national preservation exceptions are also an obstacle to cooperation possibilities and
efficiency gains that can be achieved in the single market. For example, a frequent practice in
digital preservation is to store different digital copies of the same work in a minimum number
of separate locations, each requiring dedicated infrastructure. Divergent legal frameworks can
be a barrier to the possibility to share such infrastructure among CHIs located in different MS,
and therefore have an impact on the broader problem of high technical costs associated to
digital preservation.
How the problem would evolve: The future evolution of the problem is difficult to predict, but
its general magnitude is likely to increase over time, given the gradual shift to digital in the
production, dissemination and preservation of works, as shown by the fact that already today
on average 60 % of CHIs collect born-digital material.389 This trend is clear in the individual
institution examples like the British Library, which estimated the digital content stored in its
long-term digital library system to amount to 280 terabytes and 11,500,000 items in 2013,
with an expected increase to approximately 5 petabytes by 2020.390 Some MS have recently
modified their national exceptions, for example the UK, but such evolution cannot be
expected to take place spontaneously in a coordinated manner across the EU.
4.4.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
The general and specific objectives are described in section 4.1.3.
Baseline
No policy intervention. Reproduction of works for preservation purposes by CHIs would
continue to take place only as permitted under the different conditions and the varying space
provided by the national implementation of the existing EU exception for 'specific acts of
reproduction', or after the reproduction right has been cleared with rightholders if CHIs
consider that the transaction costs involved is for them worth and possible to incur. In
voluntary legal deposit contexts and for parts of scientific publications that libraries have
387
In scientific publishing, subscription licences to electronic resources that are made available remotely to
library users by a publisher can also foresee the delivery of a permanent archival copy to the contracting
library and preservation copies as part of authorised uses. According to a survey by the International
Association of Scientific, Technical and Medical Publishers (STM) among a part of its members, 87%
of subscription licences allowed for preservation copies by the licensee or foresaw other preservation
arrangements. The latter include systems, based on cooperation between publishers and research
libraries, which usually entrust preservation to third-party entities, based on prior authorisation by
publishers. Well-known examples are the e-Depot (managed by the Dutch National Library), LOCKSS,
CLOCKSS, and Portico. These mechanisms are however also concerned with the subsequent making
available of works under certain conditions (notably 'trigger events', for example the publisher being no
longer in business). An overview of these 'keeper' initiatives is available from the Keepers' Registry
(http://thekeepers.org).
388
Including in the 2013-2014 public consultation.
389
G.J. Nauta – W. van den Heuvel, DEN Foundation on behalf of Europeana/ENUMERATE, "Survey
Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2015", June 2015. See also Annex 9A
for examples of the extent of digital collections.
390
British Library, "Digital Preservation Strategy 2013-2016", March 2013.
123
access to remotely, preservation could continue to take place within broader agreement-based
systems.391
Stakeholders' views
CHIs consider that the identified problems would not be solved in the absence of policy action. Rightholders, on
the contrary, overall maintain that the current legal framework for preservation by CHIs is adequate and would
be in favour of no intervention.392
Option 1 - Guidance to MS and peer review mechanism on the implementation of the
EU exception on 'specific acts of reproduction' for preservation purposes
The Commission would provide guidance on the maximum scope of the current
exception on 'specific acts of reproduction' as applicable to preservation purposes
(categories of works, including those born-digital, beneficiaries and uses), while ensuring
compliance with the three-step test.
In addition, it would also initiate a 'peer review' among MS aimed to the comparison of
national implementations of the EU exception and mutual learning as to the maximum
space that it allows.
Stakeholders' views
Some CHIs would see some value in this option as possibly leading to a more shared understanding of the
challenges of preservation in the digital age and to legislative change in individual MS. They would however
consider it also insufficient, notably with regard to collaboration in cross-border contexts. Rightholders would
consider this option unnecessary for the same reasons as outlined under the baseline scenario.
Option 2 - Mandatory harmonised exception for preservation purposes by cultural
heritage institutions
This option would require MS to implement a mandatory exception to the reproduction right
with the following elements:
Beneficiaries: CHIs engaged in preservation activities, i.e. publicly accessible libraries,
museums, as well as archives and film or audio heritage institutions. Beneficiaries would
be allowed to outsource activities covered by the exception, for example to technical
service suppliers.
Subject-matter covered: all types of works and other protected subject matter in the
permanent collection of the beneficiaries, intended as works on carriers (e.g. books,
minidisc, tapes) that they own or are permanently deposited with them, or embodied in
files that they already own or host on a permanent basis (for example as a result of a
contractual agreement allowing for the downloading or transfer of archival copies for
permanent hosting, or of legal deposit legislation).
Permitted uses: beneficiary institutions would be able to perform all acts of reproduction
and make as many copies as necessary for preservation purposes, into any format and
media, irrespective of the technique used and of the state of a given work (for example,
even before degradation has started). The exception would only cover the reproduction
right (and the database extraction right in the case of the protection of non-original
datasets). It would as such not permit further distribution or uses of the content, for
example its making available.
391
See section 4.4.1.
392
This position was very broadly shared among right holder respondents in the 2013-2014 public
consultation, which emphasised preference for licensing solutions and voluntary cooperation.
124
Relationship with the licensing market: as applicable to permanent collections as
described above, the exception would per se have no bearing on the ability of rightholders
to authorise or prohibit the acquisition of permanent copies by CHIs, and more generally
on the licensing market, and their ability to take measures to preserve the stability and
security of their systems through which access to electronic resources is provided.
Compensation: for the reasons explained in the previous point, MS may not subject the
exception to fair compensation.
Interaction with the current exception: outside of the scope of this mandatory exception,
the existing (optional) exception for 'specific acts of reproduction' under Article 5(2)c of
the InfoSoc Directive would continue to apply, as relevant in uses other than
preservation.
Stakeholders' views
CHIs would favour this option as the one that best addresses the problems they raise with the current situation.393
Rightholders would, on the contrary, consider it unnecessary and/or excessive.
4.4.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would mainly affect institutional users (CHIs) and rightholders whose works are
copied to be preserved. The impacts affecting these two groups are presented separately.
For CHIs, the social impact in terms of legal certainty in the preservation of copyright-protected cultural
heritage has been considered. Economic impacts in terms of potential transaction costs are also referred to
in this context as relevant.
For rightholders, the main impacts are economic and related to revenues and to the licensing market for
access to electronic resources. These impacts are relevant for all types of rightholders, with the latter being of
particular concern for those primarily engaged in licensing for access to electronic resources with CHIs
(notably publishers and producers).
The policy options are also assessed in relation to their general social impacts (on cultural diversity and the
preservation of cultural heritage more broadly) and impacts on fundamental rights (property right, freedom of
the arts and sciences, and right to education).
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, as the relevant data that are publicly available or that could be
obtained from stakeholders is limited.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
CHIs
Impacts on legal certainty for preservation of cultural heritage: In the short term, the situation
would not substantially change for CHIs. They would enjoy a narrow or larger space for
preservation depending on the MS in which they carry out their preservation activities. Except
in cases where MS may update their implementation of the current EU exception for 'specific
acts of reproduction' to exploit its full space for preservation purposes, legal uncertainty and
barriers to preservation will persist to varying degrees in the long term too. Furthermore, due
to different national laws, legal uncertainty for CHIs wishing to perform preservation of
works abroad, for example through shared infrastructure, will remain, therefore hampering the
ability to take advantage of economies of scale.
Preservation of certain types of electronic content, mainly a number of scientific publications
that CHIs access remotely from publisher or other platforms' servers, or those that they
393
Institutional respondents in the 2013-2014 public consultation largely favoured legislative interventions.
125
receive on the basis of voluntary deposit agreements, will continue to take place on the basis
of authorisations that are included in agreements with a broader scope.394
Rightholders
Impact on revenues: Rightholders could in theory obtain extra revenues in those cases where
CHIs, in order to make preservation copies that are not covered by a national exception or the
agreements mentioned above, decide to ask for a specific authorisation. Given the negligible
economic significance of preservation copying of works that have already been permanently
acquired by a CHI, it is unlikely that rightholders would ask, and that CHIs would be ready to
pay, significant fees.
Impacts on licensing market for electronic resources: There would be no specific impact on
the licensing market for access to electronic resources. Rightholders would still be in the
position to negotiate the transfer of permanent copies to CHIs as part of licences.395
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Incentives for creators to produce more and diverse content would not change, but some of
this content could go lost for lack of preservation in the long term, with a possible negative
impact on cultural diversity.
Persisting legal uncertainty and national variations might limit or reduce the rates of works in
CHIs that are preserved, with possible negative effects on the ability of society at large to see
their heritage preserved as a public good in the long term, and therefore on the development
of the arts, science, education and social development more broadly.
This option also has no specific contribution to the objectives of EU's policy on digital
cultural heritage preservation.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
No impact on copyright as a property right, as recognised by Article 17(2) of the Charter of.
No tangible impact on the arts and scientific research, relevant for the freedom of the arts and
sciences (Article 13), nor on education, protected under Article 14.
Option 1 – Guidance to MS and peer review mechanism on the implementation of the
EU exception on 'specific acts of reproduction' for preservation purposes
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
CHIs
Impacts on legal certainty for the preservation of cultural heritage: Individual MS may decide
to update their national legislation. This would result in a variably improved environment for
CHIs to make preservation copies at national level. On the one hand, this effect could be felt
earlier than a legislative option. Given the non-binding nature of this option, it is unlikely that
the scope of national exceptions is brought up to speed with the needs of digital preservation
in all MS and that discrepancies disappear. As a result, the option would not substantially
facilitate preservation acts carried out in MS other than the one in which a given CHI is
established. The impact on the environment for preservation, notably in terms of legal
certainty would be limited, depending on the decisions of individual MS.
394
Including through systems like the e-Depot of the Dutch National Library, LOCKSS, CLOCKSS, and
Portico.
395
Except if other areas of law limit this possibility, notably possible legal deposit obligations.
126
A Recommendation of the European Parliament and Council, a Commission
Recommendation, and EU Council Conclusions already made a number of recommendations
to MS for a more conducive legal environment regarding reproductions for preservation
purposes.396 Relevant implementation reporting397 indicates however that, despite a slight
increase in time in the number of MS reporting explicit provisions for multiple copying and
format-shifting, national variations continue to exist in this area, as regards the scope of
exceptions.
As in the baseline scenario, under this option the preservation of certain works, mainly in the
area of scientific publishing or voluntary legal deposit practices, could continue to take place
based on authorisations from rightholders as part of broader agreements. A possible larger
scope of national preservation exceptions is unlikely to affect such arrangements, as they are
also required for the acquisition/delivery of permanent copies to the CHIs in the first place
and can also cover access to works (not only their preservation).
Rightholders
Impacts on revenues: Missed revenue opportunities for rightholders due to the possible
expansion of the scope of national exceptions under this option are expected to be minimal,
given that they would still regard reproductions for preservation purposes only. The possible
increase in preservation copies, as a result of a larger space under national exceptions, can
have a slight downward impact on the number of copies that CHIs might have purchased on
the market with preservation purposes in mind, in those cases where the national exception
previously did not allow them to make copies.
Impacts on licensing market for electronic resources: The impact would be similar as in the
baseline scenario.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Similar impact to the baseline scenario on cultural diversity in the short term, with some
possible positive impact in the long term deriving from higher preservation rates.
Positive impact also on society at large in the long term, in terms of heritage, as a public good,
being preserved in the long term.
Such impact, as well as the contribution to the objectives of the EU's policy on digital cultural
heritage preservation, would be subject to the same limitations described under "Impacts on
legal certainty for the preservation of cultural heritage" above, as they are dependent on the
will of the MS to expand the scope of their relevant exceptions.
396
Under "Preservation", the Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16
November 2005 on film heritage and the competitiveness of related industrial activities (2005/865/CE)
recommended MS to adopt measures to include "the reproduction of films on new storage media". The
Commission Recommendation on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and
digital preservation (2011/711/EU) recommended MS to "make explicit and clear provision in their
legislation so as to allow multiple copying and migration of digital cultural material by public
institutions for preservation purposes, in full respect of European Union and international legislation on
intellectual property rights". A similar objective for 2012-2015 was included in the Council
Conclusions on the digitisation and online preservation of cultural material and digital preservation of
10-11 May 2012 which invited MS to "ensure long-term digital preservation".
397
European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of Commission Recommendation 2011/711/EU
– 2013-2015", 2016, and European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of the European
Parliament and Council Recommendation on Film Heritage 2012-2013", 2014.
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IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
See baseline scenario.
Option 2 – Mandatory harmonised exception for preservation purposes by cultural
heritage institutions
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
CHIs
Impacts on legal certainty for preservation of cultural heritage: This option would be effective
for CHIs as all of them (including for example museums and film heritage institutions in all
EU MS) would be in the position to carry out preservation reproductions of works in their
permanent collections with legal certainty and with digital technologies. This option would in
practice cover preservation in digital environments, extend the range of beneficiaries in those
MS where the current national exception excludes certain types of CHIs, and the range of
works in those national cases where some categories are not currently contemplated. This
would reflect the current reality of a wide variety of different types of works present in the
collections of most individual institutions: for example, estimates suggest that 80 % of
museums also have text-based materials in their collections, while 74 % and 54 % of libraries
also hold visual and audio/video materials respectively.398 The same scope of the national
exception across the EU would also lift uncertainty regarding preservation reproductions done
in MS other than the one where CHIs are established. This would benefit economies of scale
and collaboration.
The option would also eliminate the potential transaction costs related to clearing rights for
preservation copies, as clearly illustrated by an estimation by the UK government that put at
GBP 25.9 million per year (of which 15.5 for institutional users and 10.4 million for
rightholders) the savings in reduced administrative costs at national level deriving from
extending the national preservation exception to extra categories of users and to all works.399
Whereas a solid estimation of the increase of the preservation rates of works held by CHIs is
not possible, the effect of this option can be expected to be substantial as it removes the key
copyright obstacle to preservation activities.
As in the previous options, preservation copying of certain works (part of scientific
publishing, works covered by voluntary deposit arrangements) could still be contemplated as
part of agreements with rightholders. The same exception across the EU is not likely to affect
these practices for the same reasons explained under Option 1.
Rightholders
Impacts on revenues: While this option implies the introduction of a new harmonised
exception, the impact in terms of missed revenue is likely to be minimal for the same reasons
as per Option 1, as this exception would only apply to works that CHIs already have in their
permanent collections and have no bearing on the acquisition of permanent copies into a
collection. Rightholders could lose some revenue from replacement copies that could have
been bought on the market in the absence of an exception, but that effect is expected to be
negligible. Works enjoying a longer life thanks to preservation has a potential positive effect
398
G.J. Nauta – W. van den Heuvel, DEN Foundation on behalf of Europeana/ENUMERATE, "Survey
Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2015", June 2015. For further data on
the diversity of works within individual CHI collections see Annex 9A.
399
UK Government, "Impact assessment on copyright exception for archiving and preservation", 2014
(http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukia/2014/157/pdfs/ukia_20140157_en.pdf).
128
on the revenues of rightholders in terms of possible future uses of the works and therefore
licensing revenue.
Impacts on licensing market for electronic resources: As the exception only applies to works
that are already in the permanent collection of a CHI, the option would have a similar impact
as in the baseline scenario and Option 1, including as regards the ability of rightholders to
take measures to preserve the stability and security of the systems through which they deliver
electronic content.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Positive effect on cultural diversity as this option is liable to increase preservation rates to a
significant extent while not substantially affecting incentives to create for rightholders.
This would have a positive effect on society at large in the long term, with positive spill-over
effects on the arts, science, education and social development. This option would not only
benefit citizens of MS where a preservation exception is currently missing, or restricted or
unclear in scope, but also those of MS where it is already present. This is because European
cultural heritage is often dispersed across different MS:400 parts of the cultural heritage of a
MS that currently has a broad preservation exception might be held by CHIs in MS where
there is currently a narrower exception.
The contribution of this option to the objectives of the EU's policy on digital cultural heritage
preservation would be substantial, as it would take away key obstacles (copyright clearance
and uncertainty) that CHIs are faced with today when they want to make preservation copies
in their collections.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The introduction of an EU-level compulsory exception to the reproduction right for
preservation purposes would have a marginal impact on copyright as property right, as
recognised by Article 17(2) of the Charter, as it would only apply to authorisations for
preservation copies by CHIs. By supporting more preservation of works and their longer term
availability, it can also have a positive impact on the arts and scientific research, relevant for
the freedom of the arts and sciences (Article 13), and on education, protected under Article
14.
4.4.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on Social impacts
stakeholders and fundamental
rights
Baseline (0) Legal framework (0) No costs (0) No impact on (0) No positive
and space for associated to the stakeholders. impact on cultural
preservation (esp. baseline option. diversity and the
digital) will still be preservation of
unclear or restrictive, cultural heritage as
and fragmented. a public good. No
contribution to EU
policy objectives
on cultural heritage
preservation. No
400
There are various reasons for such dispersion, for example historical changes in territorial boundaries.
Different versions of a work can exist in different MS. There are for example cases of cinematographic
works that underwent cuts due to censorship in the country they originate from, which did not affect
copies that were held abroad.
129
sensible impact on
fundamental rights.
Option 1 – (0/+) Could result in (0/-) Limited costs (0/+) Main impacts (0/+) Some
Guidance and some improvements linked to the on stakeholders possible positive
'peer review' in certain MS but organisation of the would depend on impact on cultural
would not bring 'peer review'. actions taken at diversity and the
about legal certainty national level. preservation of
and a better space for cultural heritage as
preservation across a public good,
the EU and in cross- depending on
border settings. action taken at
national level.
Contribution to EU
policy objectives
on cultural heritage
preservation would
also depend on
actions taken at
national level. No
sensible impact on
fundamental rights.
Option 2 – (++) Would provide (0) No particular (++) Legal certainty (+) Positive impact
Mandatory legal certainty and a compliance costs. and increased space on cultural
harmonised clear and updated to preserve for CHIs. diversity and the
exception for space for (-/+) possible preservation of
preservation preservation across minimal loss of cultural heritage as
purposes by the EU, including in revenue for a public good, as
cultural heritage cross-border settings. rightholders from more works are
institutions replacement copies likely to be
bought on the market preserved.
but more works (+) Positive
preserved. No impact contribution to the
on licensing of EU policy
electronic resources objectives on
and security and cultural heritage
stability of systems. preservation.
(0) No tangible
impact on
fundamental rights.
Option 2 is the preferred option is as it would provide the best environment and the largest
space for preservation, including in digital environments, for CHIs while not generating
particular compliance costs, or affecting the interests of rightholders to any meaningful extent.
This option would reduce costs for CHIs related to legal uncertainty, and for both CHIs and
rightholders in terms of potential transaction costs related to requests for authorisations and
their handling, to a larger extent than Option 1. At the same time, given the use at stake and
the conditions attached to the exception foreseen by Option 2, it would not imply foregone
costs for rightholders (related to missed revenues or licensing opportunities) to any
meaningful degree. Furthermore, Option 1 might imply some compliance costs for MS that
are not present in Option 2. Positive impacts on cultural diversity and, ultimately, the ability
of people to engage with cultural heritage would be higher in Option 2 than in Option 1, with
similar impacts on fundamental rights. As such Option 2 is the most effective and efficient.
Proportionality and impacts on MS: Option 2 is also proportionate in that it addresses the
underlying problem without generating particular costs or putting special obligations on
stakeholders.
130
Option 2 will require an adaptation of national legal frameworks to different degrees,
depending on the level of clarity and the scope of the current national exceptions applicable to
preservation by CHIs (a table with a list of examples of the way it is currently implemented in
MS is available in Annex 4). National preservation exceptions will have to be clear about the
possibility for CHIs to make copies in any format and support (i.e. allow for format and
media-shifting) and be adapted if and when restrictions to the use of digital methods to
conduct preservation can be hampered by their current formulation.
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5. ACHIEVING A WELL-FUNCTIONING MARKET PLACE FOR
COPYRIGHT
5.1. INTRODUCTION
5.1.1. Background
In the recent years, the internet has become the main marketplace for the distribution of and
access to copyright protected content, involving a high number of market players and a
diversity of business models. While online content services have become essential for the
generation of revenues, rightholders face difficulties when seeking to monetise and control the
distribution of their content online. There is a growing concern about the sharing of the value
generated by some of the new forms of online content distribution.
This section of the IA examines issues related to the distribution of value in the online
environment, taking into account the initial investments in creative content and the new
business models and licensing practices. It concentrates on difficulties faced by rightholders
in negotiating with online services involved in the commercial reuse of copyright-protected
content, in particular online services distributing content uploaded by end-users and news
aggregators, social media and other online services providing access to publications. Problems
related to the contractual relationships between authors and performers on the one hand and
those to which they assign the rights for the exploitation of their works and performances,
including online, on the other, are also considered in this section of the IA.
The need to address issues related to the sharing of value in the online environment and the
remuneration of creators was highlighted in the Copyright Communication of December
2015, which reminded the "digital single market’s ambition to deliver opportunities for all
and to recognise the value of content and of the investment that goes into it." The
Commission's intention to take measures in this area was confirmed in the Communication on
online platforms of May 2016.401
5.1.2. Why should the EU act?
Legal basis
As indicated in the previous sections of the IA, the EU's right to act follows from Article 114
of the TFEU, which confers on the EU the power to adopt measures for the establishment and
functioning of the internal market. It is also strongly linked to the harmonisation of the rights
relevant for online dissemination achieved in the InfoSoc Directive.
The measures envisaged in this section of the IA would allow rightholders to better exercise
their rights in the online environment and would therefore contribute to improve the
functioning of the Digital Single Market, as the main marketplace for the distribution of and
access to copyright-protected content.
Article 167(4) TFEU related to cultural diversity has been taken into account in the design
and analysis of policy options presented in this section of the IA.
401
Commission Communication on Online Platforms and the Digital Single Market Opportunities and
Challenges for Europe, (COM(2016) 288/2), http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-16-1873_en.htm
132
Subsidiarity and added value
In the areas covered by this section of the IA, the rationale for EU action stems both from the
harmonisation already in place (notably in terms of rights) and the cross-border nature of the
distribution of content online. Intervention at national level would not be sufficiently efficient
to ensure a well-functioning digital single market for the distribution of copyright protected
content and could create new obstacles.
The issues faced by Rightholders with regard to services that store and give access to large
amounts of protected content uploaded by their users need to be addressed at EU level given
the general cross-border nature of those services which are used by the public to consume
content online. EU level action is needed in order to avoid possible fragmentation that could
be generated by initiatives from MS establishing obligations on such services, and to ensure
more level playing field for services involved in content distribution.
The problems faced today by news publishers have been identified by several EU MS. Some
of them, notably DE and ES, have adopted different legislative solutions at national level to
address them. However, national solutions lack scale and may give rise to market
fragmentation in the news publishing sector. Intervention at the EU level is therefore needed
to address effectively the problems faced by the publishing industry. Moreover, recent case-
law has sparked off uncertainty in some MS concerning the possibility to keep long-existing
national systems allowing publishers to have a share of the compensation stemming from
exceptions and limitations to copyright and MS whose national compensation schemes are
more directly impacted have started considering passing national legislation but it is not clear
to what extent they can do so under the current EU rules. The necessary certainty in this
regard can only be achieved by legislative intervention at EU level.
Although national rules may govern the contractual relationships between creators and
those exploiting their works, the lack of transparency in this area constitutes an obstacle
to the correct functioning of the single market for creators. EU action is therefore
necessary to determine the required level of transparency. Specific elements may
nevertheless be left at the discretion of MS, in order to take account of the existing
national rules and the specificities of each sector. It should be noted that European
legislation has already intervened in the contractual relationships between authors and
performers on the one hand and those commercially exploiting their works and
performances on the other, notably in Directive 2006/115/EC402 (presumptions of
transfers of rights, unviable right of equitable remuneration - the "Rental and Lending
right Directive") and in Directive 2011/77/EU403 amending Directive 2006/116/EC
(establishing a supplementary remuneration for certain performers linked to the extension
of the term of protection for phonograms – "The term of protection Directive").
402
Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on rental
right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property (OJ
L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 28–35)
403
Directive 2011/77/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 September 2011 amending
Directive 2006/116/EC on the term protection of copyright and certain related rights (OJ L265,
11.10.2011, p.1-5)
133
5.1.3. What should be achieved?
The general objective is to achieve a copyright marketplace and value chain that works
efficiently for all players and gives the right incentives for investment in and dissemination of
creative content.
Specific objectives have been identified in each of the area covered: (i) ensure that
rightholders benefit from a legal framework allowing them to negotiate and be remunerated
for the online exploitation of their content by online services storing and giving access to
large amounts of content uploaded by their users; and that there is a fair environment for all
types of online content services; (ii) ensure a fair share of revenues stemming from the use of
publications among the different players of the publishing value chain and (iii) increase legal
certainty, transparency and balance in the system that governs the remuneration of creators.
5.1.4. Methodology
Problem definition
Two types of problems are described in this section of the IA, reflecting two aspects of the
value chain: those faced 'upstream' by rightholders when trying to license their content to
certain online content services (difficulties to negotiate on a fair basis and to obtain
remuneration) and those faced 'downstream' by creators when negotiating contracts for the
exploitation of their works (lack of transparency on the exploitation of the works). The latter
are not specific to the online environment but have been exacerbated by the multiple forms of
exploitation existing online. The specific drivers and consequences are illustrated in the
problem tree below and further explained in the following sub-sections.
134
Identification of policy options
The policy options examined in each of the three areas include the baseline option, a non-
legislative option, and one or several legislative options. The legislative options have been
designed taking account of the existing legal framework and the different forms of
distribution of content online. In view of the differences between the upstream and
downstream problems and the diverse situation of stakeholders, no common solution could be
envisaged to address in a general manner the concern about the sharing of value in the online
environment.
Views from stakeholders, European Parliament and Member States
The views from the different stakeholders are reported after the description of each policy
option.
In its resolution of July 2015, the EP highlighted the need to "consider solutions for the
displacement of value from content to services". The resolution also "recognises the role of
producers and publishers in bringing works to the market, and the need for fair and
appropriate remuneration for all categories of rightholders". Finally, the EP would strongly
support solutions aimed at strengthening the contractual position of authors and performers.
The recommendation stresses "that authors and performers must receive fair remuneration in
the digital environment and in the analogue world alike".
While acknowledging the growing importance of online services in content distribution, MS
have in general been cautious on issues related to the sharing of value in the online
environment, waiting for the exact policy option that the Commission would bring forward.
MS have equally been cautious as regards the possible introduction of a related right for news
publishers, although most of them generally recognise the seriousness of the problems faced
135
by this industry in the digital environment404 and are likely to support a targeted intervention
in this area, including as regard publishers' claim for compensation.
MS are expected to support the objective of increasing transparency in the system governing
the remuneration of authors and creators, but are likely to favour non-legislative options at EU
level. In the 2014 public consultation, several MS highlighted the importance of appropriate
and fair remuneration for authors and performers but considered that it was for MS to decide
whether or not to intervene in this matter by legislative means.
Impacts of policy options
Stakeholders affected
The policy options considered in this section of the IA would directly affect certain types of
online content services (in particular, those storing and giving access to content uploaded by
users and those giving access to news content) and would also have an impact of the
competitive situation of other types of online content services.
The options envisaged to address the difficulties faced with online services distributing
content uploaded by end-users would affect all types of rightholders whose content is used by
these services (in the music, AV and print sectors).
For the use of publications online, the options envisaged would have an impact on publishers
(press and book publishers), as well as on authors and other creators of the individual
contributions which compose a publication.
The options envisaged in the area of remuneration would affect more strongly authors and
performers and all types of parties they contract with (which could be producers, publishers,
broadcasters but also online content services in some cases).
The impacts on consumers are examined in the three areas covered by this section, notably in
terms of access to content.
Type of impacts and availability of data
Only the most significant and likely impacts are reported in this IA. The impacts are assessed
by group of stakeholders (e.g. online services, rightholders, consumers), focusing mainly on
economic impacts, for example in terms of exploitation of content, revenues, business models,
competitive situation, compliance costs. These economic impacts are mostly assessed from a
qualitative point of view, considering how the different policy options would affect the
negotiations between those creating or investing in the creation of content and those
distributing such content online. The limited availability of data in this area (beyond market
data or specific examples provided by stakeholders which are presented in the problem
definition where available) did not allow to elaborate a quantitative analysis of the impacts of
the different policy options.
In addition to the impacts on the different groups of stakeholders, broad social impacts (e.g.
impacts on cultural diversity) and impacts on fundamental rights are assessed separately. All
policy options considered in this section of the IA may have an impact on copyright as a
property right (Article 17(2) of the Charter), on the freedom to conduct a business (Article 16)
404
This is based on the views expressed by MS in the public consultation on the role of publishers in the
copyright value chain.
136
and on freedom of information (Article 11). Impacts on third countries or on the environment
are not elaborated upon as the policy options presented in this section of the IA are considered
not to have any substantial impact on them.
Impacts on SMEs
The large majority of companies that would be affected (as rightholders, publishers,
authors/performers or their contractual counterparties, but also certain types of online
services) by the options considered in this section of the IA are SMEs, and more particularly
micro-companies (90 % of companies in the publishing of books, newspapers and journals
and 96 % of companies in the film and music production and 95 % of companies involved in
data processing, hosting and related activities or web portals)405.
The policy options examined in relation to the use of content uploaded by users or the use of
publications through online services would contribute to support SMEs and micro-companies
in their negotiation with online content services. Certain options would however generate
obligations for SMEs active as online services. Also, some of the policy options considered in
the area of remuneration of authors and performers would create compliance costs for SMEs
and micro-companies (notably producers or publishers) contracting with authors and
performers. These costs are analysed in section 5.3.3 and in Annex 14.
Considering the high number of SMEs and micro-companies in the creative industries and in
the distribution of content online, exemptions or mitigating measures have not been deemed
appropriate as they may create possibilities for businesses to circumvent the obligations and
would not allow to reach the objectives defined above.
Comparison of policy options
The policy options are compared against the criteria of effectiveness (i.e. to what extent they
fulfil the specific objective), efficiency (i.e. at what cost they do so), impact on the different
groups of stakeholders and coherence with regard to cultural diversity, fundamental rights
and/or other EU policies. Each option is rated between "--" (very negative), "-" (negative), 0
(neutral), "+" (positive) and "++" (very positive).
5.2. USE OF PROTECTED CONTENT BY ONLINE SERVICES STORING AND GIVING ACCESS
TO USER UPLOADED CONTENT
5.2.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Rightholders have no or limited control over the use and the remuneration for the
use of their content by services storing and giving access to large amounts of protected
content uploaded by their users.
Description of the problem: The functioning of the online content market place is complex.
There has been a progressive shift from ownership to access-based models. Today, copyright
405
Source: Eurostat, Structural Business Statistics, 2013 data for publishing of books, periodicals and other
publishing activities (J581); motion picture, video and television programme production, sound
recording and music publishing activities (J59); data processing, hosting and related activities; web
portals (J631).
137
protected content is no longer only distributed directly by a digital service provider to end
users. Instead, access to online content often takes place at the end of a process in which
several parties participate. As a result, rightholders do not always have control over the way
their content is distributed online.
With the rise of Web 2.0 technologies, interactive services including participatory networks
have emerged and increasing amounts of content is accessed through content sharing
platforms that make available protected content uploaded by their users without any
involvement of rights holders.
Such user uploaded content services often provide the public with large amounts of protected
content. In addition to giving access to the content, these platforms provide functionalities
such as categorization, recommendations, playlists, or the ability to share content. These
services use copyright protected content in order to attract and retain users to their websites
thereby increasing the value of their services. Access to such content is generally "free" for
users and the service draws its revenues, directly or indirectly, from advertising and user data.
While some of the providers of these services have de facto become major actors of online
content distribution406 and have substantial number of users407 and significant market
valuations408 rightholders are not necessarily able to enter into agreements with them for the
use of their content. This affects rightholders' possibility to determine whether, and under
which conditions, their content is made available on the services and to get an appropriate
remuneration for it.409
406
See, for example, results from a study commissioned by GESAC showing that cultural content could
represent up to 66 % of YouTube views and that music videos received 59 % of total views:
http://www.rolandberger.com/gallery/pdf/Report_for_GESAC_Online_Intermediaries_2015_Nov_EUR
.pdf.
407
As of October 2015, Youtube had 1.3 billion users, i.e. 33 % of internet users. It is the world’s largest
online video platform with 400 hours of video content uploaded every minute,
https://www.youtube.com/yt/press/statistics.html and http://www.statisticbrain.com/youtube-statistics/.
Daily Motion advertises itself as one of the biggest video platforms and most popular European sites
attracting 300 million users watching 3.5 billion video views every month,
http://www.dailymotion.com/be-fr/about. Vimeo, another global online video platform, has a monthly
audience of more than 170 million people and 35 million registered users, http://iac.com/brand/vimeo.
SoundCloud currently has approximately 250 million registered users while it had about 150 million
registered users in 2015 (and 11 million in 2011), http://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2015-07-
10/can-soundcloud-be-the-facebook-of-music-. Pinterest states that it has more than 100 million
monthly active users, http://venturebeat.com/2015/09/16/pinterest-finally-shares-its-size-100m-
monthly-active-users-and-counting/.
408
Youtube is estimated to be worth more than $70 billion, and its revenues are reported to have reached
$9billion in 2015, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-27/a-bank-of-america-analysis-
says-youtube-is-worth-more-than-85-percent-of-companies-in-the-s-p-500,
http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/youtube-will-earn-9bn-in-revenue-this-year-towering-over-
spotify/. Pinterest has been valued at $12 billion in 2015,
http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/pinterest-stats/. Soundcloud has been valued at $700 million
in 2014 http://www.businessinsider.com/soundcloud-valuation-2014-1?IR=T. Dailymotion was valued
at $295 million in 2015, see http://techcrunch.com/2015/06/30/vivendi-buys-80-of-frances-dailymotion-
valuing-the-youtube-rival-at-295m/.
409
See for example the letter sent by 186 artists to the US Congress in June 2016,
http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/revealed-the-186-artists-protesting-against-youtube-
shielding-dmca-laws/. See also the position of Impala, the independent music companies' association,
regarding the situation on the market, http://www.thedigitalpost.eu/2015/channel-digital-single-
market/copyright-birds-eye-view-independent-music-sector.
138
Some online service providers refuse to negotiate any agreement, which means that despite
the availability of copyright protected content on these platforms no revenues are generated
for rightholders for the use of their content. Refusals of agreements have above all been
reported by rightholders in the music and images sectors.410 At the same time, some online
service providers have argued that rightholders have requested terms that they considered
unreasonable for the type of service they provide.411
In some cases, platforms have offered rightholders agreements for a share of the revenue
generated by advertising placed around their content.412 However, these agreements have been
reported by some rightholders to be different from copyright licensing agreements as the
platforms argue that they are not under a legal requirement to negotiate with rightholders and
that they enter into such "monetisation agreements" on a purely voluntary basis.413
Rightholders argue that this alleged absence of legal requirement impedes fair negotiations.
An example provided by the music industry shows that, in 2015, pure advertising-supported
online services storing and giving access to content uploaded by end users which have an
estimated user base of more than 900 million generated revenues amounting to US$634
million, which is (approximately) four per cent of global music revenues.414 Given the
significant user base, rightholders argue that such revenues are insignificant compared to what
other service providers415 are generating for rightholders. At the same time, there is publicly
410
Collective management organisations representing authors in the music sector have reported failures to
obtain licences with services like Dailymotion, Vimeo or Myspace. Besides refusals of licences,
renewals of contracts may also fail, as reported by GEMA, the German authors' collecting society,
http://www.dw.com/en/german-battle-over-youtube-royalties-wages-on/a-5951245. For images, CEPIC
has reported in their reply to the public consultation on online platforms that 80 %-90 % of their images
used online are unlicensed, https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/6b37d157-1c33-44f8-893e-
af86b3c96aa1. Services mentioned include Pinterest, Flickr and Tumblr. In submissions to the
Commission from July 2015, Getty Images indicates that "it has been frustratingly difficult to enter into
licensing arrangements with online platforms in respect of images that have been uploaded by
unlicensed third parties".
411
See the reply by Soundcloud to the public consultation on online platforms,
https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/6acf2b21-865a-402c-876a-e2b67c0ceef9. Despite initial
failures to reach agreements in certain cases, Soundcloud has by now concluded agreements with
rightholders.
412
The information provided by rightholders, including in their replies to the public consultation on online
platforms, shows the existence of some agreements on the market - see for example the reply by
GESAC, https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/4ebd8857-927d-411f-9ff1-282e9f822ff3.
413
For the music sector, see for example a report published by the Music Managers Forum in 2015,
"Dissecting the digital dollar", at p. 67, http://themmf.net/digitaldollar/. Youtube has argued that its
service rather creates additional value - where no value at all could be obtained - for rightholders
through the possibility to generate revenues from user uploaded content, and a greater exposure of
artists. According to Youtube, fan-uploaded content accounts for roughly 50 % of the music industry’s
revenue from YouTube. See article in the Guardian where Youtube's point of view on the value gap is
described, http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/apr/28/youtube-no-other-platform-
gives-as-much-money-back-to-creators. Youtube also argues that their average user spends just one
hour watching music on Youtube a month (as opposed to the 55 hours a month the average Spotify
subscriber consumes), http://youtubecreator.blogspot.be/2016/04/setting-record-straight.html.
414
IFPI digital music report 2016, available at http://www.ifpi.org/news/IFPI-GLOBAL-MUSIC-
REPORT-2016.
415
The recording industry points to $2 billion having been paid by subscription services that had an
estimated user base of 68 million in 2015. See IFPI Digital Music Report 2016. Artists have also voiced
concerns about the level of payments, see for example
https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/may/02/nelly-furtado-youtube-artist-royalties-
fair-pay.
139
available information about the payments made by a major service provider to rightholders for
the use of their music.416
The negotiation position of rightholders is affected by the fact that they are not in a position to
keep their content away from these platforms. When uploaded content is infringing, they can
only ask the platforms to take down the content, in each individual case, which leads to
significant costs for them and appears insufficient to them given the large scale of uploads.417
At the same time, some platforms have voluntarily taken measures to help rightholders in
identifying and monetising the use of content on their services, in particular through content
identification technologies. Solutions have been developed both by user uploaded content
platforms and technology providers and are based on different types of technologies,
providing for different functionalities or levels of services and identifying different types of
content (e.g. music, images, audiovisual).418They can be applied at the time of upload of the
content or later on to verify through an automated procedure whether the content uploaded by
users is authorized or not, based on data provided by rightholders.419
While some services have claimed high rates of successful content identification420, the
identification of some types of content, such as bootleg remixes and DJ sets, or more
generally of content that has been transformed or differs significantly from the original
content, may be very challenging.421 Also, it has been reported by rightholders that the
416
See the position of Youtube, indicating the amount it has paid to the music industry since its foundation
available at http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/youtube-and-google-play-have-paid-out-3bn-to-
record-industry/ and http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2016/06/14/youtube-responds-artists-fair-pay/.
417
See sections 4.3 and 4.4 of the public consultation on online platforms, https://ec.europa.eu/digital-
single-market/en/news/full-report-results-public-consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-
intermediaries as well as the replies of the music community to the US Copyright Office related to the
section 512 study, http://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Music-Community-Submission-
in-re-DMCA-512-FINAL-7559445.pdf. Sony Music Entertainment has provided some evidence on this
issue before the US Copyright Office: "… prior to reaching a licensing agreement with the popular
music focused uploaded content service Soundcloud from April 1, 2015 to April 2016, Sony spent
hundreds of thousands of dollars to manually review 1.5 million metadata matches and to send
takedown notices to remove approximatively 218,000 infringing copies of Sony recordings from the
soundcloud platform. Despite the scale of this enormous effort, it was only sufficient to monitor
approximatively 15% of Sony's catalog on this single platform", see
https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=COLC-2015-0013-90111. See also IFPI reply to the public
consultation on online platforms stating that: "around 90% of infringements that IFPI locates and
addresses with a takedown request could have been avoided if the relevant services had taken measures
to avoid that infringing content reappears after the first notification. For example, in 2015, One
Direction’s “Drag Me Down” reappeared over 2,700 times on YouTube following the first notice", see
https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/138c7b30-556b-4b7b-adf1-fe5ab8406f4c.
418
See some illustrative examples in Annex 12A.
419
See Annex 12A for more information on the functioning of different technologies depending on the
type of content.
420
Youtube for example indicates that only 0.5 % of all music claims are issued manually and that they
handle the remaining 99.5% with 99.7% accuracy (through Content ID),
https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/apr/28/youtube-no-other-platform-gives-as-much-
money-back-to-creators. This is contested by creators, see above. Audible Magic - the content
identification technology and service provider - has indicated positive identification rates that exceed
99%, http://www.audiblemagic.com/why-audible-magic/.
421
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0e2abaa2-f58d-11e5-96db-fc683b5e52db.html#axzz4AEnEjaF4. See for
instance the statement made by the French start up Blue Efficience regarding Google's Content ID
technology (regarding the identification of films): "The Content ID robot does not enable to identify
content that has been skilfully modified with a view to slip through the tracks",
http://www.pressreader.com/france/edition-multim%C3%A9di/20160215/28150075030257. See
140
functioning and efficiency of the technologies remains generally opaque for them (for
instance with regard to changes implemented by the service or reasons why some content has
not been identified). In parallel, it has been argued that content identification technologies
may lead to "false positives" (i.e. situations where content is wrongly identified and
removed).422 At this stage, it seems also clear that cooperation with rightholders is required
(notably to provide data such as fingerprints) for the efficient functioning of these
technologies.423
The situation described is also said to result in a decrease of the value of copyright protected
content. Several broadcasters for example have started legal actions against different online
platforms that disseminate their programs online claiming that these platforms are actively
exploiting the content and benefitting financially from it.424 They consider that these services
limit their ability to monetize certain types of content on other services.425
Besides rightholders, other online content service providers (those that acquire a licence from
rightholders and distribute protected content directly to end users) are affected by this
situation. They find themselves at a competitive disadvantage - they negotiate and conclude
licences with rightholders in order to operate their services426 while online platforms
distributing user uploaded content have no or very limited content acquisition costs.427 This is
particularly relevant as both online content distribution services and user uploaded platforms
however recent statements made by Google saying that content ID "can now even detect melodies,
helping further stymie bad actors' efforts to fool the system" (How Google fights piracy,
http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.be/2016/07/continuing-to-create-value-while.html). See also for
example the service provided by Dubset, which specializes in the identification of DJ mixes & remixes
and holds a related rights management database, http://www.dubset.com/#intro-to-dubset-.
422
This risk is put forward in particular in respect to automated notifications. See the Chilling Effects
Clearinghouse, a collaborative archive founded by several law school clinics in the US which collects
and analyses legal complaints and requests for removal of online materials, http://chillingeffects.org/.
423
See for example the mission launched by the French CNC (Centre national de la cinématographie) in
2016 with the objective, inter alia, to encourage rights holders to understand better and use more the
functionalities offered by content recognition technologies (see letter of the CNC n°127 – 29 February
2016). Already in 2013 the Lescure report commissioned by the French government concluded: "they
[the content identification tools] remain insufficiently used by the rights holders who do not always
master the modus operandi and the functioning (it is particularly the case of the small players)", see
Lescure report, page 404
http://www.culturecommunication.gouv.fr/var/culture/storage/culture_mag/rapport_lescure/index.htm.
424
See e.g. the recent case against Break.com in Italy (R.T.I vs TMFT Enterprises LLC/Break Media, N.
8437/2016), TF1 et autres / Dailymotion, Cour d’appel de Paris, Pôle 5 - Chambre 1, arrêt du 2
décembre 2014. See also the long lasting litigation between Youtube and TF1 that ended in 2014 by an
agreement after several court decisions.
425
According to Mediaset, an imbalance is created in the market with digital platforms gaining an
increasing percentage of advertising revenues. See the 2016 LEAR report prepared for Mediaset;
Developments of the audiovisual markets and creation of original contents -
http://www.learlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Report-Mediaset_EN_03_06_16.pdf.
426
In the case of Spotify or Deezer, the payments to rightholders for the rights in the content they distribute
represent around 70 % of the services' revenues. See Deezer's CEO statement on the impact of Youtube
at http://www.cnbc.com/2016/04/19/blame-taylor-swift-youtube-for-low-artist-pay-from-streaming-
deezer-ceo.html.
427
See the statement by indie labels at http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/permalink/2014/05/22/19-indie-
label-organizations-speak-youtube, according to which: “the contracts currently on offer to independent
labels from YouTube are on highly unfavourable, and non-negotiable terms, and undervalue existing
rates in the marketplace from existing music streaming partners such as Spotify, Rdio, Deezer and
others”.
141
may be seen by consumers as equivalent sources for content consumption.428 This is notably
the case in the music sector where platforms are largely used by consumers to access music
online. In this context, a Eurobarometer on users’ preferences for accessing content online
conducted in March 2016 shows that 31 % of respondents use most often video or music-
sharing websites to access music online.429
Drivers:
[Presence of large amounts of protected content which is uploaded by users] Given the fact
that content is uploaded by users, it is in practice difficult for rightholders to determine the
availability of protected content on user uploaded platforms. In the case of platforms which
services (or one of their services) result in the provision of access to significant amounts of,
e.g. videos or other AV works, music or pictures, rightholders face particular difficulties when
wanting to negotiate licences or reach agreements. Rightholders have described their
negotiation relationship with certain of these platforms as a "take it or leave it" situation: they
must either accept the terms offered by the service or continue to send notifications for each
individual content which can be infringed thousands of times.430 Such a situation is further
exacerbated in certain cases by the difference in bargaining power between rightholders and
some of user uploaded services which have gained an important position on the market.431
Even if major user uploaded content services have put in place measures such as content
identification technologies,432 their deployment remains voluntary and is subject to the
conditions set by the services.
[Legal uncertainty hampering the possible negotiation of agreements with services storing
and giving access to protected content uploaded by their users] Under copyright law,
rightholders can exercise their right to authorize and exploit commercially the communication
to the public of their works or other protected subject-matter, by the conclusion of licences in
return for payment of remuneration,433 if they so choose.434 When content is disseminated
428
See the 2015 JRC technical report "Let the music play? Free streaming, product discovery, and digital
music consumption", page 8, footnote 11: "Youtube offers a different music consumption experience
than interactive streaming services like Deezer or Spotify. However, it allows users to access music in
an almost unrestricted way, making this service rather similar to the premium subscriptions offered by
fully interactive streaming services". See also the report published by the Music Managers Forum (p.
66) cited above indicating that "…sites like Youtube and Soundcloud soon boast music libraries very
similar (and often larger) to those of services like Spotify and therefore compete with those platforms".
429
Professional music streaming services come second with 22% of respondents indicating that they use
such services most often. See the results from Flash Eurobarometer 437, Internet users’ preferences for
accessing content online (Annex 12B).
430
See the synopsis report to the online consultation on public consultation, section 3.6.1,
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-results-public-consultation-regulatory-
environment-platforms-online-intermediaries.
431
See for example the reply of Impala, representing independent record labels, to the public consultation
on online platforms stating that "Excessive market power repeatedly leads to unfair trading practices in
the digital market. Independent record labels are often presented with “take it or leave it” terms which
do not meet acceptable standards", https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/85514243-17b3-47b2-
8df4-60d966679921
432
See Annex 12A for examples of content identification technologies used by certain services.
433
See for instance Judgment of 4 October 2011 in Football Association Premier League and Others (C-
403 and C-429/08, EU:C:2011:631, paragraph 107).
434
A copyright licence can be given for free. Instances where rightholders may decide to do so include the
case of new authors or artists seeking exposure for their works or performances (services, such as
YouTube and Myspace, have launched the careers of unknown artists, see for example
http://youtubecreator.blogspot.be/2016/04/setting-record-straight.html,
142
online, an act of communication to the public takes place which may, depending on the
circumstances, involve more than one actor. The CJEU has not addressed the specific case of
online services giving access to content uploaded by their users.435 With some exceptions,436
national case law is not very clear either as to who engages into an act of communication to
the public when content is uploaded on a sharing website.
Additional uncertainty arises from the question of whether specific service providers that
store and give access to content uploaded by a third party can benefit from the hosting service
provider status provided under the Directive 2000/31/EC437 (E-Commerce Directive-
"ECD").438 It is up to the courts to assess on a case by case basis whether a given service
qualifies as a mere technical, automatic and passive hosting service provider. National courts
have often found that user uploaded content services were covered by Article 14 ECD.439
However, in a number of recent cases, national courts have deemed such services to go
beyond Article 14 ECD, highlighting the importance of protected content for the business
models and the revenues of user uploaded content services.440
Consequences: The situation above has led to the situation where rightholders are confronted
with large use of their content on user uploaded content services, have no or limited control
over the use of their content, and fail (or have difficulties) to enter into agreements for the use
of their content and obtain a remuneration.
How would the problem evolve?: If no action is taken at EU level, the described situation is
likely to remain and affect negatively rightholders' possibilities to negotiate agreements and
http://www.forbes.com/sites/lorikozlowski/2012/05/15/how-myspace-spawned-a-startup-
ecosystem/#56cce0f56364). Soundcloud's objective at the beginning was to provide an open platform
that directly connected, on a free basis, creators with their audience.
435
When dealing with broadcasting which involved two actors in the chain of communication
(broadcasters and distributors), the CJEU has taken different positions. In one instance, it has indicated
that there can be two parties involved in one single act of communication to the public, i.e. the
broadcaster and the distributor (see judgment of 13 October 2011, in Airfields and others (C-431/09 and
C-432/09,(EU:C:2011:648)) while in another instance, it has ruled that only one party is communicating
to the public, suggesting that it was likely to be the distributor (see judgment of 13 November 2015, in
SBS Belgium and Others (C-325/14, EU:C:2015:764)).
436
In the context of the GEMA vs Youtube cases in Germany (Higher Regional Court Hamburg, July
2015; Higher Regional Court Munich, January 2016, file number 29 U 2798/15), the courts considered
that while a service like Youtube increasingly takes over the function of an attractive and competitive
music service and presents itself as a comprehensive alternative to Spotify and similar services, it does
not carry out an act of communication to the public pursuant to Article 3 of the Infosoc Directive
(which is carried out by the uploaders). See also the ruling of the first instance Court of Paris 29
January 2015 Kare productions/Youtube.
437
Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal
aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market (OJ L
178, 17/07/2000, p.1-16).
438
Article 14 ECD limits the liability of "hosting service providers" provided that they are not aware of
illegal content and that, on gaining such knowledge, they take expeditious action to remove or disable
access to it. The CJEU has clarified that the status of hosting provider can be claimed only by a
provider whose activity is of a mere technical, automatic and passive nature (see for example judgment
of 12 July 2011, in L'Oréal and Others (C-324/09, EU:C:2011:474)).
439
See for example in FR, the ruling of the Court of Cassation, 17 February 2011 Societe Nord-
Ouest/UGC image vs Dailymotion
440
See for example the GEMA vs Youtube case in Hamburg; the Decision by the Court of Rome in case
RTI vs TMFT/Break Media of 27 April 2016 and the Decision by the Court of Rome of 15 July 2016 in
case RTI/Megavideo.
143
the level playing field on the online content market. This in turn risks constraining the
sustainable growth of digital content markets and future investment in content creation and
production. The general trend in content consumption, which is moving away from physical
media towards the digital services, may further exacerbate the current problem, as seems to be
indicated by the fact that the increase in consumption has not been accompanied by a
proportionate increase in payments to rightholders441.
At the same time the market has been undergoing certain changes with technologies being
more generally available and deployed and licensing and partnership agreements being struck
between rightholders and online services that had so far refused to conclude agreements442.
This trend may continue but it may still follow the pattern whereby services operate without
the rightholders' agreement and build an audience before agreements are concluded.443
Moreover, whereas it is possible that the CJEU will bring clarity to the question of whether an
uploaded content service is responsible for acts of communication to the public and/or can
benefit from the hosting provider status under the ECD, this cannot be predicted as it is
entirely dependent on referrals by national courts. Under such circumstances, rights holders
will continue to have limited possibilities to determine the conditions of and the remuneration
for the exploitation of their works and other protected subject matter by user uploaded content
service providers. The situation will continue to have a negative effect on the functioning of
the online market place.
5.2.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
Baseline
No policy intervention. This option would rely on the voluntary deployment of technologies
by user uploaded content services, which will continue to apply their own terms and level of
transparency as to the functioning of the technologies.
441
According to the 2015 Yearbook of the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), Vevo and YouTube were
responsible for more than 50 % of all on-demand music streams in the UK. Despite an 88 % rise in
YouTube and Vevo plays, money coming into labels from ‘pure ad-supported’ platforms rose by just
4%, see http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/youtube-is-paying-less-than-0-0009-per-stream-to-
uk-record-labels/. In FR, Snep has reported that income from ad-funded video services – including the
likes of DailyMotion, Vevo and YouTube – dropped by 8.8 % year-on-year. In the US: according to the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) report, in 2014, ad-supported, on-demand
streaming grew 63 percent year on year, while revenue rose just 34 percent. See an article in the New
York Post citing the report http://nypost.com/2016/03/22/record-labels-slam-youtube-ad-supported-
streaming-services/.
442
See article describing the agreement into which Soundcloud has entered with PRS, the UK authors'
collecting society: http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/soundcloud-signs-legal-settlement-with-
prs-in-time-for-christmas/. Besides SoundCloud, Youtube has launched a new paid service called
Youtube Red (so far only in the US), http://www.cnet.com/how-to/youtube-red-details/. Pinterest has
signed a partnership agreement with Getty images, see article
https://techcrunch.com/2013/10/25/pinterest-inks-deal-with-getty-images-will-pay-a-fee-for-the-photo-
agencys-metadata/.
443
For example, the music service provider Soundcloud, founded in 2008, has entered into its first
licensing deal with independent labels in 2015, six years after its foundation:
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/jun/04/soundcloud-signs-licensing-deal-independent-
labels. See also the deal that Soundcloud recently concluded with SACEM, the French authors'
collecting society, and UMPI (Universal Music Publishing International):
https://societe.sacem.fr/en/press-resources/per-publication/Press+releases/a-new-deal-license-sacem-
universal-music-publishing-international-and-soundcloud-strike-new-european-deal.
144
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders will not support this option as they consider that the current legal framework
needs to be clarified and that players on the market will generally not improve the efficiency
and transparency of technical measures when used. Online service providers storing and
giving access to user uploaded content will support this option as they consider that the legal
framework is clear and that they are already taking voluntary measures.444 Other content
service providers are likely not to be in favour of this option as it maintains the imbalance on
the market. Consumers will be in favour of this option as they do not see the need for a
change to the status quo and will fear that any intervention may have a negative impact on the
freedom of information/expression.445
Option 1 – Stakeholder dialogues between rightholders and online services which store
and give access to large amounts of content uploaded by their users
Main elements:
The Commission would launch stakeholder dialogues that would bring together
rightholders and providers of user uploaded content services to encourage them to
define best practices for the use of technologies such as content recognition
technologies and to promote their use. It would aim at improving the capacity of
rightholders to determine the conditions for the use of and remuneration for their
content.
The dialogues would focus on service providers which store and provide access to
large amounts of copyright protected content uploaded by their users as, in view of the
amount of content available and the size of their audience, they have an important
impact on the online content market.
Technology providers would be involved in the dialogue. Account would be taken of
existing technologies, their availability, efficiency and costs for each contracting party
in order to find a balanced approach. The best practices could also focus on the ways
to ensure that the services (i) obtain the necessary data from rightholders to make the
technologies work and (ii) are transparent towards rightholders in terms of the
operation, characteristics and efficiency of the technologies used.
Given the different dynamics in each sector (music, audiovisual, images), the
dialogues would be conducted on a sector by sector basis
Stakeholders' views
Due to the non-binding nature of this option, rights holders will oppose it as they will
consider it would not improve the current situation to a sufficient degree. Online service
providers giving access to user uploaded content may support it while arguing that they
444
See the synopsis report on the public consultation on the regulatory environment for platforms, online
intermediaries and the collaborative economy, sections 3.6 and 4, https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/en/news/full-report-results-public-consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-
intermediaries.
445
In their replies to the public consultation on online platforms, individual users expressed their views on
the relations between rightholders and platforms and on the possible duty of care on online platforms
with regard to tackling (all) illegal content (not only copyright infringing content). See the synopsis
report on the public consultation on the regulatory environment for platforms, online intermediaries and
the collaborative economy, https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-results-public-
consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-intermediaries.
145
already implement on a voluntary basis the necessary technologies that allow rightholders to
decide on the use of their content.446 Other content service providers are likely to find this
option insufficient. Consumers are likely to view the possible stakeholders' dialogues as
impacting negatively their freedom of expression (as it could result in a wider and more
efficient deployment of content recognition technologies on the basis of industry
agreements).447
Option 2 – An obligation on online services which store and give access to large amounts
of content uploaded by their users to put in place appropriate technologies and to
increase transparency vis-a-vis rightholders
Main elements:
This option would establish an obligation on service providers which store and
provide access to large amounts of copyright protected content to put in place
measures, such as content identification technologies, to allow rightholders to
determine better the conditions for the use of their content. The determination of what
constitutes "large amounts of content" will need to be made on the basis of a
combination of factors including the number of users and visitors and the amount of
content uploaded over a certain period of time.448 These factors are independent from
the size of the service provider itself, which can also be an SME. It is clear that online
service providers may have very different services (a user uploaded content platform,
their own channels, third party channels). This obligation would only apply to the user
uploaded content services to the extent that the content is copyright protected.
These services will be targeted because they have become important sources of access
to content online and also in view of their role in giving access to the public to works
and other protected subject matter, requiring the conclusion of licensing agreements
with rightholders.
Cooperation with rightholders will be required for the functioning of the measures,
such as content identification technologies. Rightholders should provide the data that
are necessary for the services to identify the content whereas the services would be
obliged to provide adequate information to rightholders on the deployment and
functioning of the technologies. This could, for instance, include information on the
type of technologies used, periods of unavailability (e.g. due to maintenance), plans
for further improvements, success rates of the technologies deployed for identifying
content and information on possible reasons for failures of identification.
446
See the above cited synopsis report on the public consultation on online platforms.
447
See the reply by BEUC to the public consultation on online platforms,
https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/452cd1fc-7e4f-4102-aae3-254d219876e8.
448
It can be difficult to quantify the exact amount of copyright protected content uploaded by users due to
the diversity of content which in many cases may not be copyright relevant (such as family pictures) or
be uploaded by rightholders themselves. See for instance the Hadopi study regarding an estimated
quantification of content and types of content on YouTube and Daily Motion
https://www.hadopi.fr/observation/publications/qualification-et-quantification-des-contenus-sur-
youtube; https://www.hadopi.fr/actualites/actualites/qualification-et-quantification-des-contenus-sur-
dailymotion. It seems however clear that even if protected content available on user uploaded content
services was to represent only a part of the overall content available on these services, the amount
would still be very significant due to the scale many of these services have reached.
146
In order to safeguard end users' rights, the services will be required to provide for
procedures that enable users to contest situations where the application of the
technology would limit the uploads of content in an unjustified manner.
The above obligations will be without prejudice to liability regimes applicable to
copyright infringements and the application of Article 14 ECD. In particular, with
regard to services that are covered by Article 14 ECD, the obligation to put in place
content identification technologies would not take away the safe harbour provided that
the conditions of Article 14 are fulfilled. The notice and takedown regime will
continue to apply for hosting service providers covered by Article 14 with respect to
content not covered by agreements or in cases where the content is not properly
identified.
Member States would be required to facilitate cooperation between service providers
and rightholders where appropriate, notably in cases where no individual agreement is
reached between the parties on appropriate measures to be put in place by the services.
Stakeholders' views
Rightholders may support this option if it establishes an obligation on service providers to
take effective measures that improve the current situation,449 and provided there is sufficient
clarity as regards the notion of communication to the public. Online service providers storing
and giving access to large amounts of user uploaded content are likely to oppose this option,
including those that already use the technologies - as they would want their initiatives to
remain voluntary. They will also argue that the intervention would counter the freedom of
expression and freedom to conduct business.450Other content service providers are likely to
support this option if it improves the level playing field on the online content market.
Consumers are likely to argue that this option will have a negative impact on their freedom of
expression/information.451
5.2.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would have an impact on rightholders across all sectors, on online services that
store and give access to the public to large amounts of content uploaded by their users, as well as on online
content services that distribute content provided directly by rightholders and that can be perceived, from a user
449
Related to the technologies, see the synopsis report on the public consultation on the regulatory
environment for platforms, online intermediaries and the collaborative economy, sections 4.4 and 4.5,
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-results-public-consultation-regulatory-
environment-platforms-online-intermediaries.
450
See also the open letter sent to the Commission in April 2016, co-signed by a number of associations
representing internet companies (e.g. CCIA, EuroISPA, Digitaleurope) and other stakeholders:
http://libereurope.eu/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Open-letter-Copyright-Reform.pdf. Youtube has also
expressed its opinion on the issue of the value gap in the press, arguing that the service creates
additional value for rightholders through monetization of fan videos as well as providing additional
value through user data. See article in Financial Times: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/37dcc5fc-0ca3-
11e6-ad80-67655613c2d6.html#axzz47ANNJ4A4.
451
BEUC has co-signed the open letter cited above. See also the reply by BEUC to the public consultation
on online platforms referred to above.
147
perspective, as equivalent sources for content consumption. The options also affect consumers. The likely
impacts on each stakeholder group are presented separately.
For rightholders: the impacts assessed are those on their capacity to control better the availability of their
content on user uploaded content services and thereby be in a better position to negotiate with the services the
conditions of such use
For online services that store and give access to large amounts of user uploaded content: the most important
impacts described relate to the implementation of technologies and the negotiation with rightholders in case
they want to keep the content on their services
For other online content service providers distributing content: the main impacts relate to the level playing
field in the market and to their business model.
For consumers/end users: the impact is assessed on the content consumption possibilities and the possibility
for them to upload content.
The policy options are also assessed in relation to their social impact, with focus on cultural diversity.
For fundamental freedoms, the impact is assessed on copyright as a property right, freedom of expression and
information, as well as the freedom to conduct a business as recognised respectively by Articles 17, 11 and
16 of the Charter.
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, based on the data publicly available, replies submitted via the public
consultation on online platforms452, or provided by relevant stakeholders, as well as a Flash Eurobarometer
survey on users' preferences in accessing content online conducted in March 2016.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creative industries/Rightholders:
Impact on their capacity to control better the availability of their content on user uploaded content
services and thereby negotiate with the services the conditions of such use: as the
implementation by the services of technologies, such as content identification technologies,
will remain voluntary and based on the terms set by the services, it is likely that the baseline
scenario will not lead to improvements for rightholders who are likely to continue having
difficulties to enter into negotiations and/or negotiate fair terms for the use of their content.453
While some of the service providers may voluntarily or under pressure from artists454 and
from major rightholders (including risks of litigation)455 decide to seek agreements for the use
of copyright protected content, this is unlikely to become a general trend in the short to mid-
term. It can be expected that the ability to negotiate agreements will also depend on the
market position of rightholders, with small rightholders likely to continue to face more
difficulties than major ones456.
452
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-results-public-consultation-regulatory-
environment-platforms-online-intermediaries.
453
See problem description.
454
See problem description quoting a letter sent by artists to the US Congress in June 2016 asking for a
reform 'that balances the interests of creators with the interests of the companies who exploit music'.
455
See problem description regarding the litigation between PRS and Soundcloud that resulted into the
conclusion of an agreement after five years. See also the announcement in October 2015 of a
collaborative agreement by Google/YouTube and Mediaset España, putting an end to 8 years of legal
disputes, http://www.mediaset.es/inversores/en/GoogleYouTube-Mediaset-Espana-collaborative-
agreement_MDSFIL20151021_0005.pdf,
http://www.panoramaaudiovisual.com/en/2015/10/21/Mediaset-sign-peace-with-google-and-will-
circulate-its-content-on-youtube/.
456
For example, Impala, the association representing independent labels, has pointed to difficulties in
negotiating with Youtube threatening that the content will be blocked if the contract proposed by it is
148
Online services that store and give access to large amounts of user uploaded content:
Compliance costs/ investments needed for putting in place appropriate measures and
negotiating with rightholders the use of their content: no impact. The services are likely to
continue to use technologies on a voluntary basis and subject to their own terms.457 An
evolution could result from case law in some MS458 but it would however remain subject to
national courts and may lead to diverging obligations for the services in different Member
States. Given the importance of protected content for the business models of user uploaded
content services, a certain evolution can be expected in the mid to long term with regard to
agreements with rightholders for content that the services would want to have on their
websites. This trend is confirmed by agreements that have already been concluded (not only
in the music sector459 but also in the AV and in the images sector where a few partnerships
are being concluded).460
Other content service providers:
Impact on the level playing field: no impact. They will continue to face an uneven playing
field. This uncertain environment and diverging legal and financial obligations will put new
entrants under unfair competitive pressure from incumbent services that do not play by the
same rules. This may constitute a deterrent for new services to enter the market.
Impact on their business model: The pressure to compete with user uploaded services which
face lower operating costs will continue to make it more difficult for these other online
content services to have or build a sustainable business model.461
Consumers: no impact in the short to mid-term as the user uploaded content services will in
the majority of cases continue to operate in the same manner. In the long term, there could be
a risk of reducing consumer choice if the current situation affects fair competition in the
market and the availability of content.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
There could be an indirect negative impact on cultural diversity in the long term if the
revenues generated for the commercial use of copyright protected content cannot sustain the
production of new (and diverse) content.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option has no direct impact on copyright as a property right, nor on the freedom of
expression and information or the freedom to conduct a business.
not signed by the independents, see http://www.impalamusic.org/content/youtube-issues-content-
blocking-threats-independent-labels-win-and-impala-raise-concerns.
457
See Annex 12A for the description of different technologies and their usage by major user uploaded
content services.
458
See for instance the Hamburg regional court decision of July 1st 2015 in which the user uploaded
content service is imposed to take appropriate measures aimed at avoiding further infringements.
459
See the above reference to Soundcloud. Youtube has already signed a number of agreements and is said
to be renegotiating agreements with music labels, see e.g. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2c310ae8-fbc2-
11e5-8e04-8600cef2ca75.html#axzz4CK050l97
461
Having a sustainable business model on today's streaming market has proven to be very difficult, as
demonstrated by the losses incurred, the failures by some streaming services (e.g. Deezer), to raise
funds, or by cases of bankruptcy (e.g. the US streaming service Rdio). See
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/oct/28/deezer-ipo-music-streaming,
http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/another-streaming-service-fails-ipo-guvera-move-blocked/,
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/rdio-was-losing-2-million-840977
149
Option 1 – Stakeholder dialogues between rightholders and services which store and
give access to large amounts of content uploaded by their users
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creative industries/Rightholders
Impact on their capacity to control better the availability of their content on user uploaded
content services and thereby negotiate with the services the conditions of such use: due to its
voluntary nature, it seems unlikely that stakeholder dialogues will result in sufficient
improvements in the take up, efficiency and transparency of technologies in comparison to the
possible evolution of the market. The voluntary nature of the dialogues is likely not to change
the behaviour patterns of services which have not deployed any technologies so far or for
those which have been using these technologies on a voluntary basis for several years, but
under their own terms. Rightholders will remain in a weak bargaining position for the use of
their content by the services. Moreover, stakeholder dialogues in a context where some of the
user uploaded content services have already been imposed higher responsibilities with regard
to protected content could be viewed as a step back in some MS, in comparison to existing
obligations.462
Online services that store and give access to large amounts of user uploaded content:
Compliance costs/ investments needed for putting in place appropriate measures and
negotiating with rightholders the use of their content: limited impact due to the voluntary
nature of the stakeholder dialogues and the limited likelihood of an agreement on best
practices.
Other content service providers:
Impact on the level playing field: unlikely to have any effect as, for the reasons explained
above, different content service providers are likely to continue playing by different rules.
Impact on their business model: an impact similar to the one under the baseline scenario can
be expected.
Consumers: no direct impact on consumers. They could be impacted if online services giving
access to user uploaded content agreed to take steps which led to a change in their services.
This is however unlikely given that agreements, if they are reached, are likely to take into
account the popularity of the current services (and the important role they play for the overall
business models of certain platforms).463
SOCIAL IMPACTS
This option might have a slight positive impact on cultural diversity if the stakeholder
dialogues were to result in a further use of technologies, thereby increasing the possibility for
rightholders to decide on the use of their content.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option is likely to have no impact or a very limited positive impact on copyright as a
property right. It may have a limited negative impact on the freedom of expression and
information (if, following the stakeholder dialogues, services implemented technologies
462
See the above mentioned Hambourg decision.
463
See Annex 12B containing the results from the Flash Eurobarometer on Internet users’ preferences for
accessing content online showing the predominance of "free" for accessing content online.
150
limiting the upload of content for unjustified reasons, for example when an exception or a
limitation to copyright applies). In such an unlikely case there would also be a limited
negative impact on the freedom to conduct a business of service providers covered by this IA
due to the costs they may need to incur as a result of the stakeholder dialogues.
Option 2 – An obligation on online services which store and give access to large amounts
of protected content uploaded by their users to put in place appropriate and
proportionate technologies and to increase transparency vis a vis rights holders
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creative industries/Rightholders
Impact on their capacity to control better the availability of their content on user uploaded
content services and thereby negotiate with the services the conditions of such use: against the
backdrop of the role of these services in the communication to the public of protected content,
the establishment of an obligation to deploy technical means will have a positive impact on
rightholders. As the services will be obliged to cooperate with rightholders and provide them
adequate information with regard to the technologies to be deployed, it is expected that the
efficiency of the technologies will grow and thereby enable rightholders to have a better
control over the content that is available on user uploaded services. This will improve their
possibilities to conclude agreements and increase revenues. This is notably the case for the
music sector where, as explained above, some agreements are already in place and there is an
overall readiness from rightholders to conclude agreements with the services. In the case of
AV content, this option may increase the willingness of rightholders to allow more of their
content to be available on user uploaded content services while continuing to take down
premium content.
While the ability for rightholders to decide on the availability of their content is expected to
increase their possibilities to obtain fair remuneration, it is not possible to quantify the
concrete impact of this option in terms of revenues, as this would also depend on the outcome
of commercial negotiations, including the size of the service as well as possible developments
in their business models. There have been indications from some rightholders in the music
sector that the expected remuneration should be similar to the revenues generated by the free
tiers of other content services (to the extent it is possible to differentiate free tier revenues
from premium service ones).464
The deployment of technologies that are necessary to identify content and make the
conclusion of agreements possible will imply some costs for rightholders. These costs will
arise where they provide data (e.g. contents or fingerprints depending on the technology
used465) necessary for the content identification technologies to work. When rightholders
already provide such data to major online services, the impact is expected to be limited and
outweighed by the positive impacts of this option.
464
See for example an article at http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/youtube-are-under-paying-
exploiting-creators-and-getting-away-with-it where the independent community is asking for a
minimum per-view guarantee at least as great as existing services that have a free tier. At the same time,
it should be acknowledged that the payment resulting from the free tier is linked to the coexistence of
freemium and premium pricing.
465
See Annex 12A on content identification technologies.
151
Online services that store and give access to large amounts of protected content
uploaded by their users466
Compliance costs/ investments needed for putting in place appropriate measures and
negotiating with rightholders the use of their content: The need to put in place measures, such
as content identification technologies, will involve costs which will depend on the quantity
and the type of content to be identified, but also on whether online services already use
technologies or not. This option does not impose any specific technology to be used. An
online service can choose between appropriate technology solutions taking into account the
specificities and needs of its service as well as its size.
Different technologies and related services are available on the market. The prices offered by
the technology providers vary with the scale and types of services provided.467 In practice,
technologies with basic functionalities, allowing one to one recognition of content (such as
music recordings) would be the least costly, whereas more elaborate technologies that could
be required to identify certain types of works (e.g. the underlying composition of a recording)
would be more costly. Many of the online intermediaries replying to the public consultation
on platforms indicated that it is very difficult to provide an estimation of the financial costs of
running such technologies.468For example, on the basis of the information available, it is
estimated that a small scale online service provider with a relatively low number of monthly
transactions can obtain such services as from €900 a month.469 For online services hosting
large amounts of different works, the cost can be significantly higher. At the same time, the
major online user uploaded content services have already put in place content identification
technologies470 and therefore the costs for them are likely to be limited and would above all
relate to the need to cooperate with rightholders on the functioning and efficiency of the
technologies used and to provide greater transparency. Some costs may also arise from the
need to put in place procedures to enable users to contest situations where the application of
technology would limit, in an unjustified manner, their possibility to upload content. These
costs are however expected to be limited as procedures with the similar purpose are in
466
Based on the current market situation (and the examples of services cited by the respondents to the
Flash Eurobarometer), it is estimated that the number of services affected would be those that have a
high number of users (from several millions to over a billion) and daily uploads ranging from hundreds
to millions of files. This category includes services which may differ significantly in terms of size:
Youtube is clearly the biggest service but services such as Dailymotion, Vimeo, Pinterest are also likely
to fall into this category.
467
See Annex 12A for some examples of services with different functionalities and prices.
468
An estimation of costs related to all types of illegal content (and not only copyright) ranging from 5-10
% of operation costs or several thousand to million euros per year has been put forward by certain
intermediaries, see https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-results-public-
consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-intermediaries.
469
See the submission by Audible Magic to US Copyright Office in the context of the Section 512 study
https://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=COLC-2015-0013-85992. The above mentioned
price applies for music identification for up to 5000 monthly transactions. See for more details their
price list accessible at https://www.audiblemagic.com/copyright-compliance-pricing/.
470
YouTube uses its own technology – Content ID; Soundcloud uses a combination of Audible Magic and
its own technology; Dailymotion uses the services of third parties - Audible Magic and l'Institut
National de l'Audiovisuel (INA). When services decide to invest in their own technology the costs are
likely to be higher. YouTube has indicated that it has invested more than $60 million to develop its
Content ID system Google's submission to US Copyright Office,
https://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=COLC-2015-0013-90806. Soundcloud has estimated
in its reply to the public consultation on online platforms that it has spent approximately €5m on such
technologies, see; https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/6acf2b21-865a-402c-876a-e2b67c0ceef9.
152
practice in many cases already in place, including in the context of notice and take down
mechanisms for hosting service providers.471
Due to the improved control for rightholders over the presence of their content on user
uploaded content services, the services are expected to negotiate agreements with more
rightholders to be able to keep their content available to the end users. In such cases, costs
would arise for service providers that have so far refused to enter into negotiations or for
those that may need to renegotiate their existing agreements at the request of rightholders.
Currently, the major user uploaded content services tend to be enterprises of a large size for
which these costs are expected to be reasonable. The costs related to the negotiation of
agreements will be higher for SMEs but they should remain reasonable as the obligation to
use technologies is limited to those service providers giving access to large amounts of
content. New entrants which start their business with a small quantity of user uploaded
content would not be impacted.
Other content service providers:
Impact on the level playing field: this option is likely to have a positive impact on content
service providers which would not have to incur any additional costs and can only benefit
from a market where providers compete on more equal grounds.
Impact on their business model: given the expected improvement of the level playing field, it
would help the services to sustain or strengthen their business model.
Consumers: the impact on consumers will depend on the possible changes made by the
services to the way they function as a result of the deployment of technologies and of possible
agreements with rightholders, which could reduce the content freely available on the service.
However, as indicated in option 1, negotiations are likely to take into account the popularity
of the current user uploaded content models among consumers. On the other hand, consumers
may in the long term have an increased choice of content due to more incentives for
rightholders to create new content. This would result from the increased possibility for
rightholders to determine the conditions for the use of their contents and therefore to negotiate
agreements and be remunerated for such use.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Option 2 is expected to have a positive impact on cultural diversity as it would lead to better
control over the use of and remuneration for copyright protected content. This should bring
more certainty and incentives to rightholders to create new content. As a result, the access to a
culturally diverse content is expected to be positively impacted.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Option 2 would have a positive impact on copyright since rightholders will benefit from an
improved framework that allows them to have a better control over the availability of their
content on user uploaded content services and to negotiate better the conditions for the use of
their content by such services. The freedom of expression and information may be affected
negatively in cases where the services limit user uploaded content in an unjustified manner
471
See the submission of Soundclound to the Commission consultation on online platforms in 2015: "
Content is removed in response to notifications from rights holders, automatically by content filtering
and by rights holders directly using a tool provided by Soundcloud. Anyone whose content is removed
in any of these ways may challenge that removal if t they believe the content was wrongly identified, or
if the uploader believes that they have the necessary rights to upload the relevant content".
153
(for example when an exception or a limitation to copyright applies or the content is in public
domain) or when the technologies fail to identify the content correctly.472 This negative
impact should be mitigated by the fact that the services would be obliged to put in place the
necessary procedural safeguards for the users which in the majority of cases already exist in
the related context of notice and take down requests. In all, as content recognition
technologies are already applied by the major user uploaded content services, it is likely that
this option would not lead to significant increases in unjustified cases of prevented uploads
compared to the current situation. Furthermore, the cooperation with rightholders and the
evolution of technology are likely to improve on an on-going basis the accuracy of content
identification. Additionally, as the limited liability regime for hosting service providers is not
changed, there is no risk of increase in removals of content due to the fear of liability by such
services. At the same time there is likely to be a positive impact on users who in the long term
should have access to an enhanced range of creative content and services as incentives to
invest will improve. The impact on the freedom to conduct a business could be negative due
to the costs to implement the technologies. At the same time, the level of this impact is
expected to be limited due to the fact that the obligation is imposed on services giving access
to large amounts of protected content only, that the option builds on existing voluntary
practices and that technologies are increasingly available in the market which makes the
implementation of the technology obligation easier for the services. This impact is further
limited by the fact that the proportionality in the choice and in the deployment of effective
content identification technologies will allow to take into account the size and the nature of
the individual services. Overall, this option is considered to strike the necessary balance
between copyright and other fundamental freedoms.
5.2.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on Coherence
stakeholders
Baseline (0) No impact – (0) No direct costs (0) No direct impacts (0) No direct
absence or limited associated with this on stakeholders impact on
possibility for option cultural diversity
rightholders to (0) No impact on
determine the other
conditions of use of fundamental
their content by the rights
services will persist
Option 1 – (0/+) Limited impact (0/-) Limited (0/+) Limited positive (0/+) Limited
Stakeholder on rightholders' compliance costs for impact on rights positive impact
dialogues possibility to user uploaded holders' possibility to on cultural
between determine the content services reduce use of content diversity and on
rightholders and conditions of use of which implement the not covered by the property
services which their content by the best practices (to the agreements and to right.
store and give services extent the negotiate such (0) Neutral
access to large stakeholder agreements impact on
amounts of dialogues result in (0/-) Limited negative freedom of
content best practices) impact on user expression and
472
See the issues raised with regard to fundamental rights in the Study of fundamental rights limitations for
online enforcement through self-regulation, http://www.ivir.nl/publicaties/download/1796.
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uploaded by (0/-) Limited uploaded content information in
their users compliance costs for services which cases where best
rightholders implement the best practices are
practices implemented
(0/+) Limited positive 0/-) Limited
impact on other negative impact
content services on freedom to
(0) No direct impact conduct business
on consumers in cases where
best practices are
implemented
Option 2: An (++) Positive impact (-) Compliance costs (++) Positive impact (++) Positive
obligation on on rightholders' for user uploaded on rightholders' impact on impact
services which possibility to content services possibility to reduce on cultural
store and give determine the (0/-) Limited the use of content not diversity and on
access to large conditions of use of compliance costs for covered by property right.
amounts of their content by the rightholders agreements and to (0) Neutral
content services negotiate agreements impact on
uploaded by (-) Limited negative freedom of
their users to impact on user expression and
put in place uploaded content information.
appropriate services (0/-) Limited
technologies (+) Positive impact on negative impact
together with other content services on freedom to
more (0) No direct impact conduct business
transparency on consumers
Option 2 is the preferred option. The deployment of appropriate technologies would
increase the capacity of rightholders to control better the presence of their content on
user uploaded content services and give them a better position to negotiate agreements
for the use of their content. By contrast, Option 1 could only result in best practices, which
would not be binding for service providers and would therefore not be sufficient to lead to
improvements on market practices. The compliance costs of Option 2 for service providers
are limited by the fact that the technologies to be put in place need to be proportionate, and
that a majority of the services covered already deploy some content identification
technologies. Option 2 is the best option to reach the policy objectives while maintaining a
balance between the relevant fundamental rights.
Proportionality and impacts on Member States: The measures foreseen under Option 2 are
proportionate to the nature of the services covered. Because of the presence of large amounts
of protected content on their websites, these services have a significant impact on the online
content market and may therefore be expected to put in place certain measures to protect the
content in cooperation with rightholders. MS would need to adapt the legislation to establish
the obligation imposed by Option 2.
5.3. RIGHTS IN PUBLICATIONS
5.3.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: The shift from print to digital has enlarged the audience of press publications but
made the exploitation and enforcement of the rights in publications increasingly difficult. In
addition, publishers face difficulties as regards compensation for uses under exceptions.
Description of the problem: Publishers are increasingly facing difficulties in relation to the
digital exploitation of, and the enforcement of rights in, press publications such as
newspapers and magazines. The changes to the way copyright-protected content is distributed
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and consumed in the digital environment have affected press publications in a specific way.
The publishing industry is in the middle of a shift from print to digital. Print circulation of
daily newspapers has been constantly declining for years (by 17 % in the period 2010-2014 in
8 EU MS),473 a trend that is expected to continue. In all MS sampled by a recent survey, the
proportion of consumers who indicated that the internet was their main source to access news
largely outweighed those for whom the favourite source was printed newspapers (e.g. 29 % to
3 % in FR; 23 % to 7 % in DE, 34 % to 8 % in IT; 38 % to 10 % in the UK).474 Digital
audiences of newspapers and magazines have been growing exponentially: web traffic has
doubled over the last five years (from 248.4 to 503.4 million unique users between 2011 and
2015).475 Today, newspapers and magazines' websites and apps are the main services used to
access news for 42 % of users in the EU.476
Despite the growing success of publishers' content online, the increase of publishers' digital
revenues has not made up for the decline of print. Between 2010 and 2014, news publishers'
total print revenues decreased by €13.45 billion477 and digital revenues rose by €3.98 billion:
a net revenue loss of €9.47 billion (-13 %).478 In addition, news publishers report that the
current decline of the industry has already led to closing down or reducing their editorial
teams, in particular in the case of smaller and regional newspapers. 479
Several factors may explain this situation. On the one hand, press publishers have traditionally
made available online large proportions of their content for free, since the early days of the
internet. This business model was sustainable when print revenues ensured sufficient returns
of investments and the internet was an additional source of brand exposure and advertising
revenues. With the decline of print, publishers have become increasingly dependent on the
monetisation of their digital content, but they manage to do so today only to a limited extent.
Paywalls and B2C digital-subscription offers are being increasingly proposed, in particular by
the main newspaper and magazine brands, but today they only account for around 10 % of
news publishers' online revenues.480 Freely-available content remains crucial as it attracts
advertising revenues, which are today still the main contributor to press publishers' digital
473
See Annex 13A. Data regarding BE, FR, DE, FI, PL, IT, ES, UK: decline of daily newspapers range
from -8 % in BE to -52 % in IT. Of magazines from -6 % in BE to -39 % in IT. These data have been
provided by the press publishing sector (EPC, EMMA, ENPA and NME after carrying out an internal
survey among their members). Other sources show similar trends: according to a Deloitte study
commissioned by Google, the circulation of traditional print journalism decreased in DE by 41 %
between 2001 and 2014; FR -10 % between 2001 and 2011. Source: “The impact of web traffic on
revenues of traditional newspaper publishers. A study for France, Germany, Spain and the UK”,
Deloitte, March 2016.
http://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/uk/Documents/technology-media-
telecommunications/deloitte-uk-impact-of-web-traffic-on-newspaper-revenues-2016.pdf
474
Source: Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2015, p.10. http://www.digitalnewsreport.org. In some
MS, online is the first source of news, in others this is TV. See Annex 13A for further details.
475
See Annex 13A. Data provided by the press publishing sector as regards BE, FR, DE, FI, PL, IT, ES,
UK.
476
Source: Eurobarometer on Internet users' preferences for accessing content online (n° 437/ March 2016)
– Types of services used to access the news online. See Annex 13A.
477
See Annex 13A. The decrease of print revenues is caused by a decline of both sales and advertising
revenues; the latter have declined by €7 billion between 2010 and 2014. Source: PwC Entertainment
and Media Outlook 2015-2019.
478
Source: PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook 2015-2019. For country specific figures data provided
by the press publishing sector see also Annex 13A.
479
2016 public consultation on the role of publishers in the copyright value chain.
480
Source: Deloitte, 2016, p.12-13. For example, according to this study, advertising revenues captured by
newspaper publishers in the UK were estimated to reach €285 million or 11 % of the total local display
advertising market in 2014.
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revenues. However, the large proportion of press publishers' content available online has also
favoured, over time, the emergence of online service providers, such as social media and news
aggregators, which base in full or in part their business models on reusing or providing access
to such content.
In 2016, social media (22 %), news aggregators (14 %) and search engines (21 %) are, taken
together, the main way to read news online for 57 % of users in the EU.481 The relation
between these online services and press publishers is complex. On the one hand, they increase
the visibility of press content and bring new traffic –and thus advertising revenues– to
newspaper websites.482 According to a recent study covering FR, DE, UK and ES, 66 % of
visits to newspapers' websites consist in referral traffic, i.e. traffic channelled by other online
services, the total value of which has been estimated to be €746 million in the 4 MS
considered.483 On the other hand, 47 % of consumers browse and read news extracts on these
websites without clicking on links to access the whole article in the newspaper page, which
erodes advertising revenues from the newspaper webpages.484
Press publishers have attempted to conclude licences with online service providers for uses of
their content online, and sought to participate in the advertising revenues generated by their
content on third parties' websites. However, they have generally not managed to do so, despite
the fact that these services often engage in copyright-relevant acts.485 More generally, the
opportunity offered by the digital environment has not translated into the emergence of a solid
B2B licensing market for online uses of press publications. Press publishers generally point
out that B2B-licence revenues are a very low proportion of their online revenues and that they
face considerable difficulties in concluding licences with online service providers.486 Services
distributing digital press publishers' content to consumers based on licensing agreements are
just beginning to be tested now.487 Cooperation agreements between major online service
providers and publishers, which aim at supporting technological solutions to improve readers'
experience (in particular on smartphones) and generate higher advertising revenues, are
beginning to emerge.488 However, these agreements generally do not specifically target the
use of content by online service providers.
481
See Annex 13A. Source: Eurobarometer Flash 437- Types of services used to access the news online.
482
According to Google, their services alone send 10 billion clicks worth of traffic to news publishers'
websites each month, and each visit is for them an opportunity to earn revenue through advertising and
subscription. They state that in 2015 their partners around the world earned more than $10 billion using
their AdSense products. Source: Google's answer to the 2016 public consultation.
483
Source: Deloitte, 2016.
484
See Annex 13A. Source: Eurobarometer Flash 437 - Use of news aggregators, online social media or
search engines to access the news online.
485
According to the case-law of the CJEU, copying parts of newspaper articles is copyright relevant
(covered by the exclusive right of reproduction) in all cases where these parts are original, in the sense
that they are their author's intellectual creation (see Case C-5/08, Infopaq).
486
At the moment, a B2B licensing market for digital publishing content appears to have only emerged in
the area of media monitoring. Licences have brought revenues to publishers amounting to €6 million in
FR and £26 million in the UK in 2015 according to media monitoring industry. Source: AMEC-FIBEP's
answer to the 2016 public consultation.
487
Notably the Dutch based company Blendle. See Annex 13C.
488
See Annex 13C. In 2015 and 2016, Facebook (Instant Articles), Google (AMP) and Apple (Apple
News) developed three platforms aimed at delivering news to mobile users in an optimised
(easier/faster) way, so as to increase exposure of publishers' content while allowing them to achieve a
better monetisation of their content, notably through advertising. Yahoo also established mechanisms to
facilitate the monetisation of news content, based on a share of advertising revenues when portions of
publishers' articles are included within their service and/or payment of a fee for inclusion of articles as a
whole (source: Yahoo's answer to the 2016 public consultation). On a wider scale, Google's Digital
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The problem described above does not affect publishers other than press publishers to the
same extent, due to the different nature of their products and business models. Book
publishers generally do not make their content freely accessible online in the same way press
publishers do. As a consequence, online services such as news aggregators and social media
hardly play a role as distributors of book content at the moment. The online distribution of
e-books generally follows a more traditional linear model, based on copyright licences
between publishers and online distributors (with or without the intervention of
intermediaries), in many cases large multimedia online service providers. Scientific publishers
generate revenues either through subscription licences with universities and similar
establishments or, when they make available their content online under the open access
model, by charging authors for the publication. Because of the specific nature of the scientific
publications, advertising revenues as well as traffic generated by online service providers
hardly play a role in this market.
An additional, more specific problem which affects all publishers, in particular book and
scientific publishers, relates to their ability to receive compensation for uses of their
publications under exceptions. Publishers bear the economic risks linked to the exploitation of
the works contained in their publications and may suffer losses when such works are used
under exceptions or limitations to copyright. However, they currently face legal uncertainty as
regards their ability to receive compensation for such uses. This issue has come to the fore
following a recent decision of the CJEU where, stressing the fact that publishers are not
rightholders under the current EU rules, the Court has questioned the lawfulness of
mechanisms existing in a number of MS under which publishers have traditionally received
compensation for uses of their publications under exceptions or limitations. 489 This case-law
concerns predominantly the private copying and reprography exceptions, but extends
potentially to uses under other exceptions that are subject to compensation. As illustrated in
the table below, publishers currently receive compensation in at least 18 MS, under different
national arrangements. Detailed quantitative information was available concerning 12 of these
MS and is presented in Annex 13D.
National situation Member State490
Compensation paid to both authors and AT, BE, BG, CZ, DE, EE,
publishers for uses under one or both of the ES, EL, FR, HU, HR, LT,
private copying / reprography exceptions LV, NL491, PL, PT, RO, SI,
SK
Compensation paid only to authors for uses DK, FI, IT, SE
under private copying / reprography exception
No compensation for uses under private copying CY, LU, MT
/ reprography exception
No private copying / reprography exception IE, UK
News Initiative (DNI) – of which AMP is part - is an ongoing collaboration/forum with publishers
based on granting funds or technology support to innovative projects in online news.
489
Judgment of 12 November 2015 in Hewlett-Packard and others (C-572/13. EU:C:2015:750)
490
The overview over national practices provided here is indicative. It is based on the Commission's best
effort based on information available at the time of writing. MS on which detailed data is available in
Annex 13D are presented in bold.
491
Available information concerning the NL was inconclusive as to the actual payment of compensation to
publishers.
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Some of these MS492 are currently considering introducing national legislation to take into
account the case-law of the CJEU and keep in place compensation schemes benefiting
publishers. Others could follow if no action is taken at EU level. However, under the current
EU rules it is not fully clear to what extent MS are allowed to do it.
The economic implications of this problem are illustrated by the fact that in the 12 MS for
which data were available, an aggregated total amount of €40 million was distributed to
publishers over the course of the respective last financial year, as indicated in Annex 13D.493
It is important to note that for publishers these revenues are not associated with any marginal
costs and therefore represent a significant source of income, in particular for smaller
publishers.
Drivers: [Incomplete protection of publishers' contribution and investments in publications at
the EU level] EU copyright law recognises and incentivises the economic and creative
contribution of film producers, phonogram producers and broadcasting organisations by
granting them related rights. Publishers across different sectors also play an important role in
assembling, editing and investing in content. However, today, despite playing a comparable
role in terms of investments and contribution to the creative process to film and phonogram
producers in their respective industries,494 publishers are not identified as rightholders under
EU copyright rules.495 They generally exploit and enforce their content on the basis of the
rights transferred to them by authors (writers, journalists, photographers, etc.).496 Some MS
grant a specific additional protection to publishers as authors of collective works (e.g. PT). In
addition, other MS (notably DE and ES) have recently adopted national measures (generally
referred to as ‘ancillary rights’) to grant publishers specific protection as regards uses of their
content online largely as an attempt to address the above described problems related to the
exploitation and enforcement of rights in press publications in the digital environment. The
DE law grants an exclusive right covering specifically the making available of press products
to the public, which has been implemented by the main press publishers under collective
management schemes.497 The ES law establishes an obligation for online service providers to
pay compensation to publishers (which cannot be waived) for uses of their content online.498
492
BE and DE in particular.
493
2014-2015. See International Survey on Text and Image Copyright Levies 2014, available
http://www.ifrro.org/sites/default/files/levies_2014_online.pdf and also Annex 13D.
494
In the analogue era, press publishers had a stronger control of the exploitation of their press
publications, as the main means of dissemination of their content was the distribution of tangible copies
of newspapers and magazines. Licensing out their content to third parties was generally not needed to
further disseminate it once published.
495
EU copyright law provides exclusive rights of reproduction and making available to the public to film
producers, phonogram producers and broadcasting organisations. In contrast, under EU law publishers
do not hold such rights in respect of their publications.
496
The transfer of journalists' rights to publishers is governed in MS by copyright law and contract law. A
publisher is typically transferred the journalists' rights against the payment of remuneration (as part of
his salary or as an addition; or independently in the case of freelancers). The scope of the transfer is set
out in the contract (normally what is needed for the exploitation of the newspaper or magazine, but it
may go beyond). It can also be established in a legal presumption in copyright law. For further details
on the industry practices, see 2016 study on the “Remuneration of authors of books and scientific
journals, translators, journalists and visual artists for the use of their works”, Institute for Information
Law (IViR) of the University of Amsterdam, together with Europe Economics, PLS.
497
See Annex 13B for an overview of provisions in MS copyright law granting specific protection to
publishers.
498
Legally, the ES law is an exception allowing certain uses of news content online, coupled with an
unwaivable compensation, subject to compulsory collective management, to be paid to the publishers or
authors of the original press article.
159
None of these two recent ‘ancillary rights’ solutions at national level have proven effective to
address publishers' problems so far, in particular as they have not resulted in increased
revenues for publishers from the major online service providers. This incomplete protection in
the EU causes legal uncertainty, notably as regards exploitation of press publications through
B2B licences, and makes enforcement complex and sometimes inefficient (e.g. proving the
chain of title of all rights related to a publication).499 Moreover, different approaches to the
protection of publishers at national level result in fragmentation in the single market.
The fact that publishers are not protected as rightholders at the level of EU law but rely on the
rights of the authors transferred to them has furthermore contributed to the situation of legal
uncertainty concerning their ability to receive compensation under exceptions as described
above.
[Differences in bargaining power] The gap in the current EU rules further weakens the
bargaining power of publishers in relation to large online service providers and contributes to
aggravate the problems faced by press publishers as regards the online exploitation of, and
enforcement of rights in, their content. Online service providers often have a strong
bargaining position and receive the majority of advertising revenues generated online (e.g.
40 % of total advertising investments in BE, according to publishers).500 This makes it
difficult for press publishers to negotiate with them on an equal footing, including regarding
the share of revenues related to the use of their content.
Consequences: The works and other protected subject-matter published by different
publishing industries (e.g. newspapers and magazines, books and scientific journals) are
essential in a democratic society, as they play an important role in citizens' access to
knowledge and good quality information, including on issues related to democracy and
democratic decision making. The problems described above contribute to a situation of
general decline of publishers' revenue streams in the press sector and to potential substantial
loss of revenues linked to compensation for uses under copyright exceptions across the entire
publishing industry. If the investments and contribution of publishers increase the value of
publications but are not backed by appropriate revenues, the sustainability of publishing
industries in the EU may be at stake, with the risk of negative consequences on media
pluralism, democratic debate, quality of information and cultural diversity in the European
society.
How the problem would evolve: In the near future, the production and distribution of digital
content, notably on online service providers (both websites and apps) will continue to require
growing investments from press publishers.
Without intervention at EU level, press publishers will continue licensing the use of their
publications mainly on the basis of the rights transferred to them by the content creators. In a
constantly-evolving market, with more and more players and means of content distribution,
499
Today, publications comprise a large variety of content including text, images and videos. In the news
sector, these are created and updated constantly by hundreds of creators. Traditional news publishers
like Trinity Mirror in the UK and Bild in Germany have gained audience and advertising revenue
through creating a range of video output for their own websites and for distribution through social
media. The video news consumption online is increasing in the EU (e.g. in 2015: 27 % of users
accessing online news in ES; 25 % in IT; 18 % in DE and DK). Source: Reuters Institute Digital News
Report 2015.
500
Source: “Vers un modèle économique durable pour les éditeurs belges de journaux et de magazines:
aperçu de l'importance des licences”, 2014, p.10-11. This report was published by Journaux
Francophones Belges (JFB), The Ppress and Vlaamse Nieuwsmedia.
https://www.mediaspecs.be/files/upload/file/etude-d-impact-licences-fr.pdf.
160
this is likely to increase legal uncertainty, weaken the position of press publishers, accentuate
their loss of revenues, complicate enforcement of rights and eventually affect the number and
quality of print media. This would be prejudicial for the media pluralism, good quality
information and the role they play in democratic societies. MS may decide to address these
problems at national level, as DE and ES have recently done, but this is likely to be
ineffective, due to the lack of scale of national solutions. Furthermore, it would only increase
fragmentation of the legal framework on the online uses of press publications in the EU. In
addition, in the absence of EU intervention, the decreasing share of the compensation due for
uses under exceptions resulting from the current situation following the recent case-law of the
CJEU would put at risk in particular the smaller players throughout the whole publishing
industry (news, books and scientific publishers), who are currently relying on this
compensation and are essential for the cultural diversity and media pluralism in this sector.
5.3.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
The general and specific objectives are described in section 5.1.3.
Baseline
No policy intervention. Under this option, the use of publications would remain governed by
the rules applicable to the rights transferred to press publishers by authors and other
rightholders. Issues related to the different bargaining position of press publishers and online
service providers would not be addressed, without prejudice to the possible application of
competition law. This option would rely on market developments and stakeholders reaching
voluntary agreements to cooperate and find win-win solutions concerning the online
dissemination of publishers' content, notably as regards newspaper and magazine online
content.501 At the same time, certain MS could decide to amend their national legislation to
introduce rights for press publishers at national level, which is likely to be ineffective and
increase fragmentation of copyright rules in the single market.
Some MS may try to address the problem of legal uncertainty as regards publishers' (across
different sectors) ability to receive compensation for uses under private copying, reprography
and other exceptions through national law within the boundaries of the current EU rules,
including the case law of the CJEU. Other MS may hesitate to do so in the absence of EU
intervention because of the situation of legal uncertainty described above.
Stakeholders' views
Most online service providers, such as content aggregators and social networks, oppose legislative intervention
and support the status quo, as they consider that the relationships between them and press publishers should be
left to the market. Most publishers consider that the status quo cannot solve the identified problems.
Option 1 – Encouraging stakeholders' dialogue and cooperation to find solutions
concerning the dissemination of press publishers' contents
Under this option, the Commission would encourage stakeholders, namely press publishers
and online service providers, to identify collaborative solutions to facilitate the conclusion of
agreements for the online use of press publishers' contents. Notably, the Commission would:
(i) launch a structured dialogue between press publishers and online service providers which
would take stock of existing market initiatives502 and foster discussions to identify common
solutions which would facilitate the emergence of cooperation agreements between the two
categories of stakeholders; and
501
See Annex 13C for an overview of market-led solutions in the press sector.
502
See Annex 13C.
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(ii) monitor the implementation of any resulting initiative and assess its effectiveness to
ensure a fair distribution of revenues generated by the reuse of press publishers' contents, in
particular to assess whether specific EU legislative intervention at a later stage is warranted.
Stakeholders' views
Services providing access to publications could be supportive of this option, as it would not imply creation of
any further rights at EU level. Most publishers consider that such a non-legislative approach would not be
sufficient to tackle the challenges they currently face.
Option 2 – Introduction in EU law of a related right covering digital uses of press
publications
This option would ensure that the creative and economic contribution of press publishers
(such as newspaper and magazine publishers) is recognised and incentivised in EU law, as it
is today the case for other creative sectors (film and phonogram producers, broadcasters). The
creation of a new category of rightholders (press publishers) would not affect the scope of the
exclusive rights granted to them, notably the rights of making available to the public and of
reproduction, which are harmonised under current EU copyright rules. This means, in
particular, that this intervention would not change the legal status of hyperlinks in EU law as
it follows from the case-law of the CJEU according to which the “provision on a website of
clickable links to works freely available on another website” does not constitute a copyright
relevant act.503 The legal intervention would be as follows:
Protected subject-matter: The protection would benefit publishers of press publications
such as newspapers and magazines according to the definition provided for in the legal
instrument.
Rights covered: press publishers would be granted the exclusive rights of making
available to the public and reproduction to the extent needed for digital uses.
Exceptions: exceptions and limitations laid down in EU copyright law, including new
ones introduced by this legislative intervention, would apply.
Protection of TPMs and Rights-Management Information and enforcement: Articles 6,
7 and 8 of the InfoSoc Directive, as well as Directive 2004/48504 (the "Enforcement
Directive"), would apply.
Relationship with authors' rights: Publishers' rights would apply without prejudice to
authors and other creators' rights on their individual contributions (news or magazine
articles, photographs, videos) which compose the protected subject-matter (the final
press product).
Term of protection: The term of protection of other related rights such as those granted
to film and phonogram producers is usually 50 years. A shorter term of protection
should be proposed in this case, taking into account the shorter economic cycle of the
exploitation of press content (a relatively short period after publication). This is
consistent with the situation in the MS where publishers are granted self-standing
protection in copyright law (see Annex 13B) and in which the term of protection is
usually shorter than for other related rights. Three scenarios are considered in this IA:
o A) Medium term of protection (between 10 and 50 years).
o B) Short term of protection (between 5 and 10 years).
o C) Very short term of protection (between 1 and 5 years).
503
See judgment of 13 February 2014, in Svensson and others (C-466/12, EU:C:2014:76).
504
Directive 2004/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the
enforcement of intellectual property rights, OJ L 57, 30.4.2004, p. 45–86.
162
Stakeholders' views
Most press publishers, in particular the main newspaper and magazine organisations which replied to the public
consultation, support the introduction of a new related right at EU level. Authors in the press sector (notably
journalists) have expressed mixed reactions when replying to the public consultation. They generally consider
that the bargaining power of the publishing industry in relation to online service providers should be
strengthened but they express some concerns as to the possible negative impact that new rights granted to
publishers could have on them. Service providers, such as news aggregators and media monitoring services, are
generally opposed to granting a new related right to press publishers as they claim that this would disincentive
investments in innovative online services and create barriers for small businesses. Consumer organisations have
expressed reservations as regards the possible introduction of a related right and the concern that this could make
it more difficult for consumers to access existing press content online. At the same time, some consumer
organisations recognise that a related right could have a positive impact on the quality of news content.
Option 3 – As Option 2 plus introduction, in EU law, of the possibility for MS to provide
that publishers may claim compensation for uses under an exception
In addition to the introduction of the new related right for online uses of press publications
described under Option 2, this option would introduce a specific provision in EU law
clarifying that MS may choose to establish in their legislation that where an author has
transferred or licensed a right to a publisher, such a transfer constitutes a sufficient legal basis
for the publisher to claim compensation for the uses made under an exception to the
transferred or licensed right.
Stakeholders' views (In addition to position as regards Option 2).
In the replies to the public consultation, publishers other than press publishers (book and scientific publishers)
have mainly pointed to problems different from those raised by press publishers, notably the legal uncertainty as
regards compensation for uses under exceptions. Therefore, publishers across different sectors are expected to be
supportive of this option, as it establishes a margin of manoeuvre for MS to introduce national laws that foresee
the distribution of compensation to publishers as derived rightholders, thus in principle allowing the existing
systems in many MS to endure, although there may be adaptations necessary. In the public consultation some
authors have expressed support for such national arrangements, whereas others are sceptical regarding the extent
to which they benefit from them. Consumers are expected to take a neutral view as regards the additional
elements in Option 3, as this intervention in the area of compensation for exceptions should not increase the
overall level of compensation due and hence of levies charged to final consumers.
Discarded option
Introduction in EU law of a related right covering all publications, including publications
other than press: The identified objectives could be achieved also by introducing in EU law a
related right covering all publishers in all sectors (press, book, scientific publishers, etc.).
However, such an option is not considered in this IA as it would not be a proportionate way to
address the problems faced by the publishing industry and described in Section 5.3.1. The
problem related to press publishers' difficulties to reach agreements and monetise use of their
content by online service providers can be addressed by a related right applicable to press
publications only (Options 2 and 3). The situation as regards publishers' ability to receive
compensation for uses under exceptions, which affect publishers across all sectors (news,
book, scientific publications) can be addressed in a proportionate way by the introduction of
the clarification concerning publishers' claim for compensation (Option 3).
5.3.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would primarily affect publishers and authors whose works are part of publications
(in particular journalists, writers, photographers, etc.) as well as online services providing access to or using
publications, and consumers. The impacts affecting these four groups are presented separately:
For publishers, the main impacts are related to legal certainty and their ability to obtain revenues
(including from compensation) for the use of their publications and to enforce their rights.
163
For authors and other creators of the individual contributions which compose a publication, the impacts
on their current revenues and their ability to exploit their individual rights independently from
publishers' rights are considered.
For service providers, impacts on legal certainty in their relations with publishers and economic impacts
in their business models (licensing and transaction costs) are considered.
For consumers, impacts related to the conditions to access content are considered.
The policy options are also assessed in relation to their general social impacts (on cultural diversity and the
availability and findability of content) and impacts on fundamental rights (property right and freedom of
information).
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Publishers
Without intervention at EU level, legal uncertainty in this sector is expected to increase and
publishers' bargaining position would further weaken. Print circulation of daily newspapers in
Europe is expected to decline by 19 % between 2014 and 2019.505 In terms of revenues, the
number of people who pay for news is projected to grow in the future between 7 % and 23 %
in the UK, ES, IT and other MS.506 However, the loss of print revenues is not expected to be
compensated by the increase of online revenues. Online revenue streams feature smaller
margins, as the competition for digital advertisement revenues is tough and free-access press
items are widely available. Moreover, access to news through smartphones is increasing every
year (e.g. in the UK, of those who use a device to access digital news, those who say it is now
their main device have risen from 15 % to 27 % since 2013 – this figure has risen to 47 % of
those aged 25-34).507 As advertising revenues linked to access through smartphones are lower
than through computers, this evolution of news consumption would make overall revenues
decrease. PwC estimates that Europe's newspaper and magazine revenues will decrease, under
this option, by 7.34 % in the period 2014-2019.508
In this scenario, service providers may be willing to agree on the use of publishers' content in
a satisfactory way for both publishers and themselves, as some of them do today.509 However,
it is difficult to envisage whether these agreements will be kept or extended in the long term if
there are no external incentives, particularly as this market is constantly evolving.
Publishers would still face difficulties to license their publications or prevent unauthorised
uses thereof. In the long term, the quality of their content and the reputation of their brands
may be affected. Legal uncertainty as regards publishers' ability to receive compensation for
uses under exceptions would persist.
Authors
A decline in the publishing industry would have a negative impact on rightholders who
depend on this sector. Journalists, photographers and other authors would continue to see their
contributions to publications being reused by services other than the publishers they have
transferred their rights to, without getting any appropriate income in return. As a result, the
quality of journalism may be negatively affected in the medium term.
505
See Annex 13A. Source: PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook 2015-2019.
506
Source: Reuters Institute Digital News report 2014, p.58.
507
Source: Reuters Institute Digital News report 2015, p.68.
508
See Annex 13A. Source: PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook 2015-2019.
509
Xavier Grangier, Head of Digital / CTO at Libération sets out the positive impacts of using Facebook's
Instant Articles: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/lib%C3%A9ration-facebooks-instant-articles-xavier-
grangier
164
Service providers
Under this scenario, some online service providers would continue negotiating the use of
publications with publishers on the basis of the transferred rights as it is the case, for instance,
of some media monitoring and analysis organisations which already pay licence fees to
publishers.510 Others would continue to use the publications without licence or other
commercial agreement. Finally, it should be noted that a decrease of the number or quality of
press publications could be generally negative for service providers, as they would have less
content to base their business models on.
Consumers
This option would be neutral regarding economic impacts on consumers.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Under the baseline scenario, incentives to create and invest in publications would largely
remain the same, which may negatively affect the number of publications in the medium term.
This would entail negative social impacts, including regarding cultural diversity, media
pluralism and the availability and findability of a wide variety of publications for consumers.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option would have no impact on copyright as property right (Article 17 of the Charter),
since there will be no change to current copyright rules. The right to freedom of expression
and information (Article 11 of the Charter), which includes the pluralism of the media, may
be negatively affected in the long run if the sustainability of the press industry is at stake.
Option 1 – Encouraging stakeholders' dialogue and cooperation on finding solutions
concerning the dissemination of press publishers' contents
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Publishers
The non-binding nature of the stakeholders' dialogue would make the impacts of this option
and its effectiveness to solve the problems raised by publishers mainly depend on the
willingness of the stakeholders to participate in it and to take commitments. The complexity
of the market and the variety of players and business models, as well as their unequal
bargaining power and the opposed views of the relevant stakeholders as to how the reuse of
press content benefits the other party, are all factors which may limit the effectiveness of this
option. As a result, the impacts of this option are expected to be rather limited and only
slightly better than the baseline scenario.
This option would not solve the specific problem concerning publishers' ability to receive
compensation from uses of their publications under exceptions (which can only be addressed
through legislation). In all, these limited impacts may not make up for the costs related to the
participation in the dialogue, considering in particular that many publishers are SMEs.
Services providers
Neutral impacts are expected, or slightly positive if they manage to reach long-lasting
favourable agreements with press publishers, when they see a business opportunity to do so.
510
Source: AMEC-FIBEP's answer to the 2016 public consultation.
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Impacts on authors and consumers
Like baseline.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Like baseline.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Like baseline.
Option 2 – Introduction in EU law of a related right covering digital uses of press
publications
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Publishers
Under this option, press publishers would still need to acquire authors' authorisation to
publish their contributions in a newspaper or a magazine, as they do today.511 Therefore, the
relationship authors-publishers would remain untouched.
In contrast, this option would provide these publishers with a substantial added value when it
comes to licensing out their publications for online uses by third parties, something that, as
explained in Section 5.3.1, is increasingly important for them in the digital environment.
Being able to authorise the use of their press publications on the basis of an own self-standing
right would place press publishers in a comparable situation to the one of other related
rightholders in EU law, such as film and phonogram producers, thus recognising their role in
terms of investments and overall contribution to the creative process and allowing them to
benefit from:
1. More efficient licensing mechanisms. While a self-standing related right would not remove
the need from publishers to acquire authors' rights also for the purposes of further licences
with third parties, it would nevertheless provide them with a clearer position in the context of
negotiations with them as they will be able to rely on their own right. Harmonised protection
at EU level would further increase the legal certainty to the benefit of press publishers.
2. More efficient enforcement of rights. Enforcing transferred rights is burdensome and time-
consuming if the number of content contributors is very high, as it is typically the case with
press content. As set out in Section 5.3.1, a court may ask a publisher, as licensee or
transferee, to prove that it owns all the allegedly infringed rights (e.g. in one case reported by
the publishing industry up to 22,000 contracts with journalists in order to file a lawsuit for the
mass infringement of publishers' rights in DE). In contrast, under this option publishers would
enforce their own rights. They would be treated by the national courts as original rightholders,
not as licensees. As a result, publishers would be able to fully benefit from the remedies
provided for under the Enforcement Directive and the related national laws.512 Consequently,
getting injunctive relief or instituting infringement proceedings before the court would be
swifter.
3. Stronger incentives on online services to seek licences for the reuse of press publishers'
content. Today, some online service providers take advantage of the inefficiencies in the
511
Subject to provisions in national law regarding presumption of transfer of rights, which would not be
affected.
512
In particular the presumption of ownership pursuant to Article 5(b) of Directive 2004/48/EC, which
only applies to rightholders, would also apply to press publishers.
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enforcement of large numbers of transferred authors' rights, knowing that they would not face
any significant opposition due to the burdensome processes press publishers would have to go
through to enforce those rights. More efficient enforcement is therefore likely to result in
increased licensing opportunities for publishers as it would discourage online service
providers from infringing publishers' rights and incentivise them to seek the required licences.
As a combined effect of the above mentioned factors, this option would increase press
publishers' bargaining power vis-à-vis third parties, thus creating new licensing opportunities
in the digital environment. The expected reduction of piracy in this sector is likely to increase
revenues related to the legal exploitation of press publications (i.e. the reduction of piracy
would redirect readers to legal sources). Moreover, some of the online service providers
which reuse press publications without the required authorisation may seek licences or
monetisation agreements with press publishers, thus raising revenues stemming from licences.
While it is difficult to quantify these benefits, it is important to note that losses for news
publishers related to piracy have been estimated to be around €10.76 million per year in BE,
and the industry estimates €27.59 million annually on increased licensing revenues if piracy
decreased513. News publishers have also estimated that piracy causes 30 % loss of digital
transaction volume and a potential 10-20 % of turnover in DE, while the introduction of a new
related right could lead to a 10 % increase in revenues or between 10-15 % in publishers'
operating profit margin514. Similar potential revenues have been estimated to amount to €31
million in FR515.
The positive impacts on publishers of the protection granted under this option would be
reinforced by its EU scale, thus providing a more effective protection than under different
national laws.516 In particular, intervention at EU level is expected to strengthen publishers
bargaining powers in a more effective way than it has happened under national measures such
as the ‘ancillary rights’ adopted in DE and ES (see Annex 13B), where major online service
providers either closed down their news aggregation services (ES) or concluded free licences
for the use of publishers' content (DE) which has not generated any remuneration for
publishers so far. Moreover, the related right granted to press publishers under this option
would be different from the DE law, which can only be exercised against specific categories
of online service providers, and from the ES law, as it would be an exclusive right and not an
unwaivable compensation. Accordingly, the related right recognised to publishers at EU level
would leave press publishers a greater margin of manoeuvre to negotiate different types of
agreements with service providers than it has been the case in DE and ES and is therefore
expected to be more effective for them in the long run (notably as it will allow press
publishers to develop new business models in a flexible way).
The effects on press publishers described above would materialise in all the three scenarios
considered as regards the term of protection. Scenario A (10 to 50 years) would place press
publishers in a situation comparable to that of other related rightholders. Scenario B (5 to 10
years) would address the problem of press publishers as regards the use of their content by
online service providers such as news aggregators and social media, and would also provide
publishers with a clearer legal framework when concluding licensing agreements with service
providers having a different business model (e.g. distributors of multi-publishers content,
services providing access to news archives). Scenario C (1 to 5 years) would address
specifically the situation concerning online service providers such as news aggregators and
513
Source: “Vers un modèle économique…”, op.cit., p.19.
514
Data provided by the press publishing sector as regards BE, FR, DE, FI, PL, IT, ES, UK.
515
Source: Syndicat de la Presse Quotidienne Nationale's answer to the 2016 public consultation.
516
See Annex 13B.
167
social media but may not be fully future-proof as regards exploitation of press content by
other businesses.
Under this option, publishers other than press publishers would not be affected, as per the
baseline scenario. Therefore, problems faced by these publishers as regards claims for
compensation would not be addressed.
Authors
Improvements to the press publishers' bargaining position under this option could indirectly
have a positive impact on authors and other rightholders working in this sector insofar as
publishers transfer part of these benefits to the authors in terms of job creation or better
salaries/remuneration (which would vary on a case-by-case basis).
Authors, journalists in particular, have expressed concerns, in the context of the public
consultation, that a publishers' right could make it more difficult for them to exploit their
works separately from the publisher. The related right under this option would protect the
value added by the publisher, which in a print product is not always easily separable from the
author's work (in contrast with, for instance, a cinematographic work, where the subject-
matter of protection of the producer, the film, is clearly different from the script, which is a
text-based work). Today, when a journalist grants a publisher a non-exclusive authorisation to
use an article,517 he generally remains entitled (as the author of the work) to further use it (e.g.
to authorise the use by a third party or to publish it himself in a collection or anthology). This
is common industry practice even when the author's original manuscript has been subject to
amendments during the editing process carried out by the publisher. Intervention in EU law
under this option will clarify that the introduction of a related right for press publishers does
not affect authors' ability to exploit their works independently. Provisions to this effect exist
in MS laws granting self-standing protection to publishers.518
The three scenarios (A, B, C) as regards the term of protection should be generally neutral on
authors considering that the related right granted to publishers will not affect authors' rights.
Service providers
The impact of this option on service providers would depend on the size, bargaining power
and business model of the different players.
The clear identification of press publishers as rightholders is likely to prompt more online
service providers to conclude agreements with publishers for the use of their content online,
thus accelerating the cooperation which is starting to emerge between larger online service
providers and the publishing sector (see Section 5.3.1 and baseline). The introduction of a
new right is not likely to substantially affect the ongoing initiatives and would probably foster
the conclusion of more agreements between the major internet players and the publishing
industry in the medium to long term.
Some service providers which already conclude licences covering specifically the use of
digital press content, such as the media monitoring services, have expressed the concern that
licence fees may increase as a result of the introduction of a new publishers' right.519 In
practice, licence fees would depend on specific negotiations and business models and not on
the legal basis on which agreements are concluded (transferred authors' rights today, press
517
In the context of a contract (e.g. licence or employment relation).
518
ES, IE, IT, RO and other MS provide for similar provisions in their current national laws. See Annex
13B.
519
Source: AMEC-FIBEP's answer to the 2016 public consultation.
168
publishers' rights under this option). Therefore, publishers may not have an interest in raising
licence fees in licensing markets which already function today.
In summary, the main impacts of this option would affect those online services providers
which are not concluding licences for the reuse of publishers' content today when they should
in principle do so, pursuant to copyright law. Therefore, neither the services which today have
agreements with publishers nor new entrants in this market would be negatively affected in
terms of additional costs or fees. As indicated in the description of the options, the
introduction of a new related right for press publishers would not alter the scope of the right
of making available to the public. Therefore, the question whether certain uses, including
hyperlinking and browsing, are today copyright relevant under EU law, would not be affected
by this option.
Finally, the introduction of uniform rules at EU level under this option would have the
positive effect for service providers to reduce fragmentation of the rules protecting publishers
across MS, making it easier for them to conclude licences for multi-territorial uses of
publishers' content. This aspect, together with better market conditions supporting the
emergence of new B2B licence opportunities for press products, could foster innovation and
facilitate the emergence of new and diverse business models of digital press content
distribution (such as streaming, access to broad multi-brand catalogues of different
newspapers and magazines, etc).520
Service providers could in principle be affected by the three term of protection scenarios (A,
B, C) to a varying extent, depending on their business models (i.e. whether they target the
distribution of daily news, as it is generally the case of online service providers such as news
aggregators and social media, or rather longer term uses, such as access to newspaper
archives). However, in practice, the impact of a press publishers' right on these stakeholders
may not substantially change under the three scenarios. This is due to the fact that service
providers would have in any event to seek authorisation for the use of press content even after
the expiry of the publishers' right because they would still need to clear – as it is already the
case today – the rights of the authors in press publications (which have a longer term of
protection: i.e. life of the author plus 70 years).
Consumers
Consumers reap considerable benefits from news aggregators and social media. At the same
time they also benefit from high quality newspaper content feeding these channels of
consumption. By fostering the production of high quality press content, this option is expected
to have a positive impact on consumers. Better market conditions for the press publishing
industry could give rise to the development of innovative offers for the digital distribution of
press content, with larger catalogues and more choice.
Consumer organisations have raised concerns that granting additional protection to publishers
could negatively affect consumers as a result of the consequences that they believe this
intervention could have on online services providing access to press content online. The
extent to which this may happen in practice depends at least in part on the impact of the
option on service providers (see above), including as regards the different scenarios for the
term of protection (scenarios A, B and C, above). However, problems experienced by
520
As mentioned above, differently from music and films, where streaming services have now become
mainstream of the last few years with brands such as Spotify, Deezer, Netflix, etc, in the press
publishing sector these business models have not emerged as consolidated offers yet (one example of
service trying this business model is Blendle - see Annex).
169
consumers in ES – which are often quoted as a source of concern in relation to a possible
intervention on publishers at EU level (given that a major news aggregators decided to
discontinue its service in ES) – are not expected to arise under this option since the related
right proposed is different from the unwaivable compensation measure under the ES
‘ancillary rights’ law (see above: impact on publishers).
SOCIAL IMPACTS
By improving the sustainability of the press publishing sector, this option would have a very
positive impact on the number and quality of press publications. European society would
benefit from media pluralism and enhanced participation in the democratic debate.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Positive impacts on copyright as property right and the right to freedom of information,
resulting from the fact that this option is expected to increase the level of protection of press
publications and to foster the quality of journalistic content.
Option 3 – As Option 2 plus introduction, in EU law, of the possibility for MS to provide
that publishers may claim compensation for uses under an exception
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
In addition to the impacts of Option 2, Option 3 would have the following impacts:
Publishers
This option would have a positive impact on all publishers, in particular book and scientific
publishers but also on press publishers regarding their ability to receive compensation for uses
under exceptions (notably the reprography exception).521 For example, in DE, the reprography
compensation distributed to press publishers has numbered in recent years around €1.5
million per year and has been used exclusively for the education and training of journalists.522
For other publishers, in particular book and scientific publishers, Option 3 is highly
significant, as their publications are often used under an exception such as private copying.
For instance, in DE in 2013 over €20 million have been distributed to scientific publishers
(books and journals) alone and an additional €3 million to other book publishers.523 In 2012
the sum that scientific publishers received amounted even to over €30 million and to €2.3
million to other book publishers.524
Until now, publishers in 18 MS have received (part of the) compensation for uses of their
publications under an exception.525 The basis and the details of the respective arrangements in
place differ, but in many MS there are joint authors/publishers collecting societies in place
that are in charge of negotiating tariffs and collecting the compensation, e.g. in the form of a
521
Press publishers would be able to rely on the new related right for compensation claims regarding
online uses of their works under an exception. However, since the new related right covers only online
uses, they would not be able to claim compensation under the reprography exception under Option 2 but
they would be able to do so under Option 3.
522
See e.g. Verwertungsgesellschaft Wort, Bericht des Vorstands über das Geschäftsjahr 2013,
http://www.vgwort.de/fileadmin/pdf/geschaeftsberichte/Geschaeftsbericht_2013.pdf, p. 6 and Bericht
des Vorstands über das Geschäftsjahr 2012,
http://www.vgwort.de/fileadmin/pdf/geschaeftsberichte/entwurf-final-ende-R.pdf, p. 7.
523
See Verwertungsgesellschaft Wort, Bericht des Vorstands über das Geschäftsjahr 2013, p. 7.
524
Ibid.
525
According to information provided by the book publishing industry: AT, BE, BG, CZ, EE, ES, FR, DE,
EL, HU, LV, LT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SI, SK.
170
levy, and distributing it to authors and publishers. In their replies to the public consultation
these collecting societies have expressed the concern that their very existence could be put in
danger by the current situation of legal uncertainty. In the 12 MS for which detailed data was
available, the compensation to publishers amounted to an aggregated sum of €40 million in
the respective last financial year.526 Figures differ greatly from MS to MS and range from €24
million in DE to €7,000 in LT for reprography. Option 3 would not change this situation but
allow MS to keep the existing systems and provide a clear legal basis for them. More
precisely, Option 3 leaves it to MS to decide if they want to put publishers in a position to
receive compensation for uses of publications under an exception on condition that the
original rightholders benefit in an adequate manner, directly or indirectly, from the
compensation due. It also remains neutral regarding the issue of levies as such and aims
merely at giving MS discretion regarding the recipients of compensation for uses under an
exception or limitation under certain conditions. Thus, depending on the concrete legislative
measures passed by the MS, the existing schemes providing for a split of the compensation
between authors and publishers as well as the established practise of joint collecting societies
could be maintained, so long as it is ensured that authors benefit adequately from the
compensation due.
Authors
The impact on authors (journalists, writers, photographers) would vary across MS, depending
on their choices to make use of this option and on the starting situation in the respective MS.
Authors have regarded positively, in those MS where they exist, compensation schemes
encompassing both authors and publishers. They have traditionally been considered as
instrumental to the good functioning of collecting societies and of the print publishing market
overall. Therefore the intervention under this option aiming at providing MS with the legal
space to keep these systems in place is likely to ultimately benefit authors as well.
Accordingly, this option would benefit authors by enhancing transparency regarding the
economic value of the compensation due for uses under an exception and the way in which
they benefit from it, after transferring or licensing their rights to a publisher.
Service providers
The additional elements under Option 3 should have no impact on online service providers.
Consumers
The additional elements under Option 3 should have no additional impact on consumers, as
the overall level of compensation would stay the same. This is the case because the optional
mechanism proposed additionally under Option 3 would be neutral as to the overall level of
harm caused by uses under the exception.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Additional positive impacts on cultural diversity are expected under this option, because of
the added value that it would bring to publishers across all sectors, in particular smaller book
publishers.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
No additional impact on fundamental rights.
526
See Annex 13D.
171
5.3.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on stakeholders Social impacts and
fundamental rights
Baseline (0) Publishers would (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts would (0) No direct impact
continue to face associated with the depend on the evolution on fundamental
difficulties to license baseline option. of the market. This rights. Cultural
their publications or uncertainty would diversity may be
to get enough prejudice publishers. negatively affected in
revenues (including the long term.
compensation) for the
reuse of their content.
Option 1 – (0/+) It could foster (-) Costs linked to (0) Main impacts on (0) No direct impact
Stake- new agreements but the organisation of stakeholders would on fundamental
holders' depending mainly on the stakeholders' depend on the uneven rights. Cultural
dialogue the willingness of the dialogue. willingness of the parties diversity may be
parties to participate. to participate in the negatively affected in
(0) Legal certainty dialogue and reach the long term.
(including on the agreements.
claims to receive
compensation) across
the EU would not be
achieved.
Option 2 – (++) The EU-scale of (0) No direct costs (++) More efficient (+) Positive impact
Introductio the recognition of a associated with this licensing mechanisms on copyright as
n in EU law related right for press option. and enforcement property right.
of a related publications would measures would help (+) It would help
right provide more press publishers to secure the quality
covering effective protection conclude digital licences and plurality of
digital uses than provisions in and monetise the reuse of journalism.
of press national law. their content.
publica- (+) As a result, legal (0/+) Authors to benefit
tions certainty and stronger indirectly from positive
bargaining powers impact on press
would foster the publishers.
conclusion of B2B (-/+) It will be clearer
licences for online that some online service
uses of news. The providers that today do
positive impact on not do so (even if they
publishers would may already be legally
remain but decrease required) have to acquire
under the three prior licences from press
scenarios (A, B, C) publishers. At the same
concerning the term time, new innovative
of protection. business models for the
(-) It would not solve distribution of press
the unclear situation could emerge.
regarding publishers' (0/+) Positive impact on
possibility to claim consumers as regards the
compensation for enhanced availability of
uses made under an quality content in the
exception. long term.
Option 3 – Same impacts as Option 2, and additional impacts as follows:
As Option 2 (+) It would (+) If provided by (+) Specific positive
plus EU effectively solve the national law, publishers impacts on small
law unclear situation would be entitled to get book publishers
possibility regarding publishers' compensation from would be positive for
for claims possibility to claim exceptions in most MS. the cultural diversity.
for compensation for
compen- uses made under an
172
sation exception.
Option 3 is the preferred option. This IA does not take a decision as to whether the term of
protection of the related right for press publishers should be as under scenario A, B or C (at
this stage this is left for political decisions). Option 1 would not solve the problems
effectively, as self-regulatory solutions alone, which depend on the willingness of the
different market players to reach agreements, cannot fully address the identified problems.
Both Options 2 and 3 would strengthen the bargaining position of press publishers and
foster the conclusion of licences. Option 3 would have in addition positive impacts on all
publishers in relation to their possibility to claim compensation for uses under an
exception, without giving rise to any negative impact on other stakeholders.
Proportionality of the preferred option and impacts on MS: Option 3 is the most
proportionate option as it allows addressing in a targeted way and in their own merits
the specific problems faced by different categories of publishers, without going beyond
what is needed to achieve this objective.
All MS will have to reflect in their legislation the new related right granted to press publishers
at EU level. This is not expected to directly affect the existing provisions in MS laws which
are broader (e.g. protection of collective works, presumptions of transfer of rights) or have a
totally different subject-matter of protection (typographical arrangements) but may require
adapting national laws which have a similar subject-matter of protection to bring them fully in
line with the scope of the right granted at EU level. The complementary element introduced in
Option 3 (possibility for MS to provide that publishers may claim compensation for uses
under an exception) is an enabling provision that does not require MS to change their existing
laws, but should they wish to do so, provides them with a clear margin of manoeuvre to allow
for the sharing of compensation for exceptions between authors and publishers.
5.4. FAIR REMUNERATION IN CONTRACTS OF AUTHORS AND PERFORMERS
5.4.1. What is the problem and why is it a problem?
Problem: Authors and performers face a lack of transparency in their contractual
relationships as to the exploitation of their works and their performances and as to what
remuneration is owed for the exploitation.
Description of the problem: Economic rights granted to authors and performers (hereafter:
'creators') over the use of their works and performances (hereafter: 'works') have been
harmonised at EU level by several directives, in particular by the Infosoc Directive. In the
case of creators, these directives provide a framework wherein the exploitation of the content
protected by those rights can take place. Works are not generally exploited by the creators
themselves; commercial exploitation is often arranged through the grant of licences or the
transfer of rights e.g. to a publisher, producer, or a broadcaster (hereafter collectively:
'contractual counterparties'). These contractual relationships constitute the exercise of the
economic rights and govern the exploitation of works and the remuneration owed to creators.
Creators should be able to license or transfer their rights “in return for payment of appropriate
remuneration”,527 which is a prerequisite for a sustainable and functioning marketplace of
527
Judgment of 4 October 2011 in Football Association Premier League and Others (C-403 and C-429/08,
EU:C:2011:631, paragraph 107-108); Judgment of 27 February 2014 in OSA and others (C-351/12,
EU:C:2014:110, paragraph 23); Judgment of 20 October 1993, in Phil Collins and others (C-92/92,
173
content creation, exploitation and consumption.528 The determination of what constitutes
appropriate remuneration depends on factors such as the nature and scope of the use of the
works. However, there is sufficient evidence of creators lacking access to such information,
and calling for legislative intervention by the EU.529 For example, creators point to the poor
quality and/or lack of accounts and reporting by publishers and producers with regards to the
use of the rights they have transferred.530 The information received from creators and some
recent studies531 indicate that the lack of transparency in the creators' contractual relationships
concerns:
the possible exploitation, i.e. how the work may be used;
the actual exploitation, i.e. how the work is used and with what commercial result; and
the remuneration that is owed for the exploitation.
There may be uncertainty about possible exploitation because licence and transfer agreements
do not always specify the obtained rights while modes of exploitation and supply chains have
become very diverse and complex. Concerning actual exploitation, on the basis of the
information available there seems to be many instances when creators do not receive
satisfactory or any information from their contractual counterparty on the modes and extent of
use and on the revenues generated from the exploitation,532 which may lead to uncertainty
about owed remuneration.
This situation can be described as an information asymmetry because the information that
would be required to ensure transparency may, in fact, be available to the contractual
counterparties but it is not shared with creators.533
Transparency is also affected by the increasing complexity of new modes of online
distribution, the variety of intermediaries and the difficulties for the individual creator to
measure the actual online exploitation, notably due to the evolution of consumption patterns
in some sectors, for instance from ownership to access/streaming modes of consumption.
EU:C:1993:847, paragraphs 12, 21); Judgment of 18 March 1980, in Coditel and others, (C-62/79,
EU:C:1980:84, paragraph 14)
528
Recital (10) of the InfoSoc Directive: "If authors or performers are to continue their creative and
artistic work, they have to receive an appropriate reward for the use of their work."
529
See, for example, in the "Declaration towards a modern, more European copyright framework and the
necessity of fair contracts for creators" by the Authors' Group, an umbrella organisation of ECSA, EFJ,
EWC, FERA and FSE; the Paying Artist Campaign launched in the UK by visual artists or the Fair
terms for creators campaign coordinated by the Creators Rights Alliance.
530
See, for example, the replies to the July 2014 public consultation on the review of the EU copyright
rules (hereafter the 'Public Consultation'), where the issues raised included poor quality and/or lack of
accounts and reporting by publishers and producers with regards to the use of the rights transferred by
the author or the performer.
531
For example, the 2015 study on the "Remuneration of authors and performers for the use of their works
and the fixations of their performances" concerning the audiovisual and music sectors (hereafter:
'AV/M Study'), Institute for Information Law of the University of Amsterdam, together with Europe
Economics, PLS, and the 2016 study on the "Remuneration of authors of books and scientific journals,
translators, journalists and visual artists for the use of their works" (hereafter: 'Print Study') from the
same authors to be published (copy available on request). See also infra the study of the European
Parliament.
532
Even when there is reporting, the provided information may be unclear or inconclusive according to
creators' testimonies. See Annex 14B for examples of the contents of reporting statements. See
"Contractual arrangements applicable to creators: law and practice of selected Member States" (2014),
a study commissioned by the European Parliament, S. Dusollier, C. Ker, M. Iglesias and Y.Smits, p.76,
164.
533
As reported by authors and performers in the 2014 Public Consultation, ibid.
174
Online distribution is expected to become the main form of exploitation in many content
sectors. Transparency is, therefore, even more essential in the online environment to enable
creators to assess and better exploit these new opportunities.
The situation of creators varies to some extent depending on MS or the sector and seems to be
better where collective bargaining is allowed and efficient534 but problems related to lack of
transparency and information asymmetry seem to arise in most creative sectors.535
The problem has a significant European dimension. Cross-border exploitation and production
of content is a reality in Europe. For instance, in the music sector the share of non-local EU
repertoire consumed in MS ranges between 20 and 40 % in radio and between 15 and 32 % in
digital downloads; in the AV sector co-productions account for an average of 25 % of total
productions.536 In this context, it is important to ensure that authors and performers enjoy in
practice the high level of protection established by EU legislation (including as regards the
digital dissemination of their works and performances) and do so disregarding where in the
EU they assign or transfer their rights and where their works and performances are exploited.
Tools to effectively exercise rights are as important as the recognition of such rights at EU
level.
Drivers: [Weaker bargaining power of authors and performers in contractual negotiations]
The main underlying cause of this problem is related to a market failure: there is a natural
imbalance in bargaining power in the contractual relationships,537 favouring the counterparty
of the creator, partly due to the existing information asymmetry. The difference in bargaining
power can also create a "take it or leave it" situation for creators and therefore full “buy-outs”
using catch-all language that covers any mode of exploitation without any obligation to report
to the creator.538
534
In FR, the adaptation of the publishing contract to digital which provides increased transparency
safeguards to the authors was negotiated by the main publishing stakeholders and constitutes a good
example, Also see for the US: O'Rourke, M. (2003), "Bargaining in the Shadow of Copyright Law after
Tasini", Case Western Reserve Law Review, Vol. 53, Issue 3
535
The Council of the European Union in its conclusions on "The transition towards an Open Science
system" (adopted on 27/05/2016) also stressed the importance of clarity in scientific publishing
agreements.
536
In the music sector, a recent study shows that the share of non-local EU repertoires in radio airplay /
digital download song sales is 34 %/29 % in DE, 39 %/21 % in PL, 33 %/32 % in NL, 22 %/18 % in
FR, 22 %/17 % in ES and 20 %/15 % in SE. [E. Legrand, Monitoring the cross-border circulation of
European music repertoire within the European Union, Report commissioned by EMO & Eurosonic
Noordeslag, in partnership with Nielsen, January 2012.] In the audiovisual sector, on the basis of data
collected by the European Audiovisual Observatory between 2011 and 2015, 25 % of European feature
films (between 260-300 films/year) are co-productions, and the recent increase in production activity is
primarily linked to the growing number of co-productions. The Eurimages support scheme which is a
cornerstone of European film financing (supporting 92 European co-productions in 2015) requires the
financial, technical and artistic co-operation of the co-producing European countries which entails
creators working in multiple MS.
537
Laffont J.J., Tirole, J., 1988,"The dynamics of incentive contracts", Econometrica, Vol 56, No 5, p.1153
538
Recent figures suggest that creators face difficulties in securing stable working conditions: in 2014,
nearly half (49 %) of all artists and writers in the EU were self-employed (vs 15 % in total
employment). Compared to the total workforce, artists are less likely to have full-time job (70 % vs 80
%), and are more in the need to find a second job (90 % held one job vs. 96 % for total workforce). In
addition, artists and writers stood less chance of securing a contract than employees as a whole (76 % vs
86 %) [Eurostat, Cultural statistics, 2016 edition]. In the UK, it is reported that on an individual
standpoint "36 % of writers thought their own bargaining position had got worse over the last five
years whereas 22 % thought it had got better" whereas "when considering the industry as a whole 5%
of respondents thought that the position for writers had got better over the period whereas 64% thought
175
[Weaker bargaining power of authors and performers in contract enforcement] Another
driver of the issue, also related to the difference in bargaining power, is that often creators
depend on their contractual counterparties and are unwilling to challenge them or to request
further information for fear of possible consequences.539
[Legislative solutions ensuring transparency in MS are not sufficient] A regulatory aspect of
the problem is that most MS impose either too generic transparency or reporting obligations,
or transparency obligations only applicable to certain sectors (without the necessary
mechanisms to ensure enforcement). The fact that some MS, notably FR and DE, have
recently introduced or are currently planning to introduce or to strengthen such measures540
also confirms the existence of the problem.
Book / Press Sector Music Sector Audiovisual Sector
Number of MS with legislative
reporting/transparency 14 6 14
obligations
Consequences: As a consequence, creators are confronted with instances where they are
unable to effectively monitor the use, measure the commercial success and assess the
economic value of their works. Because of this, there is a risk that creators are unable to
negotiate an appropriate remuneration in exchange for their rights, to verify that they are
receiving the agreed amounts or to enforce their claims for remuneration effectively.541 This
situation has been reflected in statements on lack of fair remuneration from stakeholders542
and, in recent studies conducted in the UK and France, for example.543
Lack of transparency has effects on the internal market as well. Firstly, creators are, in the
absence of transparency, unable to effectively compare deals and offers, including across
borders. This undermines their ability to exercise their freedom of movement544 and to enter
into contractual agreements with economic partners from different MS.545Secondly,
contractual counterparties face a fragmented situation between the different MS546 as regards
it had got worse", J. Gibson, P. Johnson, and G. Dimita 2015, "The Business of Being an Author – A
Survey of Authors’ Earnings and Contracts", London, Queen Mary Intellectual Property Center
539
According to information shared by creators with the Commission, such behaviour can also be
experienced in MS and sectors where there are reporting obligations in place if such obligations are not
supported by measures that help enforcement and verification of the reporting.
540
See Annex 14A for a summary of recent and ongoing transparency initiatives of MS.
541
The AV/M Study points out that (i) contract terms and conditions and (ii) sales are the factors that are
directly linked to the determination of the remuneration of creators. Yet, these are the two areas where
lack of transparency was identified as a major problem (p.114).
542
See Public Consultation results that mention lack of "adequate or fair remuneration" and underline that
"online exploitation, especially in a cross-border context, makes it particularly difficult to ensure that
there is a relationship between the use and success of the work or performance and the remuneration
provided to the creator".
543
See, for example: "What are words worth now", a survey conducted in the UK by ALCS (2014)
http://www.alcs.co.uk/Resources/Research; "Économies des droits d’auteur Place et rôle de la
propriété littéraire et artistique dans le fonctionnement économique des filières d’industrie culturelle",
conducted in France by Françoise Benhamou et Dominique Sagot-Duvauroux for the French Ministry
of Culture, http://books.openedition.org/deps/440
544
Differences between national legislations may seem unclear for creators and limit their ability to
understand their remuneration in different MS.
545
According to the AV/M Study, the "absence of information represents an implicit barrier to their
movement across jurisdictions (non-tariff trade barrier)".
546
Different transparency obligations exist in at least 20 MS. See Annex 14A for an overview of national
legislation and soft-law on transparency.
176
transparency which prejudices a level playing field in the Internal Market. Companies
established in different MS and in competition for the same online market have to comply
with different transparency obligations, resulting in a competitive advantage for those under a
lighter transparency regime. Furthermore, differences between MS may create legal
uncertainty for both creators and contractual counterparties, and lead to greater transaction
costs and "jurisdiction shopping" by transferees.
How the problem would evolve: All things being equal, this situation is not likely to improve
to a sufficient extent, notably as there are no indications that the current bargaining positions
will become more balanced. It is not clear either whether the information asymmetry would
improve. In fact, as exploitation is getting more complex and more intermediaries join the
value chain there is a risk of less transparency. On the other hand, the constantly improving
information technology should allow providing for more efficient, more accurate and more
economic reporting mechanisms.547 Without EU intervention, these technologies are not
likely to be used to their full potential. Creators will not be able to force transparency on their
contractual counterparties since they are in a weaker bargaining position and, in many
instances, have few alternatives. Some MS may follow the example of recent initiatives to
legislate to introduce transparency measures but such interventions are not likely to happen in
all MS or sectors and could risk further fragmenting the Internal Market.
Some stakeholders and studies548 argue that ex-ante intervention (i.e. at the stage when a
contract is being defined) via options such as prohibition of certain contractual clauses, would
be more effective. However, EU intervention on copyright contract law concerning fair and
unfair clauses raises questions at this stage in terms not only of proportionality and
contractual freedom but also of its articulation with the very different approaches in MS and
differences between the creative sectors. Therefore, the scope of this IA covers ex-post
aspects linked with lack of transparency and unbalanced bargaining positions.
5.4.2. What are the various options to achieve the objectives?
The general and specific objectives are described in section 5.1.3.
Baseline
No policy intervention. This option would rely on MS or self-regulation by industries at
national level to impose transparency obligations on the contractual counterparties, or on
industry specific agreements (resulting from collective bargaining for example) and other
market developments to improve transparency.
Stakeholders' views
Creators would consider that this option cannot solve the identified problems as they believe that, for a large
number of them, due to the natural imbalance between the parties, problems with lack of transparency in the
internal market can only be remedied by imposing transparency obligations through EU legislative intervention.
Contractual counterparties are of the opinion that creators are appropriately remunerated thanks to existing law
and practice in different sectors of the creative industries. They would support the baseline option and consider
that the existing competition and market developments/industry practices are the best way to address
transparency problems if they exist. They would also argue that an intervention in this area would affect their
contractual freedom. Consumers would deem that this option is not satisfactory since they consider that there is a
need for EU intervention in this area in order to ensure adequate remuneration for creators.
547
An increasing number of music stakeholders such as record companies and online service providers
develop online royalty portals which enable artists to have a complete overview of revenues generated
by the exploitation of their works and received royalties.
548
See p. 59 of the AV/M Study and policy options 1 and 3 on p.142.
177
Option 1 – Recommendation to MS and stakeholders' dialogue on improving
transparency in the contractual relationships of creators
Under this option, the Commission would issue a recommendation to MS to adapt their
national laws to ensure greater transparency in contracts between authors and performers
on the one hand and those to which they transfer or assign rights on the other.
In addition, the Commission would recommend to MS to put in place stakeholder
dialogues between representatives of authors and performers on the one hand, and
producers, publishers, distributors on the other, to explore ways of improving
transparency and develop collective or model agreements and best practices for reporting.
These dialogues would have to be sector specific due to the different dynamics of
different content sectors.549
Stakeholders' views
Views are different among creators as to whether a recommendation can address the identified problems but
most creators are likely to consider that this option is still insufficient to solve them because the recommendation
would be followed by MS to a different extent and may be disregarded. Equally, creators will consider that
stakeholders' dialogues are not likely to produce concrete results (notably if not linked to legislation).
Contractual counterparties would favour this option over a legislative intervention but would still oppose it,
notably if it is seen as likely to lead to legislative intervention at national level. Consumers who underlined the
need for EU intervention would consider this option to be insufficient.
Option 2 – Imposing transparency obligations on the contractual counterparties of
creators
This option would oblige MS to lay down some basic obligations to improve transparency.
Thus, MS should establish a minimum reporting obligation550 on the contractual counterparty
of a creator, with the following elements:
The obligation would lie with the first licensee/transferee. In case the contractual
counterparty is replaced entirely (by way of legal succession or right transfer, for
example), the obligation shall lie with the new right holder.
The reporting would be done on a regular basis without having to be requested by the
creator.551 The reporting should occur with reasonable periodicity.552
The minimum content of reporting - including information about the modes of
exploitation and corresponding revenues - would be set out by EU legislation in a general
manner while sector specific details should be defined for different sectors553 at MS level
in consultation with the relevant stakeholders. This is necessary in order to reflect the
549
See Annex 14A for examples.
550
A reporting obligation in EU legislation to ensure more transparency has been consistently advocated
for by creators, including the Authors' Group, in their recent "Declaration towards a modern, more
European copyright framework and the necessity of fair contracts for creators" and their "Information
note for President Martin Schulz".
551
Creators point out that an "on demand" obligation would not be effective as they would seldom request
reporting due to their weaker bargaining position.
552
Frequency of reporting would depend on the sector, and if it is not agreed otherwise in stakeholder
dialogue it should occur at least once a year as this is the general minimum standard across sectors.
553
Sectors will have different methods of reporting as their value chain structures and models of
exploitation vary. For example, final cost of the film production could be relevant as part of the
reporting in the audiovisual sector, whereas in the print sector data on the number of copies printed,
sold and on stock would have to be included. See Annex 14C for a selection of potential sector specific
impacts.
178
large variety of contracts and remuneration arrangements across sectors as well as the
differences between the relevant information required for transparency.
Proportionality test: In order to make the obligation proportionate, in cases where the
contribution of the creator is not significant to the overall work, reporting obligation
would not be mandatory. Subject to the proportionality test (i.e. provided that the
contribution of the creator is significant), lump-sum remuneration arrangements would
also be covered by the reporting obligation.554 In the cases where the administrative
burden of reporting would be disproportionate to the generated revenues, the obligations
on contractual counterparties could be limited.555 Agreements concluded with collective
management organisations would be exempted as these are covered by the CRM
Directive's reporting obligations.556
The reporting obligation would only have an ex-post effect on contracts which means that
parties would still be free to negotiate the commercial terms. Transparency would not
mean redistribution of revenues or change in remuneration on its own: it would be a tool
to increase bargaining and enforcement power of creators and to reveal whether their
remuneration is appropriate or not.
Stakeholders' views
Creators would strongly support such transparency obligations leading to appropriate solutions per sector. Some
would however claim that transparency obligations on their own are not sufficient and would call for further
intervention on unfair contracts or the introduction of an unwaivable remuneration right.557 Contractual
counterparties would object to this option. They would argue that compliance would be too burdensome and the
intervention would limit their contractual freedom.558 Consumers would be supportive of this option. In the
Public Consultation, they expressed their concerns about the remuneration of creators and claimed that they
would be more willing to pay for protected content if the appropriate remuneration was ensured.
Option 3 – Imposing transparency obligations on the contractual counterparty of
creators supported by a contract adjustment right and a dispute resolution mechanism
This option would oblige MS to introduce the reporting obligation as described under Option
2, with the following additional elements:
A contract adjustment mechanism
554
Reporting in these cases is practically non-existent. Nevertheless, lump-sum payments are based on the
anticipated commercial success of a work and information on use and generated revenues is required to
assess the commercial value, therefore, excluding lump-sum payments would be an unjustified
discrimination among creators. Moreover, it would incentivise contractual counterparties to offer more
lump-sum deals which are already considered by creators unfair and too commonly used in some
sectors. In the UK, a study reported that 69 % of writers have mentioned that at least 40 % of the
contracts they have signed were buy-out contracts (The Business of Being an Author, A Survey of
Author’s Earnings and Contracts, Queen Mary University of London, April 2015). Also p.91 AV/M
study
555
For instance, in sectors like press publishing, reporting on all works to all creators may not be
proportionate considering the large number of works used in their daily output. Nevertheless, specific
proportionate transparency requirements should be determined even for these sectors through the
stakeholder dialogue.
556
Article 17 of the CRM Directive.
557
Some stakeholders claim that intervention into contracts is needed to strengthen the creators' rights and
that an unwaivable right for remuneration is necessary to ensure a minimum appropriate remuneration
to creators. See the position of SAA (SAA White Paper 2015) and of AEPO-ARTIS, EuroFIA, FIM and
IAO (Fair internet for performers campaign).
558
See Public Consultation results where contractual counterparties expressed a need for a healthy
competition to ensure fair remuneration for creators, also referring to the possibilities in reporting
offered by technological developments.
179
The mechanism would ensure a right to request the adjustment of the contract, ultimately by a
court or other competent authority, in case the remuneration originally agreed is
disproportionate to the relevant revenues and benefits derived from the exploitation of the
work.559 This option would help restoring the relation between the remuneration and the
success of the work and would ensure appropriate remuneration when the agreement of the
parties is unbalanced.
A dispute resolution mechanism
The dispute resolution mechanism would help ensuring effective enforcement of the reporting
obligation and the contract adjustment mechanism. This will be a voluntary dispute resolution
mechanism560 competent for (i) adjusting disproportionate remuneration arrangements
deriving from unfair agreements or changed circumstances (e.g. unexpected success, new
modes of exploitation), and (ii) settling contractual disputes about transparency.
It would address the problems identified since disputes that may arise in relation with new
transparency obligations may be resolved faster and with adequate expertise. It should help
creators, who are usually reluctant to go to court against their contractual counterparties, to
enforce their rights to transparency or contract adjustment. This option would of course not
deprive creators of the possible use of other existing means notably a court or other competent
authority to seek to adjust the remuneration.561
Stakeholders' views
Creators would clearly support a contract adjustment mechanism.562 They would also welcome an alternative
dispute resolution mechanism because they are usually reluctant to bring their contractual counterparty to court.
As with Option 2, some of these stakeholders would consider that these mechanisms would only partially
addresses their concerns about remuneration. Contractual counterparties would oppose these additional
mechanisms on the basis of contractual freedom and the re-negotiation cost of contract adjustment. Consumers
would welcome transparency obligations supported by these mechanisms.
559
The contract adjustment mechanism for unforeseen revenues is usually called a “best-seller clause”.
This expression may be somewhat misleading because it suggests that it only applies to actual best-
sellers, which constitute the top 5-10 % of sales lists, while in theory the clause should trigger when
there is a significant disproportion between the agreed remuneration and the actual revenues (i.e. the
commercial value) which can happen to any kind of work, even of low/medium success provided that
such success (revenue) had been unforeseen and is not in proportion to the agreed remuneration.
Therefore, “better-seller clause” would be a more appropriate name for a contract adjustment
mechanism that applies when a work sells better that expected. Such clause exists, among others, in the
legislation of DE, FR, HU, PL, ES and SL. See Annex 14D for more details.
560
A similar mechanism can be found in NL where the June 2015 amendment of the Author's Right Act
introduced a new dispute resolution committee (see article 25g of the Dutch Author's Right Act). See
also in the UK the mechanisms managed by The Publishers Association.
561
Under current national legislations (see Annex 14D), when proceedings are initiated on the basis of a
better-seller clause, courts conduct, in most of the cases, a judicial revision of the contract. For lump-
sums, it often results in damages granted to the creator corresponding to the difference between the
agreed remuneration and the remuneration that s/he should have received (such remuneration is for
instance often calculated in FR taking into account the professional usages). In the less common case
where a better-seller clause would be enforced for proportional remuneration (as opposed to lump-sum
based), courts would be able to revise the royalty percentage taking into account the exploitation of the
work.
562
In the Public Consultation, they often mentioned that a buy-out contract “prevents their adequate or fair
remuneration as the payment does not relate to use, and even less so to the success, of their work or
performance”. The Authors' Group's recent "Declaration towards a modern, more European copyright
framework and the necessity of fair contracts for creators" highlights that "authors’ contracts lack
provisions allowing them to renegotiate their terms, particularly in case of use of the work in additional
formats and commercial success beyond expectations".
180
5.4.3. What are the impacts of the different policy options and who will be
affected?
Approach
The options presented above would mainly affect the two parties of a licence or right transfer agreement:
creators on the one hand, and their direct contractual counterparties563 on the other. Following some general
impacts under each option, the impacts affecting these two groups are presented separately. Only the most
significant and likely impacts are reported in this IA.
For creators, the following impacts have been considered: (i) impacts on transparency of contracts; and (ii)
impacts on the capability to receive appropriate remuneration (even retroactively).
For the contractual counterparties, the main impacts are economic and are related to (i) compliance costs
and (ii) competition. As most of the European companies active in the creative sectors are SMEs, all impacts
are examined in this context.
The assessment of Option 3 also includes an analysis of the impacts on Member States, in terms of
implementation costs.
The assessment below is mainly qualitative, with some limited quantitative evidence, as the data publicly
available or that could be obtained from stakeholders on the lack of transparency is limited.
Baseline
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creators
Impacts on transparency of contracts: Considering recent and upcoming initiatives some
development may be expected564 but the problem of information asymmetry is not likely to be
resolved by market developments, including self-regulation, or MS legislation. Problems for
creators as regards lack of information on the exploitation and revenues generated by their
works will continue in a number of MS and the cross-border aspects of the problem will not
be addressed. At the same time exploitation – particularly online exploitation – is expected to
become more complex and varied, involving new intermediaries and forms of use.565 This
risks making it even more difficult for creators to understand and monitor the exploitation and
the revenue flow, resulting in an increased information asymmetry.
Impacts on the capability to receive appropriate remuneration: Under the baseline scenario the
weaker bargaining position of authors and performers is not likely to improve overall which
entails a risk of non-appropriate remuneration.
Contractual counterparties
Impacts on compliance cost: This option would not generate any direct compliance costs for
contractual counterparties, unless such costs arise from self-regulation or individual MS
intervention. The costs linked to the differences between transparency requirements in MS
relevant for those parties active in several MS will remain.
563
While the majority of affected first licensees/transferees will be producers, publishers and broadcasters,
it is to note that creators may enter into contractual relationships directly with platforms or other
distributors in which case these will be the affected contractual counterparties.
564
In the music sector, for example, Worldwide Independent Network (WIN), the international association
representing independent labels established the principles of revenue sharing with artists and more
transparency in contracts with digital platforms in their Fair Digital Deals Declaration. Also, in their
"Recommendation for the licensing of broadcast-related online activities", several stakeholders,
including public broadcasters (EBU) and music publishers (ICMP), have agreed on the necessity of
transparency of licence agreements. The French publishers association (SNE) also provides detailed
practical guidelines on reporting to its members in view of promoting transparency.
565
For example, distribution of music via user uploaded content platforms or of newspaper articles via
social media.
181
Impacts on competition: Without any EU intervention, the contractual counterparties of
creators would benefit from the information asymmetry, especially in MS and sectors where
there are no transparency obligations at all. The fragmentation of the internal market would
continue.566
SOCIAL IMPACTS
In a market where conditions for fair remuneration are not optimal, creators may dedicate less
time to content creation and creative professions would become altogether less attractive
which is detrimental to cultural diversity.567
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option will not have a direct impact on copyright as a property right (although problems
for the effective exercise of this right by creators will continue and therefore there would be
an indirect impact on the medium to long term). Weak bargaining position of creators may
also prejudice their freedom of expression through artistic creation. This option would have
no impact on the freedom to conduct a business of contractual counterparties.
Option 1 – Recommendation for MS and stakeholders' dialogue on improving
transparency in the contractual relationships of creators
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
A recommendation would act as guidance to those MS which plan to take steps towards
ensuring more transparency. This option could result in positive developments, even though it
would not ensure a similar level of transparency in all MS and in all sectors. Those MS that
take action are not likely to do so consistently, but this option could provide more flexibility
to MS to adapt their legislation.
Creators
Impacts on transparency of contracts and on the capability to receive appropriate
remuneration: The effects of a recommendation will depend on the extent to which it is
followed by MS. It will also provide an opportunity for creators to push for changes at
national level through the stakeholder dialogue. In fact, according to the available
information, a sector specific dialogue seems to be an essential element in implementing
transparency efficiently, as evidenced by examples in different MS and sectors (see Annex
14A). Thus, a recommendation may have positive impacts on transparency in certain MS.
Contractual counterparties
Impacts on compliance costs: The effects on compliance costs will depend on the extent to
which the recommendation is followed in MS. Contractual counterparties are likely to face
different costs in different MS.
Impacts on competition: A recommendation may reduce the fragmentation between different
national legislations to some extent but still would not create a level playing field for
businesses in the EU.
566
For instance, a book publisher operating in FR, LT and LU would have to comply with very different
transparency obligations: in FR, a detailed mandatory reporting obligation based on co-regulation (Art.
L.132-17-3 and the underlying industrial agreement); in LT, a more generic obligation to provide
information and only at the author's request; whereas in LU, the publisher would not have to comply
with any transparency obligations.
567
According to the findings of the survey "What are words worth now" ibid, the percentage of authors
earning their income solely from writing dropped from 40 % to just 11.5 % between 2005 and 2013.
182
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Depending on the MS, there might be positive social impacts (compared to the baseline
option) but not across the whole EU.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The impact of this option on fundamental rights would depend on the take-up of the
recommendation by the MS. Impacts on copyright as a property right and on the freedom of
expression may range from neutral to positive (e.g. if MS action result in a better bargaining
position of creators and an more efficient enforcement of their rights). At the same time, there
may be some limited negative impacts on the freedom to conduct a business, depending on
the obligations imposed at national level.
Option 2 – Imposing transparency obligations on the contractual counterparty of
creators
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creators
Impacts on transparency of contracts: The reporting obligation would greatly decrease the
information asymmetry as creators would receive the relevant information on the uses of their
works and the corresponding revenues. As a direct impact, the enforcement of contracts
would become much easier and effective, particularly in the case of royalty-based
remuneration arrangements because the correct payment of remuneration could be verified.
Having information on the specific modes of use would ultimately bring transparency to the
scope of the contracts and would highlight the difference between different rights and modes
of exploitation which may be taken into account by creators for future negotiations.568 This
option would therefore have a significant indirect impact without a disproportionate
intervention in the contractual freedom of the parties. It is important to note that the
implementation of the reporting obligation may lead to disagreements between the parties as
to the revenues and remuneration. In view of this the possibility to resort to a dispute
settlement mechanism such as the one described under Option 3 could be important.
Impacts on the capability to receive appropriate remuneration: As a major impact, creators
would be able to effectively assess the commercial value of their works which would greatly
improve their bargaining position in future deals.
Contractual counterparties
Impacts on compliance cost: The main impact would be the administrative burden of
compliance.569 The stakeholder dialogue included in this option is intended to establish
feasible and proportionate transparency obligations tailored to the needs and practices of
different sectors. It is also to note that transparency requirements have already been imposed
on other important players in the value chain such as CMOs.570
Annex 14C provides for an economic assessment of the possible specific impacts by sector.
Costs would depend on a large number of factors, such as the number of creators and works,
568
It has been shown that specifying the scope of licence/transfer has a direct and positive effect on the
remuneration of creators, see Print Study and AV/M Study p.136 and policy recommendations p. 142
and "Contractual arrangements applicable to creators…", ibid, p.103-104.
569
See Annex 14C for an economic assessment of potential sector specific impacts.
570
Article 17 of the CRM Directive.
183
the complexity of exploitation, the quality of the data received from intermediaries, the
frequency of reporting and, perhaps most importantly, the already existing reporting practices:
- Some contractual counterparties already report to creators on the basis of contractual
clauses, royalty-deals or statutory provisions.571 In such cases the intervention would
have practically no impact or only a limited impact in adapting reporting to the new
requirements, for example, by broadening the scope of reporting or providing more
regular information to creators.
- For those who do not report to creators yet, the incurred expenses would include the
one-off cost of developing reporting processes and the recurring cost of actual
reporting. However, even in these cases contractual counterparties would have to
report on information that is already available as it should have been previously
gathered and processed for intellectual property management and accounting
purposes.572 Therefore, following the one-off investment, complying with the
reporting obligation would mainly consist of taking the effort to extract the relevant
information and to share it with the creator in a structured, comprehensible way. It is
also to note that transparency requirements have also been imposed on other important
players in the value chain such as CMOs.573
In order to produce reporting statements, contractual counterparties would use different types
of electronic tools going from widely available spreadsheets to complex reporting software
specifically designed for companies' reporting needs.574 Limited information allowing only
anecdotal estimation of the potential costs related to these reporting tools is available. The
extent of costs would depend on whether and what reporting tools are already used by
affected companies and which type of use. The costs would further vary depending on the
type of information required for each creative sector. However, costs linked to the utilisation
of a reporting electronic tool are not expected to be significant for a large majority of SMEs
since they would likely use commonly deployed spreadsheets. In most cases, costs could be
absorbed in the routine software maintenance costs of those companies.
Furthermore, labour-related costs linked to reporting are very difficult to estimate as they
would, among other things, depend on the type and the number of works, the complexity of
the authorship and on the number of actors from which the information has to be gathered. As
an example, book publishing stakeholders informed us that reporting can be dealt with on
simpler cases within 2-3 minutes while the more difficult ones require 10 to 15 minutes.
Audiovisual stakeholders stated that time allocated to reporting to all creators of a movie
could range between one or two hours for simpler cases to ten hours for the most intricate
ones. On the basis of the limited information on reporting mechanisms we received from
contractual counterparties, the following examples of cost estimations could be made for
different sectors as guidance to illustrate the potential impacts, assuming that there is
currently no reporting in place at all by a given contractual counterparty (see more
information on these examples and calculations in Annex 14C).
571
For examples see Annex 14A, also for an example of contractual clauses: in Denmark, Sector
agreement entered into between Danish producers' association and the Danish writers' association in
1996 or the sector agreement entered into between Danish producers association and Danish actors'
association. Sectors agreements can be found on the Website of Danske Dramatikere
572
AV/M Study, p.146.
573
Article 17 of the CRM Directive.
574
For instance, one company offers business management software for small publishers from €790.
184
Examples
A) According to a medium-sized book publisher, reporting on 600 titles on the basis of spreadsheets takes 80
man-hours per year, and the average time required for compiling and sending a report on a title is 8 minutes
(simpler cases can be dealt with in 2-3 minutes while the more difficult ones can take 10-15 minutes). To make
reporting even more efficient, they are now investing in an accounting and reporting software, the one-off cost of
which is approximately €10,000.
B) In the music sector, where regular reporting is well established, the information received from independent
record labels shows how the cost of reporting differs according to, amongst others, the size of the catalogue, the
number of titles released per year and the staff involved in the reporting activities (frequency of reporting being
twice a year in all cases for which the information has been shared). In one medium-sized label (105 employees
in the EU), which holds a total catalogue of over 3000 titles and releases 50 titles per year, 3 employees deal
with reporting full time, which costs the label €198'000 per year. Together with the software maintenance it
amounts to €103 per title. A small label employing 36 staff of which 2 full time equivalent work on reporting
(total catalogue: 50,000 tracks) incur similar total cost of reporting annually €200,000, or €64 per title.
According to the information received on nine micro labels, the cost per title of reporting done by three of them
(holding 60, 62 and 250 title catalogues) is comparable to the one incurred by small and medium but in several
other cases, where catalogues range from 150 to 400 titles, it is much lower per title (between €7 and €12). This
may stem from the fact that, having smaller catalogues to deal with, micro labels can do without specialised
accounting software and/ or employ free-lance staff or external bookkeepers to deal with the reporting twice per
year when it is due.
C) On the basis of the collected information from the AV sector, assuming that a producer wants to report on a
film that has 8 creators entitled to reporting and reporting occurs annually; reporting would take 4-6 hours in the
first year and 2-3 hours in subsequent years. As for external service providers, prices would be expected to be in
the range of €1,000 per movie per year and would not surpass the cost of €4,000 + 0.5-1 % of revenues in
total.575
According to the estimations presented in Annex 14C, the costs of reporting in the book
publishing sector range from 0.02% of the turnover for large and medium-sized companies to
0.39% for micro companies. In the AV sector, depending on a scenario assumed (reporting
done internally or involving a collection agency or other external provider) the share of these
costs in the turnover situates between 0.1 % and 2.3 % for micro companies, 0.01 % and 0.2
% for small and are around 0.1 % for medium and large. Time spent on reporting annually
accounts on average for around 1 % of the total working time for micro book publishers and
between 0.1 % and 0.2 % for the other size categories.
The administrative burden would decrease with time as it would become part of the "business
as usual" process. From MS where similar transparency obligations are already in place, no
disruptive effect of such measures has been reported. In addition, evolving technologies will
continue to reduce the costs of collecting and processing the relevant data and therefore
reduce the administrative burden.
Thanks to the proportionality provisions built in Option 2, contractual counterparties may not
be obliged to provide information to minor contributors to a work, thus reducing the number
of reports. In addition, in the case of works generating little to no revenues, the
proportionality provision would allow MS to adjust the obligation in a manner that ensures a
proportionate burden for contractual counterparties.
Impacts on SMEs including micro enterprises: The reporting obligation could be more
burdensome for smaller companies (e.g. a small publisher or record label) as they have fewer
resources. At the same time, they also manage less works and they would need to provide a
smaller number of reports to fewer creators. In addition, specifications of obligations per
sector and stakeholders' dialogues at MS level would help ensuring that reporting obligations
and their related compliance costs are proportionate for SMEs as they represent the vast
575
As it was reported by a French distributor and a Danish producer on a confidential basis
185
majority of contractual counterparties. Transparency remains however essential for creators
who assign their rights to SMEs. The possible administrative costs are justified in view of the
fact that the business of these companies is based on the exploitation of the copyright of the
individual creators. The possibility of providing an exemption for micro enterprises was
considered, however, taking into account the predominance of micro enterprises in the
creative industries (above 90 % in some sectors), establishing such an exemption would result
in the transparency obligation applying to a very limited number of contractual counterparties
which would defeat the purpose of the intervention.576 It is to note that the majority of existing
national provisions on transparency do not provide for an exemption or a lighter regime for
SMEs.
Impacts on competition: A general, mandatory reporting obligation with a set of common
minimum content requirements would reduce fragmentation of the single market and would
create a level playing field for businesses across Europe by eliminating the commercial
disadvantage of players located in MS that already have transparency obligations.577 The use
of effective reporting as a tool to compete for creators is already becoming clear in some
sectors, particularly in the music industry.578 Due to the fact that the proportionality of the
reporting obligation would be ensured, this option is not expected to have a disruptive effect
on existing business models.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
Better transparency and bargaining position for creators would help reaching the goal of
appropriate remuneration thereby making creative careers more attractive, which would result
in a greater number of professional creators and more creative output altogether.
Transparency would give a powerful message to consumers as they indicate to be more
willing to pay for copyright protected works if they know that a fair remuneration would
reach the original creators.579 No negative indirect impacts on consumers are expected, for
example due to compliance costs passed on to them.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
This option would positively affect copyright as a property right by improving the creators'
bargaining position and contributing to a better enforcement of their rights. This in turn would
support their freedom of expression through artistic creation. Transparency would make any
offers within and between MS comparable and creators would exercise their freedom of
movement between MS more easily. On the other hand, Option 2 would introduce constraints
576
99.4 % of European companies active in the book publishing sector (books, newspapers, journals) are
SMEs, of which 90 % are micro-companies (0-9 employees). SMEs generate 49 % of the value added
of the sector (including 10 % from micro-companies). In the sector of film and music production, 99.9
% of companies are SMEs (96 % micro-companies) generating 85 % of the value added of the sector
(32 % by micro-companies). Source: Eurostat, Structural Business Statistics, 2013 data for publishing
of books, periodicals and other publishing activities.
577
See Print study, p.121 and p. 105 of the AV/M Study on "ex post accuracy".
578
See, for example, statements from Universal: "the flexibility and transparency (…) will be
unprecedented for our industry, and set a new standard of service to our important clients", Sony:
"Transparency has been the key word when we developed this", or Kobalt: "Our industry-defining
Kobalt Portal provides full transparency with real-time updates, powerful reporting, and user-friendly
analysis tools".
579
96 % of Europeans believe that IP is important because it supports innovation and creativity by
rewarding inventors, creators and artists, see: "The European citizens and intellectual property:
perception, awareness and behaviour", 2013, study commissioned by the EUIPO. In the Public
Consultation, users also suggest that “the way in which new online streaming services are licensed may
circumvent the payment of digital royalties to artists”.
186
on the right to conduct a business of contractual counterparties insofar as the production of
reporting statements would constitute an additional administrative burden. The reporting
obligation introduced by Option 2 would only have a limited and proportionate impact on
contractual freedom as this ex-post instrument would not affect formulation of the terms of
the contracts.
Option 3 – Imposing transparency obligations on the contractual counterparty of
creators supported by a contract adjustment right and a dispute resolution mechanism
In addition to the impacts of the reporting obligation as presented above, the mechanisms
under this option would have the following impacts:
I. Contract adjustment mechanism
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creators
Impacts on transparency of contracts: This mechanism would improve the effectiveness of the
reporting obligation under Option 2 since it would provide creators with legal means to
request adjustment of the remuneration on the basis of the information received in reporting
statements.
Impacts on the capability to receive appropriate remuneration: This option would have a
positive impact on the capability of creators to renegotiate contracts, particularly in
extraordinary circumstances.580 The contract adjustment mechanism could remedy those cases
in which a lump-sum/buy-out deal turns out to be unfair, and it also addresses outright
unbalanced deals as well as changed circumstances.581 The mechanism would reinforce
creators' bargaining position. In MS where such a mechanism already exists (including DE,
FR or HU), the related case-law582 and information received from stakeholders is extremely
limited suggesting that contract adjustment rights are mainly used as leverage in negotiations
before and after signing the contract. Nevertheless, creators would be more likely to invoke
such a right if they received more information on revenues because of the reporting
obligation.
Contractual counterparties
Impacts on compliance cost: Contractual counterparty would incur a renegotiation cost when
adjusting the contract. Such cost includes the renegotiation cost itself and the cost related to
the increase of the remuneration owed to the creator. Costs associated to the renegotiation of
contracts are very difficult to estimate as they would depend on various factors as the number
of relevant works, the scope of the assigned rights, the extent of changes that parties want to
introduce and the current practices of remuneration negotiation. The Commission has not
580
As advocated by creators themselves, for example, in the abovementioned Declaration of the Authors'
Group: "In most instances, authors’ contracts lack provisions allowing them to renegotiate their terms,
particularly in case of use of the work in additional formats and commercial success beyond
expectations".
581
The mechanism tackles the common problem of assigning all rights, including those to unknown future
modes of exploitation, which is allowed in many MS and can also be applied to pre-digital contracts
which have become disproportionate even if they were balanced at signing. AV/M Study, policy
recommendation no. 3; "Contractual arrangements applicable to creators…", ibid
582
Perhaps the most well-known dispute is the Das Boot case: the creator (the director of photography of a
film) first had to raise a claim to obtain information on the exploitation of the work (he faced a lack of
transparency on the exploitation of the work and the yielded revenues) before initiating proceedings on
the basis of Article 32a of German copyright law which provides for a fairness clause.
187
been able to obtain any estimation of such costs. However, in light of the bargaining position
of the majority of creators, the long-term duration of many contracts and the unpredictability
of the commercial success of works in many sectors, the possible cost of compliance with a
contract adjustment right seems justified on fairness grounds and proportionate. In case of
unsuccessful negotiations, if the contractual counterparties and creators choose to use the
dispute resolution mechanism, they would face alternative dispute resolution costs, as the
ones described below. Costs related to the increase of the remuneration owed cannot be
considered as an additional financial impact since they would constitute an eventual
rebalancing of the share of value between creators and their contractual counterparties.
Even though such measures would be very important for the affected individual creator, the
direct impact on contractual counterparties would be limited since it would affect a limited
number of contracts. Such cases will arise only when a significant disproportion between the
agreed remuneration and the revenues yielded from the exploitation of the work occurs. In
addition, in countries where legislation already provides for an adjustment mechanism, it is
recognised that this clause is rarely enforced before the courts.583
II. Dispute resolution mechanism
The implementation of dispute resolution mechanisms will have impacts both on MS which
will have to set up such mechanisms and on creators and their contractual counterparties
which will initiate dispute settlement proceedings.
IMPACTS ON MEMBER STATES
Impacts on implementation costs: MS would incur some cost for setting up the dispute
resolution mechanism. These costs would depend on the system of dispute resolution chosen
by a MS. They are expected to remain reasonable for the majority of MS which already have
dispute resolution mechanisms for CMOs and commercial users in place and could therefore
build on the existing structures. As a matter of comparison, when the implementation of
dispute resolution mechanisms aimed at solving disputes arising between CMOs and their
members was assessed, it was reported that the costs of establishing such mechanisms would
be in the range of €35,000, and the operating costs in the range of €11,000 per year.584 Given
the similarities between the envisaged dispute mechanism and the one assessed for CMOs,
MS will arguably bear similar costs to the ones reported above. Finally, as alternative dispute
resolution mechanisms tend to be cheaper than judicial proceedings, in the long term the cost
of setting-up such a mechanism could be offset by savings made due to a lower number of
court cases.
IMPACTS ON STAKEHOLDERS
Creators and contractual counterparties
Impacts on transparency of contracts: The dispute mechanism will enable creators to enforce
more efficiently transparency obligations and the possibilities offered by the adjustment
mechanism. Since dispute settlement proceedings will be less costly and faster that court
proceedings, creators will be more incentivised to seek enforcement of their rights.
583
It is reported that "litigation cases are rare" under French law, Communication Commerce électronique
n° 9, September 2007, comm. 104, C. Caron; also, stakeholders provided very limited data on such
cases.
584
See the impact assessment accompanying the document Proposal for a Directive of the European
Parliament and of the Council on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-
territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online uses in the internal market (p 119, 176)
188
Impacts on the capability to receive appropriate remuneration: Thanks to a more effective
implementation of transparency obligations and a better enforcement of the contract
adjustment mechanism, creators will be able to seek more appropriate remuneration without
risking their professional relationships as much as they would by going directly to court.
Impacts on cost of proceedings: The operating costs would be borne by the creators and their
contractual counterparties. Costs are expected to be relatively similar to the fees set for
already existing alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. As an example, the British
Publishers Association set up an Informal Dispute Settlements mechanism whose fees
incurred by parties include the referee's fee (£400 for half-day hearing, £650 for full-day
hearing), the referee's expenses (travel, telephone, copying), and the Association's fees
(without charge for members of the Association, non-member publishers: £250, other parties:
£100).585 WIPO estimates fees for a mediation proceeding at $250 (administration fee) +
mediator's fees calculated on the basis on the amount in dispute (amount in dispute up to
$250,000: $2,500. Amount in dispute over $250,000: $300-600 per hour / $1,500-3,500 per
day).586 As this would be a completely voluntary procedure it would have no economic impact
on stakeholders that do not participate, and those who agree to it would be doing so for their
own benefit.
SOCIAL IMPACTS
The contract adjustment mechanism and the dispute resolution mechanism would encourage
contractual relationships between creators and contractual counterparties to become fairer and
more balanced. This would improve collaboration between creative stakeholders and
incentivise a more conductive environment for creation. These mechanisms would also
highlight the protection of creators to everyone in the value chain, including consumers.
IMPACTS ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Option 3 would further strengthen copyright as a property right since it would provide
creators with legal remedies to claim for additional remuneration in the case where the
information received would reveal that the agreed remuneration is disproportionally low
compared to the revenues derived from the exploitation of the work. The negative impact of
the contract adjustment mechanism on the right to conduct a business would be offset by the
implementation of the dispute resolution mechanism which would provide a non-binding
opportunity for contractual counterparties to find an agreement on the remuneration owed to
the creators.
5.4.4. How do the options compare?
Option Effectiveness Efficiency Impact on stakeholders Social impacts
and
fundamental
rights
Baseline (0) Lack of (0) No direct costs (0) Impacts on (0) No direct
transparency in the associated with the stakeholders in particular impact on
contractual baseline option the difference in cultural diversity
relationships between bargaining powers would and fundamental
creators and their depend on reforms at rights
contractual national level and/or on
counterparties would commitments taken by
remain the industry
585
Rules of Informal Dispute Settlements, the Publishers Association
586
WIPO, Fees Calculator, http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/calculator/adr.jsp
189
Option 1 – (0/+) Could result in (0/-) Limited costs (0/+) Main impacts on (0/+) No direct
Recommendati some improvements linked to the stakeholders would impact on
on and in certain MS but organisation of the depend on the possible cultural diversity
stakeholders' would not allow to stakeholders' changes introduced in and fundamental
dialogue ensure increased dialogue MS legislation rights but MS
transparency across (0/-) Compliance costs developments
the EU depending on the may have
outcome at MS level positive impacts
Option 2 – (++) Would increase (-) MS level costs (+) For authors and (+) Positive
Imposing transparency in the linked to the performers it would impact on
transparency contractual organisation of the decrease information creation and
obligations on relationships between stakeholders' asymmetry, improve cultural diversity
the contractual creators and their dialogue to enforcement and (+) Positive
counterparty contractual determine reporting bargaining position, and impact on right to
of authors and counterparties obligations bring transparency to the property, and
performers scope of contracts freedom of
(-) Administrative movement and
burden and costs for the expression
creators' contractual (-) Negative
counterparties impact on the
freedom to
conduct a
business
Option 3 – (++)Would increase (-) MS level costs (+) Increase of (+) Positive
Imposing transparency in the linked to the transparency and the impact on
transparency contractual organisation of the certainty for creators to creation and
obligations to relationships between stakeholders' benefit from an cultural diversity
contractual creators and their dialogue to appropriate remuneration (+) Positive
counterparty contractual determine reporting (-) Administrative impact on right to
of authors and counterparties, obligations burden and costs for the property, and
performers improve contract (-) Costs of setting creators' contractual freedom of
supported by a (+) improved up and counterparties movement and
contract enforcement and administering (-) Renegotiation costs expression
adjustment means for some dispute resolution for creators and their (--) Negative
right and a creators to mechanisms within contractual impact on the
dispute renegotiate MS counterparties freedom to
resolution agreements conduct a
mechanism business
Option 3 is the preferred option. Transparency measures would rebalance contractual
relationships between creators and their contractual counterparties by providing the
creators with the information necessary to assess whether their remuneration is
appropriate in relation to the economic value of their works and if the remuneration is
deemed inappropriate, a legal mechanism in order to seek out a renegotiation of their
contracts. In contrast, Option 1 may not be sufficiently effective and Option 2 would only
provide transparency measures without instruments to counter the effects of lack of
transparency. In comparison to Option 2, Option 3 has a more positive impact on creators who
would have tools to take action for requesting a fairer share of value on the basis on the
information provided on reporting statements but would have a higher impact on the
contractual freedom of the parties. The additional costs entailed by the dispute resolution
mechanism would be justified by the need to provide remedies to the lack of transparency in
the contractual relationships between creators and their contractual counterparties. Option 3
would help achieving a level playing field for creators and their contractual counterparties by
providing incentives for an increased transparency and enhanced collaboration.
Proportionality and impacts on MS: Option 3 is composed of a set of measures which are
all necessary to achieve increased transparency and balance in the contractual
190
relationships between creators and those to which they assign or transfer their rights.
The combination of the different measures ensures the effectiveness of the intervention, by
providing creators with practical tools allowing them to obtain information on the exploitation
of their works, and, when the agreed remuneration is disproportionate to the revenues
generated by the exploitation of the work, to negotiate a further appropriate remuneration.
Moreover, this Option includes provisions to ensure that the transparency obligations do not
become unnecessarily burdensome for contractual counterparties. Option 3 is therefore
proportionate to the policy objective. It introduces a common approach of transparency
requirements across the EU while allowing MS to take account of the specificities of
each sector.
Beyond the impacts on costs which are presented under Option 3 (costs related to the setting
up of the dispute resolution mechanism), Option 3 would entail some changes in MS
legislations. Several of them already have legislative transparency obligations which are often
sector specific (14 MS have them for the book sector, 6 for the music sector and 14 for the
AV sector) and in these cases the proposed measures would only represent incremental policy
changes. The preferred option would require MS to review these obligations in consultation
with stakeholders to make sure that they comply with the minimum requirements set out by
the legal instrument. In MS and sectors where contractual counterparties do not have to
comply with transparency obligations and that do not have contract adjustment and dispute
resolution mechanisms yet, these would have to be introduced.
191
6. OVERALL CONCLUSIONS
6.1. SUMMARY OF PREFERRED OPTIONS
The following table sets out the preferred options:
Area Preferred policy option
Ensuring Online transmissions Option 2 - Application of country of origin to the clearing of rights
wider access to of broadcasting for broadcasters' online services ancillary to their initial broadcast
content organisations
Digital Option 1 - Mandatory collective management of rights to
retransmissions of TV retransmission of TV / radio broadcasts by means of IPTV and other
and radio programmes retransmission services provided over "closed" electronic
communications networks
Access to and Option 2 – Stakeholders' dialogue + Obligation for Member States
availability of EU to establish a negotiation mechanism to overcome obstacles to the
audiovisual works on availability of audiovisual works on VoD
VoD platforms
Out-of-commerce Option 2 - EU legislative intervention (i) requiring MS to put in
works in the place legal mechanisms to facilitate collective licensing agreements
collections of Cultural for all types of OoC works and to foster national stakeholder
Heritage Institutions frameworks, and (ii) giving cross-border effect to such legal
mechanisms.
Adapting Use of protected Option 3 - Mandatory exception with a cross-border effect covering
exceptions to content in digital and digital uses in the context of illustration for teaching, with the
digital and cross-border teaching option for MS to make it (partially or totally) subject to the
cross-border activities availability of licences
environment
Text and data mining Option 3 - Mandatory exception applicable to public interest
research organisations covering text and data mining for the
purposes of both non-commercial and commercial scientific
research
Preservation of Option 2 - Mandatory harmonised exception for preservation
cultural heritage purposes by cultural heritage institutions
Achieving a Use of protected Option 2 - An obligation on online services which store and give
well- content by online access to large amounts of content uploaded by their users to put in
functioning services storing and place appropriate and proportionate technologies and to increase
market place giving access to user transparency vis a vis rights holders
for copyright uploaded content
Rights in publications Option 3 - Introduction in EU law of a related right covering digital
uses of news publications + introduction, in EU law, of the
possibility for MS to provide that publishers may claim
compensation for uses under an exception
Fair remuneration in Option 3 - Transparency obligations supported by a contract
contracts of authors adjustment right and a dispute resolution mechanism
and performers
192
6.2. ANALYSIS OF THE COMBINED APPLICATION OF THE PREFERRED OPTIONS
6.2.1. Impact on stakeholders
The combined application of the preferred options would affect all types of stakeholders
differently, but is not expected to result in any disproportionate impact on a specific category
of stakeholders. All the options and their impacts have been analysed and compared in the
preceding sections against a set of policy objectives originally outlined in the Communication
from the Commission on "Towards a modern, more European copyright framework" from
December 2015.587 As a result of an in-depth analysis based on the existing evidence and
stakeholder consultation, a package of options has been chosen. The wide scope of the
package aims to provide clear benefits to consumers / users (measures related to wider access
to content and to exceptions) and rightholders (measures related to the better functioning of
the online copyright marketplace); in addition the balance between the interests of consumers
/ users and rightholders has been taken into account in determining the preferred policy option
for each topic.
The impacts on the different types of stakeholders and possible synergies arising from the set
of preferred options are presented below.
Rightholders – As a result of the preferred options for "Ensuring wider access to content"
(section 3), rightholders would face new conditions for the licensing of rights to broadcasters
for their ancillary online services (country of origin) and for the licensing of rights to certain
retransmission services (mandatory collective management). The targeted nature of the
measures proposed would mitigate potential negative impacts for rightholders. Rightholders
would benefit from the licensing mechanisms to facilitate the clearing of rights in EU AV
works for use on VoD platforms and for the digitisation and dissemination of out-of-
commerce works in cultural heritage collections for the purpose of better dissemination of
their works and revenue opportunities. Following the intervention for "Adapting exceptions to
digital and cross-border environments" (section 4), rightholders would need to take account of
the scope of the new exceptions on teaching, TDM and preservation when licensing their
content to institutional users. Potential negative impacts would be mitigated by several
relevant factors (e.g. the TDM option being based on the lawful access condition and allowing
rightholders to take proportionate technical measures to ensure the security of their content,
the teaching option allowing flexibility for MS to take account of the existing licensing
arrangements, the preservation exception applying only to the works already in the collections
of CHIs). The intervention for "Achieving a well-functioning market place for copyright"
(section 5) would have as a consequence the possibility for rightholders to better control the
presence of their content on user uploaded content services. The solution envisaged for
publishers would give press publishers legal certainty and additional bargaining power in
relation to online services, and would enable MS to allow all publishers to claim
compensation for uses under exceptions of rights transferred by authors. Authors and
performers would benefit from increased transparency on the exploitation of their works and
performances and from improved capability to receive appropriate remuneration, while their
contractual counterparts (notably producers and publishers) would have to comply with the
new reporting obligations. Overall, the proposed measures are expected to strengthen the
competitiveness of European creative industries, notably in the online environment.
587
COM(2015) 626 final, cit.
193
Broadcasters and retransmission services – Pursuant to the intervention on "Ensuring wider
access to content" (section 3), broadcasters (as far as their online transmissions ancillary to
the initial broadcasts are concerned) - and retransmission services operating by certain means
other than cable – would benefit from simpler and faster clearance of rights. The reduction of
transaction costs resulting from the proposed intervention would encourage broadcasters and
retransmission services to better exploit the opportunities of the Digital Single Market. As
rightholders themselves, broadcasters would be subject to the same impacts as other
rightholders (see above).
Online service providers would be differently affected depending on their business models
and on the type of content they distribute. VoD platforms would be able to submit contractual
blockages for obtaining online rights to the negotiation forum proposed as part of the
preferred options under "Ensuring wider access to content" (section 3). As a result of the
intervention for "Achieving a well-functioning market place for copyright" (section 5), online
services storing and giving access to large amounts of content uploaded by users would have
to use the necessary means to identify protected content and provide more transparency. This
would help creating a level-playing field with other online content service providers. Online
services such as news aggregators or social media services would need to secure the
agreement of press publishers to use their content.
Consumers are expected to benefit from wider access to TV and radio programmes online,
when broadcasters and retransmission services make use of the licensing arrangements as per
the preferred options of the "Ensuring wider access to content" part of this IA (section 3).
Consumers are also expected to benefit from a greater availability of EU AV works on VoD
platforms across MS, when the negotiating mechanisms proposed under the same section help
rights' negotiations. Also as part of "Ensuring wider access to content" (section 3), the
measures to facilitate the dissemination of out-of-commerce works would provide consumers
with access to content that would otherwise be unavailable to them, nationally and across
borders. Consumers would also benefit, directly or indirectly, from the improved possibilities
for use of content and increased legal certainty as regards notably education and preservation
activities stemming from the preferred options under "Adapting exceptions to digital and
cross-border environment" (section 4). The measures proposed to "Achieving a well-
functioning market place for copyright" (section 5) are likely to have in the medium term a
positive impact on the production and availability of culturally diverse content and on media
pluralism, for the benefit of consumers.
Institutional users (cultural heritage institutions, research institutions and educational
establishments) would benefit from higher legal certainty when using protected content for
specific purposes (respectively, preservation, TDM and illustration for teaching), as a result of
intervention under "Adapting exceptions to digital and cross-border environment" (section 4).
Cultural heritage institutions would benefit from easier licensing solutions for the digitisation
and dissemination of out-of-commerce works in their permanent collections, as outlined under
"Ensuring wider access to content" (section 3). This would reduce their rights clearance
transaction costs and support them in making out-of-commerce works available across
borders.
6.2.2. Subsidiarity and proportionality
The problems identified in this IA have an important cross-border dimension stemming from
the harmonisation which is already in place as a result of existing EU copyright rules (notably
in terms of rights) and the cross-border nature inherent in the distribution of content online.
The solutions designed to address these problems and selected as preferred policy options on
194
the basis of their effectiveness and efficiency have all been scrutinised from the subsidiarity
and proportionality angle in each thematic section. The results of this analysis show that the
options chosen are proportionate to the objectives in that they address the underlying
problems without generating unjustified costs. On the basis of this IA it also appears that a
common approach should be provided at EU level as relying on national solutions for the
problems identified would generate further fragmentation in the functioning of the Single
Market. Finally, EU intervention is indispensable to achieve one of the key objectives of the
copyright modernisation, which is to guarantee legal certainty in cross-border situations.
6.2.3. Choice of instrument
The preferred policy options identified in section 3.2 of this IA (online transmissions and
retransmissions of TV and radio programmes) would be best implemented through a
regulation. This instrument would ensure that the new rules are applicable in all MS at the
same time. It would also allow a uniform application of the rules in the EU, which is
particularly important to guarantee legal certainty to service providers operating in different
territories. The direct applicability of the provisions would prevent legal fragmentation and
provide a harmonised set of rules to facilitate online access to TV and radio programmes
across borders or originating from other MS.
For the other topics covered by this IA, a directive is a more suitable instrument as it would
allow MS to determine the technical or practical aspects complementing the EU harmonised
rules and to take into account the existing national legislative frameworks.
6.3. MONITORING AND EVALUATION
6.3.1. Monitoring and evaluation plan
The Commission will ensure that the actions selected in the course of this IA contribute to the
achievement of the policy objectives defined in sections 3.1.3, 4.1.3 and 5.1.3. The
monitoring process would partly depend on the type of legal instrument that will be chosen to
implement the preferred policy options.
For the topics covered by the regulation, the first data collection should take place when the
regulation enters into force in order to establish the baseline for future evaluations. The
monitoring process would then focus on progress made in relation to the cross-border
availability of TV and radio programmes, with data collection taking place every 2-3 years.
The main indicators are presented in the table in section 6.2.2.
For the directive, the monitoring process could consist of two phases:
- The first phase would concentrate on the short-term, starting right after the adoption of
the legislative proposal, and would focus on the correct transposition of the directive in
MS. Before the transposition deadline, the Commission would organise transposition
workshops and meetings with MS' representatives (e.g. group of experts) to assist them in
the transposition process and to facilitate the mutual exchange of information. After the
transposition deadline, the Commission would verify the timely adoption and correctness
of the transposition measures.
- The second phase would be mid to long-term and would focus on direct effects of the
rules contained in the directive. The table in section 6.2.2 below presents the main
indicators that will be used to monitor progress towards meeting the objectives pursued in
the modernisation of EU copyright rules, as well as the possible sources of information.
Depending on the data needs, information would be gathered from MS, creative
195
industries or institutional users. Where needed, the Commission would send
questionnaires to MS or stakeholders or organise specific surveys. The first data
collection should take place before the end of the transposition period in order to
establish the baseline. The information-gathering should then take place every 2-3 years
after the transposition deadline in order to monitor progress in the achievement of the
objectives.
A comprehensive evaluation could take place at the latest 10 years after the adoption of the
directive and 5 years after the adoption of the regulation, in order to measure their
effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and added value, in accordance with the
Commission's Better Regulation principles.
196
6.3.2. Operational objectives and monitoring indicators
Objectives Indicators Source of information
ENSURING WIDER ACCESS TO CONTENT
Facilitate the clearance of rights for transmissions of TV and radio programmes online
Operational objective: 1. Number of simulcasting services available This information would be
Increase the number of TV across borders in the EU and percentage of obtained from publicly
and radio programmes geo-blocked content available data sources
accessible online across [Benchmark: see table 1.4 in Annex 6B (European Audiovisual
borders covering a sample of broadcasters in 11 MS] Observatory) or directly
2. Number of catch-up services available across from broadcasters
borders in the EU and percentage of geo- (through bilateral contacts
blocked content or questionnaires).
[Benchmark: see table 1.5 in Annex 6B
covering a sample of broadcasters in 11 MS]
3. Online cross-border availability of radio and
TV programmes, by type of content (news,
shows, cultural programmes, films, series,
etc)
4. Audience of online radio and TV
programmes
[Benchmark 2014 data: 20 % of Europeans
watch television online at least once a week;
6 to 8 % of total listening of radio is done
online in Europe.588]
Facilitate the clearance of rights for retransmissions services by means other than cable
Operational objective: 1. Number of retransmission services provided This information would be
Increase the number of over closed electronic communications obtained from publicly
TV/radio channels offered by networks available data sources
retransmission services 2. Number of foreign TV / radio channels (European Audiovisual
provided over closed available in each MS through those Observatory) or from
electronic communications retransmission services business intelligence
networks [Benchmark: for IPTV services see table services (e.g. IHS, Digital
presented in Annex 7B covering a sample of TV research)
11 MS; 2015 data]
3. Share of IPTV retransmission or
retransmission over closed electronic
communications networks in the EU
television market (in comparison to cable and
satellite)
[Benchmark 2015 data: IPTV service
providers account for 14 % of EU28
subscription revenues; cable 36 % and
satellite 50 %.589]
Facilitate the negotiation and dialogue between relevant parties for the exploitation of European
audiovisual works on VoD platforms
Operational objective: 1. Number and type of self-regulatory measures This information would be
Increase the number of adopted following the stakeholders' dialogue gathered directly from MS
European audiovisual works 2. Number of cases submitted to the negotiation (in particular for
available through VoD mechanism in each MS and identification of indicators n°2 to 4), from
platforms the type of stakeholder resorting to this the European Audiovisual
mechanism (VoD platforms, aggregators, Observatory (for
rightholders) indicators n°5 and 6) or
588
Source: Standard Eurobarometer 82 (for TV) and AER (for radio). See Annex 6A.
589
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook, 2015. See Annex 6A.
197
3. Number of successful negotiations through from VoD platforms
the negotiation mechanism in each MS (through bilateral contacts
4. Costs related to the set-up and functioning of or questionnaires).
the negotiation mechanism in each MS
5. Number of (or percentage of) European
audiovisual works available on VoD / SVoD
platforms
[Benchmark 2015 data (sample analysis):
European non-national films accounted for
14.7% of the films available in the VoD
catalogues and 22.8% of the SVoD
catalogues.590]
6. Share of VoD / SVoD revenues in total
revenues
[Benchmark 2013 data: VoD revenues
amounted to €1,526 million, which represents
approximatively 1/4 of cinema gross box-
office over the same period.591]
Facilitate the clearance of rights for digitisation and making available of out-of-commerce works
in the collections of CHIs
Operational objective: 1. Number of institutions engaging in This information would be
Increase the number of OoC digitisation and dissemination projects of gathered from beneficiary
works in the collections of OoC works, by type of works institutions (for indicators
CHIs made available to the 2. Number of licences for OoC works issued to n°1, 3, 4, 5) and collecting
public, incl. across borders cultural heritage institutions based on ECL, societies (for indicators
PoR or similar systems; n°2, 6), through bilateral
3. Number of in-copyright OoC works made contacts or questionnaires.
available online by beneficiary institutions
(by type of work); The European
4. Number of in-copyright OoC works made transparency web portal
available online by beneficiary institutions would allow to monitor
(by type of work) – across borders; the number of OoC works
5. Number of users accessing digitised OoC made available by CHIs.
works online, including across borders
6. Revenues for rightholders stemming from
collective licensing in this area.
ADAPTING EXCEPTIONS TO DIGITAL AND CROSS-BORDER ENVIRONMENT
Make sure that teachers/students can use protected content in full legal certainty in their digital
teaching activities, including across borders
Operational objective: 1. Number of educational establishments This information would be
Increase the use of protected offering online courses / cross-border or gathered through
content in digitally-supported distance education programmes educational authorities in
teaching activities, including [Benchmark 2013 data for higher education each MS and through
across border (sample analysis): 82 % of higher education surveys among teachers
institutions offered online courses.592] and students. In addition,
2. Number of students involved in cross-border data could be obtained
or distance education programmes from publishers and
3. Frequency of use of different types of collecting societies.
protected content (print, images, films, etc) in
digital / online and cross-border education;
4. Number of MS making the exception subject
to the availability of licences and in these
countries, number of collective licensing
schemes for educational uses
590
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory, November 2015. See Annex 8A.
591
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory, March 2015. See Annex 8A.
592
Source: European University Association. See Annex 10A.
198
5. Types of initiatives implemented to promote
the availability and visibility of licences
6. Number of MS requiring compensation of the
exception and amount of the compensation;
7. Licensing costs for educational
establishments;
8. Rightholders' revenues deriving from
educational uses (through compensation
and/or secondary licensing) and part of the
revenues stemming from digital uses
[Benchmark: see data on the revenues
stemming from digital uses provided in
Annex 10D for several MS.]
Make sure that researchers can carry out text and data mining of content they have lawful
access to in full legal certainty, including across borders
Operational objective: Make 1. Number of (cross-border) research and This information would be
sure that researchers can text innovation projects using text and data gathered through the
and data mine content they mining; H2020 participants, the
have lawful access to in full 2. Number of text and data mining services; H2020 statistics Unit in
legal certainty 3. Number of text and data mining related the Commission, statistics
scientific publications. from OpenAire Data
[Benchmark: 303 articles published on TDM Platform or data provided
in the EU from 2011 to 2016.593] directly by stakeholders
(publishers, institutional
users, etc).
Make sure that cultural heritage institutions can make preservation copies of protected works in
their permanent collections in full legal certainty, taking into account digital technology
Operational objective: 1. Number of CHIs engaging in digital This information would be
Increase the number of CHIs preservation gathered from beneficiary
engaged in digital 2. Number of CHIs sharing digital preservation institutions and MS,
preservation and of works that infrastructure mainly through surveys,
are preserved by CHIs 3. Number of digital preservation projects including building on
4. Number of works undergoing digital existing frameworks (e.g.
preservation the Enumerate project,
reporting on EU
Recommendations).
ACHIEVING A WELL-FUNCTIONING MARKET PLACE FOR COPYRIGHT
Ensure that rightholders benefit from a legal framework allowing them to better control and be
remunerated for the use of their content vis-à-vis online services storing and giving access to
large amounts of content uploaded by their users
Operational objective: 1. Take-up of efficient content identification This information would be
Reduce unauthorised content technologies gathered from rightholders
on the services and increase 2. Number of agreements concluded between and services covered by
the number of agreements the user uploaded content services and the intervention, mainly
between online services rightholders for the use of content by technology providers
storing and giving access to and through surveys and
large amounts of content reports
uploaded by their users and
rightholders for the use of
copyright protected content
Ensure a fair share of revenues stemming from the use of publications among the different
593
Source: Lisbon Council, 2016, based on Reed Elsevier Science Direct database. See table in Annex
11E.
199
players of the publishing value chain
Operational objective: 1. Number of users who have access to news This information would be
Ensure that the increase in the content (directly through publishers' websites gathered from
consumption of publications and apps or indirectly through online service periodically-published
is reflected in a return on the providers) reports on the publishing
required investments [Benchmark 2016 data: 42 % of users have industry (Reuters News
access to news online directly via the website Report, PwC Global
or app of newspapers and magazines and entertainment and media
57% indirectly via online social media, outlook, etc.) or directly
search engines and news aggregators.594] through
2. Online revenues obtained by press publishers questionnaires/surveys to
(licences, subscriptions or advertising publishers. Figures to
revenues) measure indicator 3 will
[Benchmark 2015 data: digital revenue of be obtained from
European newspaper and magazine: €7.12 collective management
billion.595] organisations.
3. Revenues obtained by publishers on the basis
of compensation stemming from exceptions
to copyright
[Benchmark 2014/205 data In the 12 MS
which operate a levy-scheme and foresee an
author-publisher split and for which there
was data available, an aggregated total
amount of €40 million was distributed to
publishers.596]
Increase legal certainty, transparency and balance in the system that governs the remuneration
of creators
Operational objectives: 1. Number of creators receiving reporting This information would be
Facilitate contract statements gathered on the basis of
enforcement in relation to 2. Of which: number of those who receive surveys among creators
transparency and satisfactory reporting (to have an indication (authors and performers
remuneration on quality of reporting) associations) and surveys
Increase the number of 3. Number of companies producing reporting of the contractual
reporting (where missing), statements counterparties (depending
Increase the quality (where 4. Number of cases brought before the on the sector – publishers,
the quality is not sufficient). alternative dispute resolution bodies producers, broadcasters).
5. Number of cases of use of contract
adjustment mechanism
6. Satisfaction of creators: perception of impact
of reporting obligation on remuneration
594
Source: Eurobarometer 437, March 2016. See Annex 13A.
595
Source: PwC Global entertainment and media outlook, March 2016. See Annex 13A
596
Source: IFRRO. Annex 13D
200
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
SWD(2016) 301 final
PART 2/3
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT
IMPACT ASSESSMENT
on the modernisation of EU copyright rules
Accompanying the document
Proposal for a
Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council
on copyright in the Digital Single Market
and
Proposal for a
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council
laying down rules on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain
online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and
radio programmes
{COM(2016) 593}
{COM(2016) 594}
{SWD(2016) 302}
EN EN
ANNEXES TO THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
on the modernisation of EU copyright rules
2
ANNEX 1 – PROCEDURAL INFORMATION .................................................................... 4
ANNEX 2 – STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION ............................................................ 11
Annex 2A – Stakeholders' consultation strategy ...................................................................... 11
Annex 2B – Extract of the report on the responses to the public consultation on the review of
EU copyright rules ..................................................................................................... 16
Annex 2C – Synopsis report on the responses to the public consultation on the review of the
Satellite and Cable Directive...................................................................................... 33
ANNEX 3 – WHO IS AFFECTED BY THE INITIATIVE AND HOW .......................... 39
ANNEX 4 – THE COPYRIGHT REVIEW PROCESS: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN
RELEVANT FINDINGS ......................................................................................... 42
ANNEX 5 – CREATIVE INDUSTRIES IN THE EU ECONOMY .................................. 63
ANNEX 6 – ONLINE TRANSMISSIONS OF BROADCASTING ORGANISATIONS 64
Annex 6A – European TV and radio markets .......................................................................... 64
Annex 6B – Availability of broadcasters' online services across borders................................ 81
ANNEX 7 – DIGITAL RETRANSMISSIONS OF TV AND RADIO PROGRAMMES 98
Annex 7A – Application of licensing facilitation regimes (collective licensing) to the
retransmission services other than cable .................................................................... 98
Annex 7B – TV channels available on cable and IPTV retransmission services .................. 100
ANNEX 8 – THE VOD MARKET AND ITS LICENSING SYSTEM ........................... 101
Annex 8A – The European film industry with a special focus on the VoD market............... 101
Annex 8B – Main actors in the audio-visual industry ............................................................ 104
Annex 8C – Value chains: the audiovisual sector and digital distribution, and the video-on-
demand services ....................................................................................................... 106
Annex 8D – Revenue streams in the video on demand (VoD) sector.................................... 107
Annex 8E – Copyright accompanying measures ................................................................... 107
3
ANNEX 1 – PROCEDURAL INFORMATION
Consultation within the Commission
DG CONNECT has the lead of this file which is in the Commission Work Programme for
2016. The number of the entry in the Agenda Planning is 2016/CNECT/009.
The work on the IA started in December 2014. The first meeting of the Copyright Inter-
Service Steering Group ("ISSG"), chaired by the SG, took place on 25 March 2015, and the
second meeting on 13 May 2015. The ISSG met in the second half of 2015 to discuss the IA
accompanying the regulation on cross-border portability and the Communication "Towards a
modern, more European copyright framework" which were both adopted on 9 December
2015. Discussions on the topics covered by this IA were resumed in April 2016, with four
additional meetings taking place on 28 April, 23 May, 14 June and 27 June.
In addition to DG CONNECT, DG COMP, EAC, ECFIN, EMPL, ESTAT, GROW, JRC,
JUST, LS, RTD and TRADE participated to the ISSG.
Consultation of the RSB
The Impact Assessment Report was examined by the Regulatory Scrutiny Board on 20 July
2016. Recommendations from the Board were transmitted on 22 July 2016 and were
implemented as follows:
Recommendations of the RSB Changes in the IA report
1) Problem definition and situation in - The introduction has been revised to better
Member States. The report should briefly explain why certain issues are not covered
explain on what basis it was decided to tackle by the IA (section 1.2)
certain topics now and why other issues that
- Where relevant, the relative importance of
were announced in the 2015 Communication
the different drivers has been clarified.
on modernisation of the copyright framework
were not considered. It should better assess the - The views of Member States and of the
likely magnitude of each of the problems, European Parliament on the different issues
providing at least anecdotal evidence at covered by the IA have been added in the
Member State level. The report should indicate introduction to each area (sections 3.1, 4.1
which drivers are dealt with by the initiative and 5.1)
and their relative importance should be better - Information related to the existing national
assessed in order to set the expectations at the legislations in the areas covered by this IA
right level, in particular for consumers. The has been added where relevant (tables added
report should also present the views of Member in relation to exceptions, rights in
States and of the European Parliament, and publications, fair remuneration of authors
include tables showing the applicable national and performers).
frameworks. Moreover, the baseline scenario - The impacts of the preferred option on MS
should be further developed, by presenting has been specifically added after the
current trends or developments at national comparison of the options for each topic.
level.
2) Need to act at EU level. Given the rapid - Where relevant, the impacts of the baseline
evolution of the digital single market, the on- option have been further developed to better
going regulatory and self-regulatory initiatives, explain why the problems identified would
competition cases and pending law cases, the not be solved without EU intervention.
report should better justify, using robust
- The arguments justifying the need to act at
evidence, that the problems identified will not
EU level have been further elaborated
be resolved without regulatory intervention.
(under sections 3.1.2 and 5.1.2).
Moreover, based on a clearer picture of the
situation in the different Member States, the
4
report should better justify why action is
needed at EU level, in particular if national
authorities did not regulate in the area.
(3) Analysis of options. The report should - The IA now includes a sub-section on the
outline which legal instruments are most choice of the legal instrument (section
appropriate to be used for each of the 6.2.3).
measures. It should also clarify which
- The analysis of impacts of the legislative
measures represent significant versus
options has been revised in order to specify
incremental policy changes, and to what extent
the extent of the changes for the different
the options under consideration are likely to
stakeholders (notably in terms of business
have significant impacts on the relevant
models, revenues and management of
industry sectors and disrupt current business
rights).
models or rights management patterns. It
should clearly spell out how the separate - For each topic, a short paragraph has been
measures are likely to change the distribution added after the comparison of options in
of income among the actors (for instance, order to explain the proportionality of the
following the extension of the country of preferred option, including in relation to
origin principle). The report should also better fundamental rights. The impacts of the
assess the proportionality of the different preferred option on MS has also been
measures and explain why lighter regimes are clarified after the comparison of the options.
not presented for SMEs, given the likely - Section 6.2 presents an analysis of the
disproportionate level of compliance costs (e.g. combned application of the preferred
regarding the fair remuneration in contracts options, including in terms of balance
of authors and performers). The between the interests of consumers/users
proportionality of the options should be better and right holders.
assessed, among others by better presenting the
likely magnitude of impacts in the various
Member States that the implementation of the
preferred options would imply on the ground.
Given the reference to impacts on fundamental
rights, in particular regarding property rights
and freedom to conduct a business, the report
should better justify why the measures are
considered as proportionate. The report should
clarify to what extent the package of measures
is balanced between the interests of consumers,
or users, and of right holders and further
explain the likely impacts on fundamental
rights.
Ensuring wider access to content - The impacts on right holders of the option
Online transmission of broadcasting introducing the country of origin for the
organisations: The report should more clearing of rights for broadcasters' online
convincingly demonstrate, based on robust ancillary services have been further clarified
evidence, that the benefits of introducing the (section 3.2.2.3, Option 2)
country of origin principle to clear the rights - The analysis of the options introducing
for certain online services of broadcasters mandatory collective management for the
would outweigh the costs for right holders. retransmissions of TV and radio
Digital retransmission of TV and radio programmes by means other than cable now
programmes: The management of rights includes an assessment of the impacts in
through collective management or licensing terms of management of rights (section
should be better described. 3.2.3.3., Options 1 and 2).
Video-on-demand (VoD) platforms: The - The option introducing an obligation to
report should better justify the need to act at have a negotiation mechanism to facilitate
EU level, present in more detail how the the licensing of EU AV works on VoD
5
options would work in practice (e.g. the platforms has been further assessed (section
negotiation mechanism), and assess the likely 3.3.3, Option 2). Additional elements have
costs they would entail (e.g. costs for national been provided on the costs for Member
authorities depending on the existing structures States and the link with the review of the
and the frequency of use). Moreover, it should AVMSD.
clarify the link and coherence with the review
of the AVMSD, which relies on an extension
of obligations to the VoD services to create a
level playing field and imposes new
obligations on European content.
Adapting exceptions to digital and cross- - A table summarizing the main differences in
border environment the implementation of the exceptions in MS
Tables summarizing the national legal has been added in section 4.1.4, in addition
frameworks should be included in the main text to the detailed tables provided in Annex 4.
(rather than only in the annexes). Regarding
- The limits of the voluntary approach for
the text and data mining exception, the
TDM has been further explained in the
reasons for the apparent underachievement of
problem definition (section 4.3.1) and in the
the voluntary approach (taken up with the
analysis of Option 1 ("industry self-
"Licences for Europe") should be further
regulation initiatives")
explained.
Achieving a well-functioning market place - In relation to the use of protected content by
for copyright online services storing and giving access to
Use of protected content by online services user uploaded content, the scope of Option
storing and giving access to user uploaded 2 has been adapted and its assessment has
content: The report should further assess the been revised.
effectiveness of the preferred Option 2, given
- The benefits of the option introducing a new
the disproportionate bargaining power between
right for news publishers have been further
the service providers and right holders when
explained and substantially beefed up
there is an obligation to engage in negotiations
(section 5.3.3, Option 2)
but no obligation to conclude them. It should
more convincingly demonstrate the need to act - The problem definition related to the
at EU level and, based on evidence, show that remuneration of authors and performers has
the preferred option would effectively ensure been amended in order to clarify the extent
more balanced relations across the copyright of the problem (lack of transparency on the
value chain and will positively affect the exploitation of works and on the owed
situation of right holders, while taking into remuneraiton). The EU dimension of the
account impacts on the online ecosystem. It problem has been strenghtened, including
should be clarified that the proposal would not on the basis of data illustrating the
impose a certain technology. importance of the cross-border exploitation
Rights in publications: The report should of content. Additional elements have been
more convincingly demonstrate that the included to better explain the need to act at
creation of a new standalone right for news EU level. (section 5.4.1 and 5.1.2 in relation
publishers would effectively contribute to to subsidiarity).
reinforcing their role in the digital world and
that action at EU level is needed.
Fair remuneration in contracts of authors
and performers: The report should justify,
using more robust evidence, that the
remuneration of authors and performance is
unfair in the online environment, with a proper
reflection of remuneration issues and new
opportunities brought by the new online
services. Moreover, the cross-border dimension
of the problem should be better demonstrated,
6
as well as why national solutions are likely to
be less effective. Given that contracts are
usually private matters, the legal justification
for intervention should be clearly set out, and
the proportionality of the measures duly
justified.
Procedure and presentation - A new Annex 15 has been introduced,
In order to make the report more accessible provinding the list of the main relevant
for non-specialists, technical terms should be Directives related to this IA and a glossary
explained in an extended glossary and all of technical terms.
acronyms inserted in an annex. Moreover, - The executive summary has been beefed up
the main messages of each section should be and now it contains more detailed
clearly presented and, where possible, visual informaiton as requested.
aids explaining complex issues at stake - The monitoring indicators have been
should be included. The report should clearly completed with quantitative benchmarks
mention when it presents results from studies were availble.
commissioned by interested parties and label - Generally presentation has been improved
them with the necessary caveats. The in several parts of the document.
executive summary should be more
informative, in particular on the problems to
be tackled for each of the areas, on the need
to act at EU level, on the preferred options
and their likely costs and benefits.
Benchmarks/targets should be set out for the
monitoring indicators in order to judge the
effectiveness of the framework when
conducting the retrospective evaluation.
Evidence used in the IA
The IA was prepared using diversified sources of information, including information received
from stakeholders, input from external experts, market reviews, sources of statistics
(including Eurostat), external studies (see below) and surveys (Eurobarometer surveys or
specific surveys carried out in the context of studies).
The Commission carried out several public consultations, a stakeholder dialogue ("Licences
for Europe") and a series of meetings with stakeholders (see Annex 2). These exercises
brought input from various stakeholders, which was taken into account in the IA.
For certain topics, the Commission also used evidence presented in reports on the
implementation of existing EU policies, notably:
- European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of Commission
Recommendation 2011/711/EU - 2013-2015 on digitisation, online accessibility and
digital preservation", 2016;
- European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of the European Parliament and
Council Recommendation on Film Heritage 2012-2013", 2014.
External expertise used in the IA process
Studies and surveys
A series of legal and economic studies were conducted for the Commission on various aspects
of the existing copyright rules:
7
"Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the
information society (The InfoSoc Directive)" (December 2013):1 the study provides an
analysis of the existing national rules implementing the InfoSoc Directive in eleven EU
countries (Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Poland, Denmark,
Hungary, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands). It concentrates on the
functioning of exclusive rights (in particular the "making available" right) and of certain
exceptions (including the exceptions benefiting to libraries and the exceptions for
teaching and scientific research) in the digital environment. The study also provides an
analysis of the right of retransmission by cable and assesses the relevant provisions of
the SatCab Directive.
"Study on the making available right and its relationship with the reproduction right in
cross-border digital transmissions", (December 2014):2 the study complements the
"Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the
information society" by providing an analysis of the relation between the making
available right and the reproduction right.
"Economic analysis of the territoriality of the making available right in the EU" (March
2014):3 the study analyses the use of territorial licensing in the music and audiovisual
industries, identifies key economic mechanisms underlying the choice of territorial
licensing (vertical agreements, price discrimination and transaction costs) and assesses
the impacts of different policy scenarios on the existing licensing models.
"Survey and data gathering to support the evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive
93/83/EEC and assessment of its possible extension" (ongoing): the study provides an
overview of the EU TV/radio market, an analysis of the geographic coverage of TV
channels and an analysis of cross-border availability of broadcasters' online services. It
includes an analysis of the legal frameworks implemented in the Member States
concerning cross-border (re)transmissions of broadcasting services. It also assesses the
performance of the Satellite and Cable Directive and identifies the legal issues to be
assessed in case of a possible extension of its mechanisms to online (re)transmissions of
TV/radio programmes.
"Survey Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2015" (June
2015), and "Survey Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions
2014" (June 2014), produced as part of the ENUMERATE projects, co-funded by the
European Commission: the surveys provide information on the status of digitisation of
cultural heritage in EU based on a detailed questionnaire submitted to cultural heritage
institutions across the EU. They include data on institutional holdings, including born
digital collection, types of holdings, ways to provide digital access and, for the 2014
issue only, an indicative break-down of the incidental and structural costs of
digitisation, including copyright clearance and the cost of licensing.
1
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in
the information society (The InfoSoc Directive)", De Wolf & Partners, December 2013
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/131216_study_en.pdf
2
S. Depreeuw et alii, "Study on the making available right and its relationship with the reproduction right
in cross-border digital transmissions", De Wolf & Partners, December 2014,
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/141219-study_en.pdf
3
G. Langus et alii, "Economic analysis of the territoriality of the making available right in the EU",
CRA, March 2014 http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/1403_study1_en.pdf
8
"The Cost of Digitising Europe's Cultural Heritage. A Report for the Comité des Sages
of the European Commission" (November 2010): the study estimated the total cost of
digitising Europe's cultural heritage, looking into different types of material in different
categories of cultural heritage institutions. It also provides an aggregate estimate of
cultural heritage institutions and their holdings in Europe and fed into the
recommendations of "The new Renaissance. Report of the "Comité des sages", which
were delivered in 2011 to the Commission on the digitisation, online accessibility and
preservation of cultural heritage.
"Challenges of the Digital Era for Film Heritage Institutions", (December 2011): the
study looked into challenges and opportunities for film heritage institutions in
preserving and continuing to provide access to film heritage in Europe. It provides an
analysis of the market and technological developments affecting European film
heritage, evaluates the cost of digitising and looks at various issues including copyright
aspects.
"Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and exceptions to
copyright and related rights in the EU – Analysis of specific policy options" (May
2014): 4 the study provides an economic analysis of specific policy options regarding
exceptions (including preservation and text and data mining), based on the methodology
set out in the related report: "Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain
limitations and exceptions to copyright and related rights in the EU" (October 2013).5
The study identifies the economic mechanisms at play in relation to copyright
exceptions and provides a qualitative assessment of the potential effects of different
policy options on various stakeholders.
"Assessment of the impact of the European copyright framework on digitally supported
education and training practices": the study provides a mapping of the exceptions
relevant to education in national laws and identifies legal uncertainties and obstacles on
the use of copyright-protected works in digital education. The findings of the study are
based on desk research, interviews with stakeholders and on two online surveys.
"Showing films and other audiovisual content in European Schools : Obstacles and best
practices" (May 2015):6 the study analyses how films are used in schools and identifies
obstacles and best practices. One chapter of the study is dedicated to the copyright
framework applicable to the use of audiovisual works in the context of education.
"Study on the legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)" (March 2014): 7 the
study identifies the rights relevant for TDM activities and assesses how current
4
J. Boulanger et alii, "Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and exceptions to
copyright and related rights in the EU – Analysis of specific policy options”, CRA, May 2014,
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/140623-limitations-economic-impacts-
study_en.pdf
5
G. Langus et alii, "Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and exceptions to
copyright and related rights in the EU”, CRA, October 2013,
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/131001-study_en.pdf
6
J-M Pérez Tornero et alii, "Showing films and other audiovisual content in European Schools :
Obstacles and best practices – Final report" https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/schools-
europe-are-not-using-films-and-audiovisual-material-full-concluded-eu-study
7
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)", De Wolf &
partners, March 2014, http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/1403_study2_en.pdf
9
exceptions can apply to such activities. It also examines legal provisions, decisions or
judgments affecting TDM in 11 Member States (Germany, France, the United
Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Poland, Denmark, Hungary, Belgium, Luxembourg and the
Netherlands). The objective was to examine the need for legislative changes in this
specific area.
"Standardisation in the area of innovation and technological development, notably in the
field of Text and Data Mining, Report from the expert group" – European Commisson,
DG Research and Innovation, 2014. The report looked at TDM from an economic and
legal point of view in the context of the EU policy for research and innovation.
"Remuneration of authors and performers for the use of their works and the fixations of
their performances" (July 2015): the study compares, from legal and economic
perspectives, the existing national systems of remuneration for authors and performers
in the music and audio-visual sectors in ten EU countries (France, United Kingdom,
Germany, Spain, Poland, Italy, Hungary, the Netherlands, Denmark and Lithuania). The
objective was to gather evidence whether, and to what extent, the differences that exist
among the Member States affect levels of remuneration and the functioning of the
internal market.
"Remuneration of authors of books and scientific journals, translators, journalists and
visual artists for the use of their works" (ongoing): the study compares, from legal and
economic perspectives, the existing national systems of remuneration for authors in the
print sectors in ten EU countries (France, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Poland,
Italy, Hungary, the Netherlands, Denmark and Ireland). The objective was to gather
evidence whether, and to what extent, the differences that exist among the Member
States affect levels of remuneration and the functioning of the internal market. Drawing
upon statistical analysis of a survey of authors to test and corroborate the findings of the
legal analysis, the study draws a number of policy recommendations to improve the
functioning of the Single Market in this area.
10
ANNEX 2 – STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION
ANNEX 2A – STAKEHOLDERS' CONSULTATION STRATEGY
The consultation strategy supporting the modernisation of EU copyright rules included a
stakeholders' dialogue, several public consultations and Eurobarometer surveys. The
Commission also organised several roundtable discussions with stakeholders and took part
to a number of conferences and seminars on the issues covered by this IA. In addition, DG
CONNECT held a series of ad-hoc meetings with stakeholders to discuss specific issues and
gather detailed input on various policy options. The IA largely builds on the outcome of these
consultations with stakeholders.
Stakeholders' dialogue
The Commission held a structured stakeholder dialogue "Licences for Europe" between
February 2013 and November 2013.8 As announced in the 2012 communication on content in
the digital single market,9 the purpose of this dialogue was to address a number of issues on
which rapid progress was considered necessary and possible.
The dialogue consisted in four Working Groups, which led to 'Ten Pledges to bring more
content online'10 presented at a final plenary session on 13 November 2013. In the context of
this dialogue, the areas of text and data mining and digitisation of film heritage were
discussed, in particular, to explore possible concrete solutions (such as for instance standard
licensing models).
Public consultations
Public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules ('the 2013-2014 public
consultation'): 11 the consultation was held between 5 December 2013 and 5 March
2014. It allowed to gather input from all types of stakeholders on the Commission's
review of the EU copyright rules, including in the areas of access to cross-border
content, exceptions, and remuneration of authors and performers. The report on the
responses received was published in July 2014.12 An extract of the report covering the
issues dealt with in this IA is included in Annex 2B.
Public consultation on the review of the EU Satellite and Cable Directive13: the
consultation was held from 24 August to 16 November 2015. It invited respondents to
give feedback on the functioning of the rules related to the clearance of rights for
satellite broadcasters and cable companies, notably with regards to cross-border access
8
For further details concerning this stakeholder dialogue see https://ec.europa.eu/licences-for-europe-
dialogue/en/content/about-site
9
COM(2012) 789 final, cit.
10
Licences for Europe - Ten pledges to bring more content online,
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/licences-for-europe/131113_ten-pledges_en.pdf
11
For further details concerning this public consultation see
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-rules/index_en.htm.
12
Report on the responses to the Public Consultation on the Review of the EU Copyright Rules, July 2014
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-rules/docs/contributions/consultation-
report_en.pdf
13
For further details concerning this public consultation see https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/en/news/contributions-and-preliminary-trends-public-consultation-review-eu-satellite-and-cable
11
to broadcasting services, and to assess the possible need to extend these rules to online
transmissions/retransmissions. The report on the responses received has been published
in May 2016.14 It is presented in Annex 2C.
Public consultation on the regulatory environment for platforms, online intermediaries,
data and cloud computing and the collaborative economy:15 the consultation was held
between 24 September 2015 and 6 January 2016. It covered a broad range of issues
including, in particular, the role of online intermediaries as well as ways to tackle illegal
content on the Internet. Insofar as relevant, the consultation provided evidence and
views from all stakeholders on the liability of intermediaries. A first brief overview of
the results of the consultation has been published in January 2016.16 The report on the
responses received has been published in May 2016.17
Public consultation on the role of publishers in the copyright value chain and on the
'panorama exception':18 the consultation was held between 23 March 2016 and 15 June
2016. It focussed on two specific issues that were flagged in the communication
"Towards a modern, more European copyright framework"19 but had not been covered
by the previous copyright consultations: the possible introduction in EU law of a new
neighbouring right for publishers and the so-called 'panorama exception'. With regard to
the possible introduction of a new neighbouring right for publishers, the objective of the
consultation was twofold. First, to gather views on the impact that granting an EU
neighbouring right to publishers could have on the publishing sector, on citizens and
creative industries. Second, to collect input for the Commission's analysis whether the
need (or not) for intervention is different in the press as compared to other publishing
sectors. The report on the responses received on the role of publishers in the copyright
value chain is published at the same time of this IA.20
Surveys
A Flash Eurobarometer on "Cross-border access to online content"21 was carried out in
January 2015 among 26.586 respondents in 28 EU Member States (telephone
14
Synopsis Report on the Responses to the Public Consultation on the Review of the Satellite and Cable
Directive https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-report-public-consultation-review-eu-
satellite-and-cable-directive
15
For further details concerning this public consultation see https://ec.europa.eu/digital-
agenda/en/news/public-consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-intermediaries-data-and-
cloud
16
First brief results of the public consultation on the regulatory environment for platforms, online
intermediaries, data and cloud computing and the collaborative economy, https://ec.europa.eu/digital-
single-market/news/first-brief-results-public-consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-
intermediaries
17
Synopsis Report on the Public Consultation on the regulatory environment for platforms, online
intermediaries and the collaborative economy https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/full-
report-results-public-consultation-regulatory-environment-platforms-online-intermediaries
18
For further details concerning this public consultation see https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/en/news/public-consultation-role-publishers-copyright-value-chain-and-panorama-exception
19
COM(2015) 626 final, cit.
20
The report on the responses received concerning the 'panorama exception' (which is not addressed in
this IA) is also published at the same time of this IA.
21
Flash Eurobarometer 411,
http://ec.europa.eu/COMMFrontOffice/PublicOpinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/F
LASH/surveyKy/2059
12
interviews). The survey allowed to gather information on consumers' experience with
online content in general, as well as consumers' experience and possible interest as
regards cross-border portability of online subscriptions and cross-border access to
online content.
A Eurobarometer online survey on "Internet users’ preferences for accessing content
online" was carried out in March 2016 among 13.483 Internet users aged 15-45 in 28
Member States. The survey gathers data illustrating online content consumption patterns
for music, films and TV series, news and images. It provides information on the type of
services chosen by Internet users to access content online and on the main criteria for
choosing a service to access and consume content online.
Meetings with stakeholders
There have been regular contacts with all relevant stakeholders, to gather further information
and data and to discuss specific issues, in particular, the options presented in this IA.22
Access to content
A first roundtable discussion with Commissioner Oettinger took place on 30 January 2015 on
territoriality and cross-border access to content, with representatives of the AV, music and
print sectors. In particular, AV right holders (authors, actors, producers), public and
commercial broadcasters, VoD/SVoD platforms, cable and telecom companies, and consumer
organisations participated to the discussion.
Two further roundtable discussions were held with representatives of the audiovisual sector:
one in February 2016 in the context of the Berlinale Film Festival, covering different aspects
of cross-border access to audiovisual works as well as ways to tackle copyright infringements;
and another one in May 2016, during the Cannes Film Festival, concerning online
transmissions and retransmissions of TV/radio programmes as well as access to and
availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms.
The Commission also attended a meeting of the ad hoc "IPR and copyright reform" Working
Group of the European Parliament (EP)23 which discussed ways to improve cross-border
accessibility and availability of audiovisual works in the EU, with representatives of
producers, distributors, broadcasters, and film archives on 17 September 2015.
Issues related to online transmissions and retransmissions of TV and radio programmes
were further discussed during bilateral meetings held with associations of public and
commercial televisions and radios, CMOs and a number of individual stakeholders, including
public and commercial broadcasters, telecommunications operators and right holders.
With regard to the availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms, various
meetings and discussions were organised in the first half of 2016 with relevant stakeholders,
including VoD platforms, distributors, film producers, aggregators and/or organisations
representing audiovisual authors. The reasons of the limited availability of European
audiovisual works on VoD platforms, as well as the solutions that could be envisaged, were
discussed.
Copyright aspects relevant for the digitisation and dissemination of out-of-commerce (OOC)
works in the collections of Cultural Heritage Institutions (CHIs) were discussed on various
22
A short summary of stakeholders' positions is presented in the Impact Assessment under each option.
23
The agenda and minutes of the meetings of the working group are available under:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/juri/subject-files.html?id=20150128CDT00182
13
occasions with representatives of CHIs and practitioners, including during recent meetings of
the Member States Expert Group (MSEG) on digitisation and digital preservation (June and
October 2015), at a meeting of the Film Heritage Expert Group in March 2016, at two
Licensing workshops organised by Europeana in November 2014 and November 2015, and
with National Archives at meetings of the European Archives Group (EAG) in June and
October 2015, in addition to meetings with practitioners on the field. Several meetings to
discuss these issues were also held with representatives of authors, publishers and producers,
and collecting management organisations between 2014 and 2016. This matter was also part
of the agenda at the roundtable with Commissioner Oettinger on access to knowledge and
heritage held on 19 February (see below).
Exceptions
A roundtable discussion between stakeholders and Commissioner Oettinger took place on 19
February 2015 on access to knowledge and heritage through libraries, education and
cultural heritage institutions. The roundtable gathered representatives of universities,
libraries, cultural heritage institutions, consumers as well as representatives of authors,
scientific and educational publishers, film producers, and CMOs. The need to adapt the
exceptions for preservation and illustration for teaching to digital and cross-border uses was
discussed in this context.
Discussions on existing licensing mechanisms and exceptions, in particular in relation to the
print sector, were also discussed at a meeting of the "IPR and copyright reform" Working
Group of the EP on 12 February 2015. The Commission attended this meeting, together with
representatives of public libraries, publishers, authors, journalists and distributors.
Copyright issues related to uses of protected content in the context of teaching were
discussed with representatives of universities and, more largely, educational users at various
occasions (for example, 2014 Media and Learning conference in November 201424 and a
policy debate organised in the European Parliament in November 2015). In addition, the
interviews and surveys of educators and learners carried out in the context of the study
"Assessment of the impact of the European copyright framework on digitally supported
education and training practices"25 allowed to gather more detailed feedback from this group
of stakeholders. Several meetings took place with representatives of publishers (in particular
educational and academic publishers and sheet music publishers), reproduction rights
organisation and collecting societies between 2014 and 2016.
Given the relevance of the subject for the same categories of user stakeholders, copyright
issues and the practicalities of the preservation, notably digital, of works in cultural heritage
collections was discussed with institutional users and practitioners broadly on the same
occasions and the same modalities as described above for out-of-commerce works. These
issues were also covered on several occasions in meetings and telephone contacts with
publishers, and other right holder organisations, and with third-party organisations engaged in
preservation of scientific literature between 2014 and 2016.
Views of a wide range of stakeholders have been gathered on TDM which informed the
analysis carried out in this IA. TDM was the subject of one dedicated working group in the
stakeholder dialogue "Licences for Europe" carried out throughout much of 201326. The
24
http://www.media-and-learning.eu/files/pdf/Media-and-Learning-2014_public_report.pdf
25
Over 60 interviews of learners, educators and librarians were carried out in the context of this study to
establish illustrative case studies. In addition, an online survey was conducted in 2015 among more than
2000 respondents from 9 Member States.
26
Representatives from researchers, academics, technology companies, publishers and other right holders
attended the discussions in all or some of the meetings.
14
mandate of the Licences for Europe group was to "explore solutions such as standard
licensing models as well as technology platforms to facilitate TDM access"27. A continues
constant dialogue with all relevant stakeholders was carried out after Licences for Europe and
in the context of the preparation of the IA. Several meetings and a constant exchange took
place with representatives from researchers and universities, from scientific publishers,
including open access publishers, news and books publishers, technology and life science
companies, consumer representatives. The Commission attended a meeting of the ad hoc "IPR
and copyright reform" working group of the European Parliament which discussed TDM, in
the presence of representatives of publishers and researchers, on 26 March 2015. The
Commission also attended a number of public events which focussed specifically on TDM in
the context of the copyright modernisation (e.g. Digital Agenda Intergroup and LERU hosted
breakfast on research related reform on EU Copyright28 in October 2015, EP event
"Demystifying TDM in copyright context" in April 2016, etc). TDM was discussed in a
specific roundtable stakeholder meeting called by Commissioner Oettinger which took place
on 3 February 2015.
Well-functioning marketplace for copyright
On the sharing of value in the online environment, a variety of stakeholders, representing
right holders from different sectors, consumers, online platforms, online service providers,
etc. expressed their positions through the public consultation on online platforms carried out
between September 2015 and January 2016. Views of the various stakeholders were also
sought through a number of meetings to discuss the role of online intermediaries which took
place (on a bilateral basis or through their associations) between May 2015 and in the course
of 2016. The role of online intermediaries was also discussed in the EP Working group on
"IPR and copyright reform", notably at the meeting held on 16 March 2016, in which the
Commission participated.
The role of publishers in the copyright value chain and the rights in publications were
discussed in a number of stakeholder meetings before and during the public consultation
which took place between March and June 2016. The Commission discussed these issues with
representatives of journalists, consumers, publishers, media monitoring services, digital media
associations, as well as the main online service providers providing access to news and other
publications.
On the issues related to the remuneration of authors and performers, apart from the 2013-
2014 public consultation, stakeholders were regularly invited, both directly and through their
organisations, to provide information and evidence. On top of numerous bilateral meetings
with relevant organisations and stakeholders, dedicated meetings were organised to discuss
the issue with representatives of authors, performers and their contractual counterparties (i.e.
producers, publishers, broadcasters, record labels) during spring 2016. Some of these
dedicated discussions were sector specific (e.g. for the audiovisual sector), while others were
horizontal (e.g. discussion with contractual counterparties). The issue of remuneration of
authors and performers was also discussed in the EP Working group on "IPR and copyright
reform", notably at the meetings held on 12 February 2015 and 23 June 2015, in which the
Commission participated.
27
See the Commission's services document summarising the results of the Licences for Europe
discussions, including on TDM "Ten pledges to bring more content online".
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/licences-for-europe/131113_ten-pledges_en.pdf
28
http://www.leru.org/index.php/public/news/the-right-to-read-is-the-right-to-mine/
15
ANNEX 2B – EXTRACT OF THE REPORT ON THE RESPONSES TO THE PUBLIC CONSULTATION
ON THE REVIEW OF EU COPYRIGHT RULES
The summary of the replies to the public consultation concerning the areas covered by this IA,
i.e. out-of-commerce works, exceptions (preservation, teaching, research and TDM) and
remuneration of authors and performers are presented below.
1. Out-of-commerce works (Questions 40 and 41)
40. [In particular if you are an institutional user, engaging or wanting to engage in mass digitisation projects, a
right holder, a collective management organisation:] Would it be necessary in your country to enact legislation to
ensure that the results of the 2011 MoU (i.e. the agreements concluded between libraries and collecting societies)
have a cross-border effect so that out of commerce works can be accessed across the EU?
41. Would it be necessary to develop mechanisms, beyond those already agreed for other types of content (e.g.
for audio- or audio-visual collections, broadcasters’ archives)?
The first question on mass digitisation concerned the possible need to enact legislation to give cross-border
effect to the 2011 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on out-of-commerce works29. The second question
was more general and related to the possible need to develop new mechanisms to ensure the digitisation and
making available of other types of content.
End users/consumers
Only few individual end users replied to the questions related to mass digitisation. End users/consumers and
their organisations refer to two main reasons when acknowledging the importance of mass digitisation: firstly,
the need to ensure the preservation of works for future generations, in particular for educational and cultural
resources; secondly, the legitimate interest of the public in having online access to the collections of cultural
heritage institutions across Europe.
Users consider than an exception is necessary to allow cultural heritage institutions to make their collections
available online. Some respondents suggest extending the scope of the existing exception for the consultation of
works for the purpose of research and private study. Others consider that the mass digitisation could be
facilitated by reducing the terms of copyright protection. Another possible solution mentioned in the replies (but
not as the favoured solution) is the use of compulsory licences.
End users generally consider that mechanisms facilitating mass digitisation should be adopted for all type of
works beyond the print sector, including audio and audio-visual works. Several replies point to the need to make
available broadcasters' archives, especially material produced with the contribution of public funds.
Institutional users
Most institutional users consider that the MoU on out-of-commerce works and the Orphan Works Directive30 are
insufficient to address the copyright issues arising from mass digitisation projects. In particular, they consider
that the requirement of diligence searches makes the Orphan Works Directive unsuitable for mass digitisation
projects. Some academic libraries express concerns about the possibility of finding a balance, without arbitration
by public authorities, between licensing conditions imposed by rightholders for digitising collections and the
limited financial resources available for mass digitisation.
Many cultural heritage institutions report a large demand from citizens, teachers, students and researchers for the
digitisation of 20th century works. Some university libraries also explain that students and researchers
increasingly make use of audio and audio-visual materials.
Institutional users generally consider that legislation allowing cross-border use of the digitised works is
necessary, but many of them indicate that this objective would be better achieved by an exception allowing for
mass digitisation of out-of-commerce works (for example, by the introduction of a new exception or an
29
The Memorandum of Understanding on key principles on the digitisation and making available of out-of-
commerce works aims to facilitate mass digitisation efforts for books and learned journals on the basis of
licence agreements between libraries and similar cultural institutions on the one hand and the collecting
societies representing authors and publishers on the other. See:
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/out-of-commerce/index_en.htm
30
Directive 2012/28/EU on certain permitted uses of orphan works.
16
expanded version of the existing preservation and consultation exceptions in the InfoSoc Directive to cover the
reproduction and making available of out-of-commerce works). They suggest that such an exception should
cover all types of works. Alternatively, they suggest considering solutions based on the collective management
of rights, such as extended collective licensing, which are in place in some Member States. Museums explain
that without a mass digitisation exception they are prevented from presenting their digital collections to the
public and also from sharing them with other museums for research purposes.
Institutional users generally consider that mechanisms facilitating mass digitisation and online access to
collections should not be limited to certain types of content. Certain respondents suggest to set up further
Memoranda of Understanding for sound recordings and audio-visual works. Languages research centres indicate
that EU-wide access to broadcasters' archives would be very helpful to enhance contemporary language research.
Authors/performers
Quite a large number of authors and their organisations consider that the mechanisms in place at national level
are sufficient and that no legislative intervention is needed. A few respondents argue that it would be unrealistic
to carry out mass digitisation for cross-border uses considering the marginal demand for access to works
available only in national languages.
On the other hand, other authors and authors' organisations suggest that a mutual recognition system would be
necessary to give a cross-border effect to the licences issued at national level under collective rights management
systems. Several respondents highlight in their replies that the signatories of the MoU called on the Commission
to consider legislation to ensure legal certainty in the cross-border context. Others argue that legislation enabling
mass digitisation applicable throughout the EU would be preferable, with an unwaivable remuneration for right
holders.
Certain authors express a clear opposition to solutions based on mandatory collective management with opt-out
mechanisms. They consider that the consent of each author needs to be obtained for mass digitisation projects
and that the remuneration has to be individually negotiated.
Several organisations representing visual artists, particularly photographers raise the question of the use of
images embedded within other works, which in their view, is not considered properly in the 2011 MoU.
Different views are put forward on the development of further mechanisms for other types of works. Audio-
visual authors in particular support further discussions on the digitisation of works in the archives of public
broadcasters. A few respondents consider that the mechanisms in place in their countries (e.g. extended
collective licensing) already provide a satisfactory solution for broadcasters' archives. Film directors indicate that
they are committed to the statement agreed for mass digitisation of cinematographic works in the context of
Licences for Europe. Performing arts organisations favour an MoU for the digitisation and making available of
out-of-commerce works in the performing arts sector (e.g. sound or video recordings of theatre productions and
concerts). They indicate that a stakeholder dialogue including organisations, collecting societies and publishers
could be helpful to prepare such an MoU. Other authors insist on the need to foresee an unwaivable
remuneration for rightholders, whatever solution is chosen.
Collective management organisations (CMOs)
CMOs put forward mixed views on the need to enact legislation to give a cross-border effect to the MoU on out-
of-commerce works. Several CMOs refer to the national frameworks in place, in particular the extending
collective licensing system in Denmark, the law on out-of-commerce books in France establishing a system of
collective management and the recent law based on legal presumption of representation of rights in Germany.
While certain CMOs indicate clearly that they would welcome solutions for the recognition of national laws and
licensing mechanisms across borders, others simply highlight that the MoU calls on the Commission to propose
solutions for cross-border availability.
Concerning the possibility of extending this type of solution to other sectors, the views of CMOs are also quite
heterogeneous. Certain CMOs in the audio-visual sector express their willingness to implement the principles
agreed in the context of Licences for Europe and to continue the dialogue on broadcasters' archives. CMOs
representing visual artists express a preference for legislative solutions allowing mass digitisation with a fair
remuneration. Other CMOs prefer to deal with digitisation questions through voluntary agreements between the
interested parties.
Several CMOs underline that the main obstacle to mass digitisation projects is the lack of public funding, in
particular in the audio-visual sector where digitisation costs are very high.
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Publishers/producers/broadcasters
Many publishers in the print sector consider that there is no need for further legislation at EU level if the MoU
on out-of-commerce works is effectively implemented in all Member States. Instead, voluntary agreements
should be promoted to ensure access to digitised works (e.g. bilateral agreements between collective
management organisations). Publishers explain that the main obstacle to large scale digitisation projects is very
often the lack of public funding. In general, this category of respondents does consider there is an urgent need to
develop mechanisms similar to the MoU in sectors other than the print sector
Representatives of the newspaper publishers consider that providing mechanisms to facilitate the mass
digitisation of newspaper content would threaten publishers' business models and their ability to respond to
digital challenges. They note that the solutions set out in the 2011 MoU were specific to the book sectors and
cannot be automatically extended to publishing of newspapers.
Public service broadcasters explain that rights clearance on an individual basis for making available the content
of their archives is practically impossible. The main difficulties are related to the large amount of audio and
audio-visual material and the large number of contracts and rightholders. Therefore they favour the introduction
of an EU framework which would encourage the adoption of legislative solutions based on collective licensing
(for example on the extended collective licences model) in Member States to facilitate the digitisation of their
archives. Commercial broadcasters express a different view and do not report any problems with the clearing of
archives for new uses. They consider that there is no need for collective management to ensure the digitisation of
audio-visual collections or broadcasters' archives. Certain broadcasters mention that the decision of whether or
not to exploit archives is based on consumer demand rather than on rights clearance challenges. The exploitation
of archives has been facilitated by the multiplication of TV channels and online platforms and constitutes an
asset for broadcasters.
A large number of film producers consider that the approach used for the print sector (i.e. voluntary collective
management backed by extended collective management or presumptions of representation) is not appropriate
for audio-visual works, where individual rights licensing should be preferred. They are however in favour of a
stakeholder dialogue to facilitate licensing solutions for the digitisation and making available of public
broadcasters' archives. The use of extended collective licensing or presumption of representation in this context
should be consistent with the three-step test and offer sufficient guarantees to rightholders. Music publishers
explain that mass digitisation is not an issue for music and that rightholders can licence their work directly. They
say that digitisation is common in the music industry and the chances of music being both in analogue form and
out-of-commerce are remote.
Intermediaries/distributors/other service providers
This category of respondents did not express specific opinions on the questions related to mass digitisation.
Member States
Only a few Member States replied to the questions related to mass digitisation, explaining the systems in place at
national level to allow mass digitisation of protected content (for example, extended collective management). In
general, Member States favour contractual mechanisms and discussions between CMOs and cultural heritage
institutions to address the challenges of mass digitisation. One Member State suggests establishing a provision at
EU level to facilitate the digitisation of audio-visual works for archiving purposes, with the exploitation of the
digitised works remaining subject to an agreement with rightholders.
Other
Certain academics suggest that mass digitisation should be allowed under the preservation exception, which
should include digitisation and format shifting but not acts of making available (which would remain covered by
Orphan Works Directive and the MoU on out-of-commerce works). Other respondents support the introduction
of a specific exception to enable libraries and archives to undertake mass digitisation of their collections.
2. Exceptions
Preservation and archiving (Questions 28 to 31)
28. (a) [In particular if you are an institutional user:] Have you experienced specific problems when trying to use
an exception to preserve and archive specific works or other subject matter in your collection?
(b) [In particular if you are a right holder:] Have you experienced problems with the use by libraries, educational
establishments, museum or archives of the preservation exception?
29. If there are problems, how would they best be solved?
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30. If your view is that a legislative solution is needed, what would be its main elements? Which activities of the
beneficiary institutions should be covered and under which conditions?
31. If your view is that a different solution is needed, what would it be?
These questions concern the exception allowing publicly accessible libraries, educational establishments,
museums and archives to undertake specific acts of reproduction which are not for direct or indirect economic
advantage (the preservation exception – Article 5(2)(c) of the InfoSoc Directive). Respondents were asked to
give feed-back on their experiences with preservation activities carried out by these institutions and to provide
their views on how problems, if identified, should be solved.
End users/consumers
A relatively small number of respondents in this category responded to the questions on the preservation
exception. In some cases, end users/consumers are concerned about the divergent implementation of the
preservation exceptions across the EU and consider that more harmonisation of the preservation exception is
needed in view of technological developments. Some end users/consumers also suggest broadening the scope of
this exception, notably to allow public libraries and other beneficiaries to make the works in their collections
available online.
Institutional users
The vast majority of institutional users report that they have experienced problems when trying to use an
exception to preserve and archive specific works in their collections. Respondents consider that both the scope of
this exception and the way Member States have implemented it cause problems. Member States'
implementations are excessively divergent and in many cases this exception has been implemented in a too
narrow or unclear way. Examples given include Member States’ laws that limit the number of copies that can be
made or that reduce the range of beneficiary institutions and prohibit or limit format shifting (the conversion of
the copy of a work into a new format, something that is considered to be particularly important when a certain
format – and devices used to read it - become obsolete or unavailable).
Institutional users stress that the limited level of harmonisation of the current exception and the fact that it does
not have cross-border effect have a negative impact on collaborative digitisation projects across countries.
They generally believe that the preservation exception is too narrow. Some point out that the mere preservation
of works in their collection is not the sole reason why libraries and other institutions wish to reproduce them.
Other objectives include making these works more easily searchable or available across digital networks,
including across research platforms and infrastructures. Some respondents highlight problems in relation to
recital 40 of the InfoSoc Directive, according to which this exception should not cover uses made in the context
of online delivery of content It is also stressed by some respondents that the exception should allow beneficiaries
to go beyond the specific acts of reproduction which are currently allowed and that it should allow mass
digitisation.
Institutional users also raise issues with ‘born-digital’ content and highlight that the preservation exception does
not allow them to produce back-up copies of content (for examples articles) that they subscribe to.
More broadly, institutional users consider that licences are not a sustainable solution for the digital preservation
of content in the long run. Licensors, for example publishers, may cease to exist and subscriptions may be
stopped and, as a consequence, libraries and other institutions may lose access to content, which would prevent
them from fulfilling their role as custodians of cultural heritage. Some institutional users also point to problems
related to technological protection measures and their protection under the InfoSoc Directive, which they
consider unbalanced and having negative effects on preservation activities. They also mention some difficulties
with the fact that this exception only covers acts carried out without direct or indirect commercial advantage:
they consider this requirement too broad and potentially problematic, for example when institutional users
cooperate with commercial entities for preservation or other purposes. Other areas where difficulties are reported
include, for example, website harvesting projects, the creation of open access directories and the provision of
copies for evaluation purposes in academic settings.
Proposed solutions include the harmonisation and broadening of the existing exception so that it would allow,
for example, institutions to make multiple or unlimited reproductions of all types of works in their collection (i.e.
mass digitisation), including born-digital content acquired through subscriptions and specific categories of works
like old computer software. It is also proposed that the exception’s scope should clearly include format shifting.
Some respondents in this category also call for the current exception to be made mandatory and for a
clarification that contracts cannot override exceptions. They also call for a revision of provisions related to
19
technological protection measures. Finally, some respondents suggest that the introduction of a ‘fair use’
approach in EU copyright law would help libraries and cultural institutions to fulfil their role.
Authors/performers
Most authors and performers report having not experienced major problems with the existing preservation
exception. They believe this exception allows institutions to fulfil their public interest missions, and that uses
beyond the scope of this exception should rely on licensing solutions. Some of these respondents acknowledge
that digitisation for preservation is an important public policy objective but consider that this objective is often
hindered by budgetary, rather than copyright, restrictions. They consider that a lack of funding for public
libraries should not be to the detriment of the remuneration of rightholders in the content held by these
institutions. Licensing, both individual and collective, is generally considered to be the solution, if and when
problems arise.
Collective management organisations (CMOs)
CMOs’ views on this subject are generally close to those of publishers, producers and broadcasters, with a
general preference for market-based solutions - particularly collective management - where problems are
present. Some CMOs report that cultural heritage institutions in certain Member States digitise not only for
preservation purposes but also to make digitised content easily accessible (online) to a wider public. Some
respondents point out that licences are available to cover both activities (at least in a number of Member States)
but report that, in their view, cultural institutions are not always willing to use them and remunerate rightholders
for their use of copyright protected content.
Publishers/producers/broadcasters
Publishers, producers and broadcasters mostly argue that they have not experienced major problems, if at any,
with the preservation exception. They emphasise the importance of licensing solutions and voluntary cooperation
to solve possible issues in this area, instead of legislative changes. They consider in particular that the
preservation exception should not be broadened nor made mandatory. Generally speaking, for respondents in this
category, legislative changes should only be considered in the presence of a market failure. They consider that
stakeholder cooperation and agreements should be pursued in this area. Audio-visual producers refer to the
principles and procedures for the digitisation of film heritage agreed upon in the context of Licences for Europe.
Other concrete examples of market-based solutions are mentioned, for example STM (Scientifical Technical and
Medical) publishers mention the PORTICO and CLOCKSS projects.
Some respondents point to the fact that some public libraries request to be able to engage in certain preservation
activities despite the fact that they do not qualify in their opinion as heritage libraries. In order to prevent
unnecessary harm to commercial markets, a distinction should be made between heritage/deposit libraries, which
have a clear preservation mission, and other libraries when defining the beneficiaries of libraries exceptions and
the conditions attached to them.
Intermediaries/distributors/other service providers
Only a small portion of respondents in this category provided feedback on this matter, and their answers vary, in
particular on whether problems with this exception exist. In some cases, service providers highlight the need for
more legal certainty for libraries. Other respondents express a preference for cooperation and agreements among
interested parties over legislative intervention. Some distributors in the audio-visual sector consider that there are
no problems in this area and report examples where they themselves have a role in the preservation of cultural
heritage (for example in Austria, in relation to public funding of audio-visual production).
Member States
Some Member States believe that there is no need to expand the scope of the current preservation exception.
Others, while not necessarily against legislative changes, highlight the importance of formulating exceptions in
this area in a technologically neutral way, or consider that this exception should cover all types of media. Other
Member States suggest the possible extension of this exception to other essential uses not yet contemplated,
taking into account that, currently, copies made under the existing exception cannot subsequently be made
available to the public.
Other respondents
A number of academics consider that the current preservation exception should be revised, since the focus on
specific acts of reproduction is too narrow. Feedback from respondents such as experts, non-governmental
organisations and chambers of commerce range from very detailed comments on issues such as format shifting,
web harvesting and the archiving of born-digital content to more general considerations on the importance of
finding a balance between rightholders’ remuneration and opportunities offered by digital networks. A group of
20
respondents from the performing arts industry (e.g. theatre, opera houses, performing arts companies) present
views similar to those of institutional users and advocate the broadening of the beneficiaries of the current
exception.
Teaching (Questions 42 to 46)
42. (a) [In particular if you are an end user/consumer or an institutional user:] Have you experienced specific
problems when trying to use works or other subject-matter for illustration for teaching, including across borders?
(b) [In particular if you are a right holder:] Have you experienced specific problems resulting from the way in
which works or other subject-matter are used for illustration for teaching, including across borders?
43. If there are problems, how would they best be solved?
44. What mechanisms exist in the market place to facilitate the use of content for illustration for teaching
purposes? How successful are they?
45. If your view is that a legislative solution is needed, what would be its main elements? Which activities of the
beneficiary institutions should be covered and under what conditions?
46. If your view is that a different solution is needed, what would it be?
These questions related to the teaching exception (Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive). Respondents were
asked to share their experiences with the use of protected works for teaching purposes, including under existing
market mechanisms, and to provide their views on how problems, if identified, should be solved.
End users/consumers
Organisations representing end users underline the restrictive implementation of the exception in Member States
and the resulting legal uncertainty for teachers and students. In particular, some users report problems faced by
teachers/trainers involved in the development of open educational resources (OERs), notably content such as
images or parts of textbooks being removed from educational platforms at the publishers’ request. Other users
consider that copyright rules are too complex and negotiations with rightholders too costly, making innovative
learning methods impossible to use.
As to the possible solutions, users call for a broad exception for non-commercial use of protected works in
educational contexts: they believe that the exception should not be limited to educational establishments,
teachers and students but should cover all educational activities (including non-formal education) and should not
give rise to compensation. According to respondents, the exception should be technologically neutral, to cover
face-to-face teaching and online education. They also point out that works produced by students should benefit
from the same protection as other authors. Several civil society organisations support a broad educational
exception that is mandatory for all Member States while others suggest a fair use mechanism, allowing teachers
to use illustrative resources and to share their works. In addition, certain respondents propose an exception for
non-commercial sharing and consider that educational resources funded by public money should be disseminated
under free licences.
Institutional users
A large number of institutional users highlight the restrictive implementation of the teaching exception in the
Member States and report practical problems in particular for distance learning and cross-border uses. Several
respondents illustrate the difficulties faced by universities having campuses abroad and virtual learning
environments. They consider that the current situation creates difficulties for the development of online
educational resources involving a cross-border audience. Film heritage institutions explain that the possibilities
to use audio-visual material for teaching purposes are very limited.
Several respondents in this category mention the existence of licensing schemes in place at national level and the
possibility to conclude licensing agreements with publishers. However a large number of institutional users
consider that licensing solutions are expensive and create an administrative burden for schools and universities.
Some libraries consider that licences are costly and conditions imposed by collecting societies do not guarantee
the use of all works for educational purposes. Various respondents argue that licences should not be introduced
to cover uses allowed under the exception. A certain number of respondents also mention open licences and
massive online open courses (MOOCs) which provide valuable resources for teaching purposes.
Concerning the possible solutions, institutional users nearly unanimously call for a broad mandatory teaching
exception. They consider that the exception should cover all types of works (such as text, film, multimedia and
born-digital resources) and should not include any limits on the amount of the work that can be used. It should
cover uses in the classroom and in virtual teaching environments, as long as it is not for commercial purposes. It
21
should not be limited to any type of institution but rather defined by the teaching purpose. Less frequently
mentioned conditions include the use of content for teaching compilations and the right of transformation.
A number of institutional users are of the view that the exception should not be overridden by contracts. Certain
respondents consider that the exception should not give rise to compensation, while others believe that a
reasonable compensation could be considered to satisfy the three-step test.
In the short term, certain institutional users consider that the Commission should clarify the scope of the teaching
exception to encourage Member States to use the flexibility offered by the InfoSoc Directive. A small number of
replies also insist on the need to increase awareness among teachers and students on the scope of their rights,
through information campaigns or workshops.
Authors/performers
For a large number of authors' representatives, the use of works for illustration for teaching does not raise
specific problems. However, certain authors point to the lack of compensation (in particular in Belgium, where
compensation is foreseen for the uses under the exception but no agreement has been reached on the amount to
be received by rightholders) or to extensive uses of their works by educational establishments. Journalists refer
to possible problems when their rights are assigned to their employers (in this case they do not receive any
remuneration for the use of their works under the teaching exception).
Several authors' organisations explain in their replies the system in place in their respective Member State: in
particular the licensing system existing in the UK, the national agreements between the Ministry of Education
and collective management organisations in France and the extended collective licensing system in Denmark.
The majority of organisations representing authors, performers and film directors express a strong preference for
licensing mechanisms and agreements between collective management organisations and educational
establishments. Some respondents favour a compulsory collective management system while others highlight the
benefits of the extended collective licensing model. Representatives of journalists suggest raising awareness in
schools of what is allowed under the exception.
Collective management organisations (CMOs)
Several collective management organisations in the category of reproduction rights organisations (RROs)
underline that the notion of illustration for teaching in the teaching exception generates uncertainties which have
resulted in litigation in some cases, with certain educational establishments refusing to take up a licence on the
basis of the exception. Certain respondents in this category refer to the negative effects of the recent reform in
Canada, where a new fair dealing provision covering education has been introduced, leading to extensive
interpretations of the authorised uses by educational establishments and to legal proceedings. Other collecting
societies consider that the existing framework for exceptions is appropriate and that cross-border access is not a
pressing issue for schools.
RROs refer to the individual licensing solutions offered by publishers which are frequently combined with
collective schemes. A number of respondents explain the functioning of the collective agreements set out at a
national level. For example, certain RROs indicate that the system of sector-specific agreements developed in
France is appropriate but some stress the lack of budget to ensure a sufficient remuneration of right holders. The
extended collective licences used in the large majority of schools in Denmark, Sweden and Finland were
mentioned in several replies. Another RRO illustrates the functioning of the platform ‘Conlicencia’, in Spain,
allows the use of works in the digital environment. Other respondents explain that the UK law foresees an
educational exception which is subject to a licence.
RROs ask for a clarification of the exception at EU and national level. They defend a narrow understanding of
the notion of illustration for teaching which should not comprise the reproduction, making available and
distribution of educational resources (for compilations, course packs, textbooks, e-reserves, etc.). They state that
the exception should allow the use of small parts of works (or non-relevant excerpts), that copies should remain
in the hand of teachers and that rightholders should be named and receive remuneration. In addition, they
consider that the best solution would be to encourage licensing agreements which offer comprehensive, tailor-
made solutions.
Collecting societies representing authors consider that there is no need to make the exception mandatory, to
extend it or to introduce new exceptions. They are of the view that it would be impossible to define the exception
more precisely, given the difference in national education systems.
Visual artists' collecting societies consider that a legislative solution can be envisaged if the scope of uses is not
too wide and if authors receive a fair remuneration. In addition, moral rights of the authors should be preserved
and opt-out solutions need to be foreseen.
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Publishers/producers/broadcasters
The majority of publishers and producers do not mention particular problems with the use of works for
illustration in the context of teaching activities. They consider that the wording of the exception in the InfoSoc
Directive is sufficiently broad to cover different types of uses, including in the digital environment. In addition,
licensing solutions are in place to complement the exception where necessary. Several publishers' associations
indicate that, so far, cross-border needs have not been reported in primary and secondary education, mainly
because of the national nature of curricula.
However, certain book publishers point to problems in the interpretation of the current exception, notably its
application in the digital environment. They consider that schools and universities make extensive use of the
exception, going beyond what is allowed by national laws. Problems are reported in particular in Germany and
Spain. Several German publishers explain that large parts of books were made available on the intranet of certain
universities, creating direct competition with the primary market. Surveys by the German collecting society VG
Wort have shown that over 400 million copies of textbooks fragments are made each year in schools in
Germany. Spanish publishers refer to legal disputes with universities on the scope of the activities allowed under
the exception. Certain publishers express concerns on the fact that, in several Member States, national laws do
not exclude from the scope of the exception works whose primary market is teaching.
Many publishers refer to the innovative solutions proposed to respond to the needs of educational establishments
in the digital environment (e.g. digital formats of works, use of interactive white boards, distance learning).
Initiatives mentioned include the ‘Wizwiz’ in France, ‘Knooppunt’ and ‘Digiportail’ in Belgium; 'Digitale
Schulbücher' in Germany; ‘Scuolabook’ in Italy. Several digital platforms or portals are available in Member
States where teachers can find resources to be used in the classroom or in a digital learning environment.
Publishers also propose providing customised eBooks to universities. Respondents from the software industry
explain that the new digital textbook licensing model provides numerous benefits to students and teachers,
including in terms of costs (digital textbooks are generally cheaper than print textbooks and are available for
rental by students). The toolkit developed in the context of Licences for Europe for micro-licences (allowing the
legal use of protected texts or images, including for education) is also mentioned. A few respondents in this
category refer to open sources licensing models, indicating that they may offer flexible solutions in this area.
Several publishers highlight in their replies the initiatives developed at national level to increase information and
transparency on licensing schemes for educational establishments (e.g. the ‘onderwijsenauteursrecht.nl’ website
in the Netherlands; including a practical ‘guide’ that answers questions from users; and the ‘schools’ website of
the UK Copyright Licensing Agency in the UK.
A large number of publishers consider that there is no need to modify the teaching exception in the EU legal
framework. In their view, the absence of specific problems and the fact that they do not perceive there to be any
market failure means that a legislative solution is not justified, and that if one is introduced it could limit new
business models and consumer choice. Instead, they consider that individual and collective licensing solutions
should be encouraged. They believe that licences offer more flexibility than a legislative solution and reduce
possible uncertainties around the scope of the activities allowed under the exception. Moreover, licensing
agreements can be easily adapted to rapidly-changing technologies.
Some publishers suggest maintaining a limited teaching exception (covering only small parts of works, for the
benefits of teachers and students only, with the indication of the author's name, a fair remuneration for right
holders and the exclusion of textbooks and resources produced specifically for the education market). A further
suggestion is to confer a supervisory role to CMOs in order for them to check whether educational
establishments respect the terms of licences.
Educational publishers and representatives of the software industry warn that a further harmonisation of the
teaching exception could undermine the role of licences and the investment in the production of quality
educational material, including educational software. (The educational publishing market represents about 20%
of the publishing industry at EU level).
Intermediaries/distributors/other service providers
Only a few distributors and service providers expressed their views on the questions related to the teaching
exception. They generally consider that there is no need for new legislation, given the recent developments in the
market offering sufficient flexibility (for example, innovative tools developed by publishers, pay-per-use
licences, open educational resources and open licensing models). Their main concern is that legislative solutions
risk hampering the development of market-based solutions. One respondent notes that the market of open
educational resources is still very young and believes that it would be premature for the Commission to regulate
it.
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Film distributors agree that educational establishments can use clips of works for the purposes of illustration but
are of the view that schools should pay a licence when they use an entire film (in the classroom or in distance
learning). They consider that an extension of the exception would not be compliant with the three-step test
(remote access to a film by distance learners would conflict with the normal exploitation of a work).
Member States
Certain Member States underline in their replies the differences in the transposition of the teaching exception
and in particular the different interpretations given to the term illustration for teaching. Several Member States
acknowledge the cross-border relevance of the exception in the case of distance learning and argue that
copyright rules should not hinder cross-border provision of courses in the EU.
Clarifying the maximum scope of the teaching exception, in particular in relation to online uses, was suggested
by several Member States among those that replied to the consultation, with some stressing the importance of
ensuring a technology-neutral definition of the teaching exception. Several Member States favour a greater
harmonisation, which would require making the teaching exception mandatory across the EU. For other Member
States, there is no need to further harmonise or extend the scope of the existing exception.
Other
Groups of academics replying to these questions generally consider that there is a lack of harmonisation of the
uses allowed under the teaching exception and that voluntary licensing is not sufficient to achieve the right
balance between public and private interests.
They suggest further guidance on the implementation of Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive as well as the
introduction of a mandatory and uniform exception. According to other academics, the current system works
quite well even if some modifications could be considered (for example, allowing the use of entire works rather
than fragments).
Research (Questions 47 to 49)
47. (a) [In particular if you are an end user/consumer or an institutional user:] Have you experienced specific
problems when trying to use works or other subject matter in the context of research projects/activities, including
across borders?
(b) [In particular if you are a right holder:] Have you experienced specific problems resulting from the way in
which works or other subject-matter are used in the context of research projects/activities, including across
borders?
48. If there are problems, how would they best be solved?
49. What mechanisms exist in the Member States to facilitate the use of content for research purposes? How
successful are they?
These questions concerned the research exception set out in Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive and were
intended to gather respondents’ experiences of the use of copyright protected works in the context of research
projects/activities, including across borders, and their views on how problems, if identified, should be solved.
End users/consumers
End users/consumers, in particular researchers, are generally unsatisfied with the current situation. Even though
a research exception exists in some Member States, respondents still report problems in accessing scientific
publications or scholarly articles. Students and researchers highlight that access to the greatest possible range of
academic publications is key for the completeness and accuracy of their research. They indicate not being able to
access online certain material they would need for their academic work. Some respondents consider that the
more reputable and high-quality scientific journals are usually those making access to their content more
difficult, through 'paywall' restrictions. The cost of subscriptions is seen as disproportionate and excessive for
individual researchers.
Researchers consider that this situation is particularly difficult to accept in the case of publicly-funded research.
They believe that publications which present the results of publicly funded research should always be made
available without restriction.
Most respondents consider that open access publishing is a suitable solution to increase access to research
content. They mention in this context some examples of open access archives and networks. At the same time,
many respondents argue that there are barriers that prevent open access from working in an optimal way and
consider that open access should be better supported. It is also mentioned that open access journals are
sometimes considered to be not very prestigious or have low citation index scores, making it less attractive to
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publish in such a journal. A problem often raised by researchers is that scientific publishers often require that
they (as authors of scientific publications) agree upon unduly restrictive contract conditions, for example that
their work cannot be put in open access databases.
Institutional users
Many institutional users report problems in the practical implementation of the research exception at national
level. Many find that this exception has been implemented too narrowly by some Member States, which, they
argue, has resulted in a limited use of the exception by its intended beneficiaries. It is reported that only few
Member States (e.g. Estonia) have applied the exception in a technology-neutral manner.
More generally, some institutional users highlight that considerable online content that is relevant for scientific
research is only available for payment and is burdened with digital rights management tools. They stress that
remote access to university libraries collections should be further facilitated in the area of research as it is a much
more practical option than onsite consultation. Some respondents note that licences for scientific articles often
limit the amount of users that can access the material at the same time. This is problematic, they say, given that
research projects often involve several researchers, sometimes from different universities or institutes including
across borders which need to have access at the same time. A number of institutional users, in particular from
Northern Europe, report their experiences with extended collective licences. Some point out that such
mechanisms have not been very useful so far in the area of research as they are cumbersome to negotiate and
limited in scope.
As a solution, these respondents consider that a mandatory and technology-neutral research exception should be
adopted at EU level. More generally, they express strong support for open access publishing.
Authors/performers
The vast majority of authors - other than researchers as authors of scientific publications - consider that there are
generally no problems with access to content for research purposes and with current research exception. These
respondents argue that the combination of licences and exceptions offer users considerable flexibility to access
content for research purposes. Respondents argue that licences are a good addition to whatever use would not be
covered by a national exception. However, some note that it can be difficult for them to track uses and receive
adequate remuneration.
Collective management organisations (CMOs)
The majority of CMOs consider that the current research exception does not pose specific problems. They favour
licensing agreements and other market-based commercial solutions as the preferred way to distribute scientific
publications. However, one CMO in the visual arts sector considers that clarification of the term 'non-
commercial' - currently employed as a condition for the application of the research exception under the Infosoc
Directive– would be welcomed.
Publishers/producers/broadcasters
Respondents in this category consider that the current exception works well. Any possible shortcomings with
access to research publications can be easily dealt with through licensing agreements. They consider that
licences are the preferred option in the field of research as they ensure quality and security and protect against
possible abuses (i.e. uses for purposes other than research). Licences terms are broad enough to allow for the
exchange of information necessary to carry out research, including across borders.
Some respondents state that scientific publishers already offer 90% of their products through licensing to
educational institutions, which allows researchers, students and teachers to have access to that content.
Representative of STM publishers report alternative access models that are being developed, such as ‘pay-per-
view’ or rental for online viewing, which they consider particularly useful for researchers not affiliated to an
institution or requiring only occasional access. Specific market-led initiatives are also mentioned, such as one in
France where textbook publishers have been making works available in digital format via certain online portals
(for example ‘Canal Numérique des Savoirs’ and ‘WizWiz’). Other licensing projects mentioned include the
‘RightsLink’ platform and ‘Conlicencia’ in Spain.
Intermediaries/distributors/other service provider
This category of respondents did not express specific opinions beyond those put forward by other stakeholders
groups on the questions related to research. Some of them generally supported the views of users, while others
raised points similar to those of rightholders.
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Member States
Some Member States would welcome further harmonising the research exception at EU level, in particular to
take account of online uses (one of them emphasises that if there are changes the exception should keep only
covering non-commercial uses, as it is currently the case). One Member States considers that this exception
should be made mandatory. Other Member States would, on the contrary, prefer that the exception remains as it
is. They stress the importance to maintain flexibility for national implementation approaches and licensing
mechanisms as well as the need to comply with limits imposed by international law (in particular with the ‘three
step test’). One Member State refers to its national policy, which requires publicly funded research to be made
available through open access mechanisms.
Text and data mining (Questions 53 to 57)
53. (a) [In particular if you are an end user/consumer or an institutional user:] Have you experienced obstacles,
linked to copyright, when trying to use text or data mining methods, including across borders?
(b) [In particular if you are a service provider:] Have you experienced obstacles, linked to copyright, when
providing services based on text or data mining methods, including across borders?
(c) [In particular if you are a right holder:] Have you experienced specific problems resulting from the use of text
and data mining in relation to copyright protected content, including across borders?
54. If there are problems, how would they best be solved?
55. If your view is that a legislative solution is needed, what would be its main elements? Which activities
should be covered and under what conditions?
56. If your view is that a different solution is needed, what would it be?
57. Are there other issues, unrelated to copyright, that constitute barriers to the use of text or data mining
methods?
Respondents were invited to share their experiences of using or providing services based on text and data
mining. They were also asked to provide their views on how problems, if identified, should be solved.
End users, consumers and institutional users
Most respondents that provided views on this issue under the category of "end users" were individual
researchers. In most cases, these respondents had similar views as research institutions, universities and similar
undertakings which provided their views as part of the "institutional user" category. In addition some consumers
provided answers to this topic in the consultation.
Researchers and institutional users are generally dissatisfied with the current situation. They highlight that text
and data mining is a fundamental tool for research and consider that, at present, Europe is missing out on the
benefits that text and data mining can bring to competitiveness and innovation and to citizens. They put forward
two main categories of obstacles to text and data mining: legal uncertainty on whether and how copyright may
apply to text and data mining and problems with existing licensing mechanisms, which they generally consider
inadequate.
These respondents stress that it is not clear whether and to what extent text and data mining fall under current
EU legislation on copyright and the database right and, if so, whether any of the existing exceptions may apply.
They consider that mining should not be copyright relevant as it does not involve the expression of an idea that
copyright law intends to protect, but just analyses the underlying facts. Some point out that the reproduction of
copyright protected works for non-commercial research based on text and data mining could already be covered
by existing exceptions and limitations to copyright and the database right in the laws of the Member States.
However, they argue that in many Member States it is not clear whether the current exceptions, in particular the
research exception (when implemented), could apply to text and data mining.
According to these respondents, licences are not an appropriate solution to solve the uncertainty concerning text
and data mining and rather constitute a barrier and a source of transaction costs. They report that using the
breadth of works needed for successful mining require working through a wide variety of contractual
negotiations and agreements. This situation, these respondents say, often limits the data that can be used for
mining purposes to that available on the basis of licences that explicitly allow mining (such as some in the
Creative Commons family of licences).
Researchers and research institutions consider that licence terms currently proposed by scientific publishers are
unreasonable, particularly because they argue that they require researchers to disclose information about their
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projects, limit the number of articles that can be mined and – they say - unduly interfere with how researchers
can make available the output of mining.
Some of these respondents consider that text and data mining is easier in non-EU countries that have ‘fair use’
provisions in their legal systems. According to them, this gives North American universities a competitive
advantage over universities and companies based in the EU.
Several respondents also refer to issues related to technical access to content for mining purposes. They are
concerned about the use of technological protection measures that block access to content, thus preventing text
and data mining or rendering it more difficult. It is also suggested that the concerns of publishers on reduced
performance and security issues linked to their infrastructure when crawled by mining robots are not shared by
open access publishers.
Researchers and institutional users consider that text and data mining should not be subject to licences. They
believe that a legislative change is needed to introduce a specific mandatory exception for text and data mining
in EU copyright law. They consider that the exception should cover both commercial and non-commercial
scientific research, as confining it to non-commercial uses would create legal uncertainty and impede the full
development of the potential of text and data mining. According to them, technological protection measures and
contracts should not be permitted to override the exception. These respondents also consider that researchers
should be entitled to share the results of mining with fellow researchers as long as such results are not
substitutable for the original works which have been mined.
Finally, a number of consumers’ replies raise concerns in relation to privacy and data protection. They believe
that access and analysis of all data available on the Internet represents a tangible impediment to the constitutional
rights of European citizens.
Authors/performers and collective management organisations (CMOs)
Authors, such as journalists and writers (individual researchers expressed their views mainly under the category
of ‘end users’) and their representatives, as well as CMOs, generally consider that there is no major problem in
the field of text and data mining. They state that licensing solutions are being developed and are the preferred
way forward. They consider that more work could be done through dialogue between interested parties and
between rightholders and governments to improve licensing practices. They also point to the fact that text and
data mining is a new activity and that a lot of uncertainty still exists as to what exactly is meant by text and data
mining. In their view, it would, therefore, be premature to deal with text and data mining in legislation.
Authors and CMOs believe that if an exception is nevertheless considered (which they generally oppose) it
should be limited to non-commercial uses. They consider that a broad and general text and data mining
exception, covering both non-commercial and commercial uses, would be contrary to EU’s international
obligations. Respondents in this category are concerned that an exception could favour commercial operators, in
particular news aggregators or commercial news monitoring services. They highlight that it is essential that the
output of text and data mining does not become a substitutable product for the original works that are subject to
mining.
Some respondents also point to the role that collective management could play in this area and a few suggest that
if an exception is introduced, it should be linked to the payment of fair compensation to rightholders. The
introduction of a remuneration right is also suggested as an alternative by some.
Publishers/producers/broadcasters
Publishers, in particular Science, technology and medical (STM) publishers indicate that they already meet
requests and offer solutions allowing the possibility of mining texts and data. However, such requests are still
rather limited in number, even if this is expected to grow. Licences are often granted under standard terms and at
no cost to researchers who want to mine subscription-based content for the purposes of non-commercial
scientific research.
STM publishers, as well as book and newspaper publishers, report that practical and innovative solutions based
on licensing mechanisms are being developed to ensure the effective use of mining technologies in Europe.
Some of these solutions are already successfully implemented by publishers and researchers. Others are being
launched or soon will be. They refer to initiatives presented in the Licences for Europe dialogue, in particular a
sample licence clause and the mining hub ‘Prospect’, developed in the context of the ‘Cross-Ref’ initiative and
the ‘Text and data mining Declaration’ signed by a number of STM publishers. They report that these initiatives
make it possible to access cross-publisher content in one standardised format via a click-through licence for non-
commercial uses. Other initiatives such as the digital clearing house ‘PLS Clear’ in the UK and a pilot project
from the CCC (Copyright Clearance Centre) are mentioned. STM publishers also report that they have
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developed licences for commercial uses of text and data mining in the pharmaceutical sector in collaboration
with the ‘Pharma Documentation Ring’ (PDR).
With regards to the way forward, publishers generally oppose the introduction of a text and data mining
exception. They consider that there is no evidence of market failure for text and data mining that would justify
the introduction of an exception, and that text and data mining is best dealt with through market-based licensing.
They indicate that an exception would affect the licensing offers that publishers are currently developing.
Moreover, according to these respondents, an exception would not solve issues other than copyright which are
raised by text and data mining, such as the protection of data privacy, the risks of unfair competition and
technical aspects which require the intervention and investments by publishers (e.g. to set up a specific technical
environment, such as dedicated platforms from which researchers may download the content before mining it).
Publishers are also concerned that an exception would increase the risk of damage to databases and infrastructure
hosting their content when they are crawled by mining robots (as with an exception, they say, it will be more
difficult for them to control access to these databases, in particular through contractual terms). More generally,
some respondents also signal that an exception could give rise to abuses and facilitate piracy.
Intermediaries/distributors/other service provider
Many service providers - software companies in particular - refer to the dynamic market for text and data mining
services, and to the new innovative solutions that are being developed in this area. In particular, new
technologies for speech recognition, subtitling and software analytics, for example, rely on large amounts of data
as input, including but not limited to materials found on the Internet. These technologies underpin the
development of applications used in life sciences, humanities and health care and many other markets and
applications.
Software producers and telecom providers are, in general, concerned with the legal uncertainty that surrounds
text and data mining. Some consider that text and data mining does not, and should not, involve copyright or
database rights. Generally, these service providers consider that text and data mining should not be subject to
licensing (although some say they are already acquiring licences to engage in text and data mining).
Technological protection measures are considered to be obstacles to mining as they prevent the downloading of
large amounts of content and the application of text and data mining techniques.
On the other hand, other service providers that provide technical solutions for licensing (such as clearing
centres), state that the rightholders with whom they work frequently report adverse implications from
unauthorised mining of their websites and business models, particularly as Text and data mining-related crawling
of websites poses security risks and can adversely affect website performance. Such respondents also highlight
the risk of text and data mining facilitating the unauthorised creation of derivative works, and that it is not
always possible to distinguish between a legitimate researcher and an entity who wishes to scan or copy content
for piratical purposes.
With regard to the possible way forward, opinions diverge. Many service providers, in particular from the
software and telecom industry, would favour the introduction of a new exception to copyright and to the
database right to make it clear that text and data mining is not subject to authorisation from the rightholder.
Alternatively, they believe that it should be clarified that text and data mining is not covered by the reproduction
right and hence, is not copyright relevant. Some consider that text and data mining should be exempted from
authorisation by encompassing it an open ended ‘fair use’ general clause. At the same time some service
providers specifically say that they consider that the exception should only kicks in when the user has lawful
access to content to be mined.
Another group of service providers argue that text and data mining licensing should be encouraged: for them, an
exception would not solve several of the issues raised by text and data mining (e.g. data protection, unfair
competition and technical needs).
Member States
Many of the Member States that responded to the public consultation recognise the benefit that text and data
mining can offer to scientific research and highlight the need to deal with it appropriately and on the basis of
sound evidence. Some Member States believe that the possibility to introduce a specific text and data mining
exception in EU law should be considered. In particular, one Member State highlights the need to make sure that
European researchers are not at a competitive disadvantage internationally. Some argue that, even within an
exception-based approach, it would be important to maintain sufficient incentives for value-added services to be
developed based on licences. One Member State points out that any exception should not give users free access
to content they would otherwise not have access to. Some Member States stress the need to make sure that the
technical security of content repositories and databases is preserved.
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Other Member States, on the other hand, would oppose legislative changes. These Member States stress that text
and data mining is a new issue and that introducing legislation would therefore be premature, all the more since
licences are being developed. More generally, reference is made to the need to comply with international
obligations, in particular with the ‘three-step test’. Some Member States also point to the need to further clarify
whether existing exceptions, such as the one for research in Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive, already
cover text and data mining.
3. Fair remuneration of authors and performers (Questions 72 to 74)
72. [In particular if you are an author/performer:] What is the best mechanism (or combination of mechanisms)
to ensure that you receive an adequate remuneration for the exploitation of your works and performances?
73. Is there a need to act at the EU level (for instance to prohibit certain clauses in contracts)?
74. If you consider that the current rules are not effective, what would you suggest to address the shortcomings
you identify?
With regard to the remuneration of authors and performers, the public consultation attempted to explore views
on the best mechanism to ensure that creators receive adequate remuneration for the exploitation of their works
and performances. Views were sought on the possible need to intervene at EU level and, if the existing rules are
considered ineffective, on the suggested ways to address the shortcomings.
End users/consumers
Some users point out that many contracts for the exploitation of works were concluded before the emergence of
digital content distribution, hence they do not explicitly provide for royalties for online exploitation. According
to some, the way in which new online streaming services are licensed may circumvent the payment of digital
royalties to artists and hence contravene the aim of ensuring appropriate remuneration for creators and right
holders in the digital world.
The vast majority of end users/consumers consider that there is a need for EU intervention in this area in order to
ensure adequate remuneration for authors/performers. Suggestions include the introduction of a ‘use it or lose it’
clause in legislation that would allow authors/performers to regain their rights if they are not exploited by the
publisher/producer; or of a ‘best-seller’ clause that would give authors/performers the right to renegotiate their
contract and increase their participation in the proceeds from exploitation under certain circumstances. Other
suggestions include the obligation to conclude separate contracts for digital use, with terms being adjusted to this
type of exploitation, and the prohibition of ‘buy-out’ contracts (one-off payment in exchange for the transfer of
rights).
Institutional users
Institutional users generally consider that there is a need for the EU to act in this area. The provisions of the
German Copyright Act, which aim at ensuring adequate remuneration for creators, are often cited as a possible
model for EU intervention.
Some institutional users stress the importance of prohibiting certain contractual clauses, as well as confidentiality
clauses in contracts as this widespread practice leads to the loss of information and bargaining power for
authors/performers who enter into agreements with publishers/producers and service providers. Some
respondents in this category argue in favour of an unwaivable right of remuneration for the benefit of authors
and performers; others note that acting at an EU level would have added value at least in improving
transparency. Some respondents, however, consider that this would be unnecessary and costly. Finally, certain
respondents, due to the different economic and social conditions of the Member States, suggest leaving this
matter to national legislation.
Authors/performers
Most authors and performers who responded report problems with contractual terms applied in different sectors
of the creative industries. They do not question the need for the transfer of their rights to the publisher or the
producer (i.e. the transferee) for the exploitation of their work or performance but they do argue that their weaker
bargaining position in the market often leads to unfair contractual terms in their initial contracts. Authors and
performers from the music and audio-visual sectors in particular, as well as from some segments of the print
sector (e.g. journalists and translators) often mention that contractual terms are imposed on them.
The contractual terms that they consider problematic relate to a number of different issues. Firstly, respondents
often mention that any contract that involves the transfer of rights in exchange for a one-off payment (a ‘buy-
out’ contract), by definition, prevents their adequate or fair remuneration as the payment does not relate to the
use, and even less to the success, of their work or performance. It is very often raised that the contracts imply a
global transfer of rights, going beyond what is necessary for the exploitation of the work or performance by the
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transferee and/or they contain clauses that imply a transfer of rights of future works or for yet-unknown forms of
exploitation. They criticise the duration of the contract as it often coincides with the term of the copyright
protection without the possibility of the author or performer being able to renegotiate or terminate the contract.
Such contracts are often accompanied by non-disclosure agreements. Another matter that is frequently raised is
the poor quality or lack of accounts and reporting by publishers and producers with regards to the use of the
rights transferred by the author or the performer.
Authors and performers see a need for EU intervention in this area. With regard to contractual clauses, many
argue that legislation should prohibit the global or general transfer of rights to the publisher or producer and the
transfer of rights for yet-unknown forms of exploitation as well as the transfer or licensing of rights for future
works. In specific circumstances, and especially where the transferee does not exploit the work, the author
should have a reversion right (i.e. a possibility to regain his/her rights). Others suggest granting a right to
renegotiate or terminate the contract in certain cases, setting a time-limit on the term of the contract, imposing
so-called ‘best-seller’ clauses (a right to request the renegotiation of the contract under certain circumstances)
and banning non-disclosure agreements by law. It is occasionally mentioned that these measures would not suit
all authors and performers in all sectors equally, and that appropriate solutions have to be explored sector by
sector. Many respondents also emphasise the need for imposing transparency with regards to accounts and
regular reporting by the publisher or producer to the author or performer.
Moreover, authors and performers, in particular in the music and audio-visual sectors, often underline that online
exploitation, especially in a cross-border context, makes it particularly difficult to ensure that there is a
relationship between the use and success of the work or performance and the remuneration provided to the
creator. In particular, the remuneration of an author or performer not only depends on the fair or unfair terms of
the initial contract with the publisher or performer but also on the content of the multiplicity of contracts entered
into by the transferee with broadcasters, online service providers, etc. for the exploitation of the work or
performance. According to many authors and performers, in particular in the audio-visual sector, only the
creation of an unwaivable remuneration right for the benefit of authors and performers, in particular if it is
managed by collective management organisations, would be suitable to ensure adequate and fair remuneration in
the case of online exploitation. Other authors and performers, in particular in countries with a strong tradition of
collective bargaining, however express concerns that the introduction of an unwaivable remuneration right
would reduce the value of the author’s or performer’s exclusive right and weaken their bargaining position,
which traditionally relies on these exclusive rights.
A high number of respondents in this stakeholder group highlight the importance of collective bargaining in
ensuring fair and adequate remuneration to authors and performers. Industrial agreements and model contracts
can both improve their situation and counterbalance the weaker bargaining position of individuals. In this
respect, the US system and German law are often cited as best practices. Competition law is often highlighted as
a barrier to successful collective negotiations in the Member States and some authors and performers argue in
favour of derogation to the competition rules to improve the situation in this respect. Some also encourage the
Commission to foster a dialogue between stakeholders, at EU level, towards more flexible contracts.
Finally, some respondents (journalists and photographers, in particular) express concerns about the waiver or
transfer of their moral rights and argue in favour of a legal ban on such contractual provisions.
Publishers/producers/broadcasters
Most publishers/producers/broadcasters are of the opinion that authors and performers are appropriately
remunerated thanks to existing law and practice in all sectors of the creative industries. They consider that this
area should be regulated by the market and the most important issue is ensuring that there is contractual freedom,
freedom of negotiation and the right for an author to choose his/her representative. Music publishers advance the
argument that the existing competition between them in the market is an important means to ensure the fair
remuneration of authors. Book publishers underline that publishing contracts are almost always based on
individual negotiations with authors. They also note that German rules on ‘adequate remuneration’ resulted in a
drop in the translation market in the country. Audio-visual and phonogram producers often argue the decline of
revenue in the industry is the result of piracy and not of the contractual relationship between producers and
creators. They, as well as some broadcasters, underline that investment in creative content entails high financial
risk and that more complex contractual arrangements would result in higher costs and consequently a decline in
the competitiveness of the European creative industry. A number of respondents in this category underline the
importance of the collective bargaining agreements that exist in a number of Member States. However,
newspaper publishers in particular argue that these arrangements should only be addressed at national level due
to their close connection to labour law.
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Most of these stakeholders do not think that there is any reason for the EU to intervene in this area (or argue that
the EU lacks competence to intervene), because they consider that contract law is a national competence, and
because there are differences between sectors which are best addressed at as low a level as possible. Newspaper
publishers in particular point to the risks of a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. Stakeholders in this category also
argue that there is no evidence underpinning the need for action at EU level. They strongly object to the
introduction of an unwaivable right to remuneration managed by collective management organisations as they
feel that this would lead to an increasing fragmentation of rights and would prevent the centralisation of rights in
the hands of the producer, therefore making licensing slower and more difficult. They also believe this would
increase administrative costs for creators and hamper the accessibility of content to consumers.
It is often proposed that Europe-wide or global technological development towards a database on rights
ownership as well as towards managing rights in a machine-readable way (tracking usages, etc.) should be
encouraged. However, even when the idea of a common EU platform as a centralised location for licensing and
the collection of remuneration is supported, the respondents argue that it should only function as the ‘umbrella’
gathering information and acting on behalf of the national organisations without interfering in contractual
matters. Finally, some stakeholders in this category suggest that an obligation imposed on online platforms to co-
finance audio-visual productions, as is the case for traditional broadcasters, would further improve the situation
for creators.
Collective management organisations (CMOs)
CMOs usually underline the importance of collective rights management in assisting individual authors and
performers so they can effectively enforce their rights. In their view, collective management not only facilitates
rights clearance and increases legal certainty but is also the best solution to ensure the fair and adequate
remuneration of creators as it rebalances unequal bargaining positions in the market. Some note that the
exclusivity of mandates is necessary so that CMOs can play this role. They also refer to the recently adopted
Collective Rights Management Directive as a guarantee of the transparency and accountability of these
organisations.
Like authors and performers, a number of CMOs report what they consider to be unfair contractual practices and
a majority see a need for intervention at EU level along the same lines as the former group of stakeholders.
Finally, CMOs, particularly in the audio-visual sector and, to some extent, in the music sector, strongly argue in
favour of an unwaivable remuneration right in relation to the making available right, that should be based on the
revenues generated from online distribution and which is collected by collective management organisations from
the final distributor (e.g. from online platforms). They cite the remuneration right granted for performers by
Article 8(2) of the Rental and Lending Directive, for example, for the broadcasting and communication to the
public of phonograms.
Intermediaries/distributors/other service providers
Intermediaries, distributors and service providers who responded underline the importance of adequate or fair
remuneration for authors and performers. They generally argue in favour of maintaining contractual freedom
while some note that there is a need to ensure fairer contractual terms between the author or performer and the
publisher or producer by legislative intervention. These respondents generally can see no reason to act at EU
level.
Some respondents in this category consider that the remuneration of creators is a matter for the initial contract
with the producer or the publisher; hence they do not see the introduction of an unwaivable remuneration right as
a suitable solution. Some raise concerns about the effect that such a right may have on the provision of multi-
territorial or pan-European services, if such remuneration is due and collected in each and every Member State.
Some other consider that a collectively managed remuneration right would increase the role and management
fees of collective management organisations but would benefit authors and performers to a lesser extent. They
also note that the introduction of such a remuneration right would reduce the value of the exclusive rights and
consequently the payments distributors were willing to make to the producer or publisher.
Others note that an increasing number of creators use alternative methods of getting their works and
performances to the public (e.g. by directly placing it online). These authors and performers may have very
different sources of revenue to those using traditional channels and should be taken into account in any policy
intervention.
Finally, intermediaries, distributors and service providers often emphasise that levies should not be considered as
a solution for ensuring the remuneration of authors and performers. This issue should be addressed separately.
Member States
Member States which responded highlight the importance of appropriate and fair remuneration for authors and
performers but consider that it is for Member States to decide whether or not to intervene in this matter by
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legislative means. One Member State underlines the need for a thorough impact assessment before any policy
intervention is proposed.
Other
Other respondents provided divergent replies but most of them see a need for action at EU level in order to
ensure an adequate remuneration for authors and performers. Suggestions include the harmonisation of certain
contractual terms (the prohibition of ‘buy-out’ contracts, specifying that the transfer of rights can be for a limited
time, etc.), an unwaivable remuneration right for some forms of exploitation and the encouragement of collective
bargaining. Some note that while an overarching harmonisation of copyright contract law does not seem realistic,
targeted provisions to address certain question (e.g. written form of contracts) seem feasible and could add value.
Any provisions however should seek a balanced split of economic risk between the creator and the exploiter.
Other respondents, on the contrary, are against any intervention and favour the freedom of contract and
negotiation.
32
ANNEX 2C – SYNOPSIS REPORT ON THE RESPONSES TO THE PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON THE
REVIEW OF THE SATELLITE AND CABLE DIRECTIVE
1. Introduction
The public consultation on the review of Directive 93/83/EEC on the coordination of certain rules concerning
copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission (the
"Directive") was held from 24 August 2015 until 16 November 2015. This review is part of the Digital Single
Market Strategy which has as one of its objectives to enhance cross-border access to TV and radio programmes
in the European Union.
This report provides an overview of the responses received, grouping them by category of stakeholder. The
responses of those stakeholders who gave their consent to publication are also publicly available.
2. Overview of responses: statistics
The public consultation gathered a total of 257 replies. Of these responses, 56 are from individuals and 201 are
from organisations, companies or institutions ("non-individual respondents").
The below graph provides a breakdown of non-individual respondents by category.
As to the geographical distribution of all responses, contributions came from 24 EU Member States. The largest
number of responses came from Germany (41), the United Kingdom (29) and Portugal (21). 25 responses are
from non-EU countries.
Repondents per Member State
41
29
25
21
15
12 13 10 11 10 12 11 10
4 4 6 5
3 2 2 3 3 1 3 1
Denmark
Greece
Italy
Portugal
Slovakia
Slovenia
France
Germany
Ireland
Latvia
Non-EU
United Kingdom
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Sweden
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Czech Republic
Estonia
Finland
Hungary
Poland
Spain
Romania
33
3. Analysis of responses
3.1. The principle of country of origin
Respondents were asked about the functioning of the existing rules applicable to clearance of copyright and
related rights for satellite broadcasting (the "country of origin" principle).
Respondents were also asked about their views on the impact of a possible extension of the application of the
principle to the different online services.
Evaluation of the current provisions
Overall, about half of the respondents consider that the existing provisions facilitated the clearance of rights at
least to some extent. Respondents' views are split as to whether the application of the country of origin principle
has increased consumers' access to satellite broadcasting services across borders.
A significant part of consumers and their representatives raise that the current provisions of the Directive do not
sufficiently ensure access to content available in other Member States. Some consumers underline that these
problems concern not only premium content (such as sports and films) but also other content, for instance
cultural programmes.
The majority of Member States' public authorities consider that the country of origin principle facilitated the
clearance of rights. Some of them, however, underline that the practical application of this principle is limited for
audiovisual.
The majority of right holders do not consider that the application of the country of origin principle facilitates
the clearance of rights. Right holders indicate that multi-territorial licences are available and that therefore there
are no problems with acquiring them. In their view, cross-border offerings of content are limited because of
insufficient consumer demand, language barriers as well as commercial choices of service providers. Certain
right holders, in particular film/AV producers, argue that the application of the country of origin principle
diminishes the scope of their rights because it limits their freedom to license the rights as they see fit.
A significant proportion of collective management organisations (CMOs) considers that the application of the
principle of country of origin has not facilitated copyright clearance. The majority of CMOs do not have an
opinion on whether its application has increased consumers' cross-border access to TV and radio programmes.
The vast majority of broadcasters consider that the country of origin principle facilitates the clearance of rights
at least to some extent. Also, they generally consider that this principle increased consumers' cross-border access
to satellite broadcasting services. A number of commercial broadcasters submit that there are obstacles to cross-
border access which are not related to copyright. Similarly to right holders, they mention insufficient consumers'
demand and language barriers.
Other service providers (internet service providers (ISPs), internet protocol television (IPTV) operators, digital
terrestrial television (DTT) providers, cable operators, telecommunication network operators and video on
demand (VOD) operators) do not have much experience with the practical application of the country of origin
principle. Yet, the majority of them consider that it facilitates the right clearance and cross-border access by
consumers.
Assessment of the need for the extension
Views are divided as concerns the need of an extension of the country of origin principle to online transmissions.
Consumers representatives call for a broad extension of the country of origin principle to cover all online
services. In addition, certain argue that introducing this principle with regard to online transmissions would not
be sufficient on its own - such an intervention would need to be accompanied by a rule explicitly prohibiting
technical or contractual restrictions on "passive sales" across EU borders (restrictions on responding to
unsolicited requests from consumers residing in other Member States).
While a number of Member States/public authorities are open for discussions with the view of enabling more
cross-border access to content, there is a strong call for caution. In their view, any reform should not undermine
contractual freedom, a high level of protection of intellectual property and the exclusivity of rights and should
ensure a level playing field. Certain Member States submit that they are against any extension of the application
of the country of origin principle because of risks of unintended negative consequences, especially for the
audiovisual sector.
Right holders are, in general, against any extension of the application of the country of origin principle. They
consider that any such extension would de facto lead to pan-European licences and would restrict their ability to
license rights on a territorial basis. They are in particular concerned about an extension which would cover
34
broadcasters' VOD services and, even more so, any online services by any service providers. The main reasons
given against it are:
negative consequences for the value chain of the production (e.g. financing of AV works) and the
distribution of creative content (notably for AV works, as producers would no longer be able to rely on
pre-sales of distribution rights with territorial exclusivity);
right holders would be no longer able to decide for which territories in the EU they license their rights;
not needed, as voluntary multi-territorial licensing schemes already exist;
the application of the principle to online services and the consequential focus of the licensing system on
the country of origin could have a negative impact on creators' revenues;
risk of forum shopping by service providers and more complicated enforcement by right holders;
risk that rights in musical works may be withdrawn from CMOs if right holders come to the conclusion
that CMOs cannot ensure the effective collective management of rights across the entire EU.
CMOs do not favour any extension of the principle. They raise the same arguments against it as right holders.
Broadcasters’ views on the extension are split along the public service versus commercial broadcaster line.
However, all broadcasters share the view that in all cases full contractual freedom should be maintained,
enabling them to limit the exploitation of rights by territories.
The majority of commercial broadcasters argue that an extension of the principle would amount to pan-
European licences. They raise the same arguments against the extension as right holders. By contrast, all public
service broadcasters as well as commercial radios call for the application of the principle to EU broadcasters'
transmissions by any technological means as well as to all broadcast-related online services. The main reasons
given by those in favour of such an extension are:
it would enable broadcasters to expand their services to other Member States;
it would provide broadcasters with legal certainty;
it would reduce significant administrative burden and costs associated with clearance of rights;
it would provide for additional revenues for right holders by ensuring a wider dissemination of TV and
radio programmes and, therefore, of their works and other protected subject matter.
Views of other service providers vary, though most of them call for a careful and measured approach. ISPs
express most favourable views: they argue that it would enable digital content providers to offer services EU-
wide. Telecommunications network operators, cable operators, IPTV operators, DTT providers and VOD
operators are more cautious, even though some of them indicate that they favour technology-neutral approach.
All of service providers other than broadcasters underline the importance of a level playing field. Also, many of
them argue that contractual freedom should be maintained. They claim that if the extension of the application of
the principle were to lead to pan-European licencing, it would put European and local market players at a
competitive disadvantage in relation to multinational operators as they would not have the means to acquire pan-
European licences.
3.2. The management of retransmission rights
First, respondents were asked about the existing rules applicable to clearance of copyright and related rights for
the simultaneous cable retransmission. Second, respondents were asked about the impact of a possible extension
of the mandatory collective management regime to different forms of online simultaneous retransmissions.
Evaluation of the current provisions
The majority of respondents consider that the Directive has facilitated the clearance of rights for the
simultaneous retransmission by cable of programmes broadcast from other Member States and has helped
consumers to have more access to broadcasting services across borders.
The few consumers who have replied to the questions related to cable retransmission have a rather negative
view of the effectiveness of the current provisions and the degree to which they increased consumers' access to
broadcasting services. Some of them stress the existence of gaps in the offer of channels on cable networks.
Member States / public authorities consider that the Directive has facilitated the clearance of rights for cable
retransmission and has helped increasing consumers' access to broadcasting services across the EU. Some,
however, underline that sometimes it is not clear which rights are managed by collective management
organisations and which are managed by broadcasters.
The majority of right holders do not think that the current cable retransmission rules have either facilitated the
clearance of rights or have resulted in greater consumers' access to broadcasting services across the EU.
Phonogram producers, music publishers and audiovisual producers consider that they are adversely affected by
35
these rules, because they cannot issue licences on fair market terms. Some right holders highlight the limited
consumer demand for cross-border access to audiovisual content services or the limited business demand for
foreign TV channels or multi-territorial licences. Respondents representing authors and performers have a much
more positive view.
The vast majority of collective management organisations (CMOs) consider that the Directive has facilitated
the clearance of rights and has helped increasing consumers' access to broadcasting services across the EU.
Similarly, a clear majority of broadcasters evaluate positively the current provisions and their role in ensuring
consumers' access to broadcasting services across the EU. This is especially the case for public service
broadcasters. However, some commercial broadcasters point to the scope for double payments in case CMOs
assert their rights to license all rights irrespective whether they have been transferred to broadcasters or not.
Finally, the majority of other service providers (including cable operators) also consider that the Directive has
facilitated the clearance of rights and has helped increasing consumers' access to broadcasting services across the
EU. Still, according to some of them, it is not always clear which rights are managed by CMOs and which by
broadcasters.
Assessment of the need for the extension
The few consumers who have replied to these questions tend to consider that the extension of the regime to the
simultaneous retransmission of TV and radio programmes on platforms other than cable is likely to increase the
cross-border accessibility of online services. They also tend to oppose maintaining the different treatment of
rights held by broadcasting organisations.
Member States/public authorities, but also right holders, CMOs and broadcasters, recall that voluntary
collective management, extended collective licensing and individual licensing are all used to clear rights relevant
for the different new TV and radio transmission and re-transmission methods and services.
In this respect some Member States argue that voluntary approaches lead to legal uncertainty since service
providers cannot be sure that they have cleared all the rights or that the distinction between transmission and
retransmission is not always clear.
Regarding the possible extension of the mandatory collective management regime to the simultaneous
retransmissions on platforms other than cable, some Member States note that certain platforms (e.g. IPTV) are
already covered by national provisions. Others are in favour of the extension.
Finally, the Member States that expressed an opinion on a possible introduction of a system of extended
collective licensing conveyed concern with regard to the possibility of using opt-outs, the risk of repertoire
fragmentation and the lower level of legal certainty for retransmission service providers compared to mandatory
collective management.
Right holders underline the important role of individual licensing and argue that current licensing approaches
work well and no changes are required.
Most right holders are against the possible extension of the mandatory collective management regime to the
simultaneous retransmissions on platforms other than cable due to potential disruptive effect on the markets.
Right holders also argue that extending the mandatory collective management regime could raise questions
regarding compliance with international copyright obligations.
Some right holders point to the potential negative effect on the value of rights.
CMOs' views on the licensing of the different new TV and radio transmission and retransmission methods and
services differ: some note that such "new services" are sometimes reluctant to engage in licensing; others
consider that the current licensing approaches, notably voluntary collective management, work well. Some are
concerned that the "direct injection" technology has led to challenges to the retransmission regime by cable
operators in some Member States.
The vast majority of CMOs are in favour of a possible extension of the mandatory collective management
regime and do not find it problematic in the context of the international copyright obligations. Many insist that
36
the extension should be limited to "closed environments" or services functioning "in a territorially limited way"
because those services resemble cable retransmission services and should benefit from a level playing field.
Some CMOs, alongside some right holders and other service providers, see a need to abolish or change the
provisions on the different treatment of rights held by broadcasting organisations, e.g. by making the transfer of
rights from audiovisual producers to broadcasters conditional on the payment of effective remuneration to
producers.
Finally, while for some CMOs extended collective licensing is a well-working and recommendable system,
many expressed concern as regards the possibility of using opt-outs, the risk of repertoire fragmentation and the
lower level of legal certainty for retransmission service providers compared to mandatory collective
management.
Many broadcasters see value in individual licensing of the different new TV and radio transmission and
retransmission methods and services and consider that current licencing approaches work well. However, some
public service broadcasters highlight the lack of an effective licensing system for third parties' services allowing
interactive access to broadcasters' content (e.g. catch-up TV).
Broadcasters are divided on the question of the possible extension of the mandatory collective management:
commercial broadcasters tend to oppose it, while public service broadcasters support the extension and argue
that no problems of compliance with the international copyright obligations would arise. Most of the latter
suggest limiting the extension to "closed" networks or territorially-limited services provided using open internet.
Both commercial broadcasters and public service broadcasters (alongside some right holders, cable operators
and CMOs) consider that the different treatment of rights held by broadcasting organisations should be
maintained.
Broadcasters are also divided on the merits of introducing a system of extended collective licensing: while for
many commercial broadcasters direct licensing should be favoured whenever possible, some public service
broadcasters support using extended collective licensing to enable the provision by third parties of services
giving access to broadcasters' content on an interactive basis where such content is clearly related to
broadcasters' linear (non-interactive) transmissions.
A range of other service providers complain, in general, about difficulties in clearing copyright for innovative
audiovisual services. Some stress that the distinction between transmission and retransmission is not always
clear.
Cable and telecoms operators tend to be in favour of the possible extension of the mandatory collective
management regime and consider that it could result in greater cross-border accessibility of online services.
While some of them insist that the extension should be limited to "closed" networks, others argue that it should
not be tied to particular means of communication, devices or "technology environments". Nevertheless, some
VOD providers see a danger that the extension could result in competitive distortions.
3.2. The mediation system and obligation to negotiate
First, respondents were asked if they had used the existing negotiation and mediation mechanisms established
under the Directive. They were invited to describe their experience. Second, respondents were asked to give their
view about a possible extension of these rules to facilitate the cross border availability of online services, and
they were invited to suggest any other measure that could facilitate contractual solutions and negotiations in
good faith.
Evaluation of the current provisions
Overall the replies to the public consultation indicate that the mediation mechanism has had very limited
practical relevance.
Consumers did not express any particular view concerning the application of the current provisions.
Member States and public authorities in general did not address this issue.
Right holders and most of collective management organisations (CMOs), broadcasters and other service
providers such as ISPs, IPTVs, DTTs and telecom operators indicated that the mechanism has not been used or
has been used only occasionally. These respondents list as the main reasons for this situation the fact that the
37
negotiations usually bring expected results and hence there is no need to resort to mediation, the non-existence of
the appropriate mediation mechanism or alternatively the inefficiency of the existing system. On the latter, the
respondents pointed to time-consuming procedures, deficiencies as to the confidentiality of the process, high
costs involved and the fact that the results of mediation are not binding for the parties. Occasional use of the
mechanism and the overall positive role played by the mechanism was reported by cable operators and a limited
number of CMOs. Despite a very limited practical relevance of the mechanism, some CMOs, broadcasters and
IPTV operators support its application but complemented and reinforced e.g. by a firm timeframe to ensure
efficient process.
Assessment of the need for the extension
The majority of respondents do not support the extension of the application of the mediation mechanism.
Consumers did not express any particular view.
Out of the Member States/public authorities which responded to the public consultation only one respondent
commented on this matter, supporting the possible extension of the negotiation mechanism while also expressing
doubts about its practical implementation.
In general right holders are against the extension of the application of the mechanism. The vast majority of
authors oppose the extension, due to their negative view of the current mechanism's application. They also do
not see the need for additional measures. Film/AV producers stressed their preference for freedom of commercial
negotiations. All phonogram producers were against the extension of the mediation to online services, indicating
potential interferences with right holders’ freedom to exercise their exclusive rights. As regards new measures,
they all referred to the need for a level playing field and a better balance in the digital markets, demanding that
all online services which make the content available to the public comply with right holders’ exclusive rights
(and are not sheltered by Articles 12-14 of the E-commerce Directive31). Most of publishers did not express any
particular opinion. As regards additional facilitating measures, they mentioned the need to engage stakeholders
in cooperation on enforcement issues as well as the need to encourage investment in new business models.
Most collective management organisations (CMOs) were sceptical about the possible extension arguing that
the current system has had only limited results. Some indicated that the Collective Rights Management
Directive32 already contained provisions in this respect covering CMOs' activities, while other highlighted their
preference for freedom to exercise exclusive rights. Only a minority of CMOs supported the idea of extending
this mechanism to online services.
CMOs suggested a variety of possible measures for facilitating contractual solutions, such as greater
transparency and quality of data and information, the obligation to conduct negotiations in good faith, the
recognition of CMOs' mandate to represent audiovisual authors and the need for all online services to comply
with the rules related to right holders’ exclusive rights.
Broadcasters are split on the issue. Most of public broadcasters responding to this question supported the
extension of the mediation to all broadcasters' services, while only few opposed it. They mentioned the need for
effective, binding and cost-efficient mechanisms, called for extending the application to any use covered by the
Directive and recommended the use of similar mechanisms as those already present in the Collective Rights
Management Directive. Most of commercial broadcasters are reluctant as regards the extension of the mediation
mechanism.
Other service providers such as TV and radio aggregators, VOD and DTT operators did not provide any views
on the potential extension. ISPs, IPTV operators, cable operators and some other service providers supported
the extension on condition that the current lack of effectiveness of the mediation mechanism is redressed. As
regards additional measures, some recommended to focus on the respect of competition law and the Collective
Rights Management Directive by the CMOs as well as on the facilitation of market entry for new businesses.
Some cable operators mentioned the need for a more transparent, rapid and non-discriminatory mediation
procedure.
31
Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal
aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market, OJ L
178, 17.7.2000, p. 1–16.
32
Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective
management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for
online use in the internal market, OJ L 84, 20.3.2014. p. 72-98.
38
ANNEX 3 – WHO IS AFFECTED BY THE INITIATIVE AND HOW
This annex sets out the practical implications of the initiative for affected stakeholders,
namely right holders, CMOs and service providers, as well as for public authorities in
Member States. It focuses on the key obligations foreseen under the preferred policy options
(see section 6.1) and indicates how these obligations could be fulfilled. Indications of possible
costs are provided where available.
Practical implications of the initiative in the area of "access to content"
Online transmissions of broadcasting organisations
The introduction of the "country of origin" rule for the clearance of rights (Option 2 under
section 3.2.3.1) would not generate any obligation for businesses or public authorities.
The measure would provide that the licence fee payable to right holders have to take into
account all aspects of the online transmission of the broadcast, including the audience, unless
agreed otherwise with right holders. In practice, where licence fees are based on the actual or
potential audience or calculated on a 'per-view' / 'per-stream' basis, or as a percentage of
broadcasters' revenues, this would not have any significant impact. Otherwise, the contracts
would need to be renegotiated during the transition period, but the extent of such
renegotiations is expected to be limited.
Digital retransmissions of TV and radio programmes
The introduction of mandatory collective management of rights to retransmissions by IPTV or
other retransmission services over closed electronic communication networks (Option 1 under
section 3.2.3.2) would impose obligations both on right holders and retransmission services:
right holders would be obliged to have their retransmissions rights managed by CMOs (or
broadcasters) and IPTV and similar retransmission services would be obliged to obtain such
rights through CMOs (or through broadcasters).
In practice, it is likely that the existing CMOs representing right holders for the purpose of
cable retransmission rights would be in charge of managing retransmission rights for IPTV
and other retransmission services offered over closed networks. The possibility to use existing
structures of collective management to new retransmission service providers would therefore
allow this option to be implemented with limited costs. Also, a number of the CMOs are
already licensing rights to such new retransmission services (in such cases the implementation
of the proposed rule would not result in any additional cost).
Access to and availability of EU audiovisual works on VoD platforms
The negotiation mechanism aimed at addressing problems related to the licensing of online
rights for VoD exploitation (Option 2 under section 3.3.2) would create an obligation for
Member States to identify or create an impartial instance to facilitate negotiation between the
relevant parties.
The possible costs for MS are assessed under section 3.3.3 (impacts of Option 2). The one-off
costs are expected to be limited, since MS could rely on existing bodies with the relevant
expertise in the AV sector to implement the negotiation mechanism. The operating costs
would vary according to the structure of the negotiation body, the choices made by MS on
whether the parties resorting to the negotiation mechanism should bear part of the costs, and
the number of cases. Examples of existing arbitration or mediation mechanisms are presented
in section 3.3.3 in order to estimate the range of operating costs.
39
Out-of-commerce (OOC) works in the collections of cultural heritage institutions
The preferred option (Option 2 under section 3.4.2) does not include any obligation for right
holders or cultural heritage institutions to conclude licensing agreements for the digitisation
and dissemination of OOC works.
When such licensing agreements are concluded and if the use is intended for cross-border
effect within the EU, one of the contracting parties or another other entity (as determined
nationally) would be required to publish relevant information concerning the OOC collection
to be digitised and/or disseminated in the EU transparency portal to be created and managed
by the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). The administrative burden is expected to be
limited because such information would have to be available for the purposes of the national
agreement anyway.
Practical implications of the initiative in the area of exceptions
Use of protected content in digital and cross-border teaching activities
The introduction of a mandatory exception for digital and online uses in the context of
illustration for teaching (Option 3 under section 4.2.2) is not expected to generate any
obligation for businesses or public authorities, except in MS that would decide to use the
flexibility foreseen under this Option and make the exception subject to the availability of
licences:
In this case, Member States would have to take specific measures to ensure the availability
and visibility of licences for educational establishments. A wide range of measures could be
envisaged by MS: stakeholder dialogue to encourage the development of specific educational
licensing schemes by CMOs and right holders; information campaign targeted at educational
establishments and teachers to make the existing licensing schemes more visible;
development of online verification tools to check the availability of licences by work or type
of works. Given that the measures to be taken would be at the discretion of Member States,
the costs are difficult to estimate.
Text and data mining
The introduction of a mandatory exception for text and data mining benefitting public interest
research organisations (Option 3 under section 4.3.2) is not expected to generate any
obligation for businesses or public authorities. In particular, the lawful access condition which
is a condition for the exception to apply means that right holders of the content being mined
would not be required to make the content available for mining in specific formats (different
from the format of the content made available for the purposes of the lawful access).
Preservation of cultural heritage
The introduction of a mandatory exception for preservation purposes by cultural heritage
institutions (Option 2 under section 4.4.2) is not expected to generate any obligation for
businesses or public authorities.
Practical implications of the initiative in the area of "well-functioning market place"
Use of protected content by online services providers storing and giving access to user
uploaded content
The legal intervention (Option 2 under section 5.2.2) imposes an obligation on online services
storing and giving access to large amounts of user uploaded content to put in place
appropriate and proportionate content identification technologies and to provide sufficient
transparency to right holders with regard to the functioning of the deployed technologies. The
40
services would also be obliged to put in place appropriate procedures allowing users to
contest limitations on the uploaded content. Compliance costs can be expected for the online
service providers as a result of the possible investments needed to put in place the required
measures (where online service providers are not yet using such technologies) and
procedures. A more detailed assessment of the impacts can be found in section 5.2.3 of the
impact assessment.
Publishers' right
The introduction of a new related right for press publishers (Option 2 under section 5.3.2)
would not create as such any specific obligations for businesses or public authorities. The
same goes with the clarification in EU legislation concerning publishers' ability to claim
compensation for uses under exceptions.
Remuneration of authors and performers
The preferred option (Option 3 under section 5.4.2) includes reporting obligations on
businesses (notably publishers, producers, broadcasters) which have contractual relationships
with creators (authors or performers). The reporting should, in particular, include information
on the modes of exploitation of the works or performances and on the corresponding
revenues. The impacts of such obligation, including in terms of compliance costs, are assessed
in section 5.4.3 (impacts of Option 2).
This option also foresees an obligation for Member States to organise stakeholders' dialogues.
The costs of organising such dialogues would vary according to the number of stakeholders
involved and the number of meetings required.
Finally, MS would be required to set up a dispute resolution mechanism. The costs for MS are
assessed in section 5.4.3 (impacts of Option 3). These costs would depend on the system of
dispute resolution chosen by a MS. It should be noted that the majority of MS already have
dispute resolution mechanisms for CMOs and commercial users in place, and collective
societies reported that the costs of establishing such mechanisms would be in the range of
€35,000, and the operating costs in the range of €11,000 per year.
41
ANNEX 4 – THE COPYRIGHT REVIEW PROCESS: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN
RELEVANT FINDINGS
1.1. Purpose and scope of this Annex
This Annex summarises the key relevant findings of the process of review of the EU
copyright rules carried out by the Commission in the period 2013-2016 (See Section 1.2. of
the main IA Report) as they are relevant for the subjects presented in this Impact Assessment.
With the copyright review process, the Commission intended at the same time to assess the
functioning of the existing copyright rules (retrospective analysis) and to devise possible
changes to these rules with the declared objective to "ensure that copyright and copyright-
related practices stay fit for purpose in the new digital context" (Communication from the
Commission on content in the Digital Single Market of 18 December 201233).
The copyright review process started before the adoption of the Commission's Better
Regulation Agenda in May 2015,34 and the related guidelines. Therefore, a formal evaluation
process within the meaning of Better Regulation was not carried out. However, a
retrospective assessment of the existing rules was done and it formed a key element of the
analysis presented in the main IA report in particular as regards the definition of the problems
to be addressed. Accordingly, even if not formally subject to it, the copyright review was
carried out in the spirit of the Better Regulation Agenda, according to which "major policies
should be continuously assessed and evaluated over their lifetime to ensure they stay fit for
purpose" and "policy preparation should be supported by both retrospective performance
evaluations and forward-looking impact assessments".
This Annex encompasses those subjects covered by the review process and by the IA that are
directly related to existing EU copyright rules or policies: the exceptions on illustration for
teaching, research (as it relates to text and data mining) and on specific acts of reproductions
(as it relates to preservation), as well as the digitisation and dissemination of out-of-commerce
works (often referred to simply as "mass digitisation"). In doing so, it focuses only on whether
existing provisions and policies have delivered expected outputs and does not aim at
presenting a complete analysis of the reasons behind. To the extent relevant, this analysis is
presented in the problem definition sections of each of those subjects in the main IA report.
For each topic reference is made in this document to the existing EU copyright legislative
framework (and, where relevant, soft law and policy) as well as to the preparatory work
undertaken by the Commission in the context of the review process and the key relevant
results emerged. In some cases the same source (e.g. studies or public consultations
encompassing several areas) is relevant for more than one subject. When this is the case, the
same source is mentioned under different subject-specific sections of this Annex (sections 2
and 3), with the explanation of how it specifically relates to each topic of the review.
Transparency for authors and creators, The use of protected content by online services storing
and giving access to large amount of content uploaded by the users, rights in publications and
fair remuneration in contracts of authors and performers – i.e. the topics mentioned under
section 5 of the IA ("Achieving a well-functioning market place for Copyright") – are not
specifically discussed in this Annex as no EU copyright rules exist in these areas. Evidence
33
COM(2012) 789 final.
34
COM(2015) 215 final.
42
collected to inform the IA on these three topics, including the relevant public consultations, is
described in Annexes 1 and 2A.
This Annex does not extend either to the REFIT evaluation of Directive 93/83/EEC ('the
Satellite and Cable Directive').35 This REFIT evaluation, which took place against the
backdrop of the Digital Single Market Strategy,36 is described separately, in a separate Staff
Working Document.Stakeholder consultations and studies carried out during the review
process also covered aspects of the existing copyright rules which are not discussed in the IA
nor directly form the part of the copyright modernisation initiative backed by this IA (see
Section 1.2. of the main IA report). These topics are not discussed in this Annex. Additional
information on the findings of the review process including as regards areas not covered by
the IA (in particular all the studies commissioned in the context of the review process as well
as the summary results of the public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules
conducted between 2013 and 2014) can be found in the website http://ec.europa.eu (pages
related to the EU copyright policy).37
1.2. The EU copyright rules covered by the review process: notably the InfoSoc
Directive
The EU copyright framework is composed by several directives which have been adopted
over the last twenty-five years. A number of these directives cover specific aspects of
copyright and/or specific subject matters of protection. The general framework of EU rules on
rights and exceptions and limitations is set out in the InfoSoc Directive. Therefore, even if not
strictly confined to this directive, worked carried out in the context of the process of review of
the EU copyright rules has particularly focussed on this instrument.
As regards the topics specifically covered in this Annex, rules on exceptions and limitations
on illustration for teaching and research are laid down in particular in Article 5(3)(a) of the
InfoSoc Directive38 and rules on exceptions and limitations allowing cultural heritage
institutions to carry out specific acts of reproduction (relevant in particular for preservation
purposes) are laid down in Article 5(2)(c) of the InfoSoc Directive. The mass digitisation of
out-of-commerce works is not covered by specific existing EU rules but has been the subject
of non-legislative policy action at EU level over the last few years.
The InfoSoc Directive was adopted on 22 June 2001 (the initial Commission proposal had
been tabled on 10 December 1997 and an amended proposal on 21 May 1999). It had to be
implemented by Member States (MS) in national law by 22 December 2002. It was one of the
centrepieces of the Lisbon Agenda of 2000, which aimed to make the European Union "the
most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world" by 2010.
35
Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September 1993 on the coordination of certain rules concerning
copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission,
OJ L 248, 6.10.1993, p. 15.
36
COM(2015) 192 final.
37
Studies are available at: http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/; the summary of the
2013/2014 public consultation at http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-
rules/index_en.htm
38
OJ L 167, 22.6.2001, p. 10. Rules on exceptions and limitations on teaching and research are also laid
down, in a similar way, in Articles 6(2)(b) and 9(b) of Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on the legal protection of databases, and Article 10(1)(d) of
Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on rental
right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property. See
also infra, section 2.1.
43
The adoption of the directive marked the conclusion of several years of Commission's
preliminary work on the challenges brought about for the information society by the
emergence of the digital networked environment. One of the key documents published on the
issue was the Commission’s Green Paper of 1995 on Copyright and Related Rights in the
Information Society.39
The explanatory memorandum to the proposal explains40 that this directive was designed to
provide a harmonised and appropriate European legal framework for copyright and related
rights in the (then nascent) information society. It aimed at complementing the existing
framework so as to "ensure the smooth functioning of the Internal Market and bring about a
favourable environment which protects and stimulates creativity and innovative activities"
within the EU. Recital 1 of the directive recalls that "the Treaty provides for the establishment
of an internal market …" and that "Harmonisation of the laws of the MS on copyright and
related rights contributes to the achievement of these objectives". As recital 2 in the preamble
to the directive clarifies, it was considered that a favourable legal framework at EU level
which fosters the development of the information society in Europe "requires, inter alia, the
existence of an internal market for new products and services" and "copyright and related
rights play an important role in this context as they protect and stimulate the development
and marketing of new products and services and the creation and exploitation of their
creative content."
In particular, action was considered necessary in two areas: "first, through harmonised legal
protection, by adapting copyright and related rights to the new risks and opportunities, in
order to achieve a level playing field for copyright protection across national borders to
allow the Internal Market to become a reality for new products and services containing
intellectual property. Secondly, on the technological side, by developing adequate systems
allowing for electronic rights management and protection."41 As recital 9 clarifies, it was
considered that copyright and related rights "are crucial to the intellectual creation. Their
protection helps to ensure the maintenance and development of creativity in the interest of
authors, performers, producers, consumers, culture, industry and the public at large."
Moreover the InfoSoc Directive aimed at bringing EU copyright rules in line with
international obligations. As recital 15 recalls,42 the Diplomatic Conference held under the
auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in December 1996 led to the
adoption of two (then new) treaties, which constitute a major step forward in international
protection of copyright and related rights: the WIPO Copyright Treaty43 the WIPO
Performances and Phonograms Treaty.44 At the time the directive was adopted, both treaties
required to be implemented in the EU in the light of the acquis and of the needs of the internal
market.
These general objectives also inform the specific rules of the InfoSoc Directive in the area of
exceptions, and therefore have to be taken into account when looking retrospectively at how
specific rules of the directive have been working overtime as regards the relevant topics
39
COM(95) 382 final.
40
Explanatory memorandum to the Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on the
harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the Information Society, COM(97)
628 final, p. 2 point 1.
41
Ivi, p. 3 point 4.
42
In the same sense see also Explanatory memorandum, cit., p. 3 point 5.
43
http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/ip/wct/
44
http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/ip/wppt/
44
covered by the copyright modernisation IA. The specific rules and objectives as regards the
exceptions on teaching and research and on specific acts of reproduction are described in each
of the section below, which summarise the findings of the review process in these areas.
2. The main findings of the review process in the area of exceptions and limitations
covered by the copyright modernisation impact assessment
2.1. Use of protected content in digital and cross-border teaching activities
The existing EU framework
The exceptions and limitations on teaching and research are laid down in the same provision
of the InfoSoc Directive, i.e. Article 5(3)(a). This article provides that MS may adopt
exceptions and limitations to the rights provided for in Article 2 (the reproduction right) and
Article 3 (the communication to the public right) covering the "use for the sole purpose of
illustration for teaching or scientific research, as long as the source, including the author's
name, is indicated, unless this turns out to be impossible and to the extent justified by the non-
commercial purpose to be achieved". Article 5(4) of the InfoSoc Directive provides that MS
may also provide for exceptions to the act of distribution to the extent justified by the purpose
of the authorised act of reproduction.
Similar provisions providing for exceptions in the area of teaching and research are laid down
in the Database Directive45 and in the and in the Rental and Lending Directive.46 These
provisions are specific to these directives and thus not discussed in this document.
Recital 14 in the preamble to the InfoSoc Directive indicates that the main objectives of the
teaching exception are "to promote learning and culture by protecting works and other
subject-matter while permitting exceptions or limitations in the public interest for the purpose
of education and teaching." The explanatory memorandum to the proposal indicates47 that,
under this provision, MS may "exempt the use of a work, such as a work of literature or
photography, or other subject matter, such as a sound or visual recording, or parts of it, for
instance for a compilation of an anthology provided that such use exclusively serves the
purpose of illustration for teaching […]" and that this exception "does not only cover
traditional forms of using protected material, such as through print or broadcasted media,
but might also serve to exempt certain uses in the context of on-demand delivery of works and
other protected matter."
Main sources of the review process in this area
The implementation of the teaching exception has been analysed by the "Study on the
application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information
45
Articles 6(2)(b) and 9(b) of Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11
March 1996 on the legal protection of databases (OJ L 077 of 27/03/1996, p.20-28) provides similar
exceptions, respectively, to copyright and to the sui generis right.
46
Article 10(1)(d) of Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12
December 2006 on rental right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of
intellectual property (codified version) (OJ L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 28-35).
47
Explanatory memorandum to the Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on the
harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the Information Society, COM(97)
628 final, p. 32.
45
society"(hereinafter "the 2013 study" or just "the study").48 The study, in particular, aimed at
"assessing whether there is a need to adapt limitations and exceptions provided for teaching
and research to the digital environment in order to ensure that their application remains
relevant – while, at the same time, ensuring the required balance with rightholders' legitimate
interests and the normal exploitation of the work and other protected subject matter."49
To this aim, the study examined national legislation implementing the teaching exception in
11 MS: Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy,
Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom.50 Information about implementation of this exception
in other MS has been collected as far as possible through discussions with MS and
stakeholders and is presented in Table 1 in this Annex.
The teaching exception was also covered by the 2013-2014 public consultation on the review
of EU copyright rules: respondents were asked to share their experiences with the use of
protected works for teaching purposes, including under existing market mechanisms, and to
provide their views on how problems, if identified, should be solved (see Annex 2B).51
(see Annex 2A).
Key relevant results
Evidence collected throughout the review process suggests the following findings:
Limited and/or unclear transposition into national legislation
The 2013 study finds that, although optional, the exception provided for in Article 5(3)(a) of
the InfoSoc Directive has been transposed in all the MS analysed.52 The study highlights at
the same time that "The open-ended content of [this exception] left ample manoeuvre for the
Member States to enact the conditions under which the exception could be enjoyed. Nothing
prevents domestic laws to further define the beneficiaries, the types and quantities of works
that can be used, as well as the type of use."53
As a consequence, national transpositions of this exception vary widely. In some cases,
evidence suggests that the implementation of the exception is unclear or narrower than what
the directive permits, for example:
o The condition of illustration is sometimes missing in certain national copyright laws
(e.g. PL, IT, DK).54
o National exceptions sometimes limit the type, format and extent of works that can be
used.55 For instance, music scores are out of the scope of the exception in FR and
audiovisual works can be used under the exception in DE only after two years upon
release. Some MS (e.g. FR, DE, AT) do not admit the exception for textbooks or other
48
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC ", cit. See in particular p. 357-
387.
49
Ivi, p. 245.
50
Ivi, p. 3.
51
"Public Consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules", Questions 42-46.
52
J-P. Triaille et alii, op. cit., p.368. Examples of national implementation of this exception in all MS, are
illustrated in Table 1.
53
Ivi, p. 380.
54
Ivi, p. 368-369.
55
Ivi, p. 372-373.
46
works made explicitly for educational purposes. In several Member States, the
exception applies only to extracts or parts of works (e.g. BE, LU, IT), while in others a
specific limit is set in legislation (e.g. UK). The format can also be determined (e.g.
low resolution and degraded images in IT).
o Moreover, national laws do not always clearly deal with e-learning, even if recital 42
in the preamble to the directive explicitly includes distance learning within the scope
of the exception.56 In some cases, face-to-face teaching seemed to be the only situation
to which the exception applies (e.g. HU, ES57). In countries where the exception
applies to e-learning, national rules generally determine specific conditions (e.g.
communication within a closed electronic network), to prevent dissemination of
teaching material outside the students enrolled in the course (e.g. BE, FR, UK).
o Another difference concerns the provision of a fair compensation for rightholders,
which recital 36 in the preamble to the directive leaves at the discretion of MS.58
While in some countries the use of works under this exception does not give rise to the
payment of compensation, in others (e.g. BE, FR, DE, NL) the exception is
accompanied by a fair compensation system, which can be put into practice through
collective agreements.
Differences in the transposition of this exception (in particular as regards digital uses) and, in
particular, different interpretations given to the term 'illustration for teaching' were also
reported by a number of stakeholders responding to the 2013-2014 public consultation.59
Collective right management organisations and publishers pointed to problems due to the
broad interpretation of the notion of illustration for teaching, institutional users including
schools and universities indicated on the other hand that the restrictive implementation of the
exception in some countries caused problems and legal uncertainty for teachers and
students.60
Limited harmonisation as regards digital uses and lack of cross-border effect
According to the 2013 study, the significant differences that exist in national laws, notably as
regards the uses permitted under the teaching exception and additional conditions, "become
real obstacles when the teaching occurs totally or partially on-line in an e-learning program
or supported by e-learning tools."61 The study in particular finds that "This complexity, which
could probably be mastered by teachers accustomed to their national system, becomes
difficult to tackle when several laws need to be complied with, due to a cross-border
dimension of e-learning that requires the application of more than one law."62
The study therefore concludes that, "Due to such diversity, the current exception cannot be
said to be harmonised at EU level, which renders the task of developing a legally compliant
offer of online education all the more daunting."63
56
Ivi, p. 374-376.
57
The teaching exception was recently amended in Spain in order to cover digital and online uses.
58
Ivi, p. 377.
59
Report on the responses to the Public Consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules, July 2014,
p. 58.
60
See also Annex 2B, reporting relevant extracts from the report to the public consultation.
61
J-P. Triaille et alii, op. cit., p. 381.
62
Ibidem.
63
Ibidem.
47
Similarly, many institutional users (libraries, universities) responding to the 2013-2014 public
consultation brought forward difficulties in particular for distance learning and cross-border
uses (e.g. problems faced by universities with campuses abroad or virtual learning
environments or by universities located close to a national border and attracting students from
several MS, problems for the development of resources in the context of Lifelong Learning
and Erasmus+ programmes involving with a cross-border audience).64
Insufficient or inadequate licensing mechanisms covering illustration for teaching (at
least in some MS)
The teaching exception is put into practice or completed by collective agreements or
particular licensing mechanisms in several MS. The 2013 study identifies different models65:
o Collective mechanisms putting the exception into practice and organising the
remuneration associated thereto (e.g. FR);
o Collective mechanisms extending the scope of the exception by adding further
authorised uses (e.g. FR, ES);
o Collective mechanisms implementing the exception of the EU directive into an
extended collective licensing system (e.g. DK, FI, SE).
In addition, the application of the exception is subject to the availability of licences in certain
countries (e.g. UK, IE).
In the 2013-2014 public consultation, authors, publishers and collecting societies considered
that licensing solutions are in place to complement the exception where necessary and offer
flexible and appropriate solutions for educational establishments.66 Several institutional users
also mentioned the existence of licenses schemes in place at national level and the possibility
to conclude licensing agreement with publishers, but considered that such licensing solutions
are expensive, create an administrative burden for schools and universities and do not
guarantee the use of all works for educational purposes.67
Conclusion: The evidence collected during the review process suggests that the key objective
of the teaching exception of promoting learning and culture "by protecting works and other
subject-matter while permitting exceptions or limitations in the public interest for the purpose
of education and teaching" (recital 14) has been achieved to a large extent. However the
review process highlighted the legal uncertainty coming from the different way the exception
has been implemented across MS and pointed to problems for the use of protected content in
digital and cross-border education, at least in certain MS. This appears to be mainly due to the
sometimes narrow implementation of the exception, to the differences existing between
national provisions and to the lack of cross-border effect of the exception.
2.2. Text and data mining
The existing EU framework
64
Report on the responses to the Public Consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules, cit., p. 54-
55.
65
J-P. Triaille et alii, op. cit., p. 378-379.
66
Ivi, p. 55 (on Authors/performers) and p. 56-57 (on Publishers/producers/broadcasters).
67
Ivi, p. 54.
48
No specific EU rules exist explicitly covering text and data mining (hereinafter TDM). As
explained in the IA,68 TDM techniques generally involve the making of copies of copyright
protected content. If these copies go beyond the specific conditions for the exception on
temporary acts of reproduction under Article 5(1) of the InfoSoc Directive to apply, under the
current EU rules, prior rightholder authorisation has in principle to be sought. At the same
time, since TDM is a particularly relevant technique used in the field of research, the research
exceptions laid down in the EU copyright rules, in particular in the already mentioned Article
5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive are particularly relevant here.
Under the already mentioned Article 5(3)(a), MS may (in addition to teaching) "to the extent
justified by the non-commercial purpose to be achieved" also provide for exceptions and
limitations for the purposes of scientific research. As in the case of teaching, research
exceptions are also laid down in other directives, notably in the database directive.
Main sources of the review process in this area
As already mentioned, The 2013 study analyses the national implementation of the teaching
and research exceptions provided for in Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive in 11 MS.69
Moreover, information about implementation of this exception in other MS has been collected
as far as possible through discussions with MS and stakeholders and is presented in Table 2 in
this Annex.
In addition, TDM has been specifically analysed in the context of the 2014 "Study on the
legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)" (the 2014 study).70 This study inter alia
aimed at: "Assess whether text and data mining activities […] could be covered by the current
exceptions and limitations to copyright and/or to the sui generis right.[…]; Verify whether
there are explicit legal provisions (e.g. different from general provisions implementing the
Information Society Directive or the Directive on the legal protection of databases such as
generally worded exceptions “for research purposes”) in the MS, decisions or judgments
affecting text and data mining".71
Like the teaching exception, the research exception and in particular TDM was covered by the
2013-2014 public consultation (see Annex 2B): respondents were asked to share their
experiences of the use of the research exception set out in Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc
Directive and to provide their views on how problems, if identified, should be solved.72
Moreover, they were invited to share their experiences of using or providing services based
on text and data mining and to provide their views on how problems, if identified, should be
solved.73
Moreover, as announced in the 2012 Communication74, TDM was discussed at length in the
context of the structured stakeholder dialogue "Licenses for Europe"75 carried out throughout
2013 with the assigned objective of "identify[ing] the scale of demand for TDM access at EU
level for text mining of scientific publications and underlying data for research purposes, and
68
See the part on text and data mining of the IA, and in particular Annex 11C, which explains the EU
legal framework applicable to TDM.
69
See section 2.1 of this Annex.
70
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)", cit.
71
Ivi, p. 6.
72
"Public Consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules", cit., Questions 47-49.
73
Ivi, Questions 53-57.
74
COM(2012) 789 final, cit.
75
https://ec.europa.eu/licences-for-europe-dialogue/en/content/about-site
49
appropriate means of meeting this demand" and of "explor[ing] the potential and possible
limits of standard licensing models, as well as assess the appropriateness and feasibility of
technology platforms to facilitate TDM access."
In addition, after the Licences for Europe dialogue and in the context of the preparation of the
IA, regular stakeholder meetings, including a high level round table focussing specifically on
TDM were conducted (see Annex 2A)
Key relevant results
Evidence collected throughout the review process suggests the following findings:
Limited harmonisation of the research exception and legal uncertainty with specific
regard to TDM activities
The 2013 study highlights that the (optional) research exception set out in Article 5(3)(a) of
the InfoSoc Directive has not been specifically transposed in all the MS (e.g. ES, NL).76
Accordingly, this situation "could put researchers in those countries in a less easy situation
than their foreign peers."77
Moreover, the two studies78 report that, due to the open-ended content of the research
exception, national transpositions – where present – vary widely and are in a number of cases
narrower than what the directive permits, including as regards TDM:
o The beneficiaries of the research exception vary across MS and the 2014 study
highlights that this aspect could "raise difficulties for data mining activities (allowed
for some MS under this exception and not in others)".79 E.g. according to the 2014
study PL applies it to research and educational institutions, BE to establishments
officially recognised by public authorities, FR to the strict circle of "students, teachers
or researchers".80
o There are no judgements of the CJEU to date as to whether the condition of
"illustration" applies only to teaching or also to research. Accordingly, different
interpretations exist throughout MS. The 2014 study highlights that national
exceptions which specifically refer to the concept of "illustration" in relation to the
research exception may be difficult to apply to TDM given that "data analysis
involves de facto the use of the work for enriching the scientific research taking place
and not just for "illustration" of scientific research".81
o In several MS, the exception only allow the reproduction of extracts or parts of works
(e.g. BE, LU, IT), which, as well, "can be problematic for data analysis which
involves, most of the time, the use of the works in full".82
76
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC ", cit., p. 370.
77
Ivi, p. 388.
78
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC", cit., p. 388; J-P. Triaille et alii,
"Study on the legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)", cit., p. 53.
79
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)", cit., p. 55.
80
Ibidem.
81
Ivi, p. 61.
82
Ivi, p. 56.
50
o Another difference concerns the authorised acts. For instance, the DE copyright act
limits the research exception to certain copyright relevant acts, such as the making
available of limited parts of a work to e.g., specifically limited circle of persons for
their personal scientific research. As regards reproduction, the German act provides
that it shall be "permissible to make single copies of a work or to have these made […]
for one's own scientific use if and to the extent that such reproduction is necessary for
the purpose and it does not serve a commercial purpose".
The 2013 study highlights that such discrepancies between national laws "complicate the
compliance by scientists concerned with a possible exception"83 and specific uncertainties
arise in particular as regards the nascent TDM techniques.
At the moment of the publication of the two above mentioned studies, no MS had in place a
specific exception covering specifically TDM. In June 2014, the UK adopted an exception on
"Copies for text and data analysis for non-commercial research".84 Discussions concerning the
possible adoption of national exceptions on TDM have taken place in other MS, e.g. EE, FR,
DE.
Concerns about legal uncertainty for TDM under the current EU copyright rules were also
reported by many institutional users (libraries, universities) responding to the 2013-2014
public consultation.85 In particular, these respondents considered that, under the current
framework, it is not clear whether and to what extent TDM may fall under current EU
legislation, notably the research exception (when implemented).86
Diversity of licensing practices
TDM licensing practices were discussed in particular in the context of the 2013 Licences for
Europe process87. As an outcome, a group of STM publishers presented a declaration of
commitment covering both contractual and technical initiatives to streamline licences for non-
commercial mining of subscription based scientific publications.88 Specific initiatives to
facilitate TDM licencing have been further developed in particular by STM publishers as a
follow up to that declaration as described in the IA.
At the same time, researchers have generally considered that licences-based solutions would
not be able to fully solve the problems of legal uncertainty they face as regards the use of
TDM techniques. This was also confirmed in these stakeholders' replies to the 2013-2014
public consultation (institutional users such as libraries and universities generally considered
licences an inadequate source of transaction costs for TDM and indicated that a legislative
change is needed to introduce a mandatory exception for text and data mining in EU
copyright law).89 On the other hand, rightholders, in particular publishers, highlighted in their
83
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC", cit., p. 389.
84
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/1372/contents/made
85
Report, cit., p. 59.
86
Ivi, p. 63-64.
87
The Licences for Europe process as it relates to text and data mining is discussed in more details in the
IA section on TDM and related Annexes.
88
http://www.stm-assoc.org/2013_11_11_Text_and_Data_Mining_Declaration.pdf. See also the
Commission document “Licences for Europe: ten pledges to bring more content online”, cit.
89
Ivi, p. 64.
51
replies to the public consultation the efforts made as a follow up to Licences for Europe to
improve licencing solutions for TDM.90
Conclusion: Evidence gathered through the review process has highlighted that the research
exception has not been implemented in all MS and that in any event it has generally been
implemented without explicitly taking into account TDM (which can be explained by the
relatively novelty of these techniques). A specific TDM exception in the context of the
research exception has been adopted by only one MS so far, the UK. As a consequence,
considerable legal uncertainty exists as to the EU framework applicable to TDM in scientific
research and different conditions apply depending on the MS and rightholders' licencing
practices.
2.3. Preservation of cultural heritage
The existing EU framework
Article 5(2)(c) of Directive 2001/29/EC sets out an optional exception to the reproduction
right, which MS can implement in their national legislation, provided that it comply with the
conditions enshrined in this article. In particular, this exception covers "specific acts of
reproduction made by publicly accessible libraries, educational establishments or museums,
or by archives, which are not for direct or indirect economic or commercial advantage".91
As to the objectives of this provision, recital 40 clarifies that the exception should be limited
to certain special cases, and it should not cover uses made in the context of online delivery of
protected works. This was also clarified in the explanatory memorandum to the proposal,
which states: "The provision does not define those acts of reproduction which may be
exempted by Member States. In line with the "three step test", Member States may not,
however, exempt all acts of reproduction, but will have to identify certain special cases of
reproduction, such as the copying of works which are no longer available on the market."92
According to the 2013 study, "It is generally understood that the objective served by this
provision is to enable libraries to copy works for preservation purposes".93
Policy recommendations on preservation were also issued to MS by the European Parliament
and Council in their Recommendation of 16 November 2005 on film heritage and the
competitiveness of related industrial activities (2005/865/CE, hereinafter "the 2005
Recommendation"). The 2005 Recommendation called on the MS, in particular, to take
measures with a view to "adopting legislation or using other methods in accordance with
national practices in order to ensure preservation of deposited cinematographic works" and
mentioned "the reproduction of films on new storage media" as part of those "preservation
measures".
Complementing the 2005 Recommendation on film heritage, policy recommendations on
cultural heritage works more broadly were issued to MS by the Commission with its
90
Ivi, p. 65.
91
Copying of works and other subject matter constitutes an act of reproduction protected under the
rightholders’ exclusive rights granted by Article 3 of Directive 2001/29/EC, Article 5 of Directive
96/9/EC ('Database Directive') and Article 4 of Directive 2009/24/EC ('Software Directive'). However,
differently from Directive 2001/29/EC, the Database and Software Directives do not foresee any
exception for preservation acts carried out by cultural heritage institutions.
92
Explanatory memorandum, cit., p. 31.
93
J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC", cit., p. 265.
52
Recommendation on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and digital
preservation (2011/711/EU, hereinafter "the 2011 Recommendation").
The 2011 Recommendation invited MS, inter alia, to "make explicit and clear provision in
their legislation so as to allow multiple copying and migration of digital cultural material by
public institutions for preservation purposes, in full respect of European Union and
international legislation on intellectual property rights".
A similar objective for 2012-2015 was included in the Council Conclusions on the digitisation
and online preservation of cultural material and digital preservation of 10-11 May 2012 which
invited MS to ensure "the necessary legal framework conditions for long-term digital
preservation in terms of multiple copying and migration of digital cultural material by public
institutions for preservation purposes, in full respect of European Union and international
property rights".
Main sources of the review process in this area
The exception provided for in Article 5(2)(c) of the InfoSoc Directive, as well as its
implementation across the MS, has been analysed in the context of the above mentioned 2013
study, which focussed on the implementation in 11 MS.94 Information about implementation
of this exception has also been collected through a review of national laws and discussions
with MS and stakeholders and are presented in Table 3 in this Annex. With regard to this
exception, in particular, the study aimed at "examin[ing] whether major problems have
emerged in Member States as a consequence of the implementation of this exception to the
reproduction right; assess[ing] whether clarifications are needed as regards the type
(analogue or digital) and number of copies that may be authorised and whether the precise
objective of the permitted acts of reproduction should be specified; assess[ing] whether other
updates to this exception are needed to ensure the right balance between the interests of users
of public establishments and rightholders."95
The impact of the relevant points of the 2005 and 2011 Recommendations was reviewed in
periodical implementation reports. The latest ones were published in 2014 for the 2005
Recommendation96 and in 2016 for the 2011 Recommendation,97 based on individual MS
reports.
2013-2014 public consultation and discussed in several meetings with stakeholders, including
a high-level roundtable (See Annexes 2A and 2B).
Key relevant results
Evidence collected throughout the review process suggests the following findings:
Variable, unclear and/or narrow transposition into national legislation
The 2013 study finds that, although optional, the exception provided for in Article 5(2)(c) of
the InfoSoc Directive has been transposed in all the MS analysed.98 However, it highlights
94
Ivi, p. 264-284.
95
Ivi, p. 264.
96
"Report on the Implementation of the European Parliament and Council Recommendation on Film
heritage 2012-2013", October 2014.
97
"Report on the Implementation of Commission Recommendation 2011/711/EU - 2013-2015", 2016.
98
Ivi, p.272. Examples of implementation of this exception at MS level are illustrated in Table 3.
53
that "many disparities have resulted from national implementations and from the ample
discretion that the provision of the directive leaves to Member States. Particularly, Member
states have been generally more detailed in the requirements imposed on the conditions and
in many cases, more restrictive than the directive."99 According to the study, this can be due
to four main reasons:100
o First, the purpose of the exception has been generally interpreted strictly by some MS.
For instance, while several national laws refer to the general purpose of preservation
(e.g. DK, LU, FR) or similar notions (e.g. archiving in HU, conservation in ES,
maintaining and protecting collections in PL), other laws have even restricted the
notion of preservation to more limited specific cases (the NL for example restricts the
purpose of the exception to restoration or replacement).101
o Second, not all categories of works are covered by the national laws (e.g. text-based
works are not covered for some CHIs by the exception in IT).102
o Third, only few MS have elaborated on the types of copies that are be allowed (only
the NL, for example, explicitly allow format shifting – the practice by which the copy
of a work is converted into a new format, to counter obsolescence – by mentioning the
purpose of "keeping the work in a condition in which it can be consulted if there is no
technology available to render it accessible").103
o Fourth, some national laws further limit the scope of the exception via additional
conditions not foreseen in the directive, notably as regards the number of copies
authorised for preservation (e.g. BE, NL, IT).104
The 2013 study indicates that these diverging implementations can be a barrier to preservation
activities taking place across borders, for example "if a library or other eligible institution
wants to outsource the digitisation of works abroad", or if libraries or other eligible
institutions want "to mutualise their digitisation activities to do economies of scale."105 The
study highlights the difficulties arising in such cases, and notably the uncertainty due to the
cross-border elements, and concludes that "more efforts should be put on increasing the
harmonisation in relation to the exception for certain acts of reproduction made by
libraries."106
The most recent report (2014) on the implementation of the 2005 Recommendations
confirmed variations and a "rather restrictive" implementation of Article 5(2)(c) of the
InfoSoc Directive for preservation purposes as found by the 2013 study. It concluded that
such situation "may hamper preservation activities of FHI [film heritage institutions],
particularly in the digital era and could prevent or render very expensive the emergence of
pan-European projects and cross-border sharing of digital preservation infrastructures". The
2016 report on the implementation of the 2011 Recommendation says that despite the fact that
"a growing number of countries report explicit provisions to allow format-shifting and
99
Ibidem.
100
Ivi, p. 281-282.
101
Ivi, p. 272-273.
102
Ivi, p. 282.
103
Ivi, p. 276-277.
104
Ivi, p. 277.
105
J-P. Triaille et alii, op. cit., p. 283.
106
Ivi, p. 284.
54
migration of cultural material for preservation purposes […] some […] are only applicable
to some sectors, institutions or government layers, or lacking the necessary
comprehensiveness for a fully-fledged migration or format-shifting of all cultural material,
wherever required for preservation purposes".
Problems resulting from the limited or unclear implementation of the existing exceptions are
also reflected in the submissions of a vast majority of institutional users (libraries, museums,
archives and other cultural heritage institutions) responding to the 2013-2014 public
consultation.107 In their view, both the scope of this exception and the way MS have
implemented it cause concerns and are not adapted to digital environments. Examples given
are similar to the ones identified by the 2013 study and include national laws that limit the
number of copies that can be made or reduce the categories of beneficiary institutions and
prohibit or limit format-shifting.108 They also reported that that the lack of harmonisation and
the territorial effect of the current exception have a negative impact on collaborative
digitisation projects across countries.109 Representatives of right holders and collective
management organisations (CMOs) responding to the 2013-2014 public consultation,
however, generally reported not having experienced major problems with the use of the
existing exception, which, in their view, allows institutions to fulfil their public interest
missions. Some of these respondents also highlighted that the digitisation for preservation is
an important public policy objective but is often held back by budgetary, rather than
copyright, restrictions.
Conclusion: Evidence gathered in the context of the copyright review process suggests that
the exception's objective of providing a conducive environment for preservation acts carried
out by cultural heritage institutions has been achieved to a limited extent only. This appears to
be mainly due to the divergent and limited and/or unclear implementations of the exception,
which can raise difficulties for certain types of preservation copies, at least in certain MS.
This problem is exacerbated in a digital environment, where preservation activities take
different and new shapes than in an analogue one.
3. The main findings of the review process as regards EU policy relevant for the
digitisation and dissemination of out-of-commerce works in the collections of
cultural heritage institutions
The existing EU framework
The current EU copyright legal framework does not include specific provisions on the mass
digitisation and dissemination of out-of-commerce (OOC) works in the collections of cultural
heritage institutions (CHIs), including as regards cross-border dissemination.110 Mass
digitisation and dissemination of these works is currently carried out at national level by
means of licencing agreements.
Policy recommendations to MS as regards film heritage were issued by the European
Parliament and Council in their Recommendation of 16 November 2005 on film heritage and
107
Report, cit., p. 40.
108
Ibidem.
109
Ibidem.
110
For the specific case of orphan works (works whose rightholders are not identified or cannot be located
despite a diligent search) digitisation and making available has been addressed at EU level in the
2012/26/EU Orphan Works Directive. According to recital 4 in the preamble to this directive, "this
Directive is without prejudice to specific solutions being developed in MS to address large mass
digitisation issues such as in the case of so called "out-of-commerce" works."
55
the competitiveness of related industrial activities (2005/865/CE, hereinafter "the 2005
Recommendation").
The 2005 Recommendation calls on MS to "improve conditions of conservation, restoration
and exploitation of film heritage and remove obstacles to the development and full
competitiveness of the European film industry" inter alia "by adopting, by 16 November 2007,
legislative, administrative or other appropriate measures to ensure that cinematographic
works forming part of their audiovisual heritage are systematically collected, catalogued,
preserved, restored and made accessible for educational, cultural, research or other non-
commercial uses of a similar nature, in all cases in compliance with copyright and related
rights" […] adopting the necessary legislative or administrative measures to allow designated
bodies to make deposited cinematographic works accessible for educational, cultural,
research or other non-commercial uses of a similar nature, in all cases in compliance with
copyright and related rights".
Complementing the 2005 Recommendation on film heritage, policy recommendations on
cultural heritage works more broadly were issued to MS by the Commission with its
Recommendation on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and digital
preservation (2011/711/EU, hereinafter "the 2011 Recommendation").
The 2011 Recommendation emphasises that "for the large-scale digitisation of out-of-
commerce works, legislative backing for licensing solutions voluntarily developed by
stakeholders may be needed in the Member States, taking into account the need to ensure a
cross-border effect. In this context, the approach followed in the stakeholders’ dialogue,
sponsored by the Commission, on out-of-commerce books and learned journals, which
resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding signed in Brussels on 20 September 2011,
should be seen as a model for further dialogues to facilitate agreements for the digitisation of
as much of the out-of-commerce material as possible".
The Recommendation recommends that MS "improve conditions for the digitisation and
online accessibility of in-copyright material by" inter alia "creating the legal framework
conditions to underpin licensing mechanisms identified and agreed by stakeholders for the
large-scale digitisation and cross-border accessibility of works that are out-of-commerce".
Similarly, the Council Conclusions on the digitisation and online preservation of cultural
material and digital preservation of 10-11 May 2012 underlined "the need to actively promote
voluntary agreements on the large-scale digitisation and online availability of out-of-
commerce works and to take the necessary measures to provide for the required legal
certainty in a national and cross-border context".
The Commission also sponsored a stakeholder dialogue on out-of-commerce books and
learned journals, which resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding on "Key Principles on
the Digitisation and Making Available of Out-of-Commerce Works" (hereinafter, "the 2011
MoU"),111 which was signed by library and right holder organisations on 20 September 2011.
These principles are intended as a reference to assist with and promote collective licensing
111
Memorandum of Understanding on Key Principles on the Digitisation and Making Available of Out-of-
Commerce Works, signed in Brussels on 20 September 2011 by the Association of European Research
Libraries (LIBER), the Conference of European National Librarians (CENL), the European Bureau of
Library, Information and Documentation Association (EBLIDA), the European Federation of
Journalists (EFJ), the European Publishers Council (EPC), the European Writers' Council (EWC),
European Visual Artists (EVA), the Federation of European Publishers (FEP), the International
Association of Scientific, Technical & Medical Publications (STM), the International Federation of
Reprographic Rights Organisations (IFFRO).
56
agreements in this area, covering books, learned journals and embedded images. The MoU
indicates that, for the purposes of agreements concluded according to its principles, "where a
rightholder whose work was first published in a particular Member State has not transferred
the management of his rights to a collective management organisation, the collective
management organisation which manages rights of the same category in that Member State of
first publication shall be presumed to manage the rights in respect of such work".
It recognises, however, that, for such scenario to be possible "legislation might be required to
create a legal basis to ensure that publicly accessible cultural institutions and collective
management organisations benefit from legal certainty when, under an applicable
presumption, the collective management organisations represent rightholders that have not
transferred the management of their rights to them". It therefore recommends that MS "in
keeping their international obligations, may give effect to the key principles mentioned [in the
MoU] in accordance with their national legal mechanisms and collective licensing
traditions". It also calls on the Commission "to the extent required to ensure legal certainty in
a cross-border context, to consider the type of legislation to be enacted to ensure that publicly
accessible cultural institutions and collective management organisations which enter into a
licence in good faith applying these key principles are legally protected with regard to
licensed uses of works of rightholders who have been presumed to be within the scope of the
licence".
Finally, in the context of the Licences for Europe stakeholder dialogue, a Statement of
Principles and Procedures for facilitating the digitisation of, access to and increased interest of
European citizens in European cinematographic heritage works was undersigned by film
heritage and film right holder organisations.
Main sources of the review process in this area
The impact of the relevant points of the 2005 and 2011 Recommendations was reviewed in
periodical implementation reports. The latest ones were published in 2014 for the 2005
Recommendation and in 2016 for the 2011 Recommendation, based on individual MS reports.
In the context of the 2013-2014 public consultation respondents were asked whether they
considered necessary to enact legislation underpinning the 2011 MoU for cross-border effect,
and whether mechanisms should be developed for other types of content than books and
learned journals.
The Commission has monitored the practical application the of the 2011 MoU since its
adoption through regular contacts with stakeholders and MS to gather information on concrete
licencing agreements adopted following its principles and the possible adoption of MS
measures aiming to provide a legal space for licencing practices based on the principles of the
MoU. Existing relevant provisions at national level at the time of writing are presented in
Annex 9E to the IA.
including a high level roundtable focussing on access to knowledge and cultural heritage were
conducted (see Annex 2A).
Key relevant results
Evidence collected throughout the review process suggests the following finding:
Suitable licensing mechanisms underpinned by legislative provisions only available in
some MS and with no cross-border effect.
57
The most recent report (2016) on the implementation of the 2011 Recommendation indicated
that "fourteen countries already provide for some mechanism to facilitate digitisation and
online accessibility of works which are out-of-commerce", with developments taking place
"particularly in the print sector".
The 2014 report on the implementation of the 2005 Recommendation on film heritage
concluded that "the current legal framework does not facilitate the emergence of mass
digitisation projects". The report does not refer to any development on legal mechanisms at
national level to facilitate the mass digitisation and dissemination of OOC works part of film
heritage. It reports however that the Statement of Principles and Procedures for facilitating the
digitisation of, access to and increased interest of European citizens in European
cinematographic heritage works "has not yet been used for the conclusion of digitisation
agreements".
The 2013 study, which predates the above reports, also confirms the presence of relevant legal
mechanisms in some MS only, with projects inspired by the 2011 MoU "starting to emerge".
During the 2013-2014 consultation, institutional users considered the 2011 MoU insufficient
to address copyright issues related to mass digitisation, and that legislation allowing for cross-
border uses was necessary (many indicated an exception as the preferred solution). They also
indicated that solutions should be present for all types of works. Right holders had varying
views regarding the best way ahead, both on the need for legislation (including to give cross-
border effect to national solutions) and on basing solutions on collective management.
Conclusions: Evidence gathered throughout the review process indicates that the objectives
set out in the 2005 and 2011 Recommendations have been only partially achieved, with
mechanisms facilitating collective licences for the digitisation and dissemination of OOC
works also covering the rights of right holders that are not members of the licensor CMO, as
referred to in the 2011 MoU, only present in certain MS and not having cross-border effect.
While actual collective licences of this type are concluded, they are no widespread across the
EU and only in very few cases/MS extend beyond books and learned journals.
58
Table 1 – Examples of limitations and exceptions in MS legislation based on
Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive – illustration for teaching112
MS Implementation of the Compensation foreseen for Examples of specific conditions
teaching exception use under the teaching under the exception or under
exception113 collective agreements
AT Exception Yes • Resources specifically intended for
schools (e.g. textbooks) excluded
BE Exception Yes, compensation foreseen under a
legal license subject to compulsory
collective management (not yet
implemented)
BG Exception No
CZ Exception No
CY Exception No
DK Extended collective licensing Yes (remuneration under ECL) • Specific limitations on the extent of
(ECL) copying (20% of a publication but
not more than 20 pages)
• Cinematographic works that are
part of the general cinema
repertoire of feature films are
excluded from the ECL
DE Exception Yes, compensation through • Resources specifically intended for
collecting societies schools (e.g. textbooks) and
Specific licensing agreement for recently released cinematographic
textbooks. works excluded.
EE Exception No
EL Exception No • Uncertainty on whether digital uses
are allowed
• Uncertainty on the use of AV
works
ES • One general exception for • General exception not subject to • Use of textbooks and academic
illustration for teaching, compensation books not allowed under the
applicable to all education • Exception for universities and general exception
levels public research subject to
• One specific exception (for compensation through
printed works only) for compulsory collective
universities and public management
research, allowing to use a
chapter of a book or an article
in a magazine or journal
FI Extended collective licensing Yes (remuneration under ECL) • Cinematographic works not
(ECL) covered under ECL
• Specific limitations on the extent of
use (different for each education
level)
FR Exception implemented through Yes – compensation defined in the • Resources specifically intended for
several sectoral agreements sectoral agreement based on education (e.g. textbooks) and
voluntary licensing. sheet music excluded from the
exception but covered by sectoral
agreement.
HR Exception Yes • Reproduction is allowed only on
paper or a similar medium
HU Exception No • Uncertainty on whether digital uses
are allowed
112
Sources: J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC ", cit.; Study on
copyright limitations and exceptions for educational activities in North America, Europe, Caucasus,
Central Asia and Israel, Raquel Xalabarder, 2009 (WIPO); Study "Assessment of the impact of the
European copyright framework on digitally-supported education and training practices",; Information
received from publishers (FEP).
113
Only the compensation foreseen under the "illustration for teaching" exception is mentioned in the table
(the compensation existing under the reprography exception is not mentioned).
59
IE • Fair dealing provision for Remuneration under licence
research and private study
• Exception for reprographic
copying and recording of
broadcasts and cable
programmes by educational
establishments subject to the
availability of licences
IT Exception implemented Partially: compensation foreseen • Online publications of images and
partially (quotation and only for reproduction of works in musical works for educational or
teaching exceptions are anthologies. research purposes allowed only in
intertwined) low resolution / degraded quality;
not allowed for AV works
LT Exception No
LV Exception No
LU Exception No
MT Exception No
NL Exception Yes – through collecting societies • The current collective
arrangements allow reproductions
with maximum of 10% of a work
or 10 pages
PL Exception Yes • Uncertainty on whether digital uses
are allowed
PT Exception Partially: compensation foreseen for
the making of teaching
compilations
RO Exception No
SE Extended collective licensing Yes (remuneration under ECL) • Specific limitations on the extent of
(ECL) copying (15% of a publication but
not more than 15 pages)
• Cinematographic works not
covered under ECL
SK Exception No
SI Exception Partially: compensation foreseen • Uncertainty on whether digital uses
only for reproduction of works in are allowed
textbooks
UK • Fair dealing provision for Remuneration under licence • Specific limitation in the law on the
illustration for instruction extent of copying (5% of a work)
• Exception for copying and
use of extracts of works and
for recording of broadcasts
by educational establishments
subject to the availability of
licences
60
Table 2 – Examples of limitations and exceptions in MS legislation based on
Article 5(3)(a) of the InfoSoc Directive – scientific research114
MS Implementation of the
Examples of specific conditions under the existing exception
research exception
BE Exception • Making available limited to the establishments recognised or officially
organised for that purpose by the public authorities
• Specific limitation in the law on the works concerned (articles or works of
fine art in part or in whole or short fragments of other works)
DK Exception • Limited to works of art and works of a descriptive nature for the use in
scientific presentation
DE Exception • Limited to reproduction “for one's own scientific use” and making
available “for a specifically limited circle of persons for their personal
scientific research to be made available to the public”
• Specific limitation in the law on the works concerned (small parts of a
work, small-scale works or individual articles released in newspapers or
periodicals or made available to the public)
ES No exception (only provided for
databases)
FR Exception • Limited to short works or excerpts for purposes of illustration or analysis,
provided that these works or excerpts are communicated within strictly
limited circles of students, teachers, or researchers
HU Exception • Limited to part of a literary or musical work or such a type of an entire
work of a minor volume disclosed to the public
IT Exception • Limited to fragments or parts of works
LU Exception • Publication on the internet limited to short fragments of works
NL No exception (the national law
only allows for quotation in
scientific writing)
PL Exception • Applies to research and educational institutions (individual researchers not
covered)
• Limited to fragments of disseminated works
UK Exception • In June 2014, the UK adopted a specific exception on "Copies for text and
data analysis for non-commercial research"115
114
Sources: J-P. Triaille et alii, "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC ", cit.; J-P. Triaille et
alii, "Study on the legal framework of text and data mining (TDM)", cit.
115
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/1372/contents/made
61
Table 3 – Examples of limitations and exceptions in MS legislation based on
Article 5(2)(c) of the InfoSoc Directive – specific acts of reproduction116
MS Preservation purpose Examples of specific uses or conditions under the existing
explicitly mentioned exception (as relevant for preservation)
BE Yes • Number of copies allowed determined according to and justified by the
preservation objective.
DK Yes • Computer games explicitly included.
DE No specific reference to • Limited to personal archives or archives acting in the public interest.
preservation • Restriction to reprography on paper or similar medium and analogue uses
if the reproduction is necessary for inclusion in a personal archive.
ES Reference to conservation • Record libraries, film libraries, newspaper archives explicitly included.
FR Reference to conservation
HU No specific reference to • Copies possible for archiving purposes.
preservation • Picture and audio archives qualifying as public collections are explicitly
included.
• Copies possible for internal purposes of the organisation but limited to a
minor part of a published work or an article of a newspaper or periodical.
IT No explicit reference to • Reprography only for publicly accessible and school libraries, public
preservation museums and archives for their own services.
• A single copy of phonograms and videograms only for state and public
libraries, record and film archive.
LU Yes • Libraries, film archives, documentation centres and other non-commercial
scientific or cultural institution can reproduce works to preserve heritage
and carry out all activities that are reasonably needed to safeguard the
work.
NL Yes • Copies of literary, scientific or artistic works can be made for restoration
and to preserve them if at risk of degradation.
• Format-shifting explicitly allowed if the technology to access a work
becomes obsolete.
PL Yes
UK Yes
116
Sources: J-P. Triaille et al., "Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC", cit. complemented by
review of national laws and information through discussions with MS and stakeholders.
62
ANNEX 5 – CREATIVE INDUSTRIES IN THE EU ECONOMY
33 sectors of the EU economy are considered to be copyright-intensive (for example: book
publishing, news agencies, TV/movie business, and advertising agencies). These copyright-
intensive industries account directly for 3.2% of employment in the EU with around 7.05
million jobs (on average in 2008-2010). Overall, 4.2% of the EU’s GDP is generated in
copyright-intensive sectors (on average in 2008-2010). Copyright-intensive industries account
for 4.2% of EU’s exports, with net exports of around €15 billion in 2010.117
In the EU, more than 120.000 companies are involved in motion picture, video and television
programme production, sound recording and music publishing activities, providing over
400,000 jobs, with net contribution to the EU economy of over €25 billion. In addition,
11.800 companies are active in programming and broadcasting activities, employing 255.000
persons, and accounting for an added value of €27billion. The publishing sector (including
publishing of books, journals, newspapers and software) includes 90.000 companies,
accounting for 900.000 jobs and a value added of €60 billion.118
The creative industries in the EU are dominated by micro firms with 95% having fewer than
10 employees coexisting with very large corporations.
117
“Intellectual property rights intensive industries: contribution to economic performance and
employment in the European Union. Industry-Level Analysis Report”. A joint project between the
European Patent Office and the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market, September 2013.
118
Eurostat data 2012.
63
ANNEX 6 – ONLINE TRANSMISSIONS OF BROADCASTING ORGANISATIONS
ANNEX 6A – EUROPEAN TV AND RADIO MARKETS
Overview of European TV market
The EU-28 TV market is worth around €86 billion. This comprises direct revenues from three
main sources: public funding (29%), television advertising (34%) and pay-television revenues
(37%).119
Around 86 million homes in the EU receive free to air TV only, compared to 136 million that
subscribe to a TV service, equivalent to a TV subscription per 3.7 people in a total population
of over half a billion.120 The annual value of satellite, cable and IPTV subscriptions is over
€30 billion. Satellite services represent around half the total consumer spending on pay TV
subscriptions, while cable accounts for 36% and IPTV account for 14%.121
The average TV viewing time for the whole EU population in 2013 was 223 minutes per
day.122 Viewing habits differ widely among Member States. In some countries, like Austria,
Finland and Sweden these numbers are lower: 2:42, 2:56 and 2:33 hours/minutes per day
respectively. In countries like Romania, Portugal and Hungary the viewing time reaches 5:42,
4:56 and 4:49 hours/minutes per day respectively.
Since 2012, television viewing has reached a plateau in average in the European Union. As
time-shifted television viewing has been increasingly included in television audience
measurement, this stability implies that live television viewing has declined.123
Europeans predominantly watch television on a TV set (94% at least once a week, -1
percentage point). Although Europeans are far less likely to watch television over the Internet,
this practice continues to gain ground: 20% of Europeans watch television online at least once
a week (+2% versus autumn 2013 and +3% versus the EB78 report of autumn 2012).
Europeans in the 15-24 age group are the most likely to watch television via the Internet: 40%
do so at least once a week. The proportion of respondent who watch television via the Internet
decreases gradually with age: 26% of 25-39 year-olds, 18% of 40-54 year-olds and 8% of
those in the 55-plus age group watch television via the Internet at least once a week.
Watching television via the Internet is particularly widespread in Sweden (48% do so at least
once a week) and Finland (39%), but less so in Bulgaria (11%), Greece (12%) and Portugal
(12%).124
Television is the most frequently used source of European political news by all age groups,
but respondents in the 55+ age group are the most frequent users of this medium (83%).
Online advertising revenues are growing globally, including online TV and video
advertising’s share.125 Online television advertising revenue in Western Europe is estimated to
119
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook, 2015. Figures for 2014.
120
Source: informitv analysis, SatCab Study, p. 7-8.
121
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory. Yearbook 2015. Figures for 2014.
The development of the European market for on-demand audiovisual services. The figures include
linear TV as well as short term catch-up (up to 7 days in some countries).
123
EAO On-demand Audiovisual Markets in the European Union (2014 and 2015 developments).
124
Standard Eurobarometer 82, Autumn 2014. Media use in the EU. See:
http://ec.europa.eu/COMMFrontOffice/PublicOpinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/yearFrom/19
73/yearTo/2014/surveyKy/2041
125
Share of online in global advertising spending in 2013 was 20%, however it is increasing, see
http://www.statista.com/statistics/272943/forecast-of-global-online-advertising-spending/ Television
maintains the highest share of advertising revenue across all media: global total TV advertising
64
be worth just under €0.75 billion in 2015, although it is forecast to rise to €1.6 billion in 2019.
The EU 28 advertising revenue for 2014 is €29.28 billion.126
While TV remains the preferred media for advertising (32% of the market), the Internet is
likely to become the main advertising platform within the next two years, given its rapid
development (+8.4% vs. 2012) and the market share already captured in 2013 (27.4%).127
In 2014, Internet advertising spending was higher than TV advertising spending in a number
of EU countries: Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, the United
Kingdom.
According to the EAO Study on online advertising in the EU,128 the total size of the online
advertising market in the EU in 2013 was €27.2 billion, an increase of 11.6% compared to the
total of €23.2 billion in 2013. On the other hand, television advertising in the EU lost in 2013
more than EUR 300 million out of EUR 27.748 million overall investments (-1.1% vs.
2012).129
In 2009, EU broadcasters invested around 1/3 of their revenues in EU quality content. In that
year, out of the EUR 34.5 billion programme spend in the EU by broadcasters approximately
EUR 15.6 billion was spent on acquiring rights, EUR 5.8 billion on sports rights and EUR 9.8
billion on film and TV acquisitions.130
In 2014, European public broadcasters invested 84% of their programming expenditure in
original content, amounting to 14.04 billion EUR.131
revenue’s share of global total advertising revenue was 31.5% in 2014, see PWC the Global
entertainment and media outlook 2015 –2019,http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/entertainment-
media/outlook/segment-insights/tv-advertising.html.
126
SatCab Study, p. 57.
127
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory/WARC
128
Published in September 2015
129
Source: WARC
130
See SWD (2016) 168 final COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT, IMPACT
ASSESSMENT Accompanying the document Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and
of the Council amending Directive 2010/13/EU on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by
law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual
media services in view of changing market realities, Annex 6, p. 148.
131
EBU information, available at http://www.ebu.ch/files/live/sites/ebu/files/Publications/EBU-MIS%20-
%20PSM%20Investment%20in%20European%20Content.pdf
65
Extracts from the SatCab Study
2.1.2. Overview of the distribution of broadcast channels
The European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database lists over 13,000 television channels available in
Europe, including over 5,000 international, national or regional channels established in the EU and over 1,900
free channels. In addition, there are thousands of radio channels or stations, which are not listed in the database.
A television channel, in this context, is defined as a sequential presentation of audiovisual programmes provided
for simultaneous viewing on the basis of a schedule. Individual broadcasters normally hold the regulatory licence
for a particular channel and are editorially responsible for its content. A single channel brand may be available in
different languages or regional variants, each of which counts as a separate channel. A radio channel, for the
purpose of this Report, is defined as a service that offers a sequential presentation of audio programmes linked to
a particular channel for simultaneous listening on the basis of a schedule using a technical method of
(re)transmission that can be used also for television channels.
Broadcasters may be public bodies, traded corporations or private companies. Public service broadcasters
generally have a specific licence remit for one or more of their channels. Commercial broadcasters are partly
funded by advertising. These categories are not mutually exclusive. For example, a broadcaster may be state-
owned with a public service remit, offering some of its channels primarily funded by advertising and others on a
subscription basis. In this report a public broadcaster refers to organisations that are owned by the public or the
state.
A channel typically originates as part of the playout function (i.e. the transmission of the channel) normally at
the originating broadcaster. From this point there is necessarily an uninterrupted chain of communication to the
point through the broadcasting network at which the signal is received and accessed in real time by the ultimate
audience.
A broadcaster may make a channel available directly through a traditional terrestrial transmission, or via a
satellite, cable or other telecommunications network. Different channels may be delivered by any or all of these
methods.
Terrestrial radio and services are broadcast from transmission towers and received through an antenna.
Traditionally, radio and television broadcasts have been free-to-air i.e. meaning they are accessible to anyone
that has the technology to receive them. Some satellite services are free-to-air given that they can be received by
holders of the necessary equipment. However, many satellite services are encrypted and therefore users are also
required to pay for a subscription in order to access the content.
Free channels are those which are free to view (i.e. meaning they are accessible to the public without payment)
although they may be subject to a licence fee. Terrestrial channels are generally free to view, although some are
available as part of subscription services (normally as part of a package of channels linked to the basic level of
subscription).
Services that are free-to-air (i.e. those that can be accessed by holders of the relevant technology) are effectively
those which are free to view (although some free-to-air channels can be encrypted).
A simplified overview of the provision of broadcasting services by direct to home satellite and cable
redistribution is indicated in Figure 2.1.
Figure 2.1 Direct to home satellite distribution and cable redistribution of free-to-air and encrypted pay
television channels
66
Free
satellite
Free
satellite
Satellite
subscriber
Free to air Encrypted Cable television Basic Cable
channel pay channel provider cable subscriber
Direct to home satellite television and radio channels are uplinked from an earth station or teleport either directly
by a broadcaster, by a third-party facility such as Arqiva (UK), MEDIA BROADCAST (DE) or rt1.tv (DE), by a
satellite operator such as SES or Eutelsat, or by a television service provider like Sky (UK and IE) or Cyfrowy
Polsat (PL). Satellite radio and television services are relayed through satellites in geostationary orbit and
received through a dish antenna.
Many broadcasters make their channels available via satellite as it provides broad geographic coverage at
relatively low cost. Some channels, including some channels that are free to view, are encrypted and can only be
decoded and viewed using a uniquely identifiable receiver. Pay channels are generally encrypted and are
available on a subscription basis and therefore reception requires authorisation from the service provider.
The satellite, generally operated by a satellite operator such SES, relays a signal that can be received anywhere
within the service footprint, across national borders. Therefore, free satellite channels that are not encrypted can
be received outside of a targeted country market as a result of signal overspill. However, some channels are
intended for distribution across an entire continent, whereas other channels are mainly intended for reception in
particular territories.
Satellite television service providers typically aggregate and package multiple satellite channels as one or more
service propositions or bundles. Service providers may originate and transmit their own channels, for which they
may be considered broadcasters. The service platform provides features such as an electronic programme guide,
through which users can find information about programmes and tune to channels. Such guides may be regulated
to provide prominence to certain channels. The channel package may include a combination of free to view
channels and subscription channels. Users may be able to add other available channels that are not part of the
standard package (normally as part of premium subscription packages). However, some satellite platforms are
free to view and simply require the purchase of a compatible receiver. Users can also purchase receivers that can
be set up to tune to any available channels without reference to a service provider, although this is a less
common consumer practice.
Satellite television service providers like Sky Italia and NC+ (Poland) offer packages of services to satellite
subscribers that may include encrypted pay television channels as well as television and radio channels that are
available free-to-air. Some satellite packages of television and radio channels, such as Freesat, are available
entirely free-to-air, without charge or subscription.
Satellite channels can be received outside the country in which they are established by anyone with a compatible
67
receiver, anywhere within the satellite service footprint. Encrypted channels can only be decrypted with the
authorisation of the service provider, so access can be individually restricted to the addresses of premises in
particular territories.
Cable television and radio services are generally carried over a co-axial cable. Signals are received at a cable
head end, either via terrestrial or satellite transmissions. A cable television provider such as Liberty Global, can
receive cross-border satellite signals and retransmit them via cable to customer homes. However, signals can also
be received via direct injection of signals by arrangement with broadcasters, for instance through a satellite or
fibre-optic feed. The channels are redistributed, typically over a fibre-optic network to neighbourhood nodes,
from where they are delivered to homes over conventional co-axial cables. The cable service provider
determines which channels will be available on its network and therefore needs to have the relevant rights to
redistribute the respective channels. Service providers may also originate and distribute their own channels.
Some channels may be provided free of charge, or as part of a basic cable service tier. Other channels may be
encrypted and are offered on a subscription basis, typically in various bundled packages. National regulations
may require some channels to be carried or offered for carriage on cable services. Some broadcasters may seek
carriage fees for the redistribution of their channels.
It is now possible for other telecommunications companies (which may be either former national telephone
companies or competing providers of communications services) to distribute radio and television channels and
other audiovisual services over fixed or wireless broadband data networks using internet protocols. Such services
can offer a range of channels comparable to conventional cable networks. This is sometimes referred to as
internet protocol television, or IPTV. Since any network, including cable networks, can potentially employ
internet protocols, this report will refer to services delivered by telecommunications providers other than
conventional cable companies as ‘telco television’.
Television and radio channels can also be offered online over the open internet. Many satellite, cable and telco
operators offer such services to their subscribers. There are also some standalone online services for example
YouTube channels or iTunes radio. Many broadcasters also offer online simulcasts of their broadcast channels. It
is technically possible to limit access to online services by internet address, service provider network, or
subscriber account. This can be used to geo-restrict online services to an extent to particular territories.
A problem faced by the industry relates to measurement of audience viewing behaviour. Typically, surveying
methods, such as home panel surveys, are used that vary in their scale. As a result, viewer behaviour is normally
based on estimations using sample data. Despite their shortcomings these provide the basis for advertising sales.
On the other hand, online viewing can be much more accurately monitored through software code that can
record actual usage. There are initiatives in some countries that make use of existing home panel surveys with a
view to also monitoring their use of online services.132
2.1.3. Overall main findings of the market analysis
Given the extensive volume of data examined by the market analysis, the main findings of this chapter are
presented in the introductory section with a view to addressing the main research questions.
Table 2.1 provides some of the key quantitative findings in terms of the overall assessment of the EU-28
television market.
Table 2.1 Overall assessment of the EU-28 television market (2014)
Indicators Results
Overall EU-28 television revenues €86 billion
Sources of overall EU-28 television revenues Advertising 34%
Subscriptions 31.81%
Public funding 29%
132
http://www.barb.co.uk/project-dovetail/
68
Break down of EU-28 subscription revenues by satellite, cable and Satellite: €15 billion (50%)
telco platforms Cable: €11 billion (36%)
Telco €4.29 billion (14%)133
Number of households in the EU with subscriptions 136 million134
Number of households in the EU receiving free-to-air services Total: 86 million136
only135
Number of households in the EU receiving satellite services Pay: 41.2 million137
Free: 28.7 million
Number of households in the EU receiving cable services 56.4 million138
Number of households in the EU receiving telco services 28.3 million139
EU-28 Member State geographical coverage of number of pay TV Highest: France 25 million
subscribers Lowest: Cyprus 100 thousand140
EU-28 Member State geographical coverage of pay TV subscribers Highest: Denmark 46.3%
as a proportion of the population Lowest: Greece 8.1%141
The assessment of industry data indicates that the EU28 television market is well developed. Around 86 million
homes in the European Union receive only free-to-air television, compared to 136 million that subscribe to a
television service, equivalent to 1 television subscription per 3.7 people in a total population of over half a
billion.142
The annual value of satellite, cable and telco subscriptions is over €30 billion. Satellite services count for around
half of the market with cable representing over a third and telco at less than fifteen percent. While there are more
cable homes than satellite, nearly half of cable homes are still analogue, which limits revenue potential i.e. fewer
channels and no high definition. Whereas average revenue per user for advanced satellite platforms such as Sky
Deutschland is much higher.
However, the geographical coverage of services is highly uneven across the EU-28 Member States. The
proportion of pay TV subscription holders ranges from 46.3% in Demark to 8.1% in Greece. An overview of the
geographical coverage of channels is provided in Table 2.2.
Table 2.2 Overall assessment of the coverage of channels across the EU-28 and 11 sample countries (2015)
Indicators Results
Total number ‘international’, ‘national’ or ‘regional’ channels available across Overall: 5720
the 28 European Union Member States Free channels: 1903
Total number ‘international’, ‘national’ or ‘regional’ channels available in Overall: 5,231
total across the 11 sample countries Free: 483
Total number ‘international’, ‘national’ or ‘regional’ channels established in Overall: 3883
the 11 sample countries Free: 1187
Balance of trade (channels available minus channels established) for the 11 Overall: -1348
sample countries Free: 704
133
European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook, 2015.
134
Ibid
135
i.e. services accessible to the public without payment
136
Digital TV World Databook, 2015
137
European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook, 2015.
138
Ibid
139
Ibid
140
Ibid
141
Ibid
142
informitv analysis
69
Total number of channels available by platform in the 11 sample countries: Terrestrial: 483
Pay terrestrial: 283
Satellite: 2628
Cable: 2640
Telco: 2298
Mobile / other: 299
Number of channels established in one of the 11 sample countries which was One country: 2839
indicated as available in another sample country Two countries: 625
Three countries: 97
Five countries: 29
Six countries: 23
Seven countries: 20
Eight countries: 11
Nine countries: 7
Ten countries: 5
Eleven countries: 5
The assessment of the MAVISE database (2015) indicates that the number of television channels available in the
EU-28 stands at 5720, with 5231 of those channels available in the 11 sample countries. Out of the 3883
channels established in the 11 sample countries, only 822 were indicated available in two or more of the sample
countries.
The analysis of availability in the 11 sample countries indicates that the distribution of television channels is
mainly territorial. […]
On the evidence of this analysis of channel availability, it appears that much of the international traffic in
television channels is increasingly within the pay-television system. However, pay television service providers
may still rely upon the availability of channels from the main national broadcasters to sustain their programming
packages.
While satellite services could potentially all be offered on a multinational basis, the analysis suggests that in
practice there are relatively few pan-European services. With the exception of services such as some news and
sports channels, the majority of satellite services are aimed at specific geographic markets.
Although broadcast television is widely enjoyed in all countries in Europe, the television market in Europe is
dominated by some of the larger Member States, notably the United Kingdom, which is a net exporter of
channels.
Table 2.3 Analysis of the market development of satellite broadcasting, cable and telco services
Indicators for EU-28 Results
2020 - forecast of the market development for satellite services in terms of the 18% share
number of subscriptions (flat growth rate since
2010)143
2020 - forecast of the market development for cable services in terms of the 24% share
number of subscriptions (slowly declining since
2010)144
2020 - forecast of the market development for telco services in terms of the 16% share (steady rise
number of subscriptions since 2010)145
Overall pay television market share by 2020 59% (steady increase since
2010)146
143
Digital TV Research, Global Pay TV Operator Forecasts 2015
144
Ibid
145
Ibid
146
Ibid
70
2016 number of digital television subscribers by platform Satellite: 41.17 million
Cable: 30.74 million
Telco: 28.32 million147
The market data (see Table 2.3) suggest that the current satellite and cable television markets are mature given
their forecasts for flat growth or likely decline. The markets for other retransmission platforms, based on internet
technologies, are developing rapidly. Key findings are as follows:
The adoption of satellite subscriptions is forecast by Digital TV Research to remain relatively flat through to
2020, at around 18% of television homes in the current 28 European Union countries;
Cable service providers are migrating from analogue to digital, a process that is forecast to be almost
complete by 2020, giving digital cable a share of almost 24% of television homes;
The overall share for cable is forecast to decline, while that for telco television will continue to rise, to just
below 16%;
Overall, pay television is forecast to rise to approaching 60% of households in the European Union by 2020.
Table 2.4 Analysis of the market development of broadcast-related online services
Indicators Results
Number of households with online video on demand services 23 million in 2015 to 61
million in 2020148
2015 - Number of online video on demand services available (11 sample 2207
countries)
2015 - Number of online video on demand services established (11 sample 1343
countries)
2015 - Number of catch-up TV services available (11 sample countries) 629
2015 - Number of catch-up TV established (11 sample countries) 462
Online video-on-demand services (see Table 2.4) are expected to grow by 270% in the coming years (i.e. from
2015 to 2020). There are already 1343 broadcaster related online video services established in the 11 sample
countries, with 2207 available. However, there appears to be a lower level of international availability of catch-
up television services. […]
2.2.1. Assessment of the main revenue sources of the EU-28 broadcasting market and overall size of the
market for pay TV and free-to-air services
According to the European Audiovisual Observatory, based on figures for 2014, the television market in the
European Union is worth around €86 billion a year (Figure 2.2). This comprises direct revenues from three main
sources; public funding, television advertising and pay-television revenues. Pay-television subscriptions
represent the largest proportion of direct television revenue at 37%.
Figure 2.2 Direct television revenues for EU28 (2014)
147
European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook 2015.
148
Digital TV Research Global SVOD Forecasts, 2015 Edition.
71
Total EU 28 Revenues
€86bn
Public
Funding
€25.57
Subscriptions 29%
€31.81
37%
Advertising
€29.42
34%
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook 2015
Figures for 2014
Considering all three revenue sources, there are clear differences in the size of the markets of the EU-28
countries. By far the most valuable markets are the United Kingdom and Germany, each worth around €18
billion a year, followed by France (€12bn), Italy (€8bn), and Spain (€5bn) (Figure 2.3). These figures do not
include the value of other revenue streams, such as the licensing of individual programmes for distribution by
other broadcasters or platforms.
In terms of the size of the market, there are approximately 136 million homes subscribing to television services
in the EU-28, out of a total population of over half a billion, representing around one subscription per 3.7 people:
Over 41 million homes in the EU subscribe to satellite television services;
There are 56 million cable households, of which 30 million receive digital cable;
There are a further 28 million subscribers to telco television services;
There are around 6 million terrestrial television subscribers.149
In addition, around 86 million homes in the European Union receive only free-to-air television. The majority of
these receive digital terrestrial television. Most of these homes are in Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. Over
28 million homes receive free-to-air satellite services. More than half of these are in Germany.150
[…]
Table 2.17 International, national or regional channels available in EU28 by genre (2015)
Channel Genre Total TV Free
Channels TV
High definition simulcast of an existing channel 1063 174
Sports 585 40
Regional/local 481 342
Entertainment 399 130
Film 344 27
Music 296 95
Children's 269 51
Adult 263 72
General 243 192
149
European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook, 2015.
150
Digital TV World Databook, 2015.
72
Window 232 215
Documentary 226 11
TV fiction 203 14
Lifestyle/specific leisure 188 52
News 156 107
Time-shifted versions 110 30
Home shopping 109 89
Promotional/information channel of multi-channel packager 92 19
Religious 88 74
Cultural/educational 81 40
Others 71 26
International linguistic and cultural 53 34
Minority interest groups 50 30
Games/lottery/betting 35 8
Travel 32 3
Parliamentary/government/administration 20 14
Business 17 11
Weather 11
Dating/classified ads 3 3
TOTAL 5720 1903
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database
informitv analysis
[…]
Table 2.19 Comparison of international, national or regional channels available versus channels
established in 11 sample EU countries for organisations with public or mixed ownership (2015)
Channels established in country
Viewing country DK DE IE ES FR IT HU NL PL SE UK
Denmark 20 8 2 6 2 1 4 6
Germany 44 2 20 5 1 1 3 5
Ireland 12 8 30
Spain 1 23 19 1 1 1
France 8 8 31 6 4 4
Italy 7 2 17 23 1 1 6
Hungary 6 1 16 2 14 1 4
Netherlands 32 2 25 1 18 1 11
Poland 5 18 4 16 10
Sweden 3 2 1 3 2 2 1 7 9
United Kingdom 3 1 7 57
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database extract
informitv analysis
[…]
Table 2.25 Comparison of international, national or regional channels available versus channels
established in 11 sample EU countries (2015)
Channels established in country
Viewing country DK DE IE ES FR IT HU NL PL SE UK
Denmark 44 17 2 11 3 11 2 46 96
Germany 316 3 32 10 1 7 6 51
73
Ireland 26 13 5 436
Spain 1 201 28 1 1 1 33
France 34 10 352 14 24 6 2 90
Italy 7 2 23 348 2 2 44
Hungary 14 2 35 2 44 10 1 139
Netherlands 65 2 45 2 165 2 94
Poland 11 34 12 16 122 114
Sweden 3 3 1 18 3 2 11 2 127 134
United Kingdom 5 1 14 1 10 617
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database extract
informitv analysis
74
Clearing underlying rights for TV programmes: examples
In their daily operations, TV broadcasters face significant transaction costs related to the
clearance of underlying rights for their programmes. A number of rights and time-line to clear
them depend on the types of the programme. As the below examples demonstrate, one
episode of series produced by a broadcaster may include up to 100 underlying rights. Other
types of programmes (e.g. documentaries, cultural programmes, entertainment programmes)
may require clearing a smaller but still significant number of underlying rights.
An example of BBC TV series Doctor Who shows that more than 80 contributions per
episode needed to be cleared151:
The table below shows the number of underlying contributor rights usually included in a single episode of
Doctor Who archives. […]
Average number of contributions per episode
Type of contribution Average number of contributions per episode
Music tracks+ 2
Orchestras+ 1
Specially commissioned music+ 16
Walk-ons+ 14
Actors+ 15
Supporting or Additional Dialogue artists+ 12
Directors+ 1
Script* 1-2
Character format* 2+
Show runner* 1
Literary extracts* 1
Photographic stills* 23
+ Collective body with mandate
* Individual contract binding to third party group required (not retrospective)
In 2007-2008, the BBC issued 305,000 contracts to contributors for in-house programming
alone, and each week some 250,000 items of music are reported to the music collecting
societies.
In ZDF (Germany) experience, a single 30 minutes episode of a TV series can generally
involve up to 100 contributions and right holders (actors, musicians, composer, phonogram
industry etc.). ZDF concludes more than 70 000 contracts a year.152
ORF (Austria) examples: 153
For the “Documentary on the History of the National Anthem”, the rights on 26 clips
had to be cleared, including 17 external license holders to be dealt with.
Culture programmes:
o for the programme “Kultur Montag”, in average 4-6 rights holders have to be
dealt with;
151
See http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140603093549/http://www.ipo.gov.uk/ipreview-c4e-
sub-bbc.pdf
152
Source: EBU.
153
Source: EBU.
75
o For the documentary “Künstlerportait” 32 rights to clear (13 clips).
Family/entertainment programmes: for the programme “Willkommen Österreich”
(comedy talk) 12 rights to clear (7 clips).
In addition music rights have to be cleared. These are cleared with CMOs. ORF has
framework agreements with them, which run over several years.
TVP (Poland) example
In one episode of very popular TVP serial „M jak miłość” („L like love”) 18 underlying rights
of contributors to the episode (director, author of screenplay, scenographer, 2 composers,
operator of camera, cutter, 2 sound operators, 8 actors, 2 music performers) and 24 pre-
existing works were embedded (mainly music).
EU radio markets
Radio in the EU is normally free-to-air, transmitted via wire or wireless means. Radio
programmes typically consists of talk, stories, entertainment, news, music and surprises.
80% of the EU population listens to radio for at least 2 to 3 hours a day – and mostly to local
or regional programmes, as shown by national audience measurement. There are 4 to 5 radio
receivers in every household in Europe.154 On average, 6 to 8% of total listening of radio is
done online in Europe.155
There is a large number of radios in Europe. For example, the Association of European
Radios (AER) represents the interests of over 4,500 private/commercial radio stations across
the EU28 and in Switzerland. As in the TV market, radios can be divided into commercial and
public radios. Some radios function on regional or local scale, while others are national or
offer services beyond a Member State.
For example, in 2014 France there were 800 commercial radios and 7 networks of public
radios; in the UK there were 344 commercial radios and 57 public radios: the BBC had 11
national stations, 6 in the nations and 40 local stations (as well as BBC World Service); in
Lithuania, there were 18 national commercial radios, 10 regional and 21 local commercial
radios, 3 public radios (total 52 radios); in Spain there were 3040 radios, of which 1724
public. 156
Radio broadcasters acquire licences for protected content, mostly for music rights from
CMOs. They also acquire licences for using e.g. drama works and literature works. For the
use of extracts from works (such as books, science works, etc) in their programmes, radio
broadcasters often rely on exceptions and limitations, e.g. quotation.
The detailed analysis of the radio market in ten EU Member States is presented below,
showing the number of radios, turnover and advertisement revenues per Member State as well
as advertisement market shares of radio, TV and online.
154
Source: AER press release, 2014.
155
Source: AER reply to the public consultation on the SatCab review, 2015.
156
Source: AER.
76
Number of radio stations in ten Member States157
Number of Austria Denmark Finland France Germany Ireland Italy Lithuania Spain UK
radio stations
Total 45 Approximately 70 73 800 274 34 780 49 1'575 340 (FM 238, AM 56
commercial http://www.zilio and DAB 48) in 2014
nis.lt/rtv/px.php?
R
National 1 6 (5 on FM and 12 N/A 18 2 14 18 N/A N/A
commercial DAB, 1 on FM)
Regional 44 50 See below N/A 74 4 (also have 1 No distinction 10 N/A N/A
commercial multicity between regional
licensed radio and local
station)
Local 0 See above 61 (incl. local N/A 182 27 766 21 N/A N/A
commercial and regional
radios total)
Public 12: 4 FM / DAB 7 Radio France is 70 terrestrial 10 5 3 1'346 57 The BBC has 11
3 national national (one of divided into 7 radio (approximately national stations, 6 in
9 regional them a regional networks 100 web the nations and 40
network composed channels and local stations (and
of 10 stations) loop streams) BBC World Service)
Turnover and advertising revenues of radio stations and public broadcasters in ten Member States158
Radio income Austria Denmark Finland France Germany Ireland Italy Lithuania Spain UK
(by category)
Remarks All Euro figures are A substantial part of All Euro figures All Euro figures are
calculated at a rate the data is from 2013 are calculated at a calculated at a rate 1£
of 1 DKK = rate of 1 LTL = = 1.2 €
0.134275 € 0.29 €
157
This table is based on data provided by AER; this data dates 2012/2014 (some data was updated in 2016).
158
This table is based on data provided by AER; this data dates 2012/2014 (some data was updated in 2016).
77
Annual N/A N/A 59,4 million € 680 million € In total: 4'468 No information 382 million € (2013) 6.37 million € N/A 710 million €
turnover (estimate) million € [2012] national + local http://www.lrta.eu
(private and Commercial commercial (without /Naujienos/Aktual
commercial radios: 665 Radio Radicale - no ijos/Transliuotoju-
radio stations) million € [2012] advertising income) ir-retransliuotoju-
source: ZAW- pajamos-2013-
Jahrbuch 2013, metais
Wirtschaftliche
Lage des
Rundfunks in
Deutschland
2012/2013
Advertising N/A Approx. 45 million € 100% It depends on the 746,11 million See above 351 million € (2013) N/A N/A 710 million €
income (private company / some € [2013, net]; national + local
and examples in 2013: 737,66 million comercial (without
commercial Les indés Radios : € [2014, net]; Radio Radicale - no
radio stations) 165 million € (all 742,79 million advertising income)
activities) € [2015, net]
NRJ Group: 203 source: ZAW-
million € (for the Jahrbuch
audio department,
including radio)
Next radio TV: 75
million € (for the
radio department)
Amount of the 2014: 589 DR receives approx. approx. 100 2012: 583 million € 2'757 million € RTE receives N /A LRT radios and N/A Licence-fee income
compensation million € (for 492,824 million €, million € (Rapport d'Activités [2012] "Licence 182 million € LRT TVs receive currently: 4'327.2
public radio and TV and the regional TV2 Radio France 2012) fee" = from the 20,559 million € million € per year
broadcasters ) regions 68.7835 approximately television per year
receive to million € every year 2'797.96 licence fee, in
accomplish million € addition to
their general [2011] (ARD + being able to
interest Deutschlandradi access
mission o, GEZ 2011) additional
funding
distributed by
the regulator t
Total turnover N/A N/A approx. 100 650,141 million € Total income: N/A 139 million € (2013) Total income: N/A Total licence-fee
of public radio million € (Rapport d'Activités 3'504 million € 5,797 million € income currently
broadcasters Radio France 2012) (4'327.2 million € per
Other income: year) + other income
532 million € generated (1'338.96
[2012] source: million €) = 5'666.1
Wirtsch. Lage million €
des Rundfunks Source: BBC annual
in Deutschland report 2011
12/13
78
Advertising 2014: 0€ No advertising 40,423 million € 214'63 million Roughly 22 29 million € 5,217 million € N/A 0 - although some BBC
income of approx. 300 income allowed (Rapport d'Activités € [2012] million € Worldwide profits (187
public million € (for Radio France 2012) million € redirected to
broadcasters radio and radio)
TV)
Total (TV, 2014: 912 561 million € per 470,7 million € N/A 8'648 million € 307 million € 2'746 million € 31,573 million € N/A 5'666.1 million €
radio, online) million € year [planned for (2013) Source: BBC annual
income of 2014]; report 2012/13
public 8'505 million €
broadcasters [2013];
8'525 million €
[2012] source:
Public
broadcaster
ARD, ZDF,
Deutschland
radio
Advertising market turnover and expenditure share for TV, radio and online159
The below table shows that in the ten Member States for which data is available, radio advertisement expenditure amounts to between 2.3% (in
Denmark) and 17% (in Ireland) of the total advertisement expenditure; TV advertisement expenditure amounts to between 17.66% (Denmark) to
55% (Italy).
Advertising Austria Denmark Finland France Germany Ireland Italy Lithuania Spain UK
market share
expenditure
Source Focus Media TNS Gallup N/A IREP: ZAW-Jahrbuch N/A Nielsen http://www.respubli Warc:
Research http://www.ire 2013 ka.lt/lt/naujienos/li http://www.warc.com/
p.asso.fr/marc etuva/verslas/tns_lt
he- _ziniasklaidos_rekl
publicitaire- amos_rinka_stabili
chiffres- zuojasi/,print.1
annuels.php#a
Total 3'522 million € 1'681.37 1'155,4 million € 13'282 million 15'517 million € N/A 6'359.4 million € N / A (94 million € 5'570 million € N/A
advertising (gross income; million € € [2012, net] = 100 (2013) (2010))
market in 2015 2015) %;
for all media 15'254 million €
[2013, net] = 100
%
159
This table is based on data provided by AER; this data dates 2012/2014 (some data was updated in 2016).
79
TV 28% 17.66% 22.10% 24.23% 4'038 million € 29% 55% 47% (2010) 41.60% 43.60%
[2012, net] = 26.0
%; 4'125 million €
[2013, net] = 27.0
%
Radio 6% 2.30% 5.10% N/A (between 720 million € 17% 6.00% 8% (2010) 9.10% 5.5%
5 and 10%) [2012, net] = 4.6
%;
746 million €
[2013, net] = 4.9 %
Internet 7% 39.33% 24.80% 17.30% 1'079 million € 21% 7% (without 7,7% (2010) 1.30% 15.10%
[2012, net] = 7.0 Search or Social)
%;
1'152 million €
[2013, net] = 7.6 %
80
ANNEX 6B – AVAILABILITY OF BROADCASTERS' ONLINE SERVICES ACROSS BORDERS
This Annex provides data on cross-border availability of broadcasters' online services (simulcasting and catch-up-TV/radio). It contains data
provided by EBU on public broadcasters' services from 14 EEA countries as well as data from the SatCab Study covering services from 11 MS
(three commercial/public broadcasters' channels from each covered MS).
According to the initial findings of the Commission’s e-commerce sector inquiry160, 82% of public broadcasters and 62% of commercial
broadcasters covered by the sector inquiry implement at least one type of geo-blocking for their online services. The proportion of agreements
requiring service providers to geo-block news (including current events) is 23% and 50% for other non-fiction TV.161
Examples of cross-border availability of broadcasters' online services162
Public broadcasters:
SVT (Sweden) geo-blocks its simulcasting TV services (they are available only in Sweden);
LTV (Lithuania) does not geo-block most of its simulcasting services, except for certain international entertainment;
Mediathek, the livestream channel of ZDF (Germany), is geo-blocked and cross-border access is allowed only to selected programmes;
BBC (UK) channels BBC1, BBC2, BBC4 online services (BBC iPlayer) are available only in the United Kingdom while BBC World News online services are
available in other MS.
Commercial broadcasters:
TV4 Play (Sweden) geo-blocks online simulcasting TV services except live TV news;
TV3 (Lithuania) news and own production is not geo-blocked but international entertainment programmes are geo-blocked;
RTL TV Now (Germany) makes simulcasting services available only locally while live TV News are available internationally (paid services);
ITV (UK) free online services are only available for individuals located in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands or Isle of Man, however, ITV offers ITV Essentials,
a paid service which provides a selection of programmes available in 11 Member States.
160
An issues paper presenting initial findings is available at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/antitrust/ecommerce_swd_en.pdf.
161
Ibid, p. 55.
162
These examples are based on the information from the SatCab Study, information provided by EBU and own research.
81
PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTERS
The below table provides detailed information about online services of public service broadcasters and their availability across borders for 13 EU Member States and Norway
(based on information received from EBU):
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
Austria ORF public ORF1; ORF2; No. About 200 Partially- Geo blocking is Yes Partially - Only small parts
ORF III programmes required due to contractual of the programmes available
(culture & from the 4 obligations especially for as Video-on-Demand have
information) ; ORF-TV- most of the sport-live- to be geo-blocked. The geo-
ORFSport+ Channels ORF broadcasts but for all other blocked programmes can be
eins, ORF2, kind of other programme from all categories.
ORF III and categories as well. 5-10% is geoblocked
ORF Sport +
are made Percentage of geoblocked
regularly content:
available as - not available it depends
livestream but on the program […]
no entire
channel.
Czech Republic CT Public - CT1 -CT1- Yes - CT1- Not available -CT1- Yes (not -CT1- Not available
(general) (not sports - CT Sport- not available sports news) -CT Sport- not available
- CT Sport news) - CT 24- partially (no -CT Sport- Yes -CT 24- partially (no sports
(Sport)s -CT Sport- sports news) (not sports news) news)
- CT 24 Yes (not CT24- Yes (not
(news & sports news) sports news)
current affairs) CT24- Yes
(not sports
news)
Denmark TV2 Public TV2 Yes Partially- TV 2’s own Yes Partially- Own produced
DANMARK produced content, e.g. news and current affairs
82
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
news programming, and programming is not geo-
some Danish content blocked. That also applies to
produced for TV 2, e.g. current affairs programming
documentaries, Danish commissioned by TV 2 with
series (fiction), is not geo- independent Danish
blocked. A number of producers.
Danish programmes Information programming
produced for TV 2, e.g. and other Danish
entertainment, is based on programming commissioned
foreign formats and is by TV 2 is not geo-blocked
therefore geo-blocked to in general, but entertainment
Danish ip-addresses. programming based on
The same applies to foreign formats is often geo-
licensed non-Danish blocked. That also applies to
programme, such as sports news programming
documentaries, fiction and coverage of
(series), and feature films international sports events.
which are also geo-blocked Danish sports events,
as geo-blocking is required however, for which rights
by the content providers. are licensed from Danish
Furthermore, sports sports associations, are not
programming – news and geo-blocked.
licensed programming, in Series (fiction)
particular foreign sports commissioned by TV 2 is
events, is geo-blocked as generally not geo-blocked,
geo-blocking is required but series licensed from
by rights holders. Danish foreign licensors as well as
sports events are not geo- foreign feature films are
blocked. It is not possible geo-blocked.
to provide a precise
estimate of the percentage
83
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
of geo-blocked content,
but approximately 69% of
TV 2’s programme service
consists of Danish
language programming,
which is not geo-blocked
in general. However, it is
not possible to say if this is
the correct percentage of
content that is not geo-
blocked.
Finland YLE Public YLE1; YLE2; Yes Partially – Yes Partially –
YLE Teema; - Some of sports, - Some of sports, fiction,
YLE Fem fiction, co-production, co-production,
entertainment entertainment especially
especially content content where music
where music plays a plays a central role.
central role.
- About 40 percent is
geo-blocked.
Germany ZDF Public -ZDF main -ZDF.de: Cross-border access via the Yes– Around Partially
channel http://live.ZD general livestream button 75% of the linear
(General) F.de in the ZDF Mediathek programme is The most important part of
Market share: (main page) to the available as catch- the ZDF main channel
12 % . -ZDFinfo.de: different ZDF channels up services. consists of news, reportage,
-ZDFinfo http://live.ZD (ZDF, ZDF neo, ZDF info information programmes,
(Information Finfo.de and others) is not possible consumer programmes
and current since there is legal (around 40%). This is made
affairs) -ZDFneo.de: insecurity whether the – wherever possible –
Market share : http://live.ZD CoO applies to livestream. accessible on a cross border
around 1% Fneo.de Since 28 different laws basis.
84
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
-ZDFneo have to be respected and Main problem: high number
(General with YES: All 3 different provisions on the of still pictures, short audio-
stronger focus channels are limitations on copyright visual material and/or sound
on fiction and available as might be applicable, ZDF included/embedded.
entertainment) 24/7 gives cross-border access Whereas music-rights can
Market share: Livestream to the livestream only for be cleared on the basis of the
around 1% individual programmes collective agreements (see
items accessible through a recommendation GESAC,
specific subpage of the EBU, ICMP and ECSA),
ZDF Mediathek (ZDF this is not the case for the
Einzelne Live Sendungen other parts included in the
‘live.zdf.de/start’). programme.
Daily Practice - if not all
embedded/included parts are
cleared: (1) The entire
programme has to be
geoblocked. (2) Embedded
material has to be
geoblocked (black screen
within a programme). (3)
Embedded materials have to
be changed in a post-
production process before
making this programme
available without
geoblocking.
No acquired fiction – sport
very restricted: German
media law prescribes that
85
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
acquired feature films and
acquired episodes of
television series which have
not been commissioned must
not be offered on demand by
public service broadcaster.
Equally the availability of
sport (events) on demand is
very much restricted by
media law.
Commissioned production
and co-production are
made available wherever
possible, in the case of
international co-production
normally only the German
language version can be
made available.
ARD Public -Das Erste Das Erste: Das Erste: About 2-3 Das Erste: Yes Das Erste: Das Erste’s
-MDR Yes programs per week cannot content is offered online as a
Fernsehen be simulcasted due to catch-up service (insofar as
copyright. Between 15%- the Channel has the
20% of the programmes necessary rights and the
are geoblocked outside of making available is allowed
Germany, amongst which: under German Media Law).
- Sport content, as well Whether the content is
as programmes geoblocked abroad is
containing sports decided by the same criteria
content used for simulcasting.
- International motion
pictures
86
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
- Other TV-films, for
which ARD only
obtained the rights for
Germany
- New films & series,
whenever geoblocking
is requested
- Singular programmes
due to personality
rights
- About 80-85% is not
geoblocked, even
though there might be
legal uncertainty with
regard to still pictures
or short audio-visual
materiel.
MDR MDR Fernsehen: MDR Fernsehen: MDR Fernsehen: catch-up
fernsehen: Everything is blocked Yes services are offered for the
Yes outside of Germany content for which the
because it is too expensive channel has the on demand-
and too burdensome to rights. However, content is
check the contractual blocked whenever required
situation in each individual by the contractual situation.
case
Ireland RTE Public -RTE1 None are None are available outside Yes (all 3) Partially for all three
(general) simulcast the island of Ireland channels; essentially the
-RTE2 situation is:
(general) A. fully RTE funded
-RTEjr inhouse productions can be
87
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
(childrens’) available non-geo-blocked
B. Programmes that
are produced for RTE by
independent producers
where RTE the majority
source of funding can be
available non-geo-blocked if
such availability will not
have the effect of stopping
the programme being sold
internationally by the
producer
C. Programmes where
RTE is not the majority
funder and programming
consisting of third party
owned content such as sport,
movies etc are geo-blocked
and not available
internationally. In some
cases the geo-blocking is to
island of Ireland and
sometimes the geo-blocking
is to Republic of Ireland,
depending on who the UK
rightsholder to the relevant
programme is.
Italy RAI Public -RAI UNO – Yes - fully RAI NEWS Yes- except for Partially - RAI only
general RAI NEWS for provides catch-up services
-RAI TRE – - partially; RAI UNO , which there is no for the programmes for
general RAI TRE on line catch-up which RAI holds the rights
88
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
-RAI NEWS - services for the web, regardless if the
news The programming end-user is in Italy or
schedule of RAI UNO and abroad. The programmes
RAI TRE are partially which are geo-blocked are
available in streaming via sports/fiction/co-
internet. RAI is not able to productions.
apply a “selective
encryption system” for
those programmes which
RAI does not hold the
right for the distribution
over the web outside the
Italian territory.
Programmes with limited
access are mainly:
sports/fiction/co-
productions.
The Netherlands NPO Public -NPO1, Yes - NPO1, NPO2: Yes - Partially: in principle
NPO2: partially, In principle (npogemist.nl, available, but per
general. geo blocked, but per catch up service programme geo blocking
Largest programme geo for most can be applied. Geo
audience blocking can be turned programmes of blocking mainly sports,
-NPO Cultura off, if all rights are the general NPO- acquired and commissioned
(cultural) available. Most channels) fiction, entertainment. NB
content is geo some categories are not
-NPO Best blocked, mainly: offered at all because rights
(general, sports, acquired and are not available at all for
drama) commissioned fiction, catch up services
-NPO Nieuws entertainment. Fully […]
(news). available material is a
Thematic small percentage.
89
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
channels with - NPO Cultura en NPO
niche Best; not available
audiences - NPO Nieuws: fully
available
Norway NRK Public - NRK 1 Yes No, since some content Yes Partially- This is due to
- NRK 2 needs to be geo-blocked copyright reasons, especially
NRK 3/NRK- due to copyright reasons, regarding acquired content
super and it is technically where NRK only has
difficult to easily change acquired rights for Norway.
from geo-blocking to no-
blocking and back, all
three of NRKs linear TV-
channels are geo-blocked
when simulcasted on
Internet.
Poland TVP Public -TVP1 & TVP1 and Yes – TVPInfo & TVP3 TVP makes Depending on licences and
TVP2 TVP2 - no available online rights acquired. In case of
(general) constant of almost all TVP productions, where
-TVPinfo simulcasting. current TVP normally acquires all
(information Only selected programmes (e.g. relevant rights - they are
& current programmes films, series, news available in the EU.
affairs) are simulcast bulletins, current Commissioned productions -
-TVP3 (e.g. ESC, affairs depending on agreements.
(regional some sports programmes, etc.) Third parties' content (e.g.
channels) transmissions that are produced films and sports) are
- if acquired by TVP in the normally not available
rights permit, VOD.TVP.PL outside Poland.
some official service, including
state events). those broadcast
on channels that
TVPInfo and are not simulcast
90
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
TVP3 - yes (TVP1, TVP2)
(constant and those
simulcast in broadcast on
TVP channels
STREAM simulcast online
service, (TVP3, TVPInfo).
available also
as mobile
app.)
Slovakia RTVS Public - Jednotka, Yes PaPartially - news and current Yes Partially - It is rather
Dvojka (Both affairs as well as other own similar to the simulcasting,
multi or commissioned programmes that are geo-
genre channel programmes (information blocked for simulcasting are
s, at present programmes, entertainme usually also geo-blocked
RTVS nt, educational) are in for the online catch-up
broadcasts general available service
only two TV - acquired, sports, co- -no percentages available
channels) productions and
entertainment based on
licence format are usually
geo-blocked although it
depends on the certain
licence agreements
- no percentages available
Slovenia RTVSlovenia Public - TV SLO 1 – Yes PaPartially- the non-Slovene Yes Yes, partially – the same
general with origin content is fully geo- rule as for the simulcasting
emphasis on blocked, when to Slovene (streaming)
news/culture/h origin only not in-house,
igh level some co-production
entertainment/ program (depending on the
91
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
documentary/h contract), all sports and
igh quality some licensed program
films and (formats acquired,
series depending on the contract)
-TV SLO 2 – is geo-blocked
sport/leisure/re
gional
-TV SLO 3 –
mainly news
Spain RTVE Public - La1: general Yes- The -- - partially in the cases of Yes- but - partially- in the cases of
- La2 cultural content La1, La2 depending on the La1, La2
& films & included in the
ThThe content is geo-blocked rights. The content is geo-blocked
documentarie channels wich based on the programme based on programme
s is produced by categories (depending on categories (depending on the
- CLAN Kids RTVE is the rights): sports, fiction rights): sports, fiction
channel always (acquired), co-production. (acquired), co-production.
(CLAN is available on An estimate percentage of An estimate percentage of
only availab simulcasting, geo-blocked content would geo-blocked content about
le " on de- but the content be about 30 % 30 %
mand"). licenced by - not available in the
third parties - not available in the case case of CLAN
may vary of CLAN
according to
the agreement
with the
corresponding
licensor.
Sweden SVT public -SVT1 Yes Not available Yes Partially- Geoblocked
-SVT2 content:
-Barnkanalen - News & current affairs:
92
Member State Name of Type of Name and Simulcasting Simulcasting available Online catch-up Online catch-up services
broadcaster broadcaster type of TV of the channel across-borders in the EU services available available across-borders in
(commercial / channel (e.g. available in (fully/partially/no/NA) in the Member the EU
public) news, films, the Member If partially, please (i) State (fully/partially/no/NA)
cultural) State explain which content is (yes/no) If partially, please explain
(yes/no) geo-blocked; (ii) provide which content is geo-
an estimate percentage of blocked
geo-blocked content
(Childrens no
Channel) - Information
programmes (eg.
Consumer
programmes): no
- Sports: yes, when
acquired and has a
potential demand in
other countries
- Fiction: acquired yes
generally;
commissioned or own
only if based upon
restricted formats
- Educational: no
educational
programmes in catch-
up services
- Single programmes:
yes, it happens
Percentage of geo-blocked
content: 42-44%
SR (radio) public All SR Yes Yes- However Yes Yes – However, geoblocking
channels geoblocking some major some major sports events
sports events
93
AVAILABILITY OF CROSS-BORDER ONLINE SERVICES IN 11 MEMBER STATES: DATA FROM
163
THE SATCAB STUDY
Table 1.1 Online services of leading broadcasters in 11 sample EU countries
Country Broadcaster Type Online service
Denmark DR Public DR TV
TV 2 Public (subscription) TV 2 Play
MTG Private TV3 Play
Germany ZDF Public ZDF Mediathek
ARD Public ARD Mediathek / DasErste.de
RTL Private RTL TV NOW
Ireland RTÉ Public RTÉ Player
TV3 Private 3Player
TG4 Public TG4 PLAYER
Spain Mediaset Private mitele
Antena 3 Private Atres Player
RTVE Public RTVE A la carta
France TF1 Private MyTF1
France Télévisions Public Francetvpluzz
M6 Private 6play
Italy RAI Public Replay TV
Mediaset Private mediaset.it
La 7 Private Riveldi La7
Hungary RTL Private RTLMOST
TV2 Private tv2.hu
Duna Public Mediaklikk
Netherlands NPO Public NPO
RTL Private RTLXL.NL
SBS Private net5.nl
Poland TVP Public TVP PL VOD
TVN Private Player
Polsat Private ipla
Sweden SVT Public (non-commercial) SVT Play
TV4 Private TV4 Play
MTG Private TV3 Play
United Kingdom BBC Public (non-commercial) BBC iPlayer
ITV Private ITV Hub
Channel 4 Public All4
Source: informitv analysis, based on broadcaster total share of viewing
163
See Section 3 of the SatCab Study for further details; in this Annex, the tables are renumbered for
convenience.
94
Table 1.2 Categories of online programme availability
Category Definition
Not offered in country of origin Programming not apparent in the online player
Available in country of origin only Programming available online in the country of origin
but either not offered or not accessible from the other
countries tested
Available in country of origin only with exclusions Programming available online in the country of origin
although some programmes were marked as being
unavailable
Available in country of origin only by subscription Programming promoted as available online in the
country of origin on a subscription basis, which was
not tested
Available in some other countries Programming available online in one or more but not
all of the test countries
Available in some other countries with exclusions Programming available online in one or more but not
all of the test countries, although some programmes
are marked as being unavailable
Available in some other countries by subscription Programming promoted as available online in one or
more but not all of the test countries on a subscription
basis, which was not tested
Available across borders Programming available online in the country of origin
and three other test countries without any apparent
limitation
Available across borders with exclusions Programming available online in the country of origin
and three other test countries but some programmes
were marked as being unavailable
Available across borders by subscription Programming available online in the country of origin
and three other test countries, although some or all
programmes required a subscription, which was not
tested
Source: informitv analysis, based on online accessibility
Table 1.3 Summary of main types of online programme availability
Availability Symbol
Country of origin only
Country of origin only with some exclusions
Some other countries with some exclusions
Across-borders
Across-borders with some exclusions
By subscription €
Programme type not apparent in the online service -
Moreover, these symbols can be combined where the analysis indicated varied results for a particular online
service. For example, a combination such as o/o€ (open square slash open square euro) indicates that some
programming is available free to view and some is available on a paid basis. So //€ (solid square slash
open circle slash open circle euro) indicates that programming is available in the country of origin, with some
programming available internationally free to view and some available internationally on subscription.
95
Table 1.4 Online availability of simulcast services from leading broadcasters in 11 sample EU countries
Country Online service Live Radio Live TV Live TV News
DK DR TV ● -
TV 2 Play - € ●€
TV3 Play - - -
DE ZDF Mediathek - -
ARD / DasErste.de ● ●
RTL TV NOW - € ●€
IE RTÉ Player ● ●
3Player - ◻ -
TG4 PLAYER - ● -
ES mitele - ● -
Atres Player ● ◻/◻€ -
RTVE A la carta ● ● ●
FR MyTF1 - ●
Francetvpluzz - ◻ -
6play - -
IT Replay TV ● ●
mediaset.it -
Riveldi La7 - ○ ●
HU RTLMOST - - -
tv2.hu - - ●
Mediaklikk ● ● ●
NL NPO ● ●
RTLXL.NL - - ◻
net5.nl - - -
PL TVP PL VOD - - -
Player - € ●€
ipla - - ●€
SE SVT Play - -
TV4 Play - € ●
TV3 Play - - -
UK BBC iPlayer ●
ITV Hub - -
All4 - -
Source: informitv analysis, based on online accessibility
96
Table 1.5 Online availability of video-on-demand services from leading broadcasters in 11 sample EU
countries (catch-up TV/radio)164 165
Country Online service News Entertainment Drama
Local166 Other Local Other
DK DR TV ● ● - ○ -
TV 2 Play ○€ ○€ ○€ €
TV3 Play - ○ -
DE ZDF Mediathek ● ● - ○
ARD / DasErste.de ● ● - ● -
RTL TV NOW ● ○/◻€ - /◻€ /◻€
IE RTÉ Player ● ● - ● -
3Player ●
TG4 PLAYER ● ● - ● -
ES mitele ● ○ ●
Atres Player ○€ ○ - ○€ -
RTVE A la carta ● ● - ● -
FR MyTF1 ● ○ -
Francetvpluzz ● - -
6play ● ○ -
IT Replay TV ● ○ - ○ -
mediaset.it ● ● - ○ -
Riveldi La7 ● ● - -
HU RTLMOST ● ● - ● -
tv2.hu ● ● - ○ -
Mediaklikk ● ● - - -
NL NPO ● ● ●
RTLXL.NL ● ○/◻€
net5.nl -
PL TVP PL VOD ● ◻ - ◻ -
Player - ◻
ipla ● /○/○€ - /○/○€ -
SE SVT Play ● ○ - ○
TV4 Play ● ○ ○ ○
TV3 Play - ● ●
UK BBC iPlayer - -
ITV Hub /€ /€
All4 ● -
Source: informitv analysis, based on online accessibility
164
The SatCab Study explains concerning these data that "Individual programmes are also typically
offered for access on demand, at the convenience of the user. In many cases, this is limited to a certain
time after the initial broadcast. This so-called catch-up window is generally open for a period of 7, 14
or 28 days after broadcast. Other library titles may also be available for a longer period."
165
For entertainment and drama programming a distinction was made where possible between local
programming that appeared to be produced in or for the local market and international programming
apparently produced in another country for international distribution.
166
For entertainment and drama programming a distinction was made where possible between local
programming that appeared to be produced in or for the local market and international programming apparently
produced in another country for international distribution.
97
ANNEX 7 – DIGITAL RETRANSMISSIONS OF TV AND RADIO PROGRAMMES
ANNEX 7A – APPLICATION OF LICENSING FACILITATION REGIMES (COLLECTIVE LICENSING)
TO THE RETRANSMISSION SERVICES OTHER THAN CABLE
EU Member Licensing If yes, on what Licensing If yes, on what
State facilitation basis (legislation, facilitation basis (legislation,
regime case-law, market regime case-law, market
(collective practice)? (collective practice)?
licensing) applies licensing) applies
to IPTV? to other
retransmission
services (OTT,
mobile, satellite,
DTT)?
MSs where licensing facilitation regimes apply to various retransmission services other than
cable
Denmark Yes (ECL) Legislation Yes (ECL), Legislation
service neutral
application
Finland Yes (ECL without Legislation Yes (ECL without Legislation
opt-out) opt-out), service
neutral
application
Sweden Yes (ECL without Legislation Yes (ECL without Legislation
opt-out) opt-out), service
neutral
application
Hungary Yes Legislation, case- Yes, service Legislation, case-
law neutral law
application
Slovakia Yes (ECL for Legislation Yes (ECL for Legislation
retransmissions retransmissions
over electronic over electronic
communications communications
networks other networks other
than cable) than cable)
Austria Yes Legislation, case- Yes, point to point Legislation, case-
law rebroadcasting law
Ireland Yes Market practice Yes, DTT Legislation
Netherlands Yes Market practice Yes, DTT Market practice
France Yes Market practice Yes, satellite Market practice
Poland Yes Market practice Yes, satellite Market practice
98
EU Member Licensing If yes, on what Licensing If yes, on what
State facilitation basis (legislation, facilitation basis (legislation,
regime case-law, market regime case-law, market
(collective practice)? (collective practice)?
licensing) applies licensing) applies
to IPTV? to other
retransmission
services (OTT,
mobile, satellite,
DTT)?
MSs where licensing facilitation regimes apply to IPTV only
Italy Yes Legislation No -
Bulgaria Yes Legislation No -
Belgium Yes Market practice No -
Germany Yes Market practice No -
Spain Yes Market practice No -
MSs where no licensing facilitation regimes apply to the retransmission services other than cable
Greece No - No -
Cyprus No - No -
Czech Republic No - No -
Estonia No - No -
Croatia No - No -
Latvia No - No -
Luxembourg No - No -
Malta No - No -
Romania No - No -
UK No - No -
99
ANNEX 7B – TV CHANNELS AVAILABLE ON CABLE AND IPTV RETRANSMISSION SERVICES
Comparison of international, national or regional channels available on cable services versus channels
established in 11 sample EU countries (2015)167
Channels established in country
Viewing country DK DE IE ES FR IT HU NL PL SE UK
Denmark 24 17 1 11 2 7 1 22 74
Germany 262 3 26 8 1 5 6 45
Ireland 21 11 155
Spain 1 85 12 1 1 22
France 14 3 164 11 8 1 39
Italy
Hungary 13 2 34 2 41 7 1 124
Netherlands 16 1 19 2 105 1 73
Poland 4 23 4 12 102 85
Sweden 3 3 1 9 3 2 7 2 61 70
United Kingdom 3 1 12 1 300
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database extract
informitv analysis
Comparison of international, national or regional channels available on telco (IPTV) services versus
channels established in 11 sample EU countries (2015)168
Channels established in country
Viewing country DK DE IE ES FR IT HU NL PL SE UK
Denmark 23 14 2 5 3 7 2 19 62
Germany 253 10 5 4 4 16
Ireland 16 1 98
Spain 1 88 9 1 25
France 31 9 240 10 21 6 2 85
Italy
Hungary 7 1 13 1 42 5 63
Netherlands 11 1 15 2 68 53
Poland 7 10 4 9 64 53
Sweden 3 2 1 6 2 8 2 59 57
United Kingdom 3 2 1 178
Source: European Audiovisual Observatory MAVISE database extract
informitv analysis
167
SatCab Study, Table 2.27.
168
SatCab Study, Table 2.28.
100
ANNEX 8 – THE VOD MARKET AND ITS LICENSING SYSTEM
ANNEX 8A – THE EUROPEAN FILM INDUSTRY WITH A SPECIAL FOCUS ON THE VOD
169
MARKET
Overview
The production of films can be characterised by high sunk costs at an early stage of the
lifecycle (i.e. development and production stages) and great uncertainty surrounding the
financial return of the film project (as it is difficult to predict the success of the film until it is
actually shown in cinemas).
The European film production industry is relatively fragmented and is made up of a large
number of small independent production companies with the majority of them producing no
more than one film per year. The supply chain is vertically disintegrated and individual parties
in each stage of the supply chain are exposed to some risk and uncertainty with respect to
their investments or inputs. For instance, producers and screen-writers, in the early stages of a
film production, would not be guaranteed that adequate finance would be obtained to put their
works into action. In recent years, however, a number of larger production companies, such as
Canal Plus (France), Gaumont (France) and Sogepay (Spain), have started to adopt the
Hollywood approach170, particularly in the distribution of products.
European consumers tend to favour US films whereas consumption of European films varies
heavily across Member States. Indeed, the EU has had a trade deficit with the US for film
products for many years, reflecting the high penetration rate of American films in the EU. The
market share of US films, defined in terms of cinema admissions in EU, was around 62 per
cent while EU films (both domestic and non-domestic productions) only represented around
37 per cent in 2012171. As regards Video-on-Demand ('VoD')172, in a recent case study
covering 75 VoD services and 16 SVoD services, it was found that European non-national
films accounted only for 14.7% of the films available in the VoD catalogues and 22.8% of the
SVoD catalogues173.
Traditionally, a key point of consumption for both US and European films has been cinemas.
Despite the significant technological changes in recent years, there is little evidence that
cinemas are becoming significantly less important as a means of film consumption. Cinema
169
Large excerpts of this annex are copied from the Study on the "Remuneration of authors and performers
for the use of their works and the fixations of their performances", 2015, prepared for the European
Commission (CONNECT) by Europe Economics and IViR.
170
The six very large Hollywood studios opt for a vertically and horizontally integrated approach to
completing the different stages of the production process, financed by complex financial instruments. In
addition, they also dominate the distribution and exploitation chains with their large network and
substantial resources.
171
Measured by cinema admissions.
172
According to the Study on the "Fragmentation of the single market for on-line video-on-demand
services: point of view of content providers", commissioned by the European Commission (DG
CONNECT) and prepared by iMinds (SMIT), 2014, "Television licensing revenues are for instance
seen as significantly more valuable to rights holders than VoD licensing revenue. Some interviewed
players noted that, as a result, the prices for VoD licenses are set too high by content owners, which
makes it impossible to generate a return on investment".
173
On-demand audiovisual markets in the European Union - Developments 2014-2015, European
Audiovisual Observatory, November 2015. Calculations based on the number of unique film titles.
101
admission numbers remain stable across the European Union: admissions amounted to 968
million in 2011 and slightly increased in 2015 with 976 million cinema admissions.174 As
regards gross box office, after a decrease in 2013, revenues are now increasing again. In 2015,
gross box office amounted to EUR 7 346.7 million, which represents an increase of 17%
compared to revenues in 2013.175
Recent developments
There have been significant developments in both the physical-format video and VoD
markets during the past decade.
In the early 2000s, the European video software market was shifting from video to DVD and
high definition Blu-ray discs. In 2011, the estimated penetration rates of DVD and Blu-ray
hardware in TV households in selected EU countries were 75.6 per cent and 3.1 per cent
respectively. The introduction of VoD has changed the physical rental and sales markets
dramatically. With the increasing use of VoD, consumers no longer need to rely on a specific
TV broadcast time to watch their preferred films/TV programmes or wait for the delivery of a
physical DVD, but can choose to watch it at any time. A range of new devices, such as
laptops, tablets, smartphones and hand-held DVD players have also developed to support
VoD systems so that users can play films when and where they want. As such, film
distributors face some pressure to change their business models to ensure that the timeline of a
film’s delivery fits the time preference of the targeted audience rather than what suits their
traditional sequence of exploitation windows.
The VoD market is still an emerging market
The number of VoD services has increased significantly over the years and amount to around
2,000 services in Europe176. The main players include iTunes, Xbox Video, Netflix, Video
Unlimited, Lovefilm, Ace Lrax, Crackle, Google play, HBO (central Europe), MUBI, VoYo
etc. The majority of the film services (80%) are online while the remaining 20% operate on
TV digital platforms. It is expected that the popularity of VoD services will continue in the
future: by 2020, projections suggest that more than 20% of European households will have a
subscription to a SVoD service177. In the meanwhile, physical medial sales and rentals are
expected to fall as a result.
Despite these promising figures, the VoD market is still an emerging market. Currently,
revenues from theatrical exploitation largely outweigh VoD revenues. For instance, in 2013,
VoD revenues amounted to €1 526 million178 which represents approximatively one fourth of
cinema gross box-office over the same period. As regards the global linear television market
in the European Union amounted to EUR 83.6 bn in 2013.179
174
European audiovisual observatory, World film market trends, 2016, p. 18
175
Compared to EUR 6 321.8 million in 2014 and EUR 6 273.1 million in 2013 – European audiovisual
observatory, World film market trends, 2016, p. 15.
176
Data for February 2014. European Audiovisual Observatory, Study on on-demand audiovisual markets
in the European Union, 2014.
177
Report 'Promoting growth, pluralism and choice: The Country of Origin principle and Europe's
audiovisual sector', March 2016, p. 16.
178
The development of the European market for on-demand services, European Audiovisual Observatory,
March 2015.
179
Studies from the European Audiovisual Observatory on trends on video-on-demand revenues
(November 2015) and trends in linear television revenues (October 2015)
102
Between 2009 and 2012, the size of the audiovisual market in the EU has increased from EUR
28 046 523 million to EUR 35 526 810 million180.The following graph, partly covering the
same period, provides a good overview of revenues of difference sources in the audiovisual
sector.
Evolution of EU film market revenues broken by source
VoD as a means to fight piracy
VoD – and more generally, legal online offer of works – is seen as one of the main solutions
to fight piracy. According to a recent survey, the availability of affordable content via legal
sources would be the primary reason to stop using illegal sources (almost two thirds (58%) of
respondents). It is indeed estimated that 22% of Europeans181, and around one third of young
Europeans182, believe that illegal download or illegal access to copyright-protected content is
acceptable if there is no legal offer in their country. In countries where use of digital content
from legal sources is considered as mainstream behaviour, legal sources have been on the
market longer, but they are not only numerous, they also provide a broad and recent offer183.
To help promoting legal offer, the EUIPO and some Member States have put in place tools to
help users in finding audiovisual legal content184. In France, the CNC has developed a search
engine to help finding legal offers185. Unavailability remains however an important issue. For
instance, it was found that only 12,000 of the 28.000 existing French movies are available
180
The development of the European market for on-demand services, European Audiovisual Observatory,
March 2015.
181
"European Citizens and Intellectual Property: perception, awareness and behaviour", 2013. European
Observatory of audiovisual.
182
Respondents to Intellectual Property and Youth, Scoreboard 2016. EUIPO Survey (April 2016).
183
Intellectual Property and Youth, Scoreboard 2016. EUIPO Survey (April 2016)
184
E.g. Spain (me sientodecine.com), UK (findanyfilm.com, thecontentmap.com), France (offrelegale.fr),
Poland (www.legalnakultura.pl), Netherlands (thecontentmap.nl), Italy (www.mappadeicontenuti.it),
Denmark (www.sharewithcare.dk). For the EUIPO:
https://euipo.europa.eu/ohimportal/en/web/observatory/where-to-buy-legally
185
Which can be accessed on the following website: http://vad.cnc.fr/
103
online186. The HADOPI has already received almost 640 unavailability notifications from
users187. The lack of availability is more stringent as regards some categories of works. For
instance, despite a clear interest in that sense, the Hadopi report shows that 32% of the
unavailability notifications concerned movies from between the 1950s and 1980s. A study has
recently confirmed that the older a film, the smaller the number of countries on which it is
available on VoD188.
Exclusivity plays a limited role in the VoD market
VoD platforms offer a wide variety of audiovisual works. A distinction has to be made
between original content developed by platforms (e.g. House of cards by Netflix), content that
is covered by an exclusive deal (mostly TV series and blockbusters) and other audiovisual
works (the largest category that includes most of EU audiovisual works). For the two first
categories, exclusivity is a key element destined to attract consumers and to differentiate a
platform from its competitors. There is no lack of exploitation in those cases. For the third
category, there is no exclusivity: works are simultaneously available on different platforms.
Limited exclusivity (e.g. exclusivity granted for a few weeks) can occur, but this remains the
exception (e.g. TV series). Rights are generally transferred for short-time periods. Most of the
audiovisual works fall under this last category.
Technical costs
Technical costs can include (i) digitisation costs (however, recent works are generally already
available in digital format); (ii) formatting costs (there is no uniform format; platforms request
different formats); (iii) encryption costs; (iv) sub-titles costs (+/- 8 EUR per); etc. In principle,
producers are the ones bearing the main costs, although some platforms also do. These costs
could amount up to +/- 1,000 EUR (excluding sub-titles costs).
ANNEX 8B – MAIN ACTORS IN THE AUDIO-VISUAL INDUSTRY189
Producers are a very important part of the productions process for both the film and the TV
industry. A producer can either be an independent individual or may work on behalf of a
studio company to develop the concept of a film and oversee the whole creation and
production process of a film. There are several different types of production companies with
their activities ranging from being solely concentrated on video production (film, TV show
etc.) to being parts of vertically integrated organisations that are active in additional parts of
the supply chain such as distribution and marketing. The European film production industry is
relatively fragmented and is made up of a large number of small independent production
companies with the majority of them producing no more than one film per year.
186
See 'exposé sommaire' of the French draft law amending Article L.132-27 of the Intellectual Property
Code.
187
Notifications (from March 2014 to August 2015) concerning cinema and TV works consumers could
not find online See the Hadopi's report, "Rapport intermédiaire sur le signalement des oeuvres
introuvables", (2015). Not all works that have been notified were unavailable.
188
C. Grece, "How do films travel on VoD and in cinemas in the European Union – A comparative
analysis", May 2016. This study also shows that the genre of a work has an impact on its availability on
VoD platforms.
189
From the Study on the "Remuneration of authors and performers for the use of their works and the
fixations of their performances", 2015, prepared for the European Commission (CONNECT) by Europe
Economics and IViR.
104
The producer can sometimes act as a creator and work along with other creators to develop
different parts of a film, such as the screenplay. In such cases, he would also share the right of
his creation, along with other creators of the film. Besides the creation role, he would be
responsible for all parts of the production, including acquiring the rights from creators and
music rights from external parties and arranging finance for the production process. In
principle, the rights that the producer will need to acquire from different rights holders would
depend on the forms and mediums in which the producer intends to exploit the final product
(e.g. online or offline).
The producer will also be responsible for maximising the revenue of the completed film by
securing favourable distribution and exhibition deals. Given their central role in the film
making process, the producer is typically the main licensing entity of most, if not all, of the
associated economic rights of the completed film product.
Distributors are the entities that have the right to generate revenues from copyrighted
material through releasing works to the public or managing the licensing to sub-distribution
parties that are responsible for other areas of distribution (in terms of territory, language and
medium). In order for distributors to be able to engage in the above activities they will need to
have obtained clearance from the right holders (i.e. the producers). The combination of rights
that will need to be obtained depends on the intended use.
They are also responsible for the marketing of the product and often help fund the project
(e.g. through pre-sales). Distributors can be established as part of a large studio company
(such as StudioCanal in France) or an independent film distributor (such as Momentum
Pictures in UK). Their size could vary from large international company to small local
distributor specialising in certain types of films.
Aggregators serve a similar function to traditional distributors but only focus on the online
retail market. The aggregators operating in Europe include but are not limited to Juice, Under
the Milky Way, LevelK, Do&Co Digital and the Movie Partnership. They act as a distribution
outlet and maintain a network of video-on-demand platforms, through which content of film
products are converted and distributed to the online service providers such as iTunes, Netflix,
Google Play and Amazon Prime etc. They would also collect the revenue generated from the
providers and distribute them to the right holders through the producer.
Broadcasters distribute audio-visual content to their audience via terrestrial radio signals,
through cable or satellite, as well as IPTV, either free-to-view or on a subscription basis. They
are required to obtain the rights to broadcast the audio-visual products from the right holders.
This can be done through a number of parties, including the producers, distributors, original
broadcasters or the CRMOs of the right holders. Broadcasters can also undertake in-house
production of TV programmes.
The contractual practice in the audio-visual sector revolves around the figure of the producer.
The producer tends to concentrate all economic rights in an audio-visual work, which means
that he represents a ‘one-stop-shop’ for the clearance of rights. The pivotal role of the
producer in today´s audio-visual contractual practice has not suffered under the structural
changes brought about by digitalisation.
105
ANNEX 8C – VALUE CHAINS190: THE AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR AND DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION, AND
THE VIDEO-ON-DEMAND SERVICES
Value chain of video on demand services
Producers
Sales agents
Distributors
Aggregators
VoD platforms
190
From "Multi-territory licencing of audiovisual works in the European Union", 2010, Study prepared for
the European Commission (DG INFSO) and prepared by KEA European affairs and Mines ParisTech
Cema and and the Study "New French and European film markets – Digital: a new growth driver for
intra-community circulation and export?", Ernst& Young and uniFrance films, March 2015.
106
ANNEX 8D – REVENUE STREAMS IN THE VIDEO ON DEMAND (VOD) SECTOR191
For online platforms, revenues are collected where consumers pay a fee for their subscription
to the online film library (SVoD) or pay per view of each film/TV programme (TVoD).
Authors and performers are remunerated for the reproduction and making available rights
according to their agreements with the exploiter.
Three major business models are used by rights holders:
- Indirect sales through a distributor: This is the most frequent model. The distributor
acquires the VOD and SVOD as part of a set of bundled exploitation rights (in most cases, all
of them) from the rights holder. These rights are integrated into the minimum guarantee paid
by the distributor.
- Sales through an aggregator: The aggregators play an intermediary role between rights
holders and platforms, facilitating the access to the rights holders to VoD platforms for
making available their audiovisual content. They handle the negotiations with local platforms
and manage the aggregation of content and marketing materials for the producer.
- Direct sales to platforms: Direct sale implies a “direct” negotiation between producers and
platforms. It requires an additional commercial investment. This is a minority practice, but it
is used by big studios. Direct sales mainly involve “big” films, which are self-driven and do
not need a marketing intermediary to sell.
ANNEX 8E – COPYRIGHT ACCOMPANYING MEASURES
To ensure a wider access to audiovisual content across borders, the Copyright Communication
"Towards a modern, more European copyright framework" sets an agenda of measures to
accompany the legislative copyright reform.
The rationale is that wider access to audiovisual works also requires investment without
which the public will not be available to find them and watch them online. European works
need to be available in formats and catalogues ready for use and to be understood (issue of
language versions). They also need to appear prominently in the VoD services available.
Otherwise the public will not watch them online.
For this purpose, the Communication has identified 8 different measures, which are now
being implemented through:
• A structured dialogue intensified with the audiovisual industry: public conferences,
closed door debates with the different segments of the audiovisual sector, structured
partnership with national film funds (EFADs: European Film Agency Directors) and a
continuous dialogue with stakeholders;
191
From the Study on the "Remuneration of authors and performers for the use of their works and the
fixations of their performances", 2015, prepared for the European Commission (CONNECT) by Europe
Economics and IViR and the Study "New French and European film markets – Digital: a new growth
driver for intra-community circulation and export?", Ernst& Young and uniFrance films, March 2015.
107
• support projects/initiatives: grants proceeding from the Creative Europe programme,
especially the MEDIA strand and also in some cases from H2020 and new financial
instruments such as the guarantee facility.
Support measures are not only a way to co-finance projects but also indirectly a policy
instrument notably through the choice of conditions to which the support can be made subject.
1) Making films available in unsold territories
Films in Europe are produced by a large number of small production companies and are
distributed through individual exclusive distribution agreements territory per territory and are
released successively in cinema, DVD, TV, VoD.
In territories where no agreements have been signed with a local distributor (unsold
territories), films are not released at all and are not available.
(i) Ready to offer catalogue of European films
For small producers, it is impossible to negotiate individual deals with VoD services in
countries where their films have not been acquired by a local distributor. The reason is that, in
general, VoD services do not deal on an individual basis. To address this problem, activities
of aggregation have developed these last years. They directly offer to VoD services different
films coming from different producers within a well curated coherent and attractive catalogue.
Since 2015, the MEDIA programme supports "ready-to-offer" catalogues of European films
from several producers aggregated and proposed together to VoD services: budget of 650.000
€.
Next steps will be:
- to monitor, showcase and share results of existing projects;
- the launch of a study on the activity of aggregation of films in Europe (end 2016);
- to monitor and increase the financial support to 1.3 million in 2016.
(ii) Develop Licensing hubs to help licensing of works
The purpose is to foster the development of online tools making possible legal access and
monetisation in territories where films have not been acquired by local distributors.
Currently the MEDIA programme supports a prototype of licensing hub i.e. ICE
(International Cinema exchange) since 2015 (260.000 €) and H2020 supports RDI (Rights
data Integration).
The next steps will be to:
- to help foster the deployment, step-up and scale-up of ICE or other licensing hub
through financial support (via grants, guarantee facility). ICE has been showcased
during the Cannes Film Festival of 2016.
- to encourage the use of licensing hubs; showcase and share results; and the dialogue
with the film industry through EFF.
108
2) Promote a common system of identification of films through
(iii) Larger use of standard identifiers of works
Unlike in the book sector where works are clearly identified by an identification number
(ISBN), the audiovisual sector suffers from the absence of a common identification number,
which would facilitate findability and licensing activities. Two main ISO standard identifiers
coexist on the market i.e. ISAN and EIDR, which are not interoperable.
The envisaged action is to promote either the use of a common identification system or the
interoperability between the existing ones. This discussion with stakeholders takes place in
the framework of the EFF.
Next steps will include (i) to assess the last state of play of standard identifiers on the market
and discuss with corresponding organisations (ii) to make access to the MEDIA distribution
schemes conditional to the use of solution taken.
3) Make European films more findable and prominent
The visibility and prominence of European works in the VoD services available online is a
key condition for reaching audiences. Following actions have this purpose:
(iv) Support the development of a European aggregator
The purpose of this search tool is to enable people to find more easily films they would be
interested to watch online (interesting model developed in FR).
The current actions are:
- Discussions with EFADs on search tools developed by both public and private sectors;
- Follow-up of the prototype of EU aggregator developed by the European Observatory
on infringements
The next steps will include (i) to agree on appropriate features and encourage MS to develop
and deploy search tools; (ii) to work with the Observatory on the EU aggregator and on the
toolkits for the development of national search tools; and (iii) to showcase continuous
progress through the EFF (this theme was developed at the last Berlinale in February 2016).
(v) Promote legal offers and the discoverability and findability of films
More widely the Communication foresees an intensified discussion with the audiovisual
industry on promoting legal offers and on improving discoverability of European films
The Commission will support online activities (VoD services and new models of distribution)
and the promotion and development of attractive offers.
109
4) Promote more efficient funding for, and use of, subtitling and dubbing supported by
public funds(vi)
Subtitling/dubbing is essential for cross-border circulation of European works. It is supported
by public funds both at national and European level. There is a need to make the existing
funds more efficient.
The envisaged actions include:
- to provide support through online distribution schemes (beyond support for subtitling
through classic distribution scheme);
- to fund a pilot project and a preparatory action for expanding the audience of specific
existing cultural audiovisual media services (ARTE and VPRO) to other territories
through support to subtitling;
- to fund a preparatory action on how to achieve innovative cost-effective subtitling.
In the meantime, the Commission will continue its on-going support actions to subtitling and
increase the efficiency of the current support and the use of subtitling through a dialogue with
the sector and the development of a new online tool through a preparatory action.
5) Promote new models of financing and exploitation
(vii) Find ways for a more sustained exploitation of existing European films
The increasing number of channels of distribution allowed by digital technology (VoD, catch-
up TV, TV channels) allows to make an infinite number of films available and to enable
anybody to access them online. Nevertheless, a lot of European films cannot be found online
after their exploitation cycle.
The Commission will maintain the Expert group on film heritage and will launch studies on
distribution and the value of film heritage.
(viii) Explore alternative models of financing, production and distribution in the animation
sector
To foster alternative models of distribution requires a holistic approach: Modes of financing
have an impact on the way films are distributed as well as on the forms of collaboration
between the different actors across the value chain. Animation is a specific sector. Envisaged
actions include continuing the dialogue with the animation sector and studying options for
fostering the scale up of their activities at EU level.
110
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
SWD(2016) 301 final
PART 3/3
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT
IMPACT ASSESSMENT
on the modernisation of EU copyright rules
Accompanying the document
Proposal for a
Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council
on copyright in the Digital Single Market
and
Proposal for a
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council
laying down rules on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain
online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and
radio programmes
{COM(2016) 593}
{COM(2016) 594}
{SWD(2016) 302}
EN EN
ANNEX 9 – OUT-OF-COMMERCE WORKS IN CULTURAL HERITAGE
INSTITUTIONS ..................................................................................................... 113
Annex 9A – Cultural heritage institutions in Europe, their holdings and digital collections 113
Annex 9B – Copyright and digitisation.................................................................................. 119
Annex 9C – The '20th century black hole' .............................................................................. 120
Annex 9D – Transaction costs in individual rights clearance – estimates and examples ...... 124
Annex 9E – ECL and PoR: overview, national examples and evidence of opt-out levels .... 129
Annex 9F – The existence of collective management structures by sector............................ 132
Annex 9G – Stakeholder co-operation (e.g. MoU) in the area of digitisation and making
available of heritage ................................................................................................. 133
Annex 9H – Illustration of the impacts of the three considered options for OOC ................. 134
Annex 9I – Technology for rights information for digitisation purposes .............................. 136
Annex 9J – Social and economic impacts of digitisation....................................................... 137
ANNEX 10 – TEACHING ................................................................................................... 140
Annex 10A – Development of digital and online education .................................................. 140
Annex 10B – Perception of the copyright-related obstacles in education ............................. 144
Annex 10C – Compensation and Licensing schemes for educational uses ........................... 147
Annex 10D – Data on digital uses and secondary licensing income ..................................... 153
ANNEX 11 – TDM ............................................................................................................... 155
Annex 11A – The scientific publishing market: facts and figures ......................................... 155
Annex 11B – Technical aspects of tdm .................................................................................. 158
Annex 11C – TDM: the current EU legal framework ............................................................ 159
Annex 11D – Initiatives facilitating tdm in practice .............................................................. 160
Annex 11E – TDM: Published articles on TDM in the EU (2011-2016) .............................. 163
ANNEX 12 – USE OF PROTECTED CONTENT BY ONLINE SERVICES STORING
AND GIVING ACCESS TO LARGE AMOUNTS OF USER UPLOADED
CONTENT .............................................................................................................. 164
Annex 12A – General information on, and examples of, content identification technologies
.................................................................................................................................. 164
Annex 12B –Results from the flash eurobarometer on Internet users’ preferences for
accessing content online (n°437/March 2016) ......................................................... 172
ANNEX 13 – PUBLISHERS ............................................................................................... 175
Annex 13A – Aggregated data on press circulation and news publishing industry trends in EU
MS ............................................................................................................................ 175
Annex 13B – Legal provisions in some EU MS national laws related to the protection of
publishers ................................................................................................................. 189
Annex 13C – Main Agreements or other initiatives between online service providers and
Press publishers ........................................................................................................ 193
111
Annex 13D – Data on Member States with an author-publisher split of compensation due
under exceptions and limitations .............................................................................. 198
ANNEX 14 – TRANSPARENCY AND BALANCE IN THE CONTRACTS OF
AUTHORS AND PERFORMERS ....................................................................... 200
Annex 14A – Examples of national legislation and soft-law ................................................. 200
Annex 14B – Examples of content of reporting statements ................................................... 212
Annex 14C – Assessment of reporting in different sectors .................................................... 213
Annex 14D – Contract adjustment mechanisms in legislation and in practice ...................... 220
ANNEX 15 – LIST OF MAIN RELEVANT DIRECTIVES RELATED TO THIS IA
AND GLOSSARY .................................................................................................. 225
Annex 15A – List of main relevant directives related to this IA ........................................... 225
Annex 15B – Glossary ........................................................................................................... 225
112
ANNEX 9 – OUT-OF-COMMERCE WORKS IN CULTURAL HERITAGE
INSTITUTIONS
ANNEX 9A – CULTURAL HERITAGE INSTITUTIONS IN EUROPE, THEIR HOLDINGS AND
DIGITAL COLLECTIONS
Cultural heritage institutions in Europe
Estimations of the number of cultural heritage institutions in Europe
Type of institution Source: Poole189 Source: EBLIDA190
National libraries 45 sites (Council of Europe -
members)
Higher 10,161 sites 2013: 5,974 (23 countries)
education/university
2015: 4,452 (14 countries)
libraries/academic libraries
(includes university and national libraries)
School libraries 164,436 sites -
Public libraries 205,336 sites 2013: 56,664 (25 countries)
2015: 38,262 (15 countries)
Special libraries 29,089 sites -
Museums 17,673 sites (EU) -
No overall number for the EU or Europe could be found for archives. For ES only, a Government directory
counts 36,632 archives.191
Holdings: magnitude, variety and digital collections
European level
Poole192 estimated that in European libraries held:
Libraries
between 59 and 95 million individual book titles (excluding multiples and book
series)
a total book stock of approximately 5.4 billion books (including multiples and book
series)
between 1.47 to 2.36 billion pages to be digitised
189
N. Poole, "The Cost of Digitising Europe’s Cultural Heritage. A Report for the Comité des Sages of the
European Commission", November 2010.
190
Surveys carried out by the European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations
(EBLIDA) in 2013 and 2015. The 2013 survey covers information related to years 2011-2012 (except
for one country surveyed, which provided information for 2006), covering 23 countries for academic
libraries and 25 countries for public libraries (mostly EU MS). The 2015 survey covers information
related to years 2013-2015, covering 14 countries for academic libraries and 15 countries for public
libraries.
191
Censo-Guía de Archivos de España e Iberoamérica (last accessed 20/06/2016).
192
These figures do not distinguish between in-copyright and out-of-copyright works. N. Poole, "The Cost
of Digitising Europe’s Cultural Heritage. A Report for the Comité des Sages of the European
Commission", November 2010.
113
approximately 6.9 million rare books eligible for digitisation (includes pamphlets and
incunabula, and excluding material that is too fragile to digitise)
about 540 million newspaper pages
about 7.23 million maps
about 8.64 million photographs
In the ENUMERATE 2015 survey193 on average 62 % of library respondents (87% of national
libraries) said that they collect born-digital material.
Poole estimated that in 2010 European museums held:
Museums
almost 75.43 million works of art
approximately 265 million man-made artefacts eligible for digitisation (excluding
material that is too fragile to digitise)
350 million photographs suitable for digitisation
In a NEMO survey,194 at least 58 % of museum respondents indicated that their collections
included works other than "museum objects":
58 % said that they hold archival pieces and archives
56 % said that they hold library collections
44 % said that they hold audio-visual collections;
12 % said that they hold other types of works.
In the ENUMERATE 2015 survey, on average 52 % of museum respondents said that they
collect born-digital material.
Poole estimated that in 2010 EU national archives held (estimations based on 25 national
Archives
archives surveyed):
more than 26.98 billion pages of archival records, of which 17.27 billion suitable for
digitisation
approximately 692,908 units of microfilm
approximately 8.29 million photographs
In the ENUMERATE 2015 survey, on average 68 % of archive and other record office
respondents said that they collect born-digital material.
Poole estimated that in 2010 EU CHIs held approximately:
CHIs (in
general) & 10.81 million hours of audio material
other
institutions 12.14 million hours of video materials
1.04 million hours of film
In the ENUMERATE 2015 survey, on average 69 % of CHI respondents identifying
themselves as other than libraries, museums, archives and other record offices collect born-
digital material.
193
G.J. Nauta – W. van den Heuvel, DEN Foundation on behalf of Europeana/ENUMERATE, "Survey
Report on Digitisation in European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2015", June 2015.
194
Network of European Museum Organisations (NEMO), "Survey on museums and Copyright", August
2015.
114
Examples at institutional level195
The following figures give an estimation of archival holdings in FI. This is a minimum
estimation as it covers 17 among the main archival institutions in FI but not all of them, and
information was not available for all types of works for all the surveyed institutions. It should
therefore not be regarded as a precise record of these institutions holdings. For time-based
works (sound recordings and living images), data was sometimes collected in terms of hours,
sometimes in terms of individual items (e.g. individual phonograms).
Type of work Quantity Range (smallest to largest
individual collection)
Documents 286,762 shelf metres 344 to 208,274
Photographs 4,559,135 units 14,000 to 1,140,545
Sound recordings 77,800 hours + 17,292 items 489 to 35,210 hours / 650 to 8,669
items
Living image 8,383 hours + 4,412 items 110 to 4,050 hours / 128 to 2,684
items
Posters, drawings, maps 2,182,654 items 67 to 1,753,257
Total works subject to copyright Depending on the institution, it can vary from 0.25% to 95-100%
(Information provided by the national archives of FI, data refers to 2014)
Data referring to each of the 17 institutions is shown in the following table. It should be noted
that not some of the figures are estimations.
195
Sources are mainly CHI themselves.
115
116
Institution Figures Sources196
In 2014 the library had 10,222,000 volumes in its
collection, of which 160,000 were added in that year
only. Its music department holds approximately
388,000 scores, 40,000 manuscripts, 92,000 sound
carriers and 164,000 between books and periodicals Website of the library
on music and is the guardian of about 303 musician (Bayerische Staatsbibliothek),
Bavarian State archives. The book collection of its Eastern Europe last accessed on 04/03/2016
Library (DE) department amounted to about 890,000 volumes in
2005 and acquires approximately 15,000 titles in Website of the Münchener
Eastern European languages every year. Its picture DigitalisierungsZentrum, last
archives include some 140,000 pictures. Its map accessed on 04/03/2016
collection includes approximately 400,000 sheets.
In February 2016, the volume of its digitised objects
was 629 terabytes
Library of the
Institute of Slavic
and Baltic Philology The library has 68,175 volumes and covers books, as Website of the library last
of the Eötvös well as periodicals and student dissertations. accessed on 17/06/2016
Loránd University
(HU)
The library holds 18 million items, equivalent to
National Library of Website of the library last
140,000 linear metres of shelving, as well as 8 million
Sweden accessed on 09/07/2015
hours of audio and audio-visual materials.
The library estimates its holdings in between 150 and
British Library, "Living
200 million items, growing of some 0.8 kilometres of
Knowledge: the British Library
new items every month. The Sound Archive of the
2015-2023", September 2015
library has approximately 6.5 million sound
recordings, growing by approximately 4,000 a month. British Library, "Digital
British Library (UK)
Digital content stored in the long-term digital library Preservation Strategy 2013-
system is estimated at 280 terabytes, or 11,500,000 2016", March 2013
items, including 2 billion pages of UK web content.
Website of the library last
This is expected to increase to approximately 5
accessed on 23/05/2016
petabytes by 2020.
AT 2015-2013 national report
The museum has an image database of approximately on the implementation of the
Museum of Modern 9,000 objects and 130,000 images, and an online Commission Recommendation
Art in Vienna collection completed in 2012 that counts 4,643 on Digitisation and Online
(MUMOK, AT) objects and 9,500 images of works from the 20th and Accessibility of Cultural
21st centuries. Material and Digital
Preservation
The museum's collections include:
R.Peters – L. Kalshoven,
Fashion Museum of a 'core' collection of approximately 25,000
"Europeana Factsheet. What
the Province of garments, of which about one third is
rights clearance looks like for
Antwerp (MoMu, estimated to be in-copyright, one third
Cultural Heritage Organisations
BE) orphan, and one third in the public domain;
– 10 case studies", Europeana
an archival collection of approximately 300 Factsheet, 23 June 2016
shelf metres, of which about a third is
196
Where not otherwise specified, information was provided to European Commission services via direct
contacts with the national authority or institution mentioned.
117
estimated to be in copyright;
a documentation collection of approximately
50 shelf metres (including items like photos,
cards, press clippings, folders and flyers)
which is estimated to be in-copyright.
The museum holds approximately 250,000 books and Website of the museum last
journals and 6 million photographs, of which roughly accessed 17/05/2016
10-15 % is considered to be still protected by
Nordic Museum R.Peters – L. Kalshoven,
copyright belonging to external right holders (the
(Nordiska Museet, "Europeana Factsheet. What
museum does not hold the rights). Part of these
SE) rights clearance looks like for
collections are 7,000 press photographs of the archive
Cultural Heritage Organisations
of publishing house Saxon & Lindström. The
– 10 case studies", Europeana
museum's archival holdings amount to 4,500 shelf
Factsheet, 23 June 2016
metres.
R.Peters – L. Kalshoven,
"Europeana Factsheet. What
Victoria and Albert rights clearance looks like for
Museum (UK) The museum holds more than 2.5 million objects.
Cultural Heritage Organisations
– 10 case studies", Europeana
Factsheet, 23 June 2016
State Archive of Records amount to 11,526,000 linear metres of Information provided by the
Cyprus shelving. State Archive of CY
German Federal Information provided by the DE
The archives hold approximately 11 million pictures.
Archives Federal Archive
National Archives of The archive holds 107,287 archives, and in total they Information provided by the
Denmark contain 4,564,034 items (boxes or volumes) (2015). National Archive of DK
R.Peters – L. Kalshoven,
It is estimated that the institute's archives, which also
"Europeana Factsheet. What
Netherlands Institute comprise the NL public broadcasters' archive, contain
rights clearance looks like for
for Sound and on million hours of audio-visual material and three
Cultural Heritage Organisations
Vision million items of non-AV materials, including
– 10 case studies", Europeana
photographs.
Factsheet, 23 June 2016
The film archive holds150 million metres of film,
Czech National Film more than half a million photographs, over 30,000 Website of the archive last
Archive posters, 134,000 items of promotional materials, in accessed 17/06/2016.
addition to other archival materials and a film library.
Website of the institute last
accessed 18/05/2016
The collections of the institute include about 1 million R.Peters – L. Kalshoven,
International
printed volumes and 400 archives. They include "Europeana Factsheet. What
Institute of Social
713,547 prints and drawings, 129,901 posters and rights clearance looks like for
History (NL)
570, 956 photos, in addition to a range of ephemera. Cultural Heritage Organisations
– 10 case studies", Europeana
Factsheet, 23 June 2016
The photographic archive of the institute includes
Cultural Heritage Website of the institute last
more than 700,000 items. Its library holds 40,000
Institute of Spain accessed on 25/05/2016.
books and more than 1,600 magazine titles.
118
Aggregators
Heritage content aggregators are service organisations that collect content metadata from
several CHIs so that they are available online at a single access point. According to the
"Report on the Implementation of Commission Recommendation 2011/711/EU" prepared by
the European Commission in 2014, 24 MS had at least one national aggregator. Aggregators
can cover all domains or specific ones (e.g. written cultural heritage). Examples of cross-
domain aggregators include Kulturpool in AT, the Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek in DE,
Hispana in ES, Culture.fr in FR, the "Hrvatska kulturna baština" portal in HR, CulturaItalia in
IT, Letonica in LT, Polona in PL.
Aggregators with a European scope also exist, notably Europeana, covering all types of works
and cultural heritage items, but also more specific ones like the Archives Portal Europe and he
European Film Gateway.
ANNEX 9B – COPYRIGHT AND DIGITISATION
The term 'digitisation', particularly in the phrase 'mass digitisation' is commonly used to
describe both the analogue-to-digital reproduction (or creation of 'surrogates') of original
works and the making available of the digitised copy through digital networks, for instance on
Internet pages, portals and aggregators (see Annex 9A for a definition of aggregators). In
other words, in this meaning the term encompasses the broader "set of management and
technical processes and activities by which material is selected, processed, converted from
analogue to digital format, described, stored, preserved and distributed".197 'Digitisation' can
however also be used to refer to the reproduction/conversion (analogue to digital) only. This
is the case when digitisation is done for preservation purposes. It should be noted that
digitisation does not encompass all preservation activities, nor is digitisation carried out only
or mainly for preservation or intended to replace the preservation of physical objects in their
original form.
Digitisation involves acts that are relevant for copyright purposes as they involve certain
rights, notably the reproduction and making available rights. Clearing these rights in order to
carry out digitisation activities can imply varying costs.
Copyright-related aspects are however only one element of digitisation activities. Particularly,
the costs of digitisation are attributable to a wide set of factors that go beyond the transaction
costs associated to the identification of the copyright status of a given work, copyright
clearance with right holders and the payment of licence fees, where applicable. Other costs
include, for example, those related to the selection of materials, scanning, the creation of
metadata, ongoing preservation, maintenance of web servers, user outreach and support,
training, management costs etc. According to a 2014 survey of cultural heritage institutions,198
copyright clearance is estimated to account on average for 3% of the costs of setting up a
digital collection by CHIs (as part of "incidental costs" that also include analogue to digital
conversions, which take up 37% of expenditure, and metadata creation, estimated at 19%).
Licences account for 8% of "structural costs" (those related to the ensuing maintenance,
enhancement and preservation of a digital collection). These data do not distinguish between
197
N. Poole, "The Cost of Digitising Europe’s Cultural Heritage. A Report for the Comité des Sages of the
European Commission", November 2010.
198
N. Stroeker – R. Vogels, Panteia on behalf of ENUMERATE, "Survey Report on Digitisation in
European Cultural Heritage Institutions 2014", June 2014.
119
works covered by copyright and those that are not, and therefore, if in-copyright collections
only were considered, the relative weight of copyright-related costs could be higher. It is also
estimated that, beside digitisation intended as a conversion of works from analogue to digital,
the long-term preservation and the provision of access to the digitised works can cost 10 to
100 % of the initial cost of creating the digital object.199 The actual mass digitisation of
European heritage and its digital preservation therefore depends on this mix of factors, where
the availability of sufficient funding also plays a major role.
Copyright-related issues can however still be a defining factor in the decision and/or the
possibility by CHIs to proceed with digitisation projects at all, as often reported by
institutional respondents in the public consultation,200 depending on their relative weight. Such
relative weight can be very high when individual transactions (a single licence) are the rule
and cover only one work or a limited number of works. In these cases, transaction costs can
be high compared to the number of concerned works in a given collection, affecting
digitisation activities.201 For example, film heritage institutions indicate that, apart from
funding, the other obstacle to the digitisation of film collection is the high financial and
human resources for clearing rights.202
ANNEX 9C – THE '20TH CENTURY BLACK HOLE'
The term '20th century black hole' is used to designate the relatively low level of works from
the 20th century in digital collections of CHIs available to the public online, if compared to
works from other centuries. The notion can apply to both individual institutions and
aggregators. Such situation can be the result of various factors and no direct causal relation
between copyright rules and the '20th century back hole' has been clearly established. The '20th
century black hole' is however referred to as a possible illustration of the difficulties CHIs
have in clearing copyright as copyright-protected works are also the most recent one in
collections that spans centuries (for authors' rights, in the EU copyright extends to the life of
the author plus 70 years).
The most recent exercise to capture the '20th century black hole' was made by the Europeana
Foundation, based on a sample of 6,223,992 digital items out of the approximately 45 million
present in Europeana203 at the moment of the calculation. This is illustrated in the graph and
table below.
199
See N. Poole, "The Cost of Digitising Europe’s Cultural Heritage. A Report for the Comité des Sages of
the European Commission", November 2010.
200
See also See R.Peters – L.Kalshoven, "What rights clearance looks like for Cultural Heritage
Organisations – 10 case studies", Europeana Factsheet, 23 June 2016 for concrete examples.
201
This problem can be more acute for certain types of works (e.g. right holders are often more numerous
in an audio-visual work than in a print one).
202
European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of the European Parliament and Council
Recommendation on Film Heritage 2012-2013", 2014.
203
Works were selected on the basis of how reliable data on the date of creation of the original work was
(as opposed to the date of creation of its digital reproduction or other temporal references that are
available to institutions when providing their metadata to Europeana). See "Europeana Factsheet. The
20th Century Black Hole: How does it show up on Europeana?", September 2015 for more information
on the methodology used, the overall level of accuracy and explanations on the accuracy concerns at the
basis of the selection of the sample.
120
X-axis = year Y-axis = thousands of works
(source of graph: Europeana.pro website - available under a CC0 licence)
The distribution of the digital object in the sample across historical periods is reported in the
table below:
Time period Number of objects Percentage
1st half (1800-1849) 747,741 12.01%
2nd half (1850-1899) 1,656,069 26.61%
1st half (1900-1949): 2,179,361 35.02%
2nd half (1949-1999) 680,084 10.93%
21st century 960,737 15.43%
At institutional level, data available on the collection of digitised books from the Bavarian
State Library also indicates a relatively low number of digitised books from the 20th century
compared to previous ones, as illustrated in the table below. 204
204
Data retrieved from the website of the Munich Digitization Center (MDZ) - http://www.digitale-
sammlungen.de (last accessed on 21/03/2016).
121
450000 406.777
400000
Number of digital items
350000
301.943
300000
250000
200000
153.966
150000 115.750
100000
50000 10.338 22.386
600 199 328 649 540
0
Century
Sound recordings and audiovisual works in digital collections
The low level of audio and audio-visual works in online digital collections, compared to other
works, is also often mentioned as an illustration of the under-representation of in-copyright
works in those collections. This is based on the assumption that audio and audio-visual
recordings are a recent production (dating back to the 20th and 19th century at the earliest). In
this case too, no direct causal relation with copyright rules can be established in this Impact
Assessment.
According to data provided by Europeana, the representation of sound and video-based works
is relatively low compared to the total in the Europeana online collection, as illustrated by the
following graphs referring to Europeana in general and broken-down per MS of origin:205
Europeana 3D; 0,00%
Text; 42,70%
Image;
53,60%
Video; 2,10%
Sound; 1,60%
205
Europeana Statistics Dashboard (last accessed 20/04/2016).
122
Portugal
Text, 30.60%
Video, 0.40% Image;
68,70%
Sound;
0,20%
Germany 3D; 0,20%
Text; 38,10%
Image;
60,20%
Video;
1,10% Sound;
0,30%
Estonia
Image;
44,20%
Text; 51,10%
Sound;
Video; 3,70%
1,00%
123
ANNEX 9D – TRANSACTION COSTS IN INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS CLEARANCE – ESTIMATES AND
EXAMPLES
Nature and availability of data
While data on the overall costs of mass digitisation, at aggregated or project level, have been
available for the purposes of this impact assessment, data specific to the transaction costs
related to copyright clearance in the context of preservation or mass digitisation activities is
more scarce, often anecdotal or specific to particular projects or circumstances. When
available, data generally refer to the time required for copyright clearance (e.g. person-hours),
and less frequently to costs expressed in monetary terms. Differences apply to different
cultural sectors (print, sound, cinema and audio-visual, visual arts etc.) making available data
unsuitable for comparisons or aggregation.
The figures provided below should therefore be used with caution, to the extent that they are
samples of an identified problem and are particular to individual MS (for example as regards
personnel costs, average salaries, the available administrative infrastructure available to CHIs
etc.), projects and types of works. The financial equivalent of values expressed as time (e.g.
person-hours) is in some cases the result of estimations made by the Commission's services
for illustrative purposes, and should be treated and quoted as such.
Data included below generally refers to digitisation projects whose objective is the making
available of works, in addition to the creation of a digital object starting from an analogue
format. They were mainly provided by CHIs.
Transaction costs
Individual licensing is meant here as clearing the rights of one or several works whose rights
are owned by the same right holder. For the purposes of this document, rights clearance is
intended as starting after that the CHI has selected the works in its collection to be digitised
and made available to the public, and generally requires the following steps:
1. Determining the copyright status of the works: public domain, in-copyright or
unknown copyright status.
2. Identifying and locating the right holders.
3. Contacting the right holders.
4. Asking for permission/negotiating with right holders.
All these steps involve 'transaction costs', i.e. costs incurred by the parties in pursuing an
economic exchange, except from the agreed price (we use the expression transaction costs
even for those cases where a successful rights clearance process does not give rise to any
licence fee payment but only to a right holder's authorisation to use the work). Although in the
case of transactions to be agreed upon between an institution and the relevant right holders
these costs are mostly attributed to the institution, the rights clearance process may also give
rise to costs on the side of the right holder (e.g. to reply to institutions' requests). The costs
related to steps 1 and 2 are commonly referred to as "identification" or "search" costs, while
those resulting from steps 3 and 4 may be called "negotiation" or "bargaining" costs.
In the case of digitisation projects by CHIs, given the nature of the works involved, these
transaction costs may become high enough to erode the gains that can be obtained through the
transaction, and by far exceed the value of the use for the user or the available or allocated
budget. This could result in the prospective licensee not even starting the transaction process
or the transaction not coming to a conclusion with transaction costs already incurred
124
becoming sunk costs (i.e. non recoverable).206 Some CHIs having resorted to individual rights
clearance in tests or individual projects indicated to the Commission's services that the
incurred transaction costs preclude such approach being adopted as ongoing practice.
"Identification costs" can be reduced by technology-based tools that automate the diligent
search that is required to establish the copyright status of a work and find its right holders
(and those who can issue licences on their behalf). Existing tools, notably ARROW, have
proven to be useful in reducing the time it takes to do that (see Annex 9I below).
Estimations and examples
Printed works
A study on individual rights clearance of printed works held in the British Library207
(hereinafter: 'the BL study'), including the transaction costs associated with it, based on a
sample of 140 books, resulted in an average of 4 hours per book to perform steps 1 to 4 as
described above. This figure results from considering all works of the sample used in the
study, even in those cases where not all the four steps were needed (e.g. because after step 1 it
was clear that the work was in the public domain). Where every step had to be taken,
clearance took an average of 5 hours and 56 minutes for each book. It should be noted that
these calculations refer to rights clearance carried out 'manually'. The study showed that by
using the ARROW system it would take approximately 5 minutes per book to obtain rights
information (e.g. copyright status, in or out-of-commerce, right holders and licensing CMO,
where available).
An indicative estimation of the financial cost equivalent to the time spent for individual rights
clearance as per the study above can be obtained by taking into account the average hourly
personnel costs for the staff that is assumed to be in charge of rights clearance in relevant
institutions. As the data used in the study refers to the UK, we take here as a proxy for those
personnel costs the average hourly earnings for librarians, archivists and related professionals
as used by the UK government in its impact assessment on a "Copyright exception for
archiving and preservation", carried out in 2012.208 That figure amounted to GBP 13.21 in
2011. Assuming an uplift of 16% to account for overheads, as per the UK impact assessment,
the cost per hour in the UK can be assumed for the purposes of this assessment to be GBP
15.32, which equals to approximately EUR 17.62 according to the average official exchange
rate in 2011.209 Taking the BL study average as a basis (4 hours and 5 hours and 56 minutes,
i.e. 5.93 hours, to clear the rights of a book, in the two scenarios), an estimate of the cost of
clearing the rights of a single book in this case study can be roughly estimated to be as high as
EUR 70.48 per book on average and 104.49 per book when all the steps had to be taken
(4 hours or 5.93 hours x EUR 17.62). This calculation does not take into account the reduction
in identification costs that can be brought about by the ARROW system (ARROW is not
available in all MS and can only be used for books).
206
See Gregor Langus et alii, " Assessing the economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and
exceptions to copyright and related rights in the EU", Charles River Associates, October 2013, and for
its application to CHI preservation and digitisation contexts, J. Boulanger et alii, "Assessing the
economic impacts of adapting certain limitations and exceptions to copyright and related rights.
Analysis of specific policy options", Charles River Associates, May 2014.
207
B. Stratton, "Seeking New Landscapes. A rights clearance study in the context of mass digitisation of
140 books published between 1870 and 2010", The British Library Board, 2011.
208
UK Government, "Impact assessment on copyright exception for archiving and preservation", 2014,
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukia/2014/157/pdfs/ukia_20140157_en.pdf
209
1.15 EUR per GBP (European Central Bank reference exchange rates).
125
The Wellcome Library in the UK engaged in a project to digitise and make available books
published between 1850 and 1990 and other materials related to the history of genetics. 987 of
the initial list of candidate books were made available after a rights clearance process that also
identified in-commerce works (excluded from the project) and works that were out-of
commerce. The overall rights clearance costs, which also included fees paid to collecting
societies for support in identifying rights, were estimated at an approximate total of GBP
45,000, i.e. around GBP 46 or EUR 52.90 per each work made available.210 The Wellcome
Library concluded that the type of rights clearance used in this project "is not scalable".211
Sound recordings
The British Library carried out a digitisation project concerning 45,000 sound recordings for
its "Sound Archive Project". The reported cost was of 4,300 person-hours.212
Visual works
ANLux, the national archives of Luxembourg, engaged in a project to make available 7,263
photographs dating back to the 1950s to 1970s from the collection of a government
department charged with the touristic and economic promotion of the country.213 ANLux
reported214 that, except from well-known national professional photographers, the rights
clearance process was very time-demanding and that it can be estimated at approximately 1.5
person-day per author (photographer), even though all right holders were Luxembourgish.
This amounts in total to approximately 33 person-days for only 22 photographers involved.
Taking as a reference an average archivist salary for LU of approximately EUR 43.25 per
hour215 and an average of 8.16 hours worked per day216, this amounts to a total cost of
approximately EUR 11,645, or EUR 529 per author, EUR 1.60 per photo in the initial set
of selected photograph and 1.78 per photograph made available (ANLux ultimately made
available 6,544 photos out of 7,263). More than 90% of the right holders agreed to the
digitisation and making available of the works free of charge. The individual licensing of the
photographs took 2-3 years on its own and the project, started originally in 2004, was
completed only in 2015. ANLux reported that the making available of the online photo
exhibition resulted in a peak of visits at their website, confirming an interest from the public,
but given the high transaction costs they would not be likely to venture in a similar project in
the lack of a collective licensing opportunity.
The NL-based International Institute of Social History (IISH) asked an external service
provider for an estimation of the cost of clearing rights to make available online 20,799
210
The ARROW system was used in this case (see Annex 9I for more on ARROW).
211
These costs do not include royalty payments and do not cover the effort to identify all the right holders
involved. See R. Kiley, "Clearing rights to digitise books published in the 20th century: a case study
prepared by the Wellcome Library, the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society and the Publishers
Licensing Society", June 2013.
212
A. Vuopala, "Assessment of the Orphan works issue and Costs for Rights Clearance", May 2010.
213
For 23 photographs, the right holder could not be identified and for the remaining 696 excluded
photographs, authorisation was not received by the heirs of the respective two photographers at the time
of collecting the data.
214
Information provided by ANLux to the Commission's services.
215
For the purposes of this calculation, the average hourly wage for "Technicians and associate
professionals" was used as available for LU from EUROSTAT for 2010 (data for more recent years
than 2010 was not available).
216
Based on EUROSTAT data on hours worked per week of full-time employment in LU for 2014 (the
ANLux project was carried out in 2014-2015).
126
photos in its collection whose photographers (253 in total) were known.217 The estimation
provided (excluding licence fees) was EUR 15,000, equating to approximately EUR 60 per
single photographer and EUR 0.70 per picture. The IISH described this cost as seemingly
"proportionate" but still "prohibitive". The IISH estimated an overall cost per picture also
including further administrative work to be done after the rights clearance process to publish
the photo online at approximately EUR 1.40 per picture.
The photographs selected for the estimation were those of individual photographers for whom
the IISH held at least 10 pictures in their collections, distributed as follows, depending on the
number of photographs present in the institute's archives for each photographer:
Photographs whose author is known but not necessarily the right holder
Number of photos of each Number of authors Total items
author
1 2,306 2,308
2 to 9 1,347 4,582
10 to 19 128 1,744
21 to 49 72 2,176
50+ 53 16,859
TOTAL 3,906 27,669
More generally, the IISH indicates that a rough estimate of for rights clearance of works in
general in its holdings would be EUR 10 per item.218
The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) engaged in a project to digitise and make
available a collection of protest posters from the 20th century. The museum estimated that it
took 546 working hours / 78 working days to identify right holders, where possible, and clear
rights for 1,189 posters, requiring 1,913 enquiries to individual right holders due to multiple
right holders in a single poster in certain cases. At a cost of GBP 10.50 per hour, the total
transaction costs are estimated at approximately GBP 5,733 or GBP 4.82 / EUR 5.69219 per
work if all concerned works in the collection are considered and GBP 12.52 / EUR
14.77220 per work if only the 458 posters for which they received explicit authorisation
are considered.221
Another example is a digitisation project carried out by the Wellcome Library in the UK of
posters used in AIDS awareness campaigns. Even though the posters were quite recent
217
Although not necessarily the right holder.
218
Case study based on information provided by the concerned CHI as part of R.Peters – L.Kalshoven,
"What rights clearance looks like for Cultural Heritage Organisations – 10 case studies", Europeana
Factsheet, 23 June 2016.
219
Based on an exchange rate of 1.18 EUR per GBP (European Central Bank reference exchange rates).
220
Based on an exchange rate of 1.18 EUR per GBP (European Central Bank reference exchange rates).
221
Case study based on information provided by the concerned CHI as part of R.Peters – L.Kalshoven,
"What rights clearance looks like for Cultural Heritage Organisations – 10 case studies", Europeana
Factsheet, 23 June 2016.
127
(1980s), the transaction costs linked to the rights clearance concerning 1,400 works reached
EUR 70,000 or an average of EUR 50 per poster.222
Audio-visual works
The Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision (NISV) cleared rights on an individual
basis for a collection of 6,700 short films made by non-professionals and created between the
'10s and '80s of the 20th century, with a view to making them available online on the
Amateurfilm Platform (a joint initiative with two other NL archival organisations). Rights
clearing was considered necessary also for those works whose rights had already been
transferred to the person who had put together the collection and had donated it to the NISV,
as such transfer had occurred in the pre-internet era. The rights clearance process lasted about
2 and a half years, resulting in the making available online of 1,410 of the films, by 42
authors. NISV personnel spent approximately 200 hours in legal tasks related to contracts and
another 800 hours in project management and rights clearance. The total cost of such work,
excluding the initial elaboration of a rights clearance strategy, is estimated at EUR 37,634,
excluding other costs like a licence with a CMO for cases where films included music and
costs related to the organisation of information days for right holders and other 'community
building' activities. This equates to approximately EUR 26.70 per short film made
available.223
Various types of works
The German National Library (DNB, Deutsche National Bibliothek) made a broad
estimation of the transaction costs involved in five projects for the digitisation and making
available of approximately 25,800 items in its collections. These case studies refer to works
that were determined to be in the public domain or, in a number of cases, in copyright but out-
of-commerce, and eligible for licences also covering the rights of right holders not
represented in the licensor CMO.224 The estimated transaction costs mainly refer to the
determination of the public-domain/in-copyright status of works, the determination (for
copyright works) of their eligibility for the above mentioned collective licensing system, and
obtaining such licence from a CMO in 500 cases. They therefore don't include costs for
locating and contacting individual right holders and negotiating with each of them
individually, as such cost was not incurred by the DNB (the institution decided to focus on
public domain works or those that can be eligible for the collective licensing system
mentioned above, which is based on a presumption of representation allowing CMOs, in
certain specific cases, to also issue licences on behalf of non-represented right holders). The
estimated transaction cost (excluding licence fees) was EUR 7.47 on average per item made
available. For works eligible to the out-of-commerce licensing mechanism, a EUR 1, one-off
registration fee per item must be added; in the case at hand, this concerned 500 items.
The five projects covered the following items, for a total of 25,761 of them:
222
A. Vuopala, "Assessment of the Orphan works issue and Costs for Rights Clearance", May 2010.
223
Case study based on information provided by the concerned CHI as part of R.Peters – L.Kalshoven,
"What rights clearance looks like for Cultural Heritage Organisations – 10 case studies", Europeana
Factsheet, 23 June 2016.
224
This is possible in DE for out-of-commerce books, journals, newspapers or other writings (and
embedded images) published before 01/01/1966, based on the provision in law that CMOs responding
to certain criteria are presumed to also represent the rights of right holders that are not members of the
CMO for licence. See also Annex 9E.
128
Project Number of items Type of works
1 22,275 Monographs about the German Exiles dating back to the
1930-1950s
2 1,500 Objects related to the 1st World War (including
monographs, brochures, flyers, posters)
3 500 Legal text-based works (mainly books and journals) dated
1900 or later
4 863 Legal texts and commentaries, dated 1900 or later
5 623 Shellac records and wax cylinders from 1900 to 1960
TOTAL 25,761 -
The DBN estimated that approximately 3,000 person-hours were needed to clear rights for
all these collections, at a cost of EUR 64 per person per hour (including overheads but
excluding assistance from the library's internal legal department).225
Summary of results of the case studies
Overview of estimated transaction costs for rights clearance based on the above case studies:
EUR 53 and 104 per single book
EUR 0.70 and EUR 1.70 per single photograph
EUR 5.70 and EUR 50 for a single poster
EUR 26.70 for a single short amateur movie
EUR 7.45 (in a project that also uses a collective licensing system allowing for
licences covering the rights of non-represented right holders) and EUR 10 for mixed
collections.
Important notice: these figures are case-specific and are calculated using different methods
and assumptions (e.g. cost per item in the initial set of works vs. cost per actual work made
available, clearance work carried out in-house vs. uses of external service providers, number
of steps required, reference wage values used, different criteria for the selection of initial set
of works etc.). They should therefore not be compared, or considered and quoted as having
general validity.
ANNEX 9E – ECL AND POR: OVERVIEW, NATIONAL EXAMPLES AND EVIDENCE OF OPT-OUT
LEVELS
Legal mechanisms allowing for collective licences to apply to works and other subject
matter of right holders who are not members of the licensing collective management
organisation (CMO)
225
Case study based on information provided by the concerned CHI as part of R.Peters – L.Kalshoven,
"What rights clearance looks like for Cultural Heritage Organisations – 10 case studies", Europeana
Factsheet, 23 June 2016.
129
Extended Collective Licensing (ECL) and Presumptions of Representations (PoR) are
legal techniques allowing for collective licences to apply to works and other subject matter of
right holders who are not members of the licensing collective management organisation used
in some MS for the licensing of works in high volumes and low individual value, where the
conclusion of individual transactions would be too burdensome and costly in terms of
transaction costs to be incurred by the parties (e.g. photocopying in schools).
Under ECL mechanisms, the effects of freely negotiated licensing agreements between a user
and a CMO, which represents its own members, can be extended by operation of the national
law to the non-members of the CMO. This mechanism has been regularly used in some
members of the European Economic Area (SE, FI, DK, NO and IS) since the 1960s, and has
been more recently introduced in other EU MS.
Under a PoR, a legal fiction establishes that the CMO is deemed to represent the interests and
rights of non-members, pursuant to the relevant provisions under national law. In this case,
the extended effect does not apply to the licence itself, but to the CMO's mandate. As a result,
the CMO would be able to provide a licence which would cover works and other protected
subject-matter whose rights are owned by its members, as well as by non-members, in the
areas of application, to the extent, and under the conditions allowed by national law.
Both mechanisms generally include some core principles to offer safeguards for the protection
of the interests of the outsiders. These are:
(i) Sufficient representativeness of the licensor CMO, i.e. the requirement that the
negotiating CMO is representative of a significant number of right holders in a given
sector or type of works and for a given use. The fulfilment of this requirement must
in some cases be formally acknowledged via an authorisation by a competent public
authority, as part of government authorisation procedures where foreseen in national
law.
(ii) Explicit possibility for non-members to continue managing their rights
individually (opt-out): non-members should normally have the right to opt out of
ECL or PoR schemes and measures are often foreseen, including
transparency/publicity procedures, so that sufficient information is available to
them. In some cases, for example in certain schemes for the use of OOC works by
CHIs, concerned works have to be encoded in public registers leaving time to right
holders to have them withdrawn (this gives users to have certainty on what works or
other protected subject-matter are excluded from the extended effect of the licence).
(iii) Equal treatment between represented and non-represented right holders: if they
do not opt out, non-members are entitled to receive remuneration for the use of their
works, as per the agreed licence and under the same rules that apply to members, in
furtherance of the general principle of non-discrimination.
In addition to these, national legislation on ECL or PoR can also include additional elements,
for example as regards proof required to the CMOs of them abiding by certain governance
and transparency requirements, mediation, arbitration or legal procedures intervening in case
the parties disagree on the terms and conditions of the licence being negotiated, opt-outs for
members etc.
Examples of existing EEA Member State legislation providing for extended collective
licensing or presumptions of representation for collective management organisations
(CMOs) applicable to the digitisation and dissemination of out-of-commerce (OOC) works
by cultural heritage institutions (CHIs)
130
The following list226 illustrates some of the existing legislation in MS providing for collective
licences that also cover the rights of right holders who are not members of the CMO that
issued the licence. It covers provisions that can be used for licences for the digitisation and
dissemination to the general public of full OOC works by CHIs, either because they
specifically cater for that use, or because they have a broader scope that encompasses it
(collections of works in CHIs irrespective of whether they are OOC, or general mechanisms).
Additional specificities may apply nationally that are not covered here.
Key:
ECL = extended collective licensing mechanism
PoR = presumption of representation mechanism
DK – General ECL provision (use or sector is not defined in law) which can be applied to the
digitisation and dissemination of works in CHI collection, upon Government approval of the
scheme.
FI – Specific ECL provision for the reproduction and communication to the public, including
making available, of works in the collection of archives, and libraries or museums open to the
public, irrespective of whether the works are OOC.
SE – Specific ECL provision covering the reproduction and making available by certain
libraries and archives of works (irrespective of whether they are OOC) contained in their
collections, and general ECL provision that can be used for CHIs other than libraries and
archives.
DE – Specific PoR provision for OOC books, journals, newspapers or other writings
published before 01/01/1966 (and embedded images) in the collections of publicly accessible
libraries, educational establishments, museums, archives and film or audio heritage
institutions. Works can be licensed through this mechanism if they are listed in an OOC
works register managed by the federal Patent and Trademark Office. Works are inserted in the
list if, after an initial proposal for insertion by a cultural institution, no right holder has
objected within 6 weeks. Right holders can also opt their works out at any time later through
the Patent and Trademark Office or the concerned CMO.
SK – ECL mechanism applicable to various uses including the reproduction, making available
and distribution of OOC works. The representative CMO is considered to be the one which
directly (not on the basis of reciprocal agreements with another CMO) represents the biggest
number of rightholders on the territory of the Slovak Republic and is indicated in the list of
CMOs administered by Ministry of Culture. This broader provision (applicable to various
uses) replaced a previous one that only applied to OOC literary works in written form in the
collection of CHIs.
PL – Specific ECL provision for the reproduction and making available of books,
newspapers, magazines or other forms of printed material published before 24/05/1994 in the
collection of archives, educational institutions, universities, research institutes and cultural
institutions. Works can be licensed through this mechanism if they are in a list published and
administered by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, and no opt-out notification has
been submitted by right holders to the CMO within 90 days of the registration.
226
The list is not necessarily exhaustive.
131
UK – General ECL provision. The area of application is not defined in the law but CMOs
need to obtain authorisation by the Government before operating a scheme. In order to be
authorised for a maximum of 5 years, CMOs must demonstrate that they have procedures in
place to allow outsiders to opt-out of the scheme including before the scheme commences.
HU – General ECL mechanism that can apply to OOC works. Collective management of
rights is subject to registration by the government in general, ECL schemes can therefore be
run only by registered CMOs.
NO – Specific ECL provision applicable to archives, libraries and museums for the
reproduction and making available of works in their collections (irrespective of whether they
are OOC), in addition to a general ECL provision.
Data on opt-out levels
In a licensing mechanism based on the PoR in DE as described above for OOC books, there
was no objection by any rightholder. Licensing under this mechanism started in 2015. 1,442
books were licenced in 2015 and 2,419 in 2016 so far, with 18 libraries participating. 227
In the ECL-based project Bokhylla, which allows the National Library of Norway to make
available online books of Norwegian literature, including in-commerce ones, only
approximately 3,700 book titles were subject of an opt-out, against 205,000 titles made
available online (the first figure represents about 1.8% of the total titles made available).228
Very low opt-out rates were also reported to the UK Government by certain Scandinavian
CMOs in the context of the UK's consideration of legislation introducing ECL provisions. In
the same context, the Copyright Licensing Agency, which in the UK offers a blanket licence
that the UK Government describes as similar to an ECL in nature, indicated that works
excluded from the repertoire offered amount to 0.0007%.229
ANNEX 9F – THE EXISTENCE OF COLLECTIVE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURES BY SECTOR
Licensing mechanisms as described in Annex 9E require that, for the creative sector at stake,
collective management of rights is possible and that at least one collective management body
exists (or can be set up) that has or can obtain the required mandates and negotiate licences
for the relevant uses. It also requires well-functioning CMOs.
The landscape of collective management across the EU is varied. Depending on the MS and
sector, collective management is generally more or less used for exercising rights. At the
current moment, CMOs can claim different levels of representativeness of entire sectors and
do not necessarily hold, or are in the position to easily collect, the necessary mandates from
right holders.
As regards literary works (as in books, journals and other written matter), CMOs are well
developed and present across Europe. They represent a large part of right holders, particularly
when it comes to secondary uses, and in many cases they deal specifically with uses in and by
227
Data as of July 2016, provided to the European Commission services by DE CMO VG WORT.
228
Data as of July 2016, provided to European Commission services by Norwegian CMO Kopinor. The
Bokhylla project is aimed at giving access to Norwegian works of literature from the whole of the 20th
century. Its ultimate target is to make available 250,000 books by 2017. The service is only available to
Norwegian IP addresses.
229
UK Government, "Impact assessment on Extended Collective Licensing "ECL", May 2012.
132
libraries (for example for reprography rights and the collection of the remuneration right
attached to public library lending). It is in fact with CMOs in the literary sector that well-
known existing collective licences for the digitisation and making available of CHIs holdings
have been concluded.230
For musical works the CMO landscape is also well developed, with CMOs representing
authors for most rights. In this sector, collective management is already common, although
licences with CHIs related to heritage works are not yet frequent. As regards phonograms
producers and performers in the music sector, CMOs are also well developed (often taking the
form of joint producers-performers societies). They tend to deal with the management of
forms of exploitation such as broadcasting, public performance and certain online uses such
as simulcasting and some forms of webcasting.
In the visual arts field, collective management is available, but more widespread in certain
MS than in others, and more developed for fine art than photography. Visual art and
photography CMOs exist for example in all Nordic countries and in NL, but are absent in
some other MS. Agreements between CHIs and CMOs, for the digitisation and making
available of works online have already taken place.231
In the audio-visual sector (cinematographic works and other audio-visual works such as
documentaries) collective management tends to be limited to remuneration rights for authors
and performers (when they exist) and cable retransmission, although in certain MS CMOs
also manage for authors such forms of exploitation as broadcasting, public performance and
certain online uses such as on-demand services of broadcasters. This is an area where
collective management plays a limited role.
The rights in other works that make up the collection of CHIs, including new types of works
like videogames, are generally not managed collectively or come in shapes and forms that are
not directly or obviously considered as falling within the types of works that existing CMOs
manage traditionally.
ANNEX 9G – STAKEHOLDER CO-OPERATION (E.G. MOU) IN THE AREA OF DIGITISATION AND
MAKING AVAILABLE OF HERITAGE
In addition to the appropriate collective management structure (see Annex 9F) the success of
collective licensing, including with an extended effect, depends on the openness and
willingness of stakeholders to support it as a mutually beneficial solution, or one that is
anyway supported by right holders and users. This is why stakeholder dialogue and
cooperation, leading for example to instruments like Memoranda of Understanding or model
contracts, can be conducive to the establishment of the necessary conditions for collective
licensing to take place and be successful.
For books and learned journals, in 2011 a Memorandum of Understanding (hereinafter: 'the
2011 MoU') was agreed – under the auspices of the Commission - between right holders and
libraries to facilitate the clearance of the rights through collective management. It
230
This is the case, for example, in NO (Bokhylla project between the National Library of Norway and
CMO KOPINOR) and in DK (agreement with CMO COPYDAN Writing for works to be made
available on the website of the Royal Library).
231
For example, an agreement with CMOs KUVASTO (visual artists) and KOPIOSTO (photographers) in
FI for the online display of works held by the Finnish National Gallery.
133
acknowledges the need that MS adopt legislative measures backing collective management
schemes applying to all right holders in a particular category (including non-members). It
foresees that sufficient safeguards are needed in terms of CMO representativeness, opt-out
clauses, transparency obligations etc. The 2011 MoU, implementation is monitored by a task
force of stakeholders.
This type of initiatives can:
(i) act as an incentive for relevant sectors to organise themselves so that collective licences
can actually be negotiated (for example by setting up the necessary collective management
infrastructure and mandating CMOs as appropriate);
(ii) assist in the practical negotiation and conclusion of those licences; and
(iii) identify those cases and MS where there is a need for a legislative solutions to support its
implementation.
The "Licences for Europe" stakeholder dialogue convened by the Commission in 2013
resulted in a "Statement of Principles and Procedures for facilitating the digitisation of, access
to and increased interest of European citizens in European cinematographic works".232 The
statement is however relevant for individual licensing transactions and is not per se of special
assistance in mass digitisation contexts.
ANNEX 9H – ILLUSTRATION OF THE IMPACTS OF THE THREE CONSIDERED OPTIONS FOR
OOC
Illustration of the practical impacts of the baseline scenario and the considered options
through an hypothetical ideal case study
Baseline scenario
A CHI (A) wishes to digitise and made available on its website a collection of 2,000 books
related to a particular artistic movement. Another CHI (B) is willing to do the same for 1,000
self-standing drawings related to a certain scientific discipline. Both wish to give access
across borders in the EU to the collections. The maximum monetary equivalent that each of
these CHIs can devote to rights clearance work is EUR 10,000 (CHIs would not undertake the
project at all beyond this ceiling). It is assumed that there are no orphan works in these
collections and that not all the concerned right holders are represented in the relevant CMOs.
It is also assumed that transaction costs for both kinds of works for the clearance of rights
attached to the works are on average EUR 50 per work through individual licensing, and less
than EUR 10,000 for obtaining a single licence through a single CMO for all the concerned
works.
If resorting to individual rights clearance A and B would spend respectively EUR 100,000 and
EUR 50,000 in resources for transaction costs (licence fees, if requested by right holders,
would be on top) and would therefore not proceed with the project.
Under the status quo CHI A would have the possibility to see these transaction costs reduced
to less than EUR 10,000 only in the small group of MS that already have provisions in their
232
The statement was signed by the Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE), the Federation of
European Film directors (FERA), the International Federation of Film Producers Association (FIAPF),
the Society of Audiovisual Authors (SAA).
134
national laws allowing for CMOs to licence the rights of 'outsiders. CHI B would have this
possibility in an even lower number of MS, i.e. those that have such mechanisms potentially
covering all types of works (e.g. general ECL provisions), as in some MS these mechanisms
are only available for books or print works. Outside of these cases, transaction costs would
still be EUR 100,000 and EUR 50,000 respectively, and the projects would therefore not be
taking place.
The possibilities for right holders to obtain licensing revenues and see their works digitised
and made available (and therefore discoverable again) through the projects of CHI A and B
would, accordingly, only exist in the same reduced group of MS. Even in these cases, the
possibilities to make the works owned by outsiders available across borders in the EU based
on a licence would not be possible for either CHI A or B.
Option 1
Under this option, CHI A would be able to proceed with its digitisation project, since the
possibility to reduce its potentially high transaction costs (EUR 100,000) to below EUR
10,000 will be possible in all MS. CHI B would however still be in the position to see the
same reduction of transaction costs (from EUR 50,000 to under EUR 10,000) only, again, in a
small number of MS. In most MS the project would therefore not be undertaken.
Only the right holders of the book collection held by CHI A would have a new opportunity to
see their works exploited and therefore obtain licensing revenue out of it irrespective of the
MS. They would also be in the position to opt out of the scheme if they wish so (for example
because they would like to exploit the work themselves at one point in the future). For the
drawings collection of CHI B, these opportunities would only exist in a small number of MS,
as under the baseline scenario.
Only CHI A would be in the position to make the books whose right holders are outsiders
available across borders in the EU. For CHI B, this possibility would not even exist in those
MS where transaction costs can be reduced to under the ceiling that allows for the project to
be financially viable for it.
Option 2
As in Option 2, CHI A would be able to proceed with its digitisation project, since the
possibility to reduce its potentially high transaction costs (EUR 100,000) to below EUR
10,000 would be possible in all MS.
CHI B would be able to do so in the short term in all MS where a CMO representing visual
artists exists and has the right mandates, as the necessary legal framework would exist in all
MS. The number of MS where such CMOs are available would possibly increase thanks to
the stakeholder dialogues that the Commission would foster. In all these cases, CHI B would
be in the position to negotiate licences in a way that transaction costs can be brought down to
below EUR 10,000.
Relevant right holders for the book collection of CHI A would have a new opportunity to see
their works exploited and therefore obtain licensing revenues potentially everywhere in the
EU. The right holders of the drawings in the collection of CHI B would also have the same
opportunity in all MS where a suitable licensing infrastructure exists. In all these cases, right
holders would be in the position to object to the use of their work if they wish so.
Both CHIs A and B would be in the position to make their works whose right holders are
outsiders available across borders in the EU, once a licence is concluded.
135
ANNEX 9I – TECHNOLOGY FOR RIGHTS INFORMATION FOR DIGITISATION PURPOSES
The EU, the creative industries and the user community have invested in technology-related
innovation projects aimed to generate tools that allow obtaining rights information relevant
for digitisation projects in a quicker and more accurate way. Their objective is to allow users,
typically CHIs, to obtain information such as the copyright status of a work (in or out-of-
copyright), whether it is orphan, its in- or out-of-commerce status, its right holders and
available licensors in a quicker and more accurate way. This enables to reduce the time it
takes to perform certain of the steps that right clearance processes involve. These tools and
projects are at the moment either in a research and development phase (FORWARD, see
below) or already established systems (ARROW). They are not concerned with the
negotiation and issuing of licences and cannot, as such, be considered solutions to that part of
the transaction cost issue explained under Annexes 9D and 9E, and to the outsider problem
explained therein, at least to a substantial degree. It should also be noted that their
geographical spread is not yet pan-European (although it potentially is) and that they are
generally suitable for medium to large-scale projects.
ARROW
ARROW is a digital service infrastructure that can be used to facilitate libraries and other
users in their diligent search for right information related to text-based works that are to be
included in digitisation programmes. The ARROW rights information infrastructure (RII)
links to and queries a network of data sources233 and can deliver, in automated form, relevant
information, including the copyright status of a given work (in or out-of copyright), its orphan
work status, whether it is in- or out of commerce, its right holders, up to whether a collecting
society can issue licences for the concerned work.
The infrastructure, born out of projects financed by the Competitiveness and innovation
framework programme of the EU, was at the time the relevant projects ended available in 9
MS where the system is completely implemented, and at an advanced implementation stage in
7 additional MS.234
The ARROW system can be adapted to medium to large digitisation projects.
FORWARD project
The FORWARD project,235 also funded by the Competitiveness and innovation framework
programme of the European Union, aims to create a system for audiovisual content,
particularly in the context of film heritage, and implement this system by linking to different
rights information sources within a single infrastructure. The FORWARD system aims at
significantly reducing the high transaction costs associated to rights clearance, relying on
existing rights information sources; where they do not exist or are not available, cerain data
might still need to be searched manually by users.
Once in place, the system would allow users to determine the copyright status of audiovisual
works and whether they are orphan works. The system furthermore will log all requests and
subsequently create a database of film rights.
233
Including library catalogues, Books in Print (BIP) databases and Reproduction Rights Organisations
(RRO) repertoire.
234
ARROW and ARROW Plus website (http://www.arrow-net.eu/) last accessed on 16/06/2016.
235
http://project-forward.eu.
136
ANNEX 9J – SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF DIGITISATION236
As a relatively recent phenomenon, the actual social and economic impact of digitisation237
has not been conclusively studied and quantitative conclusions are hard to be drawn,
particularly at EU level. The cultural heritage community and scholars that investigate
digitisation as a research subject acknowledge that better evidence and analysis of impact is
needed than is currently available, as opposed to a pure focus on outputs (e.g. number of
digitised items, website visits, app use). They also often insist that such impact needs to be
defined by indicators of value that are not uniquely economic.238 Efforts are being made to
that end, starting from the elaboration of appropriate assessment frameworks,239 notably in the
context of Europeana and its professional network.240 This section includes the information
that it was possible to collect on the impact of digitisation as considered reasonable for the
purposes of this impact assessment.
The areas that are generally accepted as being affected the impacts of digitisation from a
societal end economic point of view include the following:
Public enjoyment, participation in society and community building
Digitisation provides for new opportunities for individual members of the public or groups to
engage with their heritage, for pure entertainment, personal study or research (e.g. on family
history or local identities). Digital resources can also reinforce the sense of belonging to
communities of all sizes and can be particularly important for geographically dispersed ones.
The possibility to access heritage at a distance and under new formats can be crucial for the
social inclusion of disadvantaged groups (e.g. people with disabilities, people that do not
speak certain languages, people who live away from cultural institutions).241 This kind of
impact is frequently demonstrated at disaggregate level, through case studies or anecdotal
evidence. A study carried out to determine the social economic value of continued investment
in Europeana in 2015-2020 has however estimated the economic value of time spent on
Europeana by the general public as ranging from EUR 1.5 to 2.2 million.242 The value or
236
Considerations made here are valid for the digitisation of digital heritage irrespective of the copyright
status of the works considered.
237
The term 'digitisation' refers here to the digitisation of cultural heritage, as opposed to broader or other
meanings, and is used both to refer to the creation of digital equivalents of works in analogue formats,
and to this operation associated to the broader making available of the work thanks to such conversion.
Although most of the impacts associated to 'digitisation' inherently refer to the second meaning, some of
the considerations made in this section are also applicable to the first meaning, notably when
digitisation has a preservation objective.
238
See for example S. Tanner, "Measuring the Impact of Digital Resources. The Balanced Value Impact
Model", King's Collece London, October 2012 and "Europeana Strategy 2015-2020, Impact".
239
See notably the Balanced Value Impact Model which, drawing from different impact assessment
practices currently available, provides an impact assessment model specifically geared towards the
benefits of digitisation and digital resources. The focus is broader than cultural heritage, as it also
encompasses the academic and cultural industries sector. The model is presented in S. Tanner,
"Measuring the Impact of Digital Resources. The Balanced Value Impact Model", King's Collece
London, October 2012.
240
Understanding impact is one of the pillars of Europeana's 2015-2020 strategy.
241
These and other aspects are explored more in depth, with a UK focus, in S. Tanner and M. Deegan,
"Inspiring Research, Inspiring Scholarship: The Value and Impact of Digitised Resources for Learning,
Teaching, Research and Enjoyment", JISC, 2011.
242
Depending on more optimistic or pessimistic scenarios. The study aimed to measure the social and
economic benefits of Europeana as a digital service infrastructure as such, based on a number of
assumptions, rather than the impact of the digitisation and making available of cultural heritage per se.
137
effects of digitised resources from this perspective is sometimes described by expressions like
'existence and/or prestige value', 'community value', 'inheritance/bequest value',243 'usage
value', 'option value', 'social value'.244
Education and learning
Digitised resources add to the sources that can be used in teaching and in learning
environments more broadly. It is considered that digitised resources can open new
perspectives to teaching (e.g. it can become a more exploratory or active process). Digitised
heritage makes it easier to use audio and video materials and to combine formats in teaching
environments, including in new e-learning tools.
Scientific research and particularly research quality
The availability of digitised heritage online allows new areas of research as richer research
content becomes available in formats that can be analysed with newer techniques and under
different perspectives. It is also generally understood that digitisation helps researcher focus
less on data collection than on its analysis (for example because finding relevant terms or data
in a single document does not require reading the whole document). In general, digitisation
makes research on heritage materials more efficient, for example because it allows the
immediate comparison of related documents that are physically held in dispersed collections
(through 'virtual reunification').
Direct economic opportunity
In addition to the 'indirect' economic impact deriving from the social, educational and
research impacts indicated above, the direct economic benefits of digitisation can generally be
referred to two main areas:
Impact on the cultural industries. Digitisation makes works discoverable again.
When works are in copyright, digitisation can generate new revenue opportunities for
concerned right holders, particularly when works are out-of-commerce and therefore
no actual exploitation occurs otherwise. It occurs for example that old footage held by
film heritage institutions is used for news reporting or in new film productions.
Through its preservation potential, digitisation makes the life of works, and therefore
this new exploitation potential, last longer. On the other end of the chain, digitisation
helps cultural industries wanting to re-use previous material in discovering it in easier
way, reducing their search costs and providing broader choice. These effects are
enhanced by the presence of aggregators like Europeana and are typically associated
to the notion of 'long tail'.
Impact on other industries. The Comité de sages charged by the European
Commission in 2010 to reflect on how to foster digitisation, online accessibility and
However, given the mission of Europeana, we consider these benefits to be illustrative of the latter as
well, with the exception of the calculations the study made of the cost savings benefiting to cultural
heritage institutions that use Europeana as an infrastructure. The study concludes that the most
significant impacts that can be quantified are these savings (estimations range from EUR 14.2 to 22.1
million depending on scenarios) and the potential impact on tourism as an economic activity (see main
text below). It also states that welfare effects are associated to the creative industries, education and
research but could not be measured in a significant way. See various authors, "The value of Europeana",
September 2013.
243
See S. Tanner, "Measuring the Impact of Digital Resources. The Balanced Value Impact Model", King's
College London, October 2012 and "Europeana Strategy 2015-2020, Impact".
244
See various authors, "The value of Europeana", September 2013.
138
preservation of cultural heritage in Europe identified three main areas where
digitisation can boost employment and growth:245
1. Economic activity directly related to digitisation practices itself. This includes
digitisation services, to which digitisation activities can be outsourced, and the
production of the related machinery and software. The Report indicates that the
process of digitisation, irrespective of its level of sophistication, is labour intensive
and therefore a potential job creator.
2. Services and products emerging from digitised cultural content as a 'raw material'.
Tourism, education and new technologies (for example mobile applications) are
singled out as the areas where this effect could be more strongly felt. This area can
partly overlap with the impact on cultural industries described above.
The study on the social economic value of continued investment in Europeana in
2015-2020 calculated the potential economic benefit on tourism as ranging from
EUR 43.9 to 68.3 million.246
One particular area where economic benefits derive from the digitisation of
heritage are festivals. It is for example estimated that that the city of Bologna
benefited from more than EUR 1 million from the 2013 edition of its film heritage
event "Il Cinema Ritrovato".247
3. Economic activity related to the storage, preservation and processing of digital
material.
Environmental benefits
It is also generally assumed that the ability for researchers, the general public and end-users in
general to access cultural heritage resources at a distance brings about environmental benefits
deriving from reduced travel and the related environmental impact.
245
E. Niggemann, J. De Decker, M. Lévy, "The new Renaissance. Report of the "Comité des sages", 10
January 2011.
246
Depending on more optimistic or pessimistic scenarios. See various authors, "The value of Europeana",
September 2013.
247
European Commission, "Report on the Implementation of the European Parliament and Council
Recommendation on Film Heritage 2012-2013", 2014.
139
ANNEX 10 – TEACHING
ANNEX 10A – DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITAL AND ONLINE EDUCATION
Use of digital works by educators and learners (at all education levels)
The graph below illustrates the trends in certain MS as to the use of digital and non-digital
works by educators and learners. Both (digital and non-digital) types of works remain
important, even if learners tend to slightly favour the use of digital works.
Data come from an online survey of learners and educators carried out in 2015 (more than
2000 respondents from 9 MS).
Source: Study 'Assessment of the impact of the European copyright framework on digitally-supported
education and training practices'
Balance of the use of digital and non-digital educational works among educators and learners
50
Learners
40 Educators
30
20
10
0
All countries Czech Finland France Germany Italy Poland Hungary Spain United Other
-10 (aggregate) Republic Kingdom countries
-20
-30
-40
-50
The columns represent median numbers of learners' and educators' choices on a scale between -50, which stands for "I use only non-digital works"
and 50, which stands for "I use only digital works"
Use of digital resources in secondary education
The graphs below illustrate the use of digital tools and resources in schools in 2011/2012. It
shows for example that digital books or textbooks were used at least once a week by 33%
of students in lower secondary schools (grade 8) and by 23% of students in upper
secondary school (grade 11).
The data is based on a survey of students, teachers and head teachers realised in 2011/2012
(190.000 responses).
Source: 'Survey of Schools: ICT in Education: benchmarking access, use and attitudes to technology
in Europe’s schools, Final study report, February 2013248
248
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/sites/digital-agenda/files/KK-31-13-401-EN-N.pdf
140
E-learning higher education
The figures below represent higher education institutions' replies to the 2013 survey on e-
learning carried out by the European Universities Association on e-learning (249 participating
higher education institutions). Main findings:
82% of institutions indicated that they offer online courses
In 40% of the institutions at least half of the students are engaged in e-learning
85% of institutions indicated that they use digital courseware and 81% online
repositories of educational material (at least in some faculties).
50% of institutions indicated that they offer a personalised study portal to their
students.
Source: 'E-learning in European higher education institutions, results of a mapping survey conducted
in October-December 2013', European University Association249
249
http://www.eua.be/Libraries/publication/e-learning_survey.pdf?sfvrsn=2
141
142
143
ANNEX 10B – PERCEPTION OF THE COPYRIGHT-RELATED OBSTACLES IN EDUCATION
Source: Study 'Assessment of the impact of the European copyright framework on digitally-supported
education and training practices',
Perceptions of copyright-related obstacles and consequences on teaching activities
The figures presented below enable to identify the types of copyright-related restrictions
encountered by educators and learners and the consequences on the use of illustrative content
in teaching activities. Data come from an online survey of learners and educators carried out
in 2015 (more than 2000 respondents from 9 MS).
The obstacles most frequently reported by educators are related to legal uncertainty
(34% of educators), cost of the licences (31%) and technological protection measures
(31%). In most cases, educators facing these problems chose not to use protected content
and/or to look for alternatives.
Rates of reported restrictions with educational context
The impact of obstacles on activities of educators and learners
144
Experience related to the access to and quality of protected content in digital education
The following figures are based on a different online survey carried out in 2015 among
stakeholders active the field of copyright in digitally supported education (about 500
respondents in 28 MS and Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein), including both right holders and
users and their representatives.250
Users are rather critical regarding the access to protected works (about 62% of users
finding it difficult to access and use protected works), but are more positive about the
quality of these works (54% of users considering the quality of protected works is high).
More than 60% of users find it difficult to access and use protected works
Is it easy to obtain and use copyrighted works in digital education in your country?
100.00%
7.70%
90.00%
80.00%
50.50% 48.80% 46.20% 46.70%
55.90% 55.60% 54.50%
70.00% 61.70% 64.30%
69.20%
60.00% 75.00% 79.50%
50.00%
92.30%
40.00%
30.00%
49.50% 51.20% 53.80% 53.30%
44.10% 44.40% 45.50%
20.00% 38.30% 35.70% 30.80%
10.00% 25.00% 20.50%
0.00%
All users of All copyright Educational Educational Educational Libraries and Research Government / Social partners Civil society Collective Authors Others
copyrighted holders institutions institutions businesses archives centres and public organisations management
works (For-profit) (non-profit) including think tanks authority active in the organisations
publishers active in the field of digitally
field of digitally supported
supported education
education
Yes, it is easy to obtain and use copyrighted works in digital education in my country No, it is difficult to obtain and use copyrighted works in digital education in my country
Is the quality of copyrighted woks available for digital education in you country high?
100.00%
90.00%
25.00%
37.30% 33.30% 34.10%
80.00% 40.60% 41.70%
45.90% 44.40% 46.90%
51.00% 50.00%
70.00% 63.60%
66.70%
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
75.00%
62.70% 66.70% 65.90%
30.00% 59.40% 58.30%
54.10% 55.60% 53.10%
49.00% 50.00%
20.00% 36.40%
33.30%
10.00%
0.00%
All users of All copyright Educational Educational Educational Libraries and Research centres Government / Social partners Civil society Collective Authors Others
copyrighted holders institutions (For- institutions (non- businesses archives and think tanks public authority organisations management
works profit) profit) including active in the field active in the field organisations
publishers of digitally of digitally
supported supported
education education
Yes, the quality of copyrighted works available for digital education in my country high No, the quality of copyrighted works available for digital education in my country low
Identification of cross-border problems
In addition to the lack of information on copyright rules in other countries, users report
problems related to differences between national exceptions and to the limited scope of
the licences.
250
Most of the answers came from representatives of non-profit educational institutions (31.8 %), libraries
and archives (12.3 %), governments/public authorities (10.4 %), educational businesses (10.4 %),
authors (8.7 %) and collective management institutions (8.5 %).
145
Cross-border related problems in the field of digitally supported education encountered by users of works
and their representatives
Impossibility to use certain works across borders
due to technical protection measures
10,6%
High cost of using copyrighted works across
borders
9,2%
It is not possible in practice to have a licence for
each country in which learners are located
11,4%
The exceptions for uses in the context of
education differ from one country to another
17,5%
The licences do not cover cross-border uses 14,1%
Lack of information on how to deal with copyright
laws in different countries
21,8%
None of the above 5,6%
0,0% 5,0% 10,0% 15,0% 20,0% 25,0%
Perception of open licence works
Table 1: Popularity of open license works
Users of copyrighted works Copyright holders and their
and their representatives representatives
Agree Disagree Agree Disagree
(Strongly (Strongly (Strongly (Strongly
Agree) Disagree) Agree) Disagree)
Open license materials are used in 66.8 % 14.9 % 58.1 % 18.8 %
education (28.1 %) (3.4 %) (23.9 %) (5.1 %)
Open license materials can fully
27.4 % 47.3 % 21.7 % 59.0 %
cover the educational needs of the
(9.1 %) (20.4 %) (7.2 %) (32.5 %)
users
Users of educational works use
36.5 % 29.0 % 24.3 % 36.8 %
more open license works than
(11.8 %) (11.3 %) (10.8 %) (18.1 %)
licensed works
Open license works are used more
84.8 % 6.0 % 85.7 % 7.2 %
often mainly because they are freely
(51.5 %) (1.5 %) (51.8 %) (1.8 %)
available
Licensed works are used more
because they offer better 54.6 % 30.9 % 66.6 % 28.3 %
quality/variety than open license (18.2 %) (16.4 %) (38.3 %) (15.0 %)
alternatives
Licensed materials are used more
because the users of educational
52.7 % 32.7 % 32.8 % 54.1 %
materials and tools are not
(30.9 %) (14.5 %) (23.0 %) (31.1 %)
sufficiently aware about open
license works.
Licensed materials are used more
mostly because there are collective
licencing agreements made (by the 36.6 % 34.6 % 36.1 % 29.6 %
government or educational (9.1 %) (18.2 %) (16.4 %) (14.8 %)
institutions) with certain copyright
holders.
Source: stakeholders’ survey.
146
ANNEX 10C – COMPENSATION AND LICENSING SCHEMES FOR EDUCATIONAL USES
The use of protected content for teaching purposes is allowed under different types of
agreements, compensation or licensing schemes in MS:
In some cases, these agreements are directly linked to the teaching exception and their
purpose is mainly to organise the compensation of right holders, where this is required
in national laws (FR, DE, ES). Licensing schemes are also frequently used in those
countries to complement the exception (allowing for additional uses, e.g. textbooks in
FR and DE).
In other MS (UK, IE), licensing schemes prevail over the teaching exception.
Finally, certain MS do not have a teaching exception in their law but foresee extended
collective licensing (ECL) for educational uses (DK, FI, SE).
This annex presents the main features of these compensation/licensing schemes in certain MS.
Licensing/compensation schemes implementing and/or complementing the teaching
exception
FRANCE
Legislation
The teaching exception in France applies to uses in the digital learning environment, to the
extent that access to protected content is limited to teachers and students. The exception
allows the use of extracts of works only and does not apply to resources specifically intended
for education (e.g. textbooks) and to sheet music. The French legislation foresees an
obligation of compensation for right holders.
Agreements/licences
The Ministry of Education and Higher Education concluded a series of agreements with
CMOs in order to apply the teaching exception and organise the compensation required by
law as well as to complement the exception by covering additional uses and works (e.g. use of
textbooks). These agreements apply to all educational establishments (primary, secondary,
higher education). They are based on voluntary collective licensing and are organised by
sector and types of works, as illustrated in the table below.
Sector/works CMO Scope / Permitted uses Compensation /
Remuneration
Print works CFC, Works covered Remuneration to CFC
(incl. works of AVA, The agreement covers works from more than 2000 (including for SEAM
visual arts and SEAM publishers and pictures from more than 100000 and SACD) and AVA:
print music)251 authors. Textbooks and sheet music, which are 1,700,000 € by year
excluded from the scope of the teaching exception, for 2014-2015
are covered by this agreement. covering primary,
secondary and higher
The CFC website offers a search engine allowing education (1,437,000
educational establishments to identify the publishers, to CFC and 263,000 to
newspapers and authors (in the case of pictures) AVA). This covers
251
2014 Memorandum of Understanding on use of books, published musical works, periodical publications,
works of visual art for the purpose of illustrating teaching or research activities See:
http://eduscol.education.fr/numerique/textes/reglementaires/aspects-juridiques/droit-auteur
147
covered by the agreement. only digital uses,
allowed under the
Digital and online uses exception
The agreement allows the reproduction and making (compensation) +
available of extracts of works through digital means additional uses
in the classroom or through online means, via a (remuneration for
secure electronic network (intranet/VLE) or via email exclusive rights).
to the extent it remains limited to teachers and pupils
involved in the teaching activities.
The agreement does not cover the use of digital
textbooks, unless these uses are explicitly allowed by
the publishers.
Extent of copying
The agreement allows the use of extracts of works
only (no quantitative limitation), except in the case of
short works such as poems or visual art works for
which entire works can be used.
The notion of "extract" is defined only for works
which are not covered by the teaching exception in
France, i.e. textbooks (e.g. max 4 consecutive pages
and max 10% of a book) and sheet music (max 3
consecutive pages and max 10% of the work).
Cross-border uses: the agreement does not include
any reference to cross-border uses but allows uses in
the context of distance learning (CNED).
AV and PROCIR The agreement allows to show (in the teaching Remuneration to
cinematographic EP context) an entire film or documentary only if it is a PROCIREP: 150,000€
works252 recording of a broadcast (from free TV) and to use by year
extracts of DVDs/ VODs (including the possibility to
make these extracts available on secure electronic
networks, up to 6 min). For using entire films,
educational establishments must ask the authorisation
to the right holders. The agreement excludes
recreational uses.
Musical works253 SACEM The agreement allows to perform or listen to an entire Remuneration to
work in the classroom and to make extracts available SACEM: 150,000€ by
on the intranet of educational establishments (max. year
30s).
GERMANY
Legislation
The teaching exception in Germany applies to uses in the digital learning environment, to the
extent that access to protected content is limited to those taking part to teaching activities.
The exception allows the use of limited parts of works or small scale works and does not
apply to resources specifically intended for schools (e.g. textbooks) and to recently released
cinematographic works. The German legislation foresees an obligation of compensation for
right holders.
252
2009 Agreement on the use of cinematographic and audiovisual works for the purpose of illustrating
teaching or research activities ; see: http://procirep.fr/IMG/pdf/Accord_Education_Nationale_2009.pdf
253
2009 Agreement on the live interpretation of musical works, the use of audio recording of musical
works and the use of video-music for the purpose of illustrating teaching or research activities; see:
http://www.education.gouv.fr/cid50450/menj0901121x.html
148
Agreement/ licences
There is a compensation scheme agreed between eight collecting societies (for audio,
audiovisual, graphic) and higher education authorities for the uses of certain types of works
under the teaching exception. However, negotiations for a framework agreement fixing the
compensation due under the exception have failed so far for published works.
Regarding textbooks (which are excluded from the exception), a specific licensing agreement
was reached between the Culture and Education Ministers of the Länder, the association of
educational publishers and the collecting societies VG Wort, VG Bild-Kunst and VG
Musikedition. Under this agreement teachers are allowed to copy protected content (10% of a
given work up to a maximum of 20 pages can be copied). Digitisation of small extracts of
works, digital distribution and storage on teachers' computers is included. Compensation is
paid at Länder level.
SPAIN
Legislation
The Spanish legislation foresees a new exception (entry into force in November 2015) for
universities and public research, allowing to use a chapter of a book or an article in a
magazine or journal (around 10% of the whole work as a general rule) for the purpose of
illustrating teaching or scientific research.254 Online uses under internal secure networks
accessible only by registered users are allowed. The legislation foresees that right holders
have the right to equitable compensation for the uses allowed under this exception, subject to
compulsory collective management.
Licences
CEDRO (Spanish CMO for authors of literary works and publishers) and VEGAP (CMO for
visual artists) reached an agreement with Spanish universities in March 2016 in order to
organise the compensation required by the new legislation. The amount of compensation to be
distributed to right holders has been set up at €3 million / year.
Licensing schemes prevailing over exceptions
UK
Legislation
The UK legislation includes a fair dealing provision for illustration for instruction that cannot
be overridden by contracts. In addition, the legislation foresees an exception, which is
however subject to the availability of licences, for copying and use of extracts of works (as
well as for the recording of broadcasts) by educational establishments.
Licences
From April 2014, the Department of Education provides licences from the following CMOs
for all primary and secondary state-funded schools in England:
- Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA), for print and digital copyright content in books,
journals and magazines
254
In addition, the legislation includes an exception (not subject to compensation) allowing teachers of
official educational establishments to use fragments of works (for illustrating teaching (in the classroom
or for online education). The use of textbooks or academic books is not allowed under this exception
(except under very specific conditions).
149
- Newspaper Licensing Agency (NLA), for newspapers and magazines
- Schools Printed Music Licence, for printed music
- Educational Recording Agency, for recording and use of copies of radio and television
programmes
- Filmbank and Motion Picture Licensing Company, for showing of films
CLA/NLA licence255
Works covered Type of works: print and digital books, journals, magazines, newspapers, printed music (for
schools). The licence includes textbooks and academic books (including digital books).
Repertoire: The licence covers all published works, unless a right holder chooses to exclude
their work/s (the percentage of excluded works is estimated to be 0.2% and the revenue
collected and identified for works that have not been expressly mandated is 1% per year on
average).
The CLA website offers an online search tool (also available as a mobile app) allowing
educational establishments to check if a work is covered by the licence.
Digital uses Digital uses and works are included in CLA licence: scanning, digital copying, making
available of digital copies within a secure electronic network (including course packs).
Extent of The licence allows the use of 5% of a work or one chapter of a book, one article of a serial
copying publication, one short story or poem of max 10 pages from an anthology.
Cross-border Cross-border uses by distance learners registered with UK higher education institutions are
uses allowed (if works are accessed under secure electronic networks).
In addition, CLA is running a trial scheme (which would be an optional licence add-on) to
cover students based at an overseas campus of a UK institution or a third-party organisation
that a UK university is in partnership with.
Remuneration In 2014/15 CLA collected £15.7m from schools, £5.8m from further education institutions
and £13.9m from higher education institutions. Total: £35.4m. Photocopying representing
79% of this total and scanning and digital re-use 21%.
IRELAND
Legislation
The Irish legislation includes a fair dealing provision for the purpose of research and private
study, as well as exceptions allowing reprographic copying and recording of broadcasts and
cable programmes by educational establishments.256 However these exceptions do not apply
if there is a certified licensing scheme covering the same uses. ICLA (Irish Copyright
Licensing Agency) licensing scheme for educational uses is certified under a statutory
instrument.
Licences
ICLA licence
Works covered Type of works: Print and digital books, journals, magazines, and newspapers (under certain
conditions). The licence does not cover printed music, workbooks, maps, charts.
Photographs, illustrations and diagrams are only covered by the licence where they are
integral to the text. The ICLA licence for schools also covers the rental of schoolbooks
under Textbook Rental Schemes.
Repertoire: The licence covers all published works (published in Ireland or in countries
255
CLA offers a licence for newspaper content to all education institutes on behalf of NLA.
256
The Irish legislation also foresees an exception allowing the copying of works in the course of
instruction (not subject to licences), however this does not apply to copying made by reprographic
process.
150
covered by a reciprocal agreement), unless a right holder chooses to exclude their work/s. A
list of excluded works is available on the ICLA website.
The repertoire varies according to the type of uses (photocopying, scanning and digital
distribution, digital publications).
Digital uses Digital uses (scanning, digital copying, posting on intranet or VLE) of print or digital works
are included under ICLA licence.
Extent of The licence allows copying 5 % or one chapter of a published work or one entire article of a
copying publication, or one short story or poem of max 10 pages.
Cross-border Cross-border uses by distance learners receiving direct tuition from IE higher education
uses institutions are allowed.
Remuneration Not available
Extended collective licensing (ECL)
The use of protected content for educational activities is based on extended collective
licensing (ECL) in Denmark, Finland and Sweden
DENMARK
Licences
Copydan Writing has been approved by the Danish Ministry of Culture to enter into licence
agreements covering the exploitation of works for educational activities.
Kopiosto licence
Works covered Types of works: Print works in analogue or digital format
Repertoire: legal extension of the repertoire, including to foreign right holders, on the basis
of ECL. In Denmark, it is not possible for an individual right holder to opt out of licence
agreements entered into on the basis of the specific ECL provisions (including on
educational uses).
Digital uses Scanning, digital display, storage on intranet
Extent of The extent of digital copying allowed under the licence is 20% of a publication but not more
copying than 20 pages. Scanning, digital copying and use of newspapers are not allowed.
Cross-border Not available
uses
Remuneration In 2015, Copydan Writing distributed 41 mill € to Danish and foreign rights holders for
educational uses (photocopying and digital uses) of protected content.
FINLAND
Licences
Kopiosto licences are centrally acquired by the Ministry of Education for primary and
secondary schools, including vocational secondary school, and by Universities Finland and
the Rectors' Conference of Finish Universities for higher education institutions. The table
below presents the specific conditions applying to the use of print works. Further agreements
are in place for the recording of television broadcasts for teaching and research.
Kopiosto licence
Works covered Type of works: Print works (books, newspapers, magazines, photographs). Workbooks and
exercise books are excluded from the licence. The licence does not cover software, audio-
visual and other works broadcast on television or radio.
Repertoire: legal extension of the repertoire, including to foreign right holders, on the basis
151
of ECL. Non-represented right holders can opt out to prohibit the (digital) copying and use
of their works. Kopiosto maintains a list of right holders (and prohibited works) that opted
out from the licence.
Digital uses The licence allows photocopying, printing and digital copying of printed publications and of
online materials. It allows the distribution of digital copies via secure networks and, for
higher education, via email to the teaching group.
Extent of Primary schools: The extent of digital copying allowed under the licence is 5 pages but no
copying more than 50% of a print publication
Upper secondary schools: The extent of digital copying allowed under the licence is 15
pages but no more than 15% of a print publication
Higher education: The extent of digital copying allowed under the licence is 20 pages but no
more than 20% of a print publication, or a full scientific article and 50% of an article
published in a compilation
Cross-border The licence covers distance learning (online courses available via secure networks) but does
uses not allow cross border uses.
Remuneration Licensing revenue: 16,1M€ in 2014 for photocopying and digital uses of publications
SWEDEN
Licence
Bonus Copyright Access' licenses the use of print works for all schools and higher education
institutions in Sweden. Licences for the use of AV works and broadcast are concluded with
other organisations.
Bonus Copyright Access licence
Works covered Type of works: Print works (books, textbooks, newspapers, magazines, photographs, sheet
music), including digital publications.
Repertoire: legal extension of the repertoire, including to foreign right holders, on the basis
of ECL. Non-represented rights holders have the possibility of prohibiting the use of their
works.
Digital uses The licence allows photocopying, printing and digital copying of printed publications and of
online materials. It allows the distribution of digital copies via secure networks via email to
the teaching group.
Extent of The extent of digital copying allowed under the licence is 15% of a publication but not more
copying than 15 pages. Copying from websites or digital publications is allowed up to a quantity
correspond to 15 pages.
Cross-border The licence covers distance learning (online courses available via secure networks) but does
uses not allow cross border uses.
Remuneration Not available
152
ANNEX 10D – DATA ON DIGITAL USES AND SECONDARY LICENSING INCOME
Digital uses under collective licensing schemes
The availability of data related to the extent and value of digital uses under existing collective
licensing schemes (ECL or voluntary/mandatory collective management) is limited, mainly
because reproduction rights organisations (RROs) generally do not measure income from
analogue and digital uses separately. The available data (in most cases, estimates) is presented
below:
In countries where digital uses are allowed under ECL
The estimates provided by RROs in Sweden and Denmark indicate that about 50% of the
revenues collected from educational bodies derives from digital uses.257
In Finland, the licensing organisation (Kopiosto) indicated in its 2013 annual report that
digital and online uses accounted for 23% of its licensing income from educational
institutions.258 Such uses are estimated to account for 30% of its licensing income in 2014.259
In countries where digital uses are allowed under voluntary collective licensing with an
obligation for educational establishments to take up a licence if available
In the UK, digital uses (scanning and digital re-use) accounted for 18% of the revenue
distributed by CLA to right holders in 2013/2014, 21% in 2014/2015 and 28% in 2015/2016
(average for all types of education institutions). However, uses in schools are much more
limited than in higher education institutions, where they represent 62% of the revenue
distributed from CLA licence, notably because of the increasing use of digital course packs.260
In countries where digital uses are allowed under voluntary collective licensing
In Spain, the RRO (CEDRO) estimates that 50% of its income from usages in schools and
57% of its income from uses in universities is derived from digital uses.
In Greece, the RRO (OSDEL) estimates that 58% of its income for usages in universities is
generated by digital uses.
In countries where digital uses are allowed under the exception with compensation
In France, the compensation required for digital uses represents about 8% of the amount
collected for secondary uses of protected works in all education levels.261 However, this
257
BONUS Copyright Access (SE) estimates that, at least, 50% of its revenue collection for usages in
schools and from universities and other tertiary education derives from digital uses. COPYDAN (DK)
estimates that some 50% of the income from usages in schools, and some 80% of the usages in
universities, is connected to digital uses. Source: IFRRO
258
Source: Kopiosto Annual Report 2013, . Distribution of 2013 revenue from licences to educational
institutions: €8.05million for photocopying and €2.45million for digital uses (total:€10.5 million ). See:
http://www.kopiosto.fi/kopiosto/kopiosto_in_brief/en_GB/kopiosto_in_brief
259
In its 2014 Annual Report, Kopiosto indicated that the total revenue from licences to educational
institutions (covering photocopying and digital uses of publications) amounted to : €11.56 million in
2014. The report also explains that licensing income from educational institutions increased by 10.1%
from 2013, mainly due to a centralised Digital Licence acquired by the Ministry of Education and
Culture for almost all educational institutions.
260
Source: CLA/ALCS/PLS
261
In France, the compensation required at national level on annual basis for digital uses of print works is
€1.7 million (covering all types of educational institutions). The total amount (including photocopies) -
distributed to authors and publishers was €17.5m for primary and secondary schools and €4.5m for
higher education. Source: FEP
153
amount is not directly related to the actual extent of digital uses, as it is determined by the
sectoral agreement. For educational publishers in particular, digital uses represent about 4%
of secondary licensing income from primary and secondary schools, but already 17.5% of the
revenue collected from higher education institutions.262
Secondary licensing income for educational publishers
The table below illustrates the relative importance of secondary licensing income in the
turnover of educational publishers in countries where the use of textbooks or other
educational resources currently requires a licence.
Secondary uses of
Part of secondary uses in
Educational publishers' textbooks /
revenues of educational
turnover (mio €)* educational
publishers (in %)
resources (mio €)
France 306 9.80 3.2
Germany 550 6.40 1.2
Sweden 93 3.40 3.7
UK** 370 11.1** 3.0
* Revenues from educational publishers (covering primary and secondary education - except for UK)
** Data for primary, secondary and higher education. The figure reported in "secondary uses"
corresponds to revenues from CLA educational licence distributed to publishers of educational content
only and to publishers of educational and other content. (Exchange rate June 2016)
Sources: FEP, CLA/ALCS/PLS; 2015 figures
262
Source: FEP
154
ANNEX 11 – TDM
ANNEX 11A – THE SCIENTIFIC PUBLISHING MARKET: FACTS AND FIGURES
Scientific publishers’ business model has traditionally been subscription-based only, but
today, with the coming of digital age and the changing needs of researchers, the publishers'
business models have become more varied. Notably, open access publishing is now
widespread alongside with the traditional subscription model and an increasing number of
“traditional” publishers now also offer open access solutions.
The STM market
The 2013 revenues for the global Scientific Technical and Medical (STM) market (this
includes journals, books, technical information, databases, etc.) in the EMEA region has been
estimated at 7056 millions of dollars.263 Revenues from journals and books amount
approximately to 56% of this market. This market is expected to grow at about 4% annually
through 2017. The main revenues linked to journal publishing are generated by academic
library subscriptions (68-75%), followed by corporate subscriptions (15-17%), advertising
(4%), membership fees and personal subscriptions (3%) and various author-size payments
(3%).
In 2014, there were around 34.550 scholarly peer-reviewed journals publishing more than 2.5
million articles a year.264 There are around 5.000 to 10.000 journal publishers globally.265
It is estimated that universities and other institutional users spend 5.5 billion dollars on
content each year.266 For the UK, GBP 80million per annum is paid on big deals.267 More
generally, the UK's higher education institutions pay between GBP160 million and 192
million for journals subscriptions and it is estimated that the French academic sector pays at
least EUR 120 million per year for subscription to scientific journals.268
Researchers are the authors of scientific publications but generally assign their rights to
publishers. Authors' remuneration in the field of scientific publishing does not usually take the
form of royalties, other factors such as career recognition and prestige (including as a mean to
obtain grants also play a more important role.
The cost for publishing an article greatly varies. For instance, for subscription-based journal,
it was estimated that this cost would be between EUR 3800 and 5000.269 Regarding open
access journals, according to one of the main actors of the sector (PLOS, which has already
263
See the 2015 STM report, p. 23 (based on the Outsell report). The global STM revenues are estimated at
$25.2 billion. See also the Max Planck Institute study, "Disrupting the subscription journals' business
model for the necessary marge-scale transformation to open access", 2015, p. 5, which indicates that
worldwide annual sales of academic journal currently generate EUR 7.6 billion.
264
See the 2015 STM report and the above-mentioned Max Planck Institute study which estimates that
around 2 million journal articles are published each year.
265
The 2012 STM report, p.33. Moreover, the main English-language trade and professional associations
for journal publishers collectively include 657 publishers producing around 11,550 journals.
266
Presentation from S. Reilly (Liber) before the European Parliament, "Publishing and copyright issues in
the digital environment - focus on scientific research and educational issues", 26 March 2015.
267
Source: UCL
268
Max Planck Institute study, "Disrupting the subscription journals' business model for the necessary
marge-scale transformation to open access", 2015, p. 8.
269
See the above-mentioned Max Planck Institute study, p. 5.
155
published more than 100.000 open access articles) the costs for publishing an article are about
1.000 USD.270
Commercial TDM licensing market
The information provided by the STM association and its members indicates that they do not
clearly separate business licensing from TDM which makes the provision of numeric data on
the specific commercial value of TDM licensing market difficult. The market for explicit
TDM rights is part of a whole series of usage rights into the commercial market for journal
content. Overall, the STM publishers have indicated that researchers in commercial
healthcare/pharmaceutical and engineering markets value highly the commercial usage rights
which include right tools and content formatting needed for their TDM research. They foresee
that the TDM market in Europe for publishers, based on current estimations (2million in
2015) will be worth in excess of 56 million in 2019. Their members report that even if the
pharma sector tends to be more advanced in its use of mining technologies, the use of TDM is
on increase also in other sectors, such as chemical manufacturing.
STM publishers provide different services to their customers, depending on their TDM
research needs. Examples of how their customers may carry out TDM include:
• use of third-parties (e.g. Northern Light) to help pull data through a single hosting point,
and publishers work with them on behalf of the customer.
• data from publishers fed directly and integrated into their customers' own systems;
• use of proprietary systems and data warehousing tools (e.g. Oracle) to consolidate various
data sources.
Some corporate customers, who may be conducting TDM occasionally, benefit from once-off
licenses which are combined with “locally-hosted” licenses, while others may work through
intermediaries (such as Copyright Clearance Centre).
Open access publishing
There are currently two main open access publishing models (although a number of
alternatives and variations on these exist and are under development):
Green open access (self-archiving): Under this model, the published article (or in some cases,
the final peer-reviewed manuscript) is archived by the author – or a representative – in an
online repository before, alongside or after its publication. There is generally delayed open
access to the article (‘embargo period’). Publication costs are covered by subscription fees
and pay-per-download/view fees received during this embargo period.
Gold open access (open access publishing): Under this model, the published article is
immediately freely available to the reader upon publication. Open access journals can be
subsidised or the publication costs can be covered by a one-off payment by the author (often
referred to as Author Processing Charges – "APCs"). The APCs are often covered by the
author's research grant or paid by the author's employer (e.g. the research center or
university). Under both FP7 and Horizon 2020, gold open access costs incurred during project
duration are eligible for reimbursement. In addition, a Pilot action on the coverage of gold
open access after project end began in Spring 2015.
270
See also and the above-mentioned Max Planck Institute study, p. 6. Costs are in average below 2000
EUR.
156
In the case of open access publications, there exists a trend towards using licenses to publish
in which authors retain copyright and authorize under certain conditions different uses of the
content. The most widely-used licenses in this context are Creative Common Licenses ('CC-
licenses') that are publicly available and aim to facilitate the online dissemination of contents
by providing several 'easy to apply/understand' copyright licenses.271
Nowadays, open access articles represent between 12 to 20% (depending on the sources272) of
all scientific papers published each year and this figure is steadily rising.273 Open access
journals are around 26-29% of all journals. There are currently around 10.090 fully open
access journals listed in the directory of open access journals.274 Purely open access
publishers generally act more as service providers and disseminators of knowledge. Their goal
is to ensure the widest possible access to the content. Many (though not all) open access
publishers allow TDM in their licenses: several of them have opted for a CC-BY license275
(instead of a CC-BY-NC276 or a CC-BY-SA license277) to allow TDM. As for funding bodies,
they are gradually beginning to consider provisions that would ensure that TDM is possible.
271
For an overview of the different licenses, see: https://creativecommons.org/licenses
272
The 2015 STM report provides for that about 12% of articles published is open access. See the recent
Max Planck Institute study, "Disrupting the subscription journals' business model for the necessary
marge-scale transformation to open access", 2015, which indicates that open access publications have
reached a market share of 13% (without counting the hybrid componenet). See also Mikael Laakso;
Bo-Christer Björk, "Anatomy of open access publishing: a study of longitudinal development and
internal structure", available on http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/10/124.: "Over the past
decade, OA journal publishing has steadily increased its relative share of all scholarly journal articles
by about 1% annually. Approximately 17% of the 1.66 million articles published during 2011 and
indexed in the most comprehensive article-level index of scholarly articles (Scopus) are available OA
through journal publishers, most articles immediately (12%) but some within 12 months of publication
(5%)."
273
One of the reasons is that an increasing number of research funders are mandating open access. For
example, the European Commission requires that all publications resulting from Horizon 2020 be
published in Open Access, and is running a Pilot on Open Research Data requesting that the data
underlying scientific publications resulting from Horizon 2020 be open access, and asking concerned
beneficiaries to establish data management plans
274
See the Directory of open access journals website (https://doaj.org/) and the 2015 STM report.
275
A CC-BY license only requires the user to credit the author. This is the most accommodating CC
license. For instance, Wiley (one of the main scientific publishers) reported to the Commission that their
open access content under a CC-BY license may be freely used for mining purposes.
276
A CC-BY-NC license prevents any commercial use of a work but allow any non-commercial use. The
user must credit the author.
277
Under the CC-BY-SA license, the user must credit the author and license the new creation under the
same licensing terms. This is for instance the license used by Wikipedia.
157
ANNEX 11B – TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF TDM
Text and Data Mining (TDM) is a term commonly used to describe automated analysis of
large volumes of text and data. Depending on the context, other terms used to describe the
same techniques are business intelligence, information analysis or text and data analytics.
TDM is used for various purposes including scientific research, e.g. gene-disease mapping,
clinical trial analysis, patent-mapping, sentiment analysis or development of language
technologies, financial services. The sources for texts and data mined can be open access
repositories, proprietary databases, social networks as well as all kinds of publicly available
internet websites. Depending on the case, the person intending to do TDM will already have
access to the content (e.g. on the basis of a subscription contract) or will ask for specific
access
Once access to content is available or granted, TDM generally implies the reproduction of the
text or the data, either temporarily, e.g. by caching the content or permanently, e.g. by creating
a database of key elements for facilitating searches (index).There are also TDM technologies
which allow for analysing content without making any copies of the analysed content, e.g. by
website crawling or screen-scrapping. Content that is text and data mined may come in
different formats, such as machine readable formats (e.g. XML) or PDFs, which may be more
or less easily mined. The data retrieved often needs to be normalized, annotated and
aggregated into a corpus to allow for an efficient use of mining software. The normalization,
annotation can be done either by the publishers, including as part of a commercial offer (e.g.
data in an XML format, provided in a structured way) or by the researchers themselves, which
is more the case for researchers in the public interest research organizations, who tend to
prefer using their own tools (relying also more on PDFs than commercial users).
The process of analysing the texts or data is to be distinguished from its result. The output of
TDM might consist for example of a summary of the analysed text and data, visualisations
such as graphics or charts, but also of new knowledge, patterns, and combinations of data that
may lead to new discoveries and research results.
Protection of databases used for TDM
An important area linked to the technical aspects of TDM concerns the safeguards needed to
ensure the integrity and security of databases, in view of potentially big number of users and
the commercial value of the databases for their owners. The STM publishers in particular
consider the technical safeguards critical to their business and have raised the attention of the
Commission to this point. They have put in place enhanced access and usage control measures
to avoid unauthorized access to and distribution of their content. For example, access to their
data is controlled through IP address validation of their subscribers and different user
authentication means, relying on their customer-issued access credentials that they integrate
with, or their own issued credentials or API keys (in case of direct machine to machine access
to content via an API provided by the publisher). Other examples of safeguards used by STM
publishers focus on the prevention of abuse through the application of algorithms to
differentiate between normal access patterns by their subscribers and illicit access attempts
by pirates. In case of abuse, a range of measures may be taken, including temporary blocking
of access, imposing download timeouts for a certain period, using CAPTCHA challenges or
limiting the downloading rate. Users have often challenged measures applied by publishers.
158
ANNEX 11C – TDM: THE CURRENT EU LEGAL FRAMEWORK
TDM techniques which do not involve copying of protected content are not copyright relevant
altogether. TDM techniques may be covered by the mandatory exception in Article 5.1 of the
InfoSoc Directive and in Article 6.1 of the Database Directive.278 TDM carried out for non-
commercial research purposes could also be exempted from the authorisation requirement
under the existing optional “research” exceptions279 under both the above mentioned
Directives,280 depending on whether and how these exceptions have been implemented in the
Member State where the mining takes place. Legal uncertainty arises because some Member
States have not implemented the exception in Article 5.3 a) of the InfoSoc Directive281 and
other Member States have implemented it in a more restrictive way than provided for in the
Directive.282 For instance, in some Member States, the research exception only applies "to
illustrate" scientific research.283 This limited scope would de facto exclude TDM from the
scope of the exception. Other national exceptions only allow the reproduction of "extracts of
works", which could also prevent them from applying to TDM.284 So far only the UK has
adopted an explicit TDM exception.285
A table summarising MS implementation of the research exception in the Infosoc Directive is
presented in Annex 4.
278
The exception for temporary reproduction in Article 5.1 of the InfoSoc directive is subject to several
conditions the temporary acts reproduction must be transient or incidental [and] constitute an integral
and essential part of a technological process. Moreover, such acts of reproduction must have as their
sole purpose to enable both the transmission in a network between third parties by an intermediary, or a
lawful use of a work or other subject- matter, and which have no independent economic significance.
The exception covering the normal use of the structure of the database by the lawful user under Article
6.1 of the Database directive covers acts that are necessary for the lawful user to access a copyright-
protected database.
279
For a legal assessment of how these exceptions can apply to TDM, see the study conducted by De Wolf
& Partners on the legal framework of text and data mining, 2014, pp. 50-71.
280
See Articles 5.3 a) of the InfoSoc directive and Articles 6.2 (b) and 9(b) of the Database directive.
281
For instance, the Netherlands. See the study conducted by De Wolf & Partners on the legal framework
of text and data mining, 2014, p. 51.
282
For an overview of the differences in the implementation of the research exception, see the study
conducted by CRIDS and De Wolf&Partners on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright
and related rights in the Information society, 2013.
283
For instance, France. It is considered that the research exception (article L.122-5 3° of the French Code
of Intellectual Property which implemented into French law article 5.3, a) of Directive 2001/29) does
not cover TDM (see in this respect the report of the Conseil supérieur de la propriété littéraire et
artistique, "Mission sur l'exploration de données – "Text and Data Mining"", under the supervision of
Jean Martin and Liliane de Carvalho, p. 30-31.
284
For instance, Italy and Luxemburg.
285
The exception covers data analytics carried out for the purposes of non-commercial scientific research.
159
ANNEX 11D – INITIATIVES FACILITATING TDM IN PRACTICE
Different initiatives exist at different levels and by different players that aim at facilitating the
TDM in practice for researchers. These range from the facilitation of access to a widest
possible range of data via common infrastructures (single gateways) to the provision of text
and mining tools. Some examples of such initiatives, far from exhaustive, are provided in the
below table.
Industry led i) CrossRef – established in 2000 by scholarly publishers as an
initiatives to independent, non-profit entity, it enables researchers to navigate
facilitate finding electronic journals, across publishers, based on open-standards
and licensing of technology (the Digital Object Identifier, or DOI, system). More
content from concretely, researchers can use the CrossRef search engines to
different sources download the DOIs of content they are interested in as a list, without
through common having to go to each paper to extract the DOI from it. They can then
infrastructures submit the list of DOIs (either constituted by the search engine or
directly by them) to the CrossRef Text and Data Mining API that tells
them where the full text can be found and what they can do with it,
based on the license information provided by the relevant publisher. If
TDM is authorized, the researcher sends a request for the full-text
using the DOI and retrieves the full text in order to mine it. The
publisher is responsible for delivering the full text of the content
requested. If the publisher requires a separate licence for TDM, the
researcher must proceed with the CrossRef Click-through Service. He
then can review, accept or reject the terms and conditions of the
publisher. Once the researcher agrees to the terms and conditions, he
is assigned an API token. There is one API token per researcher
(which provides an overview of all the accepted and refused licences).
This token allows the publisher to check whether the researcher has
accepted the terms and conditions (the API token is included in the
request). Publishers are also assigned token with which they can
verify whether a researcher has agreed to the terms and conditions.
CrossRef's TDM service has been launched in May 2014 and is free of
charge to researchers.
For more information, see http://www.crossref.org/
ii) PLSClear TDM : a web service functions as a digital clearing
house for researchers’ requests. It leads researchers through a simple
request form developed by a group of leading publishers. This gathers
basic information about the text mining project (including the content
to be mined and the format for reuse). The form is then forwarded to
the appropriate manager within the publishing company.
For more information, see
http://www.plsclear.com/pages/ClearTDMWizard.aspx
iii) CCC’s RightFind™ XML for Mining – a service developed by
the Copyright Clearance Centre which allows commercial life science
researchers to create sets of full-text XML articles from more than
160
4,000 peer-reviewed journals produced by over 25 STM publishers,
and import them into their preferred text mining
software. Reserachers can identify articles from publications to which
they subscribe and from those that fall outside their subscriptions.
Publishers participating in the offering include SpringerNature, Wiley,
BMJ, the Royal Society of Chemistry, Taylor & Francis, SAGE,
Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, American
Diabetes Association, American Society for Nutrition, Future
Medicine and more.
For more information, see http://www.copyright.com/copyright-
clearance-center-launches-text-mining-solution/
Licensing The FIN-CLARIN consortium consists of a group of Finnish
arrangements universities along with CSC – IT Center for Science and the Institute
facilitating TDM for the Languages of Finland (Kotus). FIN-CLARIN helps the
through a researchers in Finland to use, to refine, to preserve and to share their
collecting society : language resources. The Language Bank of Finland is the collection of
the Finnish services that provides the language materials and tools for the research
example community. FIN-CLARIN is a member of CLARIN ERIC that aims
to build a common infrastructure for the digital humanities in Europe.
The FIN-CLARIN relies on a licensing arrangement between the
collecting society (Kopiosto) and the Language databank that allows
the creation of a database consisting of all publications digitized by
the National Library and commercial e-publications behind a paywall
to which the publisher has given permission and to make the database
available to the research community for TDM purposes (no full text).
Full-text services are allowed via special permission.
Additionally, the Kopiosto research material deposit agreement allows
researchers, as long as needed for a verification purposes, to download
and store any set of research material, or a collection of works, if the
object of the research or part of the essential source material is in the
Finnish Social Science Data Archive. The New KOPIOSTO -
University agreement allows researchers, when necessary for
scientific research, to scan and copy even entire works and
publications, transmit copies via closed network, within the research
group, and keeping the copies as long as the research takes place as
long as the University research is considered to be non-commercial.
(Source: the websites of the Language Bank of Finland and FIN-
CLARIN and presentation by Kopiosto)
Open source text i) OpenMinTeD – a three-year EU project under the H2020
and data mining programme project which aims at making operational a virtuous cycle
tools in which:
a) primary content is accessed through standardised interfaces and
161
access rules
b) by well-documented and easily discoverable text mining services
that process, analyse, and annotate text
c) to identify patterns and extract new meaningful actionable
knowledge, which will be used
d) for structuring, indexing, and searching content and, in tandem,
e) acting as new knowledge useful to draw new relations between
content items and firing a new mining cycle".
The platform, still in progress, aims to "foster and facilitate the use of
text and data mining technologies in the scientific publications world".
OpenMinTeD is planning to achieve this goal on the basis of three
pillars:
1) getting research community requirements through use cases in life
sciences, agriculture and biodiversity, social sciences, and scholarly
communication;
2) building an interoperability framework and enacting guidelines "to
allow existing tools, resources and content to become an integral part
of the infrastructure" and specifically "to allow publishers,
institutional or thematic repositories, scholarly or learning societies
and providers of textual data to deliver content for TDM purposes in a
uniform way";
3) developing a service oriented platform in order "to make the
infrastructure components visible and accessible by all" thanks to
notably an annotation service.
Additionally, OpenMinTeD will support trainings for users and
developers of text and data mining.
For more information, see http://openminted.eu/
ii) ContentMine – software and training resources by a project
funded by the Shuttleworth Foundation. The tools, resources and
services are fully Open and can be re-used by anybody for any legal
purpose. The aim of the project is to enable everyone to
perform research using humanity’s accumulated scientific
knowledge….To make this a reality we are building software and
training resources so that together we can liberate 100,000,000 facts
from the scientific literature.
For more information, see http://contentmine.org
162
ANNEX 11E – TDM: PUBLISHED ARTICLES ON TDM IN THE EU (2011-2016)
Source: Lisbon Council, 2016, based on Reed Elsevier Science Direct database.
163
ANNEX 12 – USE OF PROTECTED CONTENT BY ONLINE SERVICES STORING
AND GIVING ACCESS TO LARGE AMOUNTS OF USER UPLOADED
CONTENT
ANNEX 12A – GENERAL INFORMATION ON, AND EXAMPLES OF, CONTENT IDENTIFICATION
TECHNOLOGIES
Content recognition or identification technologies (or Automatic Content Recognition
technologies286) help to detect content by online services. Different technologies exist and
may be used depending on the type of content to be identified. The availability and
effectiveness of technologies depends on the type of content.
1. MAIN TYPES OF TECHNOLOGIES
There are two main types of content recognition technologies:
Fingerprinting, and
Watermarking.
Fingerprinting can be used for audio, video and image content recognition. It allows easily
recognisable features of the content to be extracted and thus identified as unique features of
that content. These features are then compared against a reference database. For example,
fingerprinting technology can look for a given musical pattern or melody in a soundtrack, and
match it to a melody in a database. Using special features, or fingerprints, content owners can
easily find out whether someone uploaded their content on a given site. The level of accuracy
of a fingerprint can be very high, allowing the tracking of almost any content. Examples of
service providers using fingerprinting technologies are Audible Magic,287 Vobile 288 and INA
('Signature' system).289
Figure 1 Graphical representation of the process of watermarking and fingerprinting290
Content identification suppliers provide various services. The most typical service provided to
online services consists of an access to a fingerprinting database which is used to check
286
http://www.civolution.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/ACR-Creating-Content-Aware-Ecosystems-
Civolution-White-Paper-Jan2013.pdf
287
https://www.audiblemagic.com/about/
288
http://www.vobileinc.com/about/
289
http://www.institut-national-audiovisuel.fr/en/products-services/signature.html
290
Source:https://www.smpte.org/sites/default/files/users/user26068/BBTB%20109%20Watermarking%2
0and%20Fingerprinting%20-%20Wim%20Bus.pdf
164
against content that an end user wants to upload. This content is matched against an audio or
video file provided by right holders and present in the database.
and video files. For example, Audible Magic's reference database contains music and audio-
visual soundtracks. The 'Signature' detection system of INA specializes in videos, including
when their soundtracks have been changed. Analytics and/or statistics can be provided to
allow for a better understanding of the usage of (e.g. viewing, listening) of a song or video.
Statistics can include summaries of what viewers search for, how they view their favourite
shows or movies, listen to favourite music (audience measurement), how images are used.
This information can then be used for targeted advertising by the services. Analytics and
statistics can also be provided to right holders in relation to the usage of their content.
The generation of fingerprints can be done by the right holder using software provided by the
technology supplier, the technology supplier or the platform itself. Costs related to the
generation of the fingerprints depend on the type of content and are not necessarily charged to
copyright owners. The latter often have the facility to register business rules that will inform
individual sites how their content should be handled. Common business rules are “Block”,
“Allow” or “Monetize”. Audible Magic indicated that it has ingested over 24 million
fingerprints of copyright content since its establishment in 1999, and currently ingests new
fingerprints at a rate of around 250,000 each month.
Watermarking can also be used for audio, video and image content recognition. It is an
invisible tattooing operation that only allows identifying tattooed copies. Digital watermarks
are embedded into the content and make each copy of the content a unique copy. Watermarks
are commonly included in theatrical movie releases to allow tracing any illegally recorded
version back to the original one. Civolution291 and Music Trace292 are examples of service
providers providing digital watermarking.
2. EXAMPLES OF CONTENT IDENTIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES USED BY SOME MAJOR
ONLINE SERVICES
2.1. Content identification on YouTube
Since 2007, YouTube uses Content ID, a technical tool developed by Google, based on
fingerprinting, which allows the screening of visuals, phonographic data, etc. The files that
are uploaded on YouTube are matched against a reference database which includes files
submitted by content owners with their chosen business rule (see below). It is reported that
there are currently more than 35 million active reference files in the database.293
In case a new video is uploaded on YouTube and a match is found against a ‘hash’, the owner
of the original content can decide that the following rules apply:294
- Content has to be blocked;
- Content can be viewed freely and viewing statistics are gathered;
- Content is being monetized (add advertisements).
291
http://www.nexguard.com/
292
http://www.musictrace.de/products/products.en.htm
293
https://www.youtube.com/yt/press/statistics.html
294
https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2797370?hl=en-GB.
165
Figure 2 Screenshot of the choice and steps a content owner can take295
2.2. Content identification on SoundCloud
It is reported that SoundCloud uses two different content recognition technologies:
SoundCloud makes use of Audible Magic' technology since 2010.
Since 2012, SoundCloud has An in-house content recognition technology (as a result
of acquiring specialised companies) since 2012.296
on SoundCloud, it is matched against both databases. The company fingerprints and matches
every audio file at upload, and again after 40 hours and again after 14 days.
In addition, SoundCloud also has a so-called emergency upload tool to enable rights holders
to insert individual reference files directly into the reference database - this enables rights
holders to act quickly in the event of leaks, rather than waiting for a reference file to be
delivered via their usual supply chain.
According to SoundCloud's own estimates, it has spent approximately EUR 5-10 million in
developing its content identification system, plus the substantial historical and ongoing cost of
employing 7 full time engineers and product managers to develop and maintain the
technology, and 5 full time employees to manage takedown notices, copyright disputes and
account terminations.297
295
Source: https://thetrichordist.com/2015/03/04/youtubes-content-id-375-00-per-million-views-this-is-
what-were-fighting-for/
296
http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/11/soundcloud-posted-a-29m-loss-in-2013-on-revenues-of-14m/
297
See their reply to the public consultation on online platforms,
https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/pdf/answer/6acf2b21-865a-402c-876a-e2b67c0ceef9.
166
2.3. Content identification on Pinterest
Based on publicly available information, it is not known whether Pinterest uses content
identification software. It nevertheless acquired an image recognition and visual search
startup ‘VisualGraph’ in 2014.298 As part of the license agreement with Getty Images,
Pinterest makes use of PicScout API, a subsidiary of Getty Images providing tools to allow
images to be easily tracked, analysed and monetised online.299 This allows Pinterest to
identify Getty Images and then link those images with Getty’s metadata.300
2.4. Content identification on Vimeo
Vimeo uses ‘Copyright Match’.301 Vimeo partnered with Audible Magic to implement the use
of this technology.
2.5. Content identification on Dailymotion302
uses Audible Magic. Dailymotion also makes use of the ‘Signature’ technology developed by
INA.303 While audio content is cross-referenced with Audible Magic's database, video is
matched against the ‘Signature’ database. It is reported that if a match is detected, the content
will be removed.
3. EXAMPLES OF SUPPLIERS PROVIDING DIFFERENT TYPES OF TECHNOLOGIES
Content recognition technologies are available on the market from various suppliers. Some
online services have developed such technologies in-house, while others are using the services
of technology providers. A non-exhaustive list of providers is presented below304:
Services/products offered by content recognition technology provider
Provider Description of Products / Price Description of products/payment
offered services payment plan plans covered
Attrasoft Inc. Single site image A number of Upon request Products include: Attrasoft Mini-
search engine products AttraSeek, Attrasoft
Video Search featuring the ImageDeepLearner, Attrasoft
Engine services ImageFinderLite, Attrasoft
Image offered ImageFinderSeg, Attrasoft
recognition ImageFinder, Attrasoft
Object detection VideoFinderLite, Attrasoft
within an image FlashFinderLite, Attrasoft
Video object IFSurveillance, Attrasoft
298
http://www.visualgraph.com/, http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/06/pinterest-visualgraph/.
299
http://www.picscout.com/what-is-picscout/
300
See Article https://techcrunch.com/2013/10/25/pinterest-inks-deal-with-getty-images-will-pay-a-fee-
for-the-photo-agencys-metadata/
301
https://vimeo.com/blog/post/copyright-match-on-vimeo,https://vimeo.com/help/faq/legal-
stuff/copyright-match.
302
http://www.dailymotion.com/gb/legal/contentprotection
303
http://www.institut-national-audiovisuel.fr/en/products-services/signature.html
304
The aim of the table is to give an indicative and non-exhaustive list of available services covering
different content and different features, based on publicly available information. It is not to be read as a
comparison of services and their prices.
167
Provider Description of Products / Price Description of products/payment
offered services payment plan plans covered
detection VideoFinderLive, Attrasoft VideoFinder
Image tagging , Attrasoft TransApplet 8.0, Attrasoft
Surveillance SecureImageMessage, Other
video analysis Products.
Steganography
Audible Copyrighted A number of Music / Film, Audible Magic offers flexible, multi-
Magic content specific TV for tiered pricing plans designed to
identification products, in (depending on meet the needs of broad range of
Ensuring particular: the number of customers. Monthly service fees
copyright Compliance transactions): start at $500 for use of Audible
compliance Automation $1,000/$500 Magic’s Film/TV database and
Collegial for Media for up to $1,000 for use of Audible Magic’s
compliance Sharing 5,000 Music Database.
insurance platforms transactions One time setup fee $2,500
Content $1,500/$750 Pricing for this service is based on
identification on for between the number of transactions sent to
devices and apps 5,0001 and Audible Magic in a billing month.
(creation and) 10,000 Subscribers are only billed for the
maintenance of Etc transactions that are used,
media works $5,500/$2,7 according to the monthly transaction
database 50 for ranges in the following table
Anti-piracy between
45,001 and
50,000
BMAT Music Vericast Upon request Vericast is a global music identification
identification service that monitors millions of songs
service over 3000 radios and televisions
across more than 60 countries
worldwide.
The solution provides real time
recognition and auditable reporting
based on an audio fingerprint that is
resistant to signal alterations such as
voice over, broadcast mastering or
noisy channel degradation.
Civolution Copyright A number of Price is upon Description of features depends on the
compliance products and request chosen product in consultation with
Copyright solutions to Civolution
management help media
content
owners, rights
holders and
distributors to
protect and
168
Provider Description of Products / Price Description of products/payment
offered services payment plan plans covered
manage their
assets
throughout the
entire lifecycle,
from the Pre-
Release stage
through Digital
Cinema, B2B
and B2C
distribution
Dubset Identification of Two products: Upon request Dubset's MixSCAN® technology
original master MixBANK and parses mixes & remixes into smaller
recordings of a mix MixSCAN micro audio segments and uses a
or remix. combination of acoustic and textual
fingerprinting technologies, along with
proprietary heuristics and pattern
analysis technology, to identify all the
original master recordings used in the
mix or remix. This information is then
used to build a unique MixDNA track
list and copyright structure that can be
used to control usage and distribution
of content by rights holders, and
collection and administration of
streaming royalties.
MixSCAN® utilizes a library of over
100 million master recordings and
dozens of additional authoritative
databases to ensure accurate track
identification and label/publisher rights
holder association.
Enswers Analysis of ACR Upon request It provides access to a library of
sound, image development software that helps you develop
and video kit content recognition applications and
content utilities and includes APIs, utilities,
extensive documentation and sample
demos.
Audience It is a system that uses personal
measurement mobile devices to automatically detect
audio from TV to measure individual
viewership. The only hardware our
system requires are servers that
fingerprint TV broadcasts in real-time,
and all the subjects need to do is
169
Provider Description of Products / Price Description of products/payment
offered services payment plan plans covered
install a mobile app on their phone and
enter their profile information. The
audio source from real-time TV
broadcast feeds and subject’s mobile
devices are fingerprinted and matched
against each other, then stored with
individual profiles for data analytics.
Embedded This product allows to provide a
ACR platform that enables applications to
deliver engaging interactive
programming synchronized in real-
time to what the user is watching on
television.
Geo Track ID Detection of Upon request Monitoring of tracks and reporting on
usage.
music in the
online and offline
world
Google Detection of Cloud Vision 0 1-1,000 units per month
objects on API Label Detection, Optical Character
images Recognition, Explicit Content
Detection of Detection, Facial Detection,
inappropriate Landmark Detection, Logo Detection
content Price per 1,001 – 1mln units per month
Detection of feature $5 for Label Detection,
emotional facial $2.5 for Optical Character
attributes Recognition, Explicit Content
Extraction of text Detection, Facial Detection,
from images Landmark Detection, Logo Detection
1,000,0001 – 5 mln units per month
$4 for Label Detection,
$2 for Optical Character
Recognition, Explicit Content
Detection, Facial Detection,
Landmark Detection, Logo Detection
5,000,001 – 20 mln units per month
$2 for Label Detection,
$0.6 for Optical Character
Recognition, Explicit Content
Detection, Facial Detection,
Landmark Detection, Logo Detection
INA Detection of Signature is an automatic video
videos and copy detection system. It enables
images TV broadcast & Internet monitoring
for right payment optimization, as
well as content monetization and
incoming video stream filtering on
170
Provider Description of Products / Price Description of products/payment
offered services payment plan plans covered
platforms.
LTU Content Tracking Hajime 99€/month 500 images in the database
technologies (Media 2,500 queries
(as part of intelligence, Bug only support
Jastec) Brand protection, Kenschusei 249€/month 25,000 images in the database
Social media 125,000 queries
monitoring, Email support
Copyright Hyojun 599€/month 100,000 images in the database
protection) 500,000 queries
Brand Email support
Intelligence Puro 1,299€/month 250,000 images in the database
Mobile Visual 1,000,000 queries
Search Email & Phone support
Online Visual Senpai 2,199€/month 500,000 images in the database
Search 2,500,000 queries
Investigations Email & Phone support
Free image consulting
Sensei 3,499€/month 1,000,000 images in the database
5,000,000 queries
Email & Phone support
Free image consulting
Customised Upon request High volumes of images
Dedicated server
High performance guaranteed
Multi Search API on different sites
Integration in your own system
Recognise.im Object Start 0 USD Scan limit: 500
recognition Photo limit: 100
Similar images Valid for 3 weeks
recognition Startup $ 300 Scan limit: 50,000
Multiple object Package net/month Photo limit: 10,000
recognition Standard $1,700 Scan limit: 100,000
Package net/month Photo limit: 50,000
Premium $ 3,000 Scan limit: 300,000
Package net/month Photo limit: 100,000
Enterprise $ 4,000 Scan limit: 1,000,000
Package net/month Photo limit: 500,000
Customised Upon request Upon request
Shazam Music recognition Shazam app Free It creates an acoustic fingerprint based
TV recognition on the sample and compares it against
a central database for a match. If it
finds a match, it sends information
such as the artist, song title, and
album back to the user.
SoundHound Sound Mobile app Price is upon Description of features depends on the
Inc recognition ‘SoundHound’ request chosen product in consultation with
171
Provider Description of Products / Price Description of products/payment
offered services payment plan plans covered
Sound search Voice SoundHound
recognition
virtual
assistant app
‘Hound’
Voice enabled
developer
platform
‘Houndify’
ANNEX 12B –RESULTS FROM THE FLASH EUROBAROMETER ON INTERNET USERS’
PREFERENCES FOR ACCESSING CONTENT ONLINE (N°437/MARCH 2016)
The Flash Eurobarometer was carried out at the request of the European Commission’s
Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology by the TNS
Political & Social network in the 28 Member States of the European Union, between 10 and
21 March 2016.
The survey was designed to explore a range of issues related to the manner in which users
access the following types of content online: music, films/TV series, images and news. In
particular, the following issues were covered:
At what frequency do Internet users access each of these types of content?
What type of access do they tend to use (free and/or paid)?
What type of services do Internet users turn to when they want to access these types of
content?
What are Internet users’ main criteria when choosing a service to access and consume
these types of content?
This survey specifically focused on Internet users aged 15 to 45 years old, since they
represent the main users of the online contents being considered. A succinct summary of the
main results at EU level is provided below.
MAIN RESULTS AT EU LEVEL FREQUENCY AND TYPE OF ACCESS
The majority of respondents declare using the Internet to access various types of cultural
content in digital format, more than once a week: 72% of respondents declare using
the Internet to access the press or news more than once a week, followed by 63 % for
music, 54% for images and 53% for films or TV series.
All four types of content are predominantly accessed online for free: nearly eight in ten
respondents (78%) mentioned using free services (exclusively or mainly) to access
music online. Similarly, 70% of respondents use exclusively or mainly free services to
172
access films or TV series online, and this proportion reaches 85% for images and 87%
regarding accessing the news online.
ACCESS TO MUSIC ONLINE
The four types of services mentioned most often by respondents to access music online are
video or music-sharing websites (31 %), professional music streaming services (22%),
online radio stations (16%) and online social media (14%).
The four important criteria most often mentioned for choosing a service are the following:
the service provides access to content for free (71%); the service offers good quality
audio/video (53%); it doesn’t require users to register (40%); and it allows to listen to
music and also watch music videos (34%).
ACCESS TO FILMS AND TV SERIES ONLINE
To access films or TV series online, respondents mentioned using predominantly the four
following types of service: professional film and TV series streaming services (25%),
video-sharing websites (22%), broadcasters’ online TV services (19%) and online
platforms providing access to a selection of TV channels or VOD services (13%).
The four important criteria most often mentioned for choosing a service are the following:
the service is free (64% of respondents); the service offers good quality audio/video
(52%); it offers a large catalogue and wide variety of films and TV series (43%); and
streaming is not interrupted by ads (42%).
ACCESS TO IMAGES ONLINE
The four types of services mentioned most often by respondents to access images online
are: search engines (53%), online social media (27%), websites where users can share
images (12%) and professional photo websites or image banks (6%).
Half of the respondents (50%) most often use search engine results to access the websites
where the images are located, while 40% declare viewing and using the images only on
the search engine results page (without accessing the websites referenced in the
results).
The four most mentioned important criteria for choosing a service are the following: the
service provides access to content for free (84%); the service doesn’t require the user to
register (60%); it provides a quick browse and selection of images coming from
different webpages (52%); and the service provides high quality professional images
(size, proportion, etc.) (40%).
ACCESS TO THE NEWS ONLINE
The respondents who access the news in digital format most often use the four following
types of services to do so: the websites or apps of newspapers or magazines (42%),
173
online social media (22%), search engines (21%) and online news aggregation services
(14%).
When they access the news via news aggregators, online social media or search engines,
respondents are divided on what they do next: nearly half of respondents (47%) mention
that they most often browse and read the main news of the day without clicking on links
to access the whole articles. Conversely, a similar proportion (45%) say they click on
available links to read the whole articles on their original webpage.
The four important criteria most often mentioned as being important when choosing a
service to read the news online are: the service is free (77%); it doesn’t require any
registration (54%); opening or reading an article is not interrupted or disturbed by ads
(40%); and the service is offered by a newspaper or magazine with a good reputation
(35%).
For more information, see the Eurobarometer.
174
ANNEX 13 – PUBLISHERS
ANNEX 13A – AGGREGATED DATA ON PRESS CIRCULATION AND NEWS PUBLISHING INDUSTRY TRENDS IN EU MS
1. Member States specific data on circulation/audiences, digital revenues and forecast
Source: Data provided by the press publishing sector (EPC, EMMA, ENPA and NME after carrying out an internal survey among their members) - May 2016.
Data cover 39 publishers from 8 MS (Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and UK).
Member States BE FR DE FI PL IT ES UK
Circulation/ audiences
Daily Newspaper -8% -11 % -14 % -22 % -35 % -52 % -38 % -18 %
Print circulation
(2010- (2011- (2011- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010-
2014) 2015) 2015) 2014) 2014) 2014) 2014) 2014)
Consumer Magazines -6% -12 % -13 % -14 % -16 % -15 % -39 % -29 %
Print circulation
(2012- (2010- (2011- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010-
2013) 2013) 2015) 2013) 2013) 2013) 2013) 2013)
Unique users/browsers 114 % 82 % 86 % 152 % 121 % 146 %
(Digital audiences) - -
(2011- (2011- (2011- (2011- (2011- (2011-
2015) 2015) 2015) 2015) 2015) 2015)
Revenues
Digital revenues (newspapers and 11 % 17 % 7% 13 % 9% 11 % 8% 18 %
magazines)
% total revenue (2015) (2015) (2015) (2015) (2015) (2015) (2015) (2015)
Total revenues growth -9 % -4 % -9 % -13 % -17 % -26 % -26 % - 13 %
(2010- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010- (2010-
2013) 2013) 2013) 2013) 2013) 2013) 2013) 2013)
Forecast
175
Forecast print revenues growth -17 % -20 % -16 % -24 % -13 % -25 % -17 % -20 %
(2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014-
2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019)
Forecast digital revenues growth 56 % 11,4 % 149 % 118 % 53 % 153 % 78 % 74 %
(2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014-
2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019)
Forecast total revenues growth -10 % -2 % -7 % -10 % -8 % -10 % -10% -6 %
(2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014- (2014-
2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019) 2019)
176
Source: Data provided by the press publishing sector (EPC, EMMA, ENPA and NME after carrying out an internal survey among their members) - May 2016.
Data cover 39 publishers from 8 MS (Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and UK).
This graph refers to the growth of digital audience (webtraffic) of 39 publishers across the 8 European Markets (BE, FI, FR, DE, IT, PL, ES and UK).
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Unique user/browser data (millions)* 248.4 278.2 362.9 419.6 503.4
177
2. Aggregated data on print circulation of daily newspapers (Europe)
Source: PwC – Global entertainment and media outlook 2015 - 2019 - http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/entertainment-media/outlook.html
Print circulation for daily newspaper (Europe)
120.000
100.000
80.000
60.000
40.000
20.000
-
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Print circulation for daily newspaper (Europe) 103,995 100,654 95,456 90,979 86,143 82,622 79,243 76,092 73,079 69,745
178
3. Consumers' habits as regards main sources of news
Source: Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2015. http://www.digitalnewsreport.org/, p.15
179
180
Source: Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2016. http://www.digitalnewsreport.org/, p.10
181
4. Eurobarometer and Reuters Data on Internet users' preferences (as to the types of services)
for accessing content online
Source: Eurobarometer on Internet users' preferences for accessing content online (n° 437/ March
2016) - Types of services used to access the news online
182
183
Source: Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2016, http://www.digitalnewsreport.org/
184
5. Eurobarometer data on consumer's habits when accessing news online
Source: Eurobarometer on Internet users' preferences for accessing content online (n° 437/ March 2016) – Use of news aggregators, online social media or
search engines to access the news online
185
186
6. Aggregated data on print advertising revenues of daily newspapers and magazines (Europe)
Source: PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook 2015 - 2019
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
European print advertising revenue (€m)* 30,600 29,460 27,086 25,192 23,622 22,418 21,331 20,254 19,275 18,309
187
7. Aggregated data on print vs digital revenue trend of daily newspapers and magazines (Europe)
Source: PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook 2015 - 2019
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
European newspaper and magazine revenue (Print) in €m * 70,302 67,375 63,248 59,728 56,852 54,479 52,286 50,147 48,193 46,280
European newspaper and magazine revenue (Digital) in €m* 2,034 2,901 3,970 4,962 6,011 7,117 8,317 9,582 10,842 11,971
188
ANNEX 13B – LEGAL PROVISIONS IN SOME EU MS NATIONAL LAWS RELATED TO THE PROTECTION OF PUBLISHERS
In some EU Member States, press publishers benefit from a number of provisions in their copyright national law. The scope of these provisions
varies among Member States, but they could be grouped in the following types:
Ancillary rights (e.g. DE), whereby specific exclusive rights are granted to press publishers.
Provisions on collective works, whereby a publisher may be granted rights as the person who publishes a work made up of contributions
from different creators and discloses it under his name.
Provisions on presumption of transfer, whereby the employer is presumed to hold the rights of his employees, subject to different
conditions pursuant to national law.
Copyright protection of the typographical arrangement of published editions, whereby the publisher is granted protection related to the
format and layout of the publication of works.
Finally, if exceptions or limitations apply to the above-mentioned rights, publishers may benefit from compensation (e.g. ES).
The table below presents a summary of some of the provisions in place in some EU Member States.
MS Provision Type of provision Remarks
DE Article 87f-h of the Act Ancillary right for press The press publisher is granted the exclusive right to make the press product or parts thereof available to
on Copyright and publishers the public for commercial purposes, unless this pertains to individual words or the smallest of text
Related Rights excerpts.
The term of protection of this right is one year after publication of the press product.
Authors are entitled to an equitable share of the remuneration.
The right may not be asserted to the detriment of the author or the holder of a right related to copyright
whose work or subject-matter is contained in the press product.
Exception for uses by commercial providers of search engines or commercial providers of services which
process the content accordingly.
DK Article 6 of the Presumption of transfer of Conditions:
Copyright Act rights to the employer (i) subject to agreement to the contrary.
(ii) there is a permanent and regular relation of employment.
(iii) the work is created as a part of the employment contract.
189
MS Provision Type of provision Remarks
EL Article 51 of Law Copyright protection of the Publishers of printed matter have the right to authorise or prohibit the reproduction by reprographic,
2121/1993 Copyright, typesetting and format of electronic or any other means of the typesetting and pagination format of the works published by them, if
Related Rights and published editions that reproduction is made for exploitation purposes.
Cultural Matters
ES Article 51 of Texto Presumption of transfer of Condition:
Refundido de la Ley de rights to the employer In the absence of an agreement in writing.
Propiedad Intelectual
Article 8 of Texto Provisions on collective works Copyright vests in the person who publishes a collective work and discloses it under her name, subject to
Refundido de la Ley de agreement to the contrary.
Propiedad Intelectual
Article 32.2 of Texto Compensation right for the use Publishers' right to equitable compensation stemming from an exception to their right of making
Refundido de la Ley de by content aggregators available to the public, regarding small fragments of content already disclosed by periodic publications.
Propiedad Intelectual Content aggregators (mostly news aggregators), as the beneficiaries of the exception, are the debtors of
the compensation, which cannot be waived by rightholders and is subject to compulsory collective
management.
Article 52 of Texto Authors' rights to use their In the absence of provision to the contrary, authors shall preserve their right to use those works in any
Refundido de la Ley de works reproduced in periodical form that does not prejudice the normal exploitation of the publication in which they have been inserted.
Propiedad Intelectual publications
FR Art. L. 113-2(3) and 5 of Provisions on collective works Rights granted to the person or legal entity that takes the initiative of creating and publishing a collective
Code de la Propriété work, unless proved otherwise.
Intellectuelle
HU Article 7 (2) of the Provisions on collective works The copyright owner of a collective work shall be the natural person who edits/collects it, without
Copyright Act prejudice to the independent rights of the authors of the individual works and of the right-holders in
subject matter covered by related rights included in the collection.
IE Section 23 of the Employer considered Conditions:
Copyright and Related copyright owner of a work (i) subject to agreement to the contrary.
Rights Act made by an employee
(ii) the employee of the proprietor of a newspaper or periodical may use the work for any purposes, other
than making it available to other newspapers or periodicals.
190
MS Provision Type of provision Remarks
Section 17(2)(c) and 29 Copyright protection of the The publisher is considered the author of the typographical arrangement of a published edition.
of the Copyright and typographical arrangement of a Term of protection: 50 years after the date on which it is first lawfully made available to the public.
Related Rights Act published edition
IT Article 12 bis of the LdA Employer is granted an
exclusive right to exercise the
exploitation rights on the
works created by employees
Articles 3, 7 and 42 of Provisions on collective works The person who organises and directs the creation shall be deemed its author, independently and without
the LdA prejudice of the copyright on the works or part of the works that make it up.
The author of the article or another work that has been reproduced in a collective work has the right to
reproduce it in separate extracts or collected in a volume, but she has to indicate the collective work from
which the single work is taken and the date of publication.
NL Article 7 of the Aw Employer considered author of Condition:
a work made by an employee When employee's labour consists in the making of ‘literary, scientific or artistic works’.
PL Article 12 of the Polish Employer is granted an Conditions:
Copyright Act (PrAut) exclusive right to exercise the (i) subject to agreement to the contrary.
exploitation rights on the
(ii) the work is created as a part of the employment contract.
works created by employees
(iii) within the limits resulting from the purpose of the employment contract and the mutual intent of the
parties.
Article 11 of the Polish Provisions on collective works Rights in a collective work, especially an encyclopaedia or a periodical, are vested originally in the
Copyright Act (PrAut) publisher.
Rights to individual autonomous parts of the work belong to their authors.
PT Article 19 of Código do Provisions on collective works Copyright belongs to the single or collective entity that has organised and directed its creation and in
Direito de Autor e dos whose name the work has been disclosed or published.
Direitos Conexos
If it is possible to distinguish the individual contributions of some or all of the authors in a collective
work, the provisions on individual contributions to works apply.
Newspapers and other periodicals are deemed to be collective works.
191
MS Provision Type of provision Remarks
RO Article 6 of the Law on Provisions on collective works Unless otherwise agreed, the copyright in a collective work shall belong to the person, whether natural
Copyright and person or legal entity, on whose initiative and responsibility and under whose name the work was
Neighbouring Rights created.
Article 45 of the Law on Authors' rights to use their Unless otherwise agreed, the owner of the copyright in a work appearing in a periodical publication shall
Copyright and works reproduced in periodical retain the right to use it in any form, provided that the publication in which the work appears is not
Neighbouring Rights publications thereby prejudiced.
Article 44 of the Law on Employer is authorised to use Condition:
Copyright and a work made by an employee The use of the work by employer is done within the framework of the object of his activity.
Neighbouring Rights
UK Section 11(2) of the Employer considered Conditions:
Copyright, Designs and copyright owner of a work (i) subject to agreement to the contrary.
Patents Act made by an employee
(ii) the work is made in the course of the employee's employment.
Section 9(d) of the Protection of typographical The publisher is considered the author.
Copyright, Designs and arrangements of a published
Patents Act edition
Section 8 and 16 of the Copyright protection of the Copyright expires at the end of the period of 25 years from the end of the calendar year in which the
Copyright, Designs and typographical arrangement of a edition was first published.
Patents Act published edition
192
ANNEX 13C – MAIN AGREEMENTS OR OTHER INITIATIVES BETWEEN ONLINE SERVICE PROVIDERS AND PRESS PUBLISHERS
1. GLOBAL AGREEMENTS BETWEEN ONLINE SERVICE PROVIDERS AND PRESS PUBLISHERS ACROSS EUROPE
Online service
providers
Involved parties Object Description
general
initiatives
Digital News Initially: Partnership The DNI focuses on three areas in digital journalism: Google presents the DNI as a forum allowing an ongoing
Initiative between Google and eight discussion between the Technology and News sectors aiming
(DNI) European newspapers: Les Product development: Google collaborate with at encouraging more sustainable news ecosystem and
Echos, FAZ, The Financial news organisations to develop new business encouraging innovation in digital journalism.
Google models in journalism, so as to increase revenue,
Times, The Guardian,
traffic and audience engagement, beneficial to all. Source: Google's contribution to the 2016 Public consultation.
2015 NRC Media, El País, La
Stampa and Die Zeit Supporting innovation: Google set a €150 million
innovation fund over three years. So far, this fund
has given grants of a combined €27 million to 128
Today 160 European projects in 23 EU countries.
newspapers participate in Training and research: over 12,000 journalists,
the DNI. academics and students across Europe have
received training support from the Google News
lab team since April 2015.
Accelerated Partnership between AMP is one example of the collaboration triggered by DNI With such open-source initiative, Google wants to limit the
Mobile Pages publishers around the – a mobile publishing format/platform. decline of mobile web as a destination for news searches
Project (AMP) world and technology particularly while, notably in US, readers are more likely to
This is an open-source standard aiming at improving the
companies (LinkedIn, find news through their Facebook feed.
entire mobile content system for everyone, particularly at
Google, Pinterest and
making publishers’ webpages load faster on mobile devices
Google/ DNI Twitter, etc.)
while giving them a better control of their branding (the Audiences:
Mobile design of their pages).
- AMP format is being used by Google search (so far, only in
Today, this standard is
2016 This initiative, helping publishers to reach an increasingly mobile browsers) and by Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest,
used by over 100 European
audience on mobile, enables them as well to benefit from a Medium and Nuzzel.
publishers
better monetisation, including through a better and faster
Source: Google's contribution to the 2016 public consultation.
integration of ads.
193
Instant Facebook was testing IA Instant Articles is a mobile publishing format/platform. It According to Facebook, for publishers this tool represents a
Articles with a small set of aims to enhance the user access to publishers' content on faster mobile optimised way to publish and distribute their
(FBIA) publishers (such as Facebook, by enabling them to load and read them far content as quickly as possible.
Liberation in FR) but as of quicker within their Facebook app (mobile).
Facebook For instance, the FR newspaper Libération reports that
April 2016, the program is
Facebook considers that, for publishers, it maximises the publishing on Instant Articles has been positive. Regarding
Mobile opened to any content
publication process and reach and thanks to a strong IT their traffic, they did not lose any user: people, on mobile, are
publishers
2015-2016 structure they get the ability to track (content and audience still reading their stories published on their website (60 %)
analytics: total views, time spent, etc.) and monetise their and on Facebook (40 %). The time spent by readers on FBIA
content through various advertising options. has jumped. They have 10 % more followers on their
Facebook Libération page, and they are successfully
For instance, publishers can sell and serve their own
monetising their articles, per page and stories reach, with
advertisements and keep 100 % of revenue, and they can
Facebook's Audience Network. (Source: Xavier Grangier,
monetise with ads from Facebook's Audience Network.
"Liberation on Facebook's Instant Articles, 17 March 2016
Source: Instant Articles: Frequently Asked Questions https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/lib%C3%A9ration-
https://developers.facebook.com/docs/instant- facebooks-instant-articles-xavier-grangier )
articles/faq?locale=en_US
Audiences:
- FBIA will only be shown to users of the Facebook mobile
app.
Apple's News Apple initially opened this This App is a mobile publishing format/platform, which For publishers, this tool will, as with FBIA and AMP, make
program to 20 publishers includes content from different news publishers while news articles load more quickly on mobile devices and
Apple
but as of March 2016, the ensuring the latter to better control the design of their page provide a better mobile experience.
Mobile platform has been opened (custom typography, image and linked text), the article
According to Apple, this tool also allows them to earn
to all publishers. Those traffic (Analytic tools) and to better monetise their content
2016 revenue by including advertisements in their Apple News
already on Apple News: through advertising solutions.
Format channel and articles. They can sell their own ads and
New York Times, CNN,
With this tool, Apple considers that the user is able to keeping 100 % of revenue or allow Apple to sell ads in their
Huffpost, The Atlantic,
access faster and quicker content from different sources in content: they keep 70 % of the revenues.
NPR, Buzzfeed, VOx, etc.
the same app. This content is organised into channels
Audiences:
(publisher content's home in news) and assigned to topics,
allowing then the users to follow what best match their - Publishers' content published to Apple News are only
interest. available to IPHONE and IPAD users
Source: "Publishing with Apple News format",
https://developer.apple.com/news-publisher/
194
2. Local agreements and initiatives between online service providers and press publishers across Europe
Local agreements/ Financial aspect and
Involved parties Object
initiative other remarks
Google – FIEG (Italian Google – FIEG (Italian General: Collaboration agreement aiming at "promoting innovative approach for Italian Google will earmark 12
Newspaper Publishers Newspaper Publishers Media in the digital era" million euros over three
Federation) Federation) years with a focus on
This agreement envisages "the recognition of the importance of copyright and the
copyright protection of
valorisation of editorial content with the use, via revenue sharing, of the mobile solution
news publishers'
Google Play Newsstand and the video platform YouTube".
Italy content.
This implies a Google's investment of €12 million over three years and a focus on four
7 June 2016
strategic areas: mobile and video, copyright protection tools and training (ex.
Distribution of content on mobile devices via Google Play Newsstand, use of Google
Analytics tools, creation of a Digital Lab@Fieg, joint action for the protection of online
content).
Source: Ansa, "FIEG-Google deal to boost media sector", 7 June 2016,
http://www.ansa.it/english/news/lifestyle/arts/2016/06/07/fieg-google-deal-to-boost-
media-sector-2_f044ce22-ebd3-4010-814d-e5a20cd88ad1.html
Google Google and FR The agreement consists in two initiatives: According to Google,
Newspaper publishers this is a business and
1° The creation by Google of a €60 million digital-publishing innovation fund to help
technology agreement.
support transformative digital publishing initiatives for French readers.
France
Creation of a €60
2° The French publishers' increase of online revenues by using Google's advertising
02/2013 million innovation fund
technology.
for digital news
Source: Google Official Blog, "Google creates €60m Digital Publishing Innovation Fund publishers.
to support transformative French digital publishing initiatives", Feb 1, 2013
https://googleblog.blogspot.be/2013/02/google-creates-60m-digital-publishing.html
195
Google Google - Belgian Background: Google was sued in 2006 by Copiepresse, an association of Belgian Google considers that
French language news newspaper publishers, for displaying snippets in Google News and linking to cached "this is not paying
publishers, authors' copies of their page in Google search. On 13 February 2007, the Court of Appeal held Belgian publishers or
Belgium societies Google liable for copyright infringement. In 2012, the parties announced having reached a authors to include their
set of agreements to end all litigation. content in its services.
12/ 2012 [It is rather a
Under these, they agreed to collaborate on:
collaboration] on a
- a mutual promotion of their services, for instance: the publishers will optimise their use broad range of business
of Google's Adwords to attract new readers; initiatives".
- an increase of publishers' revenues, by a better monetisation (paywalls subscription and
advertising solution such as Ad sense);
- an increase of reader engagement, by implementing Google+ social tools on publishers'
websites and launching official YouTube channels;
- an increase of the accessibility of the publisher's content, in particular on mobile
platforms.
Under the agreements, Google had also to pay the publishers' legal fees.
Source: Google Europe Blog, "Partnering with Belgian news publishers", Dec.12, 2012
http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.be/2012/12/partnering-with-belgian-news-
publishers.html
196
3. Example of an EU online service providing access to press content further to an agreement with press publishers
Local agreements/ initiative Involved parties Object Financial aspect and other remarks
Blendle Blendle (a Dutch digital start- Blendle's ambition is to "put all newspapers After one year, Blendle has informed that the platform
up) and the major magazine and and magazines in the country behind one had already 250,000 users, of which the majority is
Netherlands
newspaper publishers in the (quite sexy) paywall and make it so easy to use under 35 years old.
2015 Netherlands, as well as New that young people start paying for journalism
York Times, Wall Street again".
Journal, Washington Post.
The idea behind their business model is to
provide a similar experience to iTunes, for
press contents.
It is a micropayment model (pay per article /
no monthly fees for entire websites), with less
reliance on advertising and support for good
quality journalism with:
- a better reading and paying experience (with
only one click)
- a better consumer experience (with notably a
refund policy)
- a support to users to find the press content
that best match their interest.
Source: "Blendle: a radical experiment with
micropayments in journalism, 365 days later",
28 April 2015.
https://medium.com/on-blendle/blendle-a-
radical-experiment-with-micropayments-in-
journalism-365-days-later-f3b799022edc
197
ANNEX 13D – DATA ON MEMBER STATES WITH AN AUTHOR-PUBLISHER SPLIT OF COMPENSATION DUE UNDER EXCEPTIONS AND LIMITATIONS
198
199
ANNEX 14 – TRANSPARENCY AND BALANCE IN THE CONTRACTS OF
AUTHORS AND PERFORMERS
ANNEX 14A – EXAMPLES OF NATIONAL LEGISLATION AND SOFT-LAW
References to legislation are indicated in the table "Examples of national legislations currently
in force" below. This list is non-exhaustive and is only intended to provide examples of
legislations and soft-law regulations.
BELGIUM
Belgian copyright law provides for several reporting obligations according to the type of the
contract. Book publishers shall send to the author at least once a year a statement of the sales,
revenue, assignments for each mode of exploitation. Where the remuneration is proportional
to the revenues generated from the exploitation of an audiovisual work, the producer shall
produce once a year a revenue statement (differentiating each mode of exploitation).
BULGARIA
A reporting obligation is imposed on audiovisual producers which shall, at the request of the
authors, produce a reporting statement at least once a year.
CROATIA
Croatian copyright law provides transparency obligations for publishers and for audiovisual
producers. Authors have the right to control at any time the accuracy of information provided
by their publisher. No reporting obligation is however imposed on publishers. Film producers
shall automatically transmit to their authors a report on the profits for each form of their work
at least once a year.
CZECH REPUBLIC
The Czech copyright law provides a general transparency obligation according where the
amount of royalty is proportional to the exploitation of the work. The licensee shall be obliged
to facilitate the audit by the author of the relevant accounting documents.
DENMARK
A general reporting obligation has been introduced into Danish copyright legislation. Upon
the request of creators, contractual counterparties have to make a settlement of revenues
where the remuneration is proportional to the revenues at least once a year and may be
required to provide any underlying information.
FINLAND
Finish law provides for reporting obligations imposed on publishers towards authors when a
sale or rental has taken place for which the author is entitled to be remunerated. In such as
case, the publisher shall render account to him within nine months from the end of the year
concerning the sales or rentals during the year and the number of copies in stock at the end of
the year.
200
FRANCE
Current French legislation provides for several reporting obligations according to the type of
the contract.
Audiovisual producers shall transmit, at least once a year, to the authors and the joint authors
a statement of revenues generated from the exploitation of the work with respect to each mode
of exploitation305. In addition, the reporting obligations imposed on audiovisual producers
were strengthened by a memorandum of understanding signed in 2010 by the main French
audiovisual stakeholders. Under this MoU, producers undertook to communicate in addition
to authors whose remuneration is proportional to the revenues generated by the film, within
two months following the closing of the final cost of the cinematographic work, a statement
containing inter alia the final cost of the work and the balance of the cost of the work still to
be amortized. In addition, on 7 July 2016, a new law has been enacted which strengthens the
obligations imposed on audiovisual producers in case of the assignment of the audiovisual
contract to a third party and which introduces new transparency obligations imposed on the
executive producers and the distributors (see below).
In the publishing sector, a framework agreement on the publishing contract in the digital era
signed in 2013 extended the publishers' reporting obligations provided by the French
Intellectual Property Code and the French Code of Practice ('Code des usages'). Book
publishers shall now produce, once a year, a reporting statement that shall contain specific
information both for printed copies of books (number of copies manufactured, number of
stock-in copies, etc) and for books exploited in their digital format. French legislation
provides that if the report has not been transmitted to the author within six months from the
reporting date defined by the contract, the author can give formal notice to the publisher to
provide him with the report. If the book publisher does not communicate the report within
three months following the formal notice, the contract will be terminated as of right.
For phonogram producers, current French legislation does not provide any reporting
obligations. Yet, on 18 October 2015, 18 music industry stakeholders signed a memorandum
of understanding ("protocole d'accord") for a fair development of online music under the
auspices of the French Ministry for Culture, under which they undertook to guarantee a fair
remuneration to artists (Objective no. 5). More specifically, phonogram producers committed,
inter alia, to report to artists on the revenues generated from the exploitation of their works in
a transparent way. The format of the report which shall be available in an understandable and
user-friendly layout both to the artists and their managers will be determined at a later stage
by a stakeholders' dialogue.
Finally, French legislation imposes lighter reporting obligations on entertainment promoters
which have to notify to the author or his representatives the exact program of public
performances and to supply to them a documented statement of receipts.
GERMANY
305
Article L. 132-28 of the French Intellectual Property Code
201
Under the current German copyright law, a reporting obligation exists for music producers
that shall provide, upon the performer's request, information on the revenue generated by the
exploitation of the audio recording and other information necessary to assess his
remuneration.
GREECE
Audiovisual producers shall give once a year all the information concerning the exploitation
of the work. Audiovisual producers are exempted of such obligations for short advertising
films.
HUNGARY
Hungarian cinematographic producers shall, at least once a year, render account to the author
of the revenues generated by the exploitation of the film.
ITALY
Italian copyright law provides for an annual reporting obligation imposed on publishers
concerning sold copies in the cases of profit participation agreements,
LITHUANIA
At the author's request, the publisher shall give written information including the number of
copies sold as well as the revenues generated.
POLAND
Polish copyright legislation provides for a general transparency obligation. Where the
remuneration is proportional to the revenues generated by the exploitation of the work, the
author is entitled to receive information or to have access to the documentation necessary to
establish such remuneration.
PORTUGAL
Book publishers shall transmit once a year to the authors a reporting statement including inter
alia the number of sold and returned books and the balance of payment.
ROMANIA
Under Romanian copyright law, the audiovisual producer shall produce annually an account
of the takings according to each mode of exploitation. Besides, the producer of theatrical or
musical performance shall communicate at least once a year to the author the number of
performances as well as a state of takings.
SLOVAKIA
Where the royalties are proportional to the revenues generated by the exploitation of the work,
the Slovakian copyright law provides a general transparency obligation which enables the
202
author to control the accounting record of his contractual counterparty necessary for
determining his remuneration.
SLOVENIA
Slovenian legislation provides a general transparency obligation according to which, where
the agreed remuneration is proportional to revenues, contractual counterparties must keep the
documents necessary to determine the amount of such revenues. In addition, a specific
obligation falls on film producers that have to send at least once a year to the co-authors of the
work a report on the revenues generated by the cinematographic work.
SPAIN
Spain provides for reporting obligations applicable to publishing contracts, audiovisual
contracts and public performance contracts. The creators' contractual counterparties have to
render accounts of the revenues resulting from the exploitation of a book, an audiovisual work
or from the execution of a public performance where remuneration is proportional to the
revenues.
SWEDEN
The Swedish copyright law provides for a legal reporting obligation only in the book sector.
The publisher shall render account yearly to the author of the revenues generated by the
exploitation of its work and of the number of copies sold as well as the stock at the end of the
year.
UNITED KINGDOM
UK legislation does not provide for any reporting obligations. The UK Publisher Association
undertook to foster constructive and co-operative relationships with book authors and to
attempt to address some of the areas which may lead to avoidable conflict by publishing a
Code of Practice on Author Contracts (1982, updated 1997 and 2010). This Code of Practice
provides that "the publisher must ensure that the author receives a regular and clear account
of sales made and monies due" (point 11).
203
Table - Examples of national legislations currently in force
PHONOGRAM
PUBLIC
PRODUCERS
COUNTRY PUBLISHING SECTOR / CONTRACTS AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR / CONTRACTS PERFORMANCE
CONTRACT/ MUSIC
CONTRACTS
SECTOR
Article XI.198 Article XI.202
Belgium
Article XI.206
Notwithstanding any contrary agreement, the publisher will send the The beneficiary of the
Loi du 19 avril 2014 portant
author, at least once a year, a statement of sales, revenue and representation agreement is
insertion du Livre XI «Propriété The amount of the remuneration is, unless otherwise stated,
assignments for each mode of exploitation. required to communicate to
Intellectuelle » dans le Code de proportional to the revenue generated from the exploitation of
the author or his assignee
droit économique, et portant the audiovisual work. In this case, the manufacturer will send
the exact program of public
insertion des dispositions propres Except in case of re-publishing of the work, the publisher is exempted the artist - performer, at least once a year, a statement of the
performances and to
au Livre XI dans les Livres I, XV et from this obligation if the work is not exploited in any manner generated for each mode of exploitation.
provide a documented
XVII du même Code whatsoever, for five consecutive years. statement of its revenues.
Accounting to the Authors: Art. 66. At the request of the
persons referred to in Art. 62, the producer shall provide to
them at least once a year a statement on the revenues from
each type of use of the work.
Bulgaria
[Art. 62. defines rights owners: (1) director, the author of the
Law on Copyright and screenplay and the director of photography, artist-director. (2)
Neighbouring rights (Published in The authors of the music, the dialogue, the pre-existing
State Gasette No 56/1993; amended literary work on which the audiovisual work was based, the
No 63/1994, No I 0/1 998, No costume designers, the set designers, as well as the authors of
2812000, No 77/2002) all other material, incorporated in the audiovisual work, shall
enjoy the copyright in their individual works. (3) A producer
within the meaning of this Title shall be the physical person
or the legal entity who organizes the production of the work
and provides its financing.]
Croatia Article 58(1) Verification of accuracy of information - The author Article 119 Report on remuneration for rights to audiovisual
shall have the right of insight and control, at any time, of the publisher's work The film producer of an audiovisual work must at least
Copyright and Related Rights Act business records and documentation, to verify the accuracy of once a year submit to the co-authors a report on the profits for
(O.G. 167/2003) information provided to him by the publisher. each form of use of the work.
Czech Republic
Article 49(4) Where the amount of the royalty has been agreed in dependence on the proceeds from the utilisation of the licence, the licensee shall be obliged to make it possible for the author to audit
Consolidated version of Act No. the relevant accounting documents or other documentation in order to establish the real amount of the royalty. Where the licensee thus provides the author with information designated by the licensee as
121/2000 Coll., on Copyright and confidential, the author may not divulge such information to any third party, nor use it according to his needs in contravention of the purpose for which it has been made available to him.
Rights Related to Copyright and on
Amendment to Certain Acts (the
Copyright Act).
204
PHONOGRAM
PUBLIC
PRODUCERS
COUNTRY PUBLISHING SECTOR / CONTRACTS AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR / CONTRACTS PERFORMANCE
CONTRACT/ MUSIC
CONTRACTS
SECTOR
Settlement and Control – Article 57
Denmark (1) If the author's remuneration depends on the assignee's turnover, sales figures, etc., the author may demand that settlement is made at least once a year. The author may likewise demand that the
settlement be accompanied by satisfactory information on the circumstances forming the basis of the calculation of the remuneration.
Consolidated Act No. 1144 of
October 23rd, 2014 (2) The author may demand that the accounts, bookkeeping and inventory together with certifications by the party who has exploited the work in connection with the annual settlement according to
subsection (1) be made available to a state-authorised public accountant or registered accountant appointed by the author. The accountant shall inform the author of the correctness of the settlement and
of irregularities, if any. The accountant shall otherwise observe secrecy about all other matters that become known to him in connection with his review.
(3) The provisions of subsections (1) and (2) shall not be deviated from to the detriment of the author.
Section 35(2) (2) If, during a fiscal year, sale or rental has taken place
Finland for which the author is entitled to be remunerated, the publisher shall
render account to him within nine months from the end of the year
Copyright Act (404/1961) concerning the sales or rentals during the year and the number of copies
in stock at the end of the year. The author shall moreover have the right
to obtain information, at his own request, about the number of copies in
stock at the end of a year even after the end of the accounting term.
Article L. 132-13 The publisher is accountable. The author may, in the No legislation
absence of special conditions stipulated in the contract, require at least
an annual production by the publisher of a statement of the number of [Stakeholders dialogue] -
copies published during the year and giving the date and the importance Memorandum of
of prints and the number of copies in stock. Except contrary usage or Article L. 132-28 Audiovisual producers shall transmit, at understanding for a fair
agreement, this statement shall also contain the number of copies sold least once a year, to the authors and the joint authors a development of online
by the publisher and the copies unusable or destroyed by accident or statement of revenues generated from the exploitation of the music (2015)
force majeure, and the amount of royalties due or paid to the author. work with respect to each mode of exploitation
Phonogram producers
Article L. 132-14 The publisher shall provide the author with all [Stakeholders dialogue] - Memorandum of understanding undertook to guarantee a fair Article L .132-21
evidence required to establish the accuracy of his accounts. If the (2010) Within 2 months following the determination of the remuneration to artists Entertainment promoters
France publisher fails to provide the necessary evidence, he will be forced by final cost of the cinematographic work, the audiovisual (Objective no. 5). shall notify to the author or
the judge producer shall communicate to the authors where his representatives the exact
Intellectual Property Code – as remuneration is proportional to the revenues generated by the program of public
amended by Order no. 2014-1348 They committed to report to
Article L.132-17-3 I. - The publisher shall for each book explicitly and work: artists on the revenues performances and to supply
of 12 November 2014 transparently report to the author on his remuneration. To this end, to them a documented
generated from the
publisher the addresses to the author, or makes available through an - the final cost of the work, exploitation of their works in statement of receipts
electronic communication process, a statement of accounts stating: a transparent way.
- the balance of the cost of the work still to be amortized,
1. When the book is published in a printed form, the number of copies The report shall be available
made during the year, the number of copies in stock at the beginning - the nature and the amount of publishing costs to be opposed in an understandable and
and end of the year, the number of copies sold by the publisher, number to authors user-friendly format both to
of copies excluding duties and destroyed during the period; the artists and their managers
that will be determined at a
2. When the book is published in digital form, the income from sales by later stage by a stakeholders'
unit and each of the other operating modes of the book; dialogue.
205
PHONOGRAM
PUBLIC
PRODUCERS
COUNTRY PUBLISHING SECTOR / CONTRACTS AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR / CONTRACTS PERFORMANCE
CONTRACT/ MUSIC
CONTRACTS
SECTOR
3. In all cases, the list of transfers of rights carried out during the year, From the signature of the
the amount of the corresponding royalties due or paid to the author as MoU, phonogram producers
well as the rates of remuneration provided for in different publishing undertook to (i) provide
contract. reports in an electronic
format (ii) listing the
A specific part of this statement of accounts is devoted to the royalties received from the
exploitation of the book in digital form. main distributors (by mode
of exploitation and by
Accountability is performed at least once a year, on the date specified territory), (iii) to designate a
in the contract or, in the absence of a date no later than six months after representative in companies
the closing of accounts. having more than 10
employees to handle
questions relating to
II. - If the publisher has not fulfilled its obligation of accountability in
reporting obligations, and to
the manner and within the time stated in I, the author has a period of six
(iv) provide a global
months to notice the publisher to carry it .
overview of all discounts
applied to the artist's
When this notice is not acted upon within a period of three months, the remuneration base.
contract is automatically terminated.
III. - When the editor has not performed, for two successive years, its
reporting obligation, the contract is automatically terminated within six
months of the second formal notice.
IV. - The editor remain still under the obligation, even in the absence of
formal notice by the author, to meet its legal and contractual
obligations of accountability
Article 79a
Performer’s right to
remuneration
Germany (4) The producer of the
audio recording shall be
Copyright Act of 9 September 1965 obliged to provide the
(Federal Law Gazette Part I, p. performer upon request with
1273) information about the
revenue generated and other
information required to
quantify the right to
remuneration in accordance
with paragraph (1).
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PHONOGRAM
PUBLIC
PRODUCERS
COUNTRY PUBLISHING SECTOR / CONTRACTS AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR / CONTRACTS PERFORMANCE
CONTRACT/ MUSIC
CONTRACTS
SECTOR
Article 34 (3) The author of an audiovisual work shall retain
the right to a separate fee for each form of exploitation of the
work. The aforementioned fee shall be agreed as a percentage,
Greece specified in the relevant contract. The calculation of the
percentage shall be based on gross revenues, without
exception, or the gross expenditure or on the combined gross
Law No. 2121/1993 on Copyright,
revenues and expenditure, realized in the course of the
Related Rights and Cultural Matters
exploitation of the work. The producer of the audiovisual
work is obliged once a year to give the author of the work all
information concerning the exploitation of the work, in
writing, showing him also all relevant documents. Short
advertising films shall be exempt from the provisions of this
paragraph.
Article 66 (5) The producer shall be accountable to the
Hungary
author, by manners of use, in writing and at least once a year,
on the income related to the use of the cinematographic
Act LXXVI of 1999 on Copyright creation.
Italy
Article 130 When contracts provide for a proportional remuneration,
Law No. 633 of April 22, 1941, for the publisher shall render account every year of the sold copies.
the Protection of Copyright
Lithuania Article 46 Publisher’s Duties under the Publishing Agreement: 7) at
the author’s request, furnish necessary written information together
Law on Copyright and Related with necessary documents, or their copies, indicating the number of
Rights 18 May 1999 No VIII-1185 copies of the published work, income received from the sold copies of
Vilnius the published work, and the calculated remuneration.
Poland
Article 47 If the remuneration of the author depends on the proceeds from the use of his/her work, the author shall have the right to receive information and to have access, as necessary, to the
Act No. 83 of February 4, 1994, on documentation being essential to determine such remuneration.
Copyright and Neighboring Rights
207
PHONOGRAM
PUBLIC
PRODUCERS
COUNTRY PUBLISHING SECTOR / CONTRACTS AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR / CONTRACTS PERFORMANCE
CONTRACT/ MUSIC
CONTRACTS
SECTOR
Article 96 (Accountability) 1 - If the compensation due to the author
depend on the results of the sale or if your payment is subject to the
evolution of this, the publisher shall provide the author with accounts at
the agreed time or, failing that, every six months, as at 30 June and 31
Portugal December each year. 2 - For the purposes of the preceding paragraph,
the publisher shall transmit to the author by registered letter within 30
Code of Copyright and Related days immediately following the end of the period, the map of the state
Rights of sales and returns that took place during this period, accompanied by
the payment of the balance. 3 - The editor always will provide the
author or representative of the elements of his writing, indispensable
for the proper verification of accounts, it referred to in the preceding
paragraph.
Article 61(1) The assignee
shall be obliged
periodically to
communicate to the owner
of the copyright the number
of theatrical or musical
Romania
Article 71(2) The producer shall be obliged periodically to performances and also the
submit to the authors an account of the takings according to state of the takings. To that
Law No. 8 of March 14, 1996 on each mode of exploitation. end, the theatrical or
Copyright and Neighboring Rights musical performance
contract shall also specify
the intervals between such
communications, which
shall not however be fewer
than one a year.
Article 4 (2) If remuneration was agreed upon according to the revenues resulting from the exploitation of the licence, the licensee shall be obliged to enable the author to control his/her accounting
Slovakia records or other documentation necessary for determining the remuneration. If in this case the licensee provides the author with the information marked by the licensee as confidential, the author may
neither pass such information onto a third person nor use such information for himself/herself in conflict with the purpose for which the information was provided to him/her. (3) If remuneration was
Act No. 618/2003 on Copyright and agreed upon according to the revenues resulting from the utilization of the licence, at least once a year the licensee shall be obliged to provide the author, with information regarding the revenues
Rights Related to Copyright resulting from the utilization of the licence separately for each manner of use of the work and simultaneously, the licensee shall also be obliged to provide the author with the remuneration accounting
statement, if not agreed otherwise.
Article 82 – Accounting (1) Where the royalty or remuneration is agreed to, or determined in proportion to the revenues derived from the exploitation of the work, the user of the work must keep the
books or other documentation necessary to determine the amount of such revenues. (2) The user of the work shall allow the author to inspect the documentary evidence mentioned in the foregoing
paragraph, and shall send him adequate reports on the revenues, both at usual intervals and to the necessary extent.
Slovenia
Article 108 Royalty
Copyright and related rights act of
30 March 1995 (2) Film producer must at least once a year send to the co-
authors of an audiovisual work a report on the revenues,
separately for each authorized form of exploitation of the
work.
208
PHONOGRAM
PUBLIC
PRODUCERS
COUNTRY PUBLISHING SECTOR / CONTRACTS AUDIOVISUAL SECTOR / CONTRACTS PERFORMANCE
CONTRACT/ MUSIC
CONTRACTS
SECTOR
Article 78 The contractor
shall: 5. Submit to the
Article 90 3. (...) The managers of public performance
author or his representatives
Article 64 The publisher shall: 5. Provide to the author the stipulated premises should regularly make available to the authors the
the exact program of public
remuneration and, and when it is proportional to the revenues, at least amounts collected in respect of such remuneration. For this
Spain performances, and where
once a year, render accounts of the revenues. It shall also make purpose, the Government may introduce the appropriate
remuneration is
available annually to the author a statement which contains information control procedures. 5. In order to provide to the author with
Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1996, de proportional to the
relating to the printing, the distribution and the existing stocks. To this the exercise of the rights in relation to the exploitation of the
12 de abril revenues, a revenue
end, if the author so requests, the publisher shall submit supporting audiovisual work, the producer shall, at least once a year,
statement. Also, the
documents. upon the request of the author, provide him with the necessary
transferee must facilitate
documentation.
the verification of such
programs and statements.
Article 35
The publisher shall provide the author with a certification from the
printer or whoever else reproduces the work concerning the number of
Sweden
copies produced.
Act on Copyright in Literary and
Artistic Works Swedish Statute If during the fiscal year sales have taken place for which the author is
Book, SFS, 1960:729 entitled to remuneration, the publisher shall render account to him
within nine months from the end of the year, stating the number of
copies sold during the year and the number in stock at the end of the
year. At his request, the author is also otherwise entitled to obtain a
statement of the number in stock by the end of the year.
[Stakeholders' dialogue] - The Publishers Association Code of
Practice on Author Contracts Guidelines for Book Publishers
Code of Practice 2010
- (11) The publisher must ensure that the author receives a regular
and clear account of sales made and monies due.
- (12) The publisher must ensure that the author can clearly
ascertain how any payments due from sub-licensed agreements
United Kingdom
will be calculated.
- (13) The publisher should if possible keep the author informed of
important design, promotion, marketing and sub-licensing
decisions.
- (18) The publisher should endeavour to keep the author informed
of changes in the ownership of the publishing rights and of any
changes in the imprint under which a work appears.
209
2. Examples of draft legislations or legislations recently enacted
France and Germany are considering or have enacted new legislations imposing or
strengthening reporting obligations imposed on the contractual counterparties of creators.
The German draft law foresees a general reporting obligation in case of the utilisation of an
author's work in return for payment once a year on the basis of the information usually
available in the ordinary course of business. The draft law provides a list of exceptions under
which the contractual partner would not have to comply with such obligation (subordinate
contribution to a work, computer program, and disproportionate claim).
On 7 July 2016, a new French law has been enacted which strengthens transparency
obligations imposed on audiovisual producers and imposes transparency obligations on
executive producers and on audiovisual distributors:
- Executive film producers have to establish, within six months following the
completion of the audiovisual work, a production report that shall be transmitted to the
author of the script, the author of the adaptation, the author of the dialogue, the author
of the musical compositions and the director. The report shall enumerate all the costs
engaged for the preparation, the realisation and the post-production of the work. It is
specified that the format of the report will be determined during a stakeholders'
dialogue;
- Distributors have to establish, within six months following the theatrical release of the
work, an exploitation report which shall contain the revenues generated and the costs
incurred by the exploitation of the work, as well as the net revenues to which the
producer is entitled to, the price paid by the public, and the retained commission if
any. This report shall be transmitted to the producers of the work who shall then
communicate it to the author of the script, the author of the adaptation, the author of
the dialogue, the author of the musical compositions and the director.
- COUNTRY CURRENT LEGISLATION DRAFT LEGISLATION
N/A Article 32d - Entitlement to information and accountability (NEW)
(1) In case of utilisation of his work in return for payment the author may request
information and accountability from the contractual partner on the scope of the
utilisation of the work and the income and benefits drawn from it once a year on
the basis of the information usually available in the ordinary course of business.
(2) The claim persuant to paragraph 1 shall be excluded if
Germany
1. the author provides only a subordinate contribution to a work, a product
(Government Draft Law - as of March or a service; a contribution is of subordinate nature in particular if it
16, 2016, amending the current characterizes the overall impression of a work or the composition of a
German Copyright Act) product or service to a less extent.
2. a computer program is subject of the protection
3. the claim of the contracutal partner is disproportionate for other reasons.
(3) Paragraphs 1 and 2 may be departed from to the detriment of the author only
by means of an agreement based on a joint remuneration rule (article 36) or a
collective agreement.
210
Article L. 132-28 Article L. 132-28
Audiovisual producers shall transmit, at least Audiovisual producers shall transmit, at least once a year, to the authors and the joint
once a year, to the authors and the joint authors a statement of revenues generated from the exploitation of the work with
authors a statement of revenues generated respect to each mode of exploitation
from the exploitation of the work with respect
to each mode of exploitation Any assignment of an audiovisual production contract to a third party can
intervene only after prior information of the co-authors of the assignor in a
minimum period of one month prior the effective date of the assignment. Any
audiovisual production contract is subject to the requirement provided for in this
paragraph.
N/A Transparency of production accounts - Obligations of executive producers
Art. L. 251-1. - Any producer who, in his capacity as executive producer, took the
initiative and accountability, artistic and technical realization of an audiovisual work in
the genres of fiction, animation, creative documentary or audiovisual adaptation of live
performance, admitted to the benefit of financial aid for the production of National
Center of Cinematography, and he has guaranteed the successful completion shall,
within six months from the date of completion of the audiovisual work, prepare and
transmit the production account of the work to other co-producers, companies with
which it has concluded a financing contract giving them a share in the operating
income, the television service publishers who contributed to financing the production
of the work and the authors listed in Article L. 113-7 of the code of intellectual
property and, where applicable, audiovisual to publishers holding adaptation rights of
a printed work, provided that it concluded with these authors or publishers a contract
giving them a share in the operating income of the work, conditioned to the
amortization of the cost of production.
The production account is also transmitted to any other person or entity with which the
executive producer has a contract giving it a share in the revenue of the work,
conditioned to the amortization of the cost of production.
France
The production account includes all expenses incurred for the preparation,
Law enacted on 7 July
implementation and post-production of the work, shall determine the final cost and
2016
indicates the means of funding.
N/A Transparency of operating accounts - Obligations of distributors
Art. L. 251-5. - Any distributor who, as assignee or agent has operating rights for the
commercialization of an audiovisual work in the genres of fiction, animation, creative
documentary or audiovisual adaptation live show and admitted to the benefit of
financial aid for the production of the National film Centre is, in the first three months
of the year following the first broadcast of the work by a service editor television, shall
at least once a year during the term of the contract concluded with the executive
producer, produce and transmit to the latter the operating account of this work.
The elements of the operating account are provided for each mode of exploitation of
the work in France and for each operating territory in which the work is exploited
abroad, except for the elements that are not individualized. Operating costs and their
depreciation status are indicated only when they are taken into account for calculating
the amount of net revenue that is owed to the producer. Financial aids received by the
distributor are mentioned only if they relate to the work concerned. The depreciation
status of the minimum amounts guaranteed is indicated in all cases.
N/A Transparency of operating accounts - Obligations of executive producers
Art. L. 251-9. Executive Producer transmits the operating account that is given to it
under subsection 1 of this section to the other co-producers, undertakings to which it is
linked by a financing contract giving them a share in the operating income, the authors
listed in Article L. 113-7 of the code of intellectual property and , where applicable, to
audiovisual publishers holding adaptation rights of a printed work. For the authors, this
transmission takes the place of the provision of the statement of revenue provided for
in Article L. 132-28 of the Code.
The operating account is also transmitted to any other person or entity with which the
executive producer has a contract giving it a share in the revenue of the work.
211
ANNEX 14B – EXAMPLES OF CONTENT OF REPORTING STATEMENTS
Book publishing - Number of copies sold in each format and for each territory
- Number of (or the equivalent calculation) copies made available through
online services (subscription/streaming)
- Number of (or the equivalent calculation) copies made available through
libraries (for lending)
- Number of copies (or the equivalent calculation) used for marketing
purposes
- Number of free copies/author's copies
- Advance paid to the author
- VAT
- Number of copies returned
- The publisher's calculated royalty from the retailers' price/net income and
royalty percentage of each format, including the number of copies sold at a
discount (on sale or through campaigns)
- Balance owed by publisher or author
Audiovisual - Number of copies of the audiovisual work sold or rented for each network
and territory
- Unit price of the audiovisual work
- VAT
- Advance paid to the authors
- Revenues for each territory and for each mode of exploitation
- Number of copies (or the equivalent calculation) copies made available
through online services (subscription/streaming)
Music - Number of physical records sold / streams / downloads
- Territories covered
- Unit price of the musical work and revenues generated by the exploitation
of the work
- VAT
- Revenues for each territory and for each mode of exploitation
- Royalty rates and royalties amounts
212
ANNEX 14C – ASSESSMENT OF REPORTING IN DIFFERENT SECTORS
This annex presents real examples of costs connected with periodic reporting to authors as well as
estimations of cost for all companies in the sector both in monetary and time terms.
The real life examples come from companies who already prepare such reports in book publishing and
in the audiovisual sector. They were acquired through interviews and meetings conducted by
Commission. These circumstantial evidence is presented in subchapters (a). The estimations and
extrapolations are based on key figures provided in examples in subchapters (a) as well as on several
additional assumptions needed to present a holistic picture per size category. Given that estimations
are based on extremely limited evidence they should be treated with caution, as an illustration of
potential scenario rather than hard facts. These estimations are provided in subchapters (b). A set of
common assumptions used for estimation is reported in the last subchapter.
Book publishing
a) Evidence from stakeholders
Stakeholders report that a large majority of book publishing deals (and all of them in case of foreign
authors) are royalty-based which require some form of accounting and reporting to authors. (Lump-
sum deals are common in academic publishing and commissioned books.) However, such reporting
may not be very transparent if it does not specify modes and territories of use, stock information, or
revenue split and expenses. According to an Eastern-European publisher, the most common reporting
frequency is semi-annual but it can be quarterly occasionally and it is at least annual almost
everywhere in the industry. They are currently publishing 600 titles per year and holding
approximately 2500 titles in distribution. Until recently, they have been using spreadsheets for
accounting and reporting but they are now developing an internal reporting system like all large
European publishers. Reporting on 600 titles takes 1 week for two staff, and the average time required
for compiling and sending a report on a title is 8 minutes. It is reported that simpler cases can be dealt
with in 2-3 minutes while the more difficult ones can take 10-15 minutes. Reporting is easier and
quicker for smaller companies with fewer titles because there are fewer sources to gather information
from. The one-off cost of the reporting system was approximately €10,000. The new system is
expected to further economise staff requirements for reporting while allowing a more reliable and even
more frequent reporting.
A large French publisher reports that they use a commercial business management enterprise software
which they have adapted to their specific needs. Because of the large number of authors they report to,
they need to have automated and integrated accounting and reporting processes. The cost of such
software (with functionalities that go far beyond reporting) and the necessary human resources may be
higher but relative cost of an individual report is moderate.
b) Extrapolation
There were around 28 thousand book publishers in the EU in 2013 according to Eurostat, employing
around 150 thousand persons with combined turnover of €26,7bn (Table 1.)
Table 1. Statistical characteristics of Book Publishers in EU in 2013
Micro Small medium-sized large TOTAL
No. of enterprises EU 25,587* 2,137* 616* 163* 28,503
213
Turnover (EUR million) €3,074* €4,201* €7,155* €12,263* €26,693
turnover per publisher
(EUR) €120,137 €1,965,841 €11,615,918 €75,230,275 €936,494
No. of persons employed 25,382* 25,679* 36,188* 64,409* 151,700
average no. of persons
employed per firm 1.0 12.0 58.7 395.1 5.3
* - estimation based on distribution of group NACE J581 “Publishing of books, periodicals and other
publishing activities”
Classification to size group based solely on employment criterion
Source: Eurostat, NACE code J5811 - Book publishing ; own calculations
Assumptions:
The time reported in (a) is assumed to be the same for all book publishers in the EU irrespective of
location or size. Three variants are analysed minimum (3 minutes per report per title), average (8 min)
and maximum (15 min). The firm in (a) is medium-sized, with 600 titles and one off cost of €10,000.
These are reference values to estimate the number of titles of one-off cost for other size categories,
with the assumption that for micro companies they stand at 25% of the medium-sized values, for small
at 50% and for large at 1000%. The reporting frequency is once a year.
Results:
Micro publishers
One off cost is assumed at €2,500 per company. Time to report on 150 titles should take on average
20h (min. 7.5h; max.37.5h) representing 1.12% (min. 0.4%; max. 2.1%) of average annual working
hours of company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €460 (min. €170; max.
€870) or 0.4% (min. 0.14%; max.0.72%) of annual turnover.
Small publishers
One off cost is assumed at €5,000 per company. Time to report on 300 titles should take on average
40h (min. 15h; max.75h) representing 0.18% (min. 0.07%; max. 0.35%) of average annual working
hours of company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €930 (min. €350; max.
€1,700) or 0.05% (min. 0.02%; max.0.09%) of annual turnover.
Medium-sized publishers
One off cost is assumed at €10,000 per company. Time to report on 600 titles should take on average
80h (min. 30h; max.150h) representing 0.08% (min. 0.03%; max. 0.14%) of average annual working
hours of company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €1,900 (min. €700; max.
€3,500) or 0.02% (min. 0.01%; max.0.03%) of annual turnover.
Large publishers
One off cost is assumed at €100,000 per company. Time to report on 6000 titles should take on
average 800h (min. 300h; max.1500h) representing 0.11% (min. 0.04%; max. 0.21%) of average
annual working hours of company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €18,600
(min. €7,000; max. €35,000) or 0.02% (min. 0.01%; max.0.05%) of annual turnover.
214
Table 2. Calculations for book publishers
Medium-
Micro Small sized Large
Titles 150 300 600 6000
average time per title (min) 8 8 8 8
minimum time per title (min) 3 3 3 3
maximum time per title (min) 15 15 15 15
annual frequency 1 1 1 1
average total time (hours) 20 40 80 800
minimum total time (hours) 7.5 15 30 300
maximum total time (hours) 37.5 75 150 1500
% of time annually of average workforce/ company (av.) 1.12% 0.18% 0.08% 0.11%
% of time annually of average workforce / company (min) 0.42% 0.07% 0.03% 0.04%
% of time annually of average workforce/ company (max) 2.09% 0.35% 0.14% 0.21%
estimated average cost per publisher (EUR) €464 €929 €1,857 €18,571
estimated minimum cost per publisher (EUR) €174 €348 €696 €6,964
estimated maximum cost per publisher (EUR) €871 €1,741 €3,482 €34,820
average annual cost as % of turnover 0.39% 0.05% 0.02% 0.02%
minimum annual cost as % of turnover 0.14% 0.02% 0.01% 0.01%
maximum annual cost as % of turnover 0.72% 0.09% 0.03% 0.05%
Source: Evidence from company, Eurostat, own calculations
Audiovisual
a) Evidence from stakeholders
It can be assumed that producers could rely on some form of reporting when they comply with the
transparency obligations. They can receive sales and revenue data from distributors directly, more
often from sales agents and sometimes from collection account managers (or collection agents).
According to a collection account manager, producers will do everything to discover the revenues
related to their films which data they then put into their administration that even smaller companies
always have. Due to the complex financing of European audiovisual works, producers are often
required to report to public film funds and other financiers. Based on available evidence, in the
audiovisual sector reporting would include final production costs and information on
financing/recoupment to the extent necessary for authors and performers assess the economic value.
Creators will need to understand when an audiovisual work breaks even and when revenues start
flowing or turn into profit. Stakeholders report that producers are willing to share such information so
that creators understand the financial risk taken by the producer.
According to a Danish producer, all authors entitled to royalty (composer, screenwriter, director)
based on unionised contracts receive reporting and others can have access to sales and revenue
215
information if they request it. There is a lot of trust and transparency because the Danish Film Institute
publishes a lot of information and 90% of the projects (including most co-productions) involve a
collection agent.
An audiovisual producer active in several Nordic countries also reported that the example/benchmark
to look at in the audiovisual sector is collection statements generated by collection account managers.
These companies are assigned by producers of films with usually more complex financing structures
to collect all revenues and disburse them on the basis of the financing agreements. Multiple sources
confirmed that the collection statements sent regularly by these companies should be more or less
sufficient for compliance with the reporting obligation, therefore, producers receiving these could
simply forward them to creators while others could use these as templates for reporting. Collection
account managers would also add an additional layer of trust in the reported figures as they are an
independent third party representing the project and not the producer. Established collection account
managers report that the cost of engaging such a company (whose services go way beyond simple
reporting as it collects and disburses revenue) depends on the budget but it is in the range of €4,000-
€8,000 + 0.5-2,5% of the revenues after deducting costs. Another collection account manager reports
that creating a report for a film starts with setting up the structure of the report, normally tailoring a
previous example to the circumstances. Depending on the complexity, this can take up to 2-3 hours.
Following this first exercise, a simple regular report can be created in 15 minutes and even the very
complex ones can be done in 60 minutes. They noted that reporting is facilitated by a method of
collecting and aggregating revenue data, in their case a unique database, but producers should always
have some way of keeping track of their revenues. According to this company, difficulties in reporting
in the audiovisual sector arise when information is not available or unclear but this will not affect the
producer's ability to comply with the obligation and share the available information with the creators.
An Eastern-European independent producer involved in many co-productions across Europe reports
that they create and email their own reports to creators which takes approximately 10-15 minutes
(although this can be more if they comply fully with the proposed obligation) each time. It is to note
that for audiovisual works creators would receive almost the same reports as the modes of exploitation
and the generated revenues would be the same for the same work.
Frequency of reporting would depend on the lifecycle of the work. For example, a Swedish feature
film contract stipulates that: "As of twelve months counted from the date of the premiere of the film the
Producer shall every six months, no later than six weeks after each six-month period, render an
account of the accrued receipts and pay such royalty to the Writer. As of two years from the date of
the premiere of the film the Producer shall render such accounts once each year, no later than six
weeks after the end of each twelve-month period. As of three years from the date of the premiere of the
film the Producer shall render such accounts only when such de facto receipts are received."
Also, a French producer mentioned that many companies in the audiovisual sector regularly produce
reporting statements for accounting purposes. He stated that it took from 0.5 hour to two days to
establish a statement report depending on the complexity of the reporting (different exploitations,
gathering of information from different partners, number of creators involved). He added that
reporting statements of his production company were produced by an external service provider who
charged in average €1,000 per movie per year. In addition, financing stakeholders may require
engaging a collection agency in order to manage financial flows and reporting statements, that is
remunerated on a percentage of the revenues generated by the exploitation of the movie (between 0.5
and 1%).
216
Assuming that a producer wants to produce their own reporting for a film that has 8
authors/performers with a significant contribution to the work and reporting occurs annually, reporting
would take: 2-3 hours set-up + 1*15-60min (first report) + 7*15min (subsequent reports to other
creators on the same film and same period would be much quicker) = 4-6 hours. For subsequent years,
the set-up time would not be required. Considering an average independent producer with 3-6 "active"
projects in distribution, the annual time required to generate reports could amount to 12-36 hours. As
for external service providers, it can be assumed that third parties would offer simpler services than
what is required from a collection agent usually (revenue collection and disbursement on top of
reporting) and prices would more in the range of €1,000 per movie per year and would not reach the
lower ceiling of collection agency fees (€4,000 + 0.5-1% of revenues).
b) Extrapolation
There were around 77 thousands audio-visual producers in the EU in 2013 according to Eurostat,
employing around 217 thousand persons with combined turnover of €34bn (Table 7).
Table 3. Statistical characteristics of audio-visual producers in the EU in 2013.
micro small medium-sized large TOTAL
No. of enterprises EU 73,687* 3,025* 546* 68* 77,326
Turnover (EUR million) €9,648* €8,642* €8,146* €7,423* €33,860
turnover per publisher (EUR) €130,935 €2,856,866 €14,919,517 €109,164,884 €437,880
No. of persons employed 76,056* 49,770* 41,902* 49,412* 217,200
average no. of persons 1.0 16.5 76.7 726.6 2.8
employed per firm
* - estimation based on distribution of group NACE J591 - Motion picture, video and television programme activities
Classification to size group based solely on employment criterion
Source: Eurostat, NACE code J5911 Motion picture, video and television programme production activities
Assumptions:
Scenario I. The time reported in (a) is assumed to be the same for all of audio-visual producers in the
EU irrespective of location or size. Three variants are analysed for minimum (2h setup per production
and 15 minutes per report per author/performer), average (2.5h setup and 37.5 min) and maximum (3h
setup and 1h). The firm in (a) is medium-sized, with 6 productions and 8 authors/performers. These
are reference values to estimate the number of productions and authors for other size categories, with
the assumption that for micro companies they stand at 25% of the medium-sized values, for small at
50% and for large at 1000%. The reporting frequency is once a year.
Scenario II. Assumes that all the reporting is done by an external provider who is charging a flat fee
per production of €1,500 (min. €1,000; max. €3000 on the assumption of being lower than the fees of
a collection agent as explained above). Number of productions as in scenario I.
Results:
Micro producers
Scenario I. Time to report on 2 productions each having 2 authors/performers is on average 7.5h (min.
5h; max.10h) representing 0.4% (min. 0.3%; max. 0.5%) of average annual working hours of
company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €170 (min. €120; max. €230) or
0.13% (min. 0.09%; max.0.18%) of annual turnover.
217
Scenario II. The average cost per producer is €3,000 (min. €2,000; max. €6,000) representing 2.29%
(min. 1.5%; max. 4.58%) of annual turnover.
Small producers
Scenario I. Time to report on 3 productions each having 4 authors/performers is on average 15h (min.
9h; max.21h) representing 0.05% (min. 0.03%; max. 0.07%) of average annual working hours of
company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €350 (min. €210; max. €490) or
0.01% (min. 0.01%; max.0.02%) of annual turnover.
Scenario II. The average cost per producer is €4,500 (min. €3,000; max. €9,000) representing 0.18%
(min. 0.1%; max. 0.32%) of annual turnover.
Medium-sized producers
Scenario I. Time to report on 6 productions each having 8 authors/performers is on average 45h (min.
24h; max.66h) representing 0.03% (min. 0.02%; max. 0.05%) of average annual working hours of
company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €1,000 (min. €560; max. €1,500) or
0.01% (min. 0.004%; max.0.01%) of annual turnover.
Scenario II. The average cost per producer is €9,000 (min. €6,000; max. €18,000) representing 0.06%
(min. 0.04%; max. 0.12%) of annual turnover.
Large producers
Scenario I. Time to report on 60 productions each having 80 authors/performers is on average 3150h
(min. 1320h; max.4980h) representing 0.2% (min. 0.1%; max. 0.4%) of average annual working hours
of company’s workforce. This corresponds to average annual cost of €73,000 (min. €30,600; max.
€115,600) or 0.07% (min. 0.03%; max.0.1%) of annual turnover.
Scenario II. The average cost per producer is €90,000 (min. €60,000; max. €180,000) representing
0.08% (min. 0.05%; max. 0.16%) of annual turnover.
Table 4. Calculations for audiovisual producers
Micro Small Medium-sized Large
No. of productions 2 3 6 60
No of authors/performers per title 2 4 8 80
average set up per production (h) 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5
minimum set up per production (h) 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0
maximum set up per production (h) 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0
average time per author/performer (h) 0.625 0.625 0.625 0.625
minimum time per author/performer (h) 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25
maximum time per author/performer (h) 1 1 1 1
annual frequency 1 1 1 1
I. Producer does reporting internally
average total time (hours) 7.5 15 45 3150
minimum total time (hours) 5 9 24 1320
maximum total time (hours) 10 21 66 4980
% of time annually of average workforce per
company – average 0.40% 0.05% 0.03% 0.24%
% of time annually of average workforce per
company – minimum 0.27% 0.03% 0.02% 0.10%
218
% of time annually of average workforce per
company – maximum 0.54% 0.07% 0.05% 0.38%
estimated average cost per producer (EUR) €174 €348 €1,045 €73,123
estimated min cost per producer (EUR) €116 €209 €557 €30,642
estimated max cost per producer (EUR) €232 €487 €1,532 €115,604
average annual cost as % of turnover 0.13% 0.01% 0.01% 0.07%
minimum annual cost as % of turnover 0.09% 0.01% 0.004% 0.03%
maximum annual cost as % of turnover 0.18% 0.02% 0.010% 0.11%
II. Producer does reporting via external provider
external provider average flat fee €1,500 €1,500 €1,500 €1,500
external provider min flat fee €1,000 €1,000 €1,000 €1,000
external provider max flat fee €3,000 €3,000 €3,000 €3,000
average cost per producer €3,000 €4,500 €9,000 €90,000
min cost per producer €2,000 €3,000 €6,000 €60,000
max cost per producer €6,000 €9,000 €18,000 €180,000
average annual cost as % of turnover 2.29% 0.18% 0.06% 0.08%
minimum annual cost as % of turnover 1.53% 0.11% 0.04% 0.05%
maximum annual cost as % of turnover 4.58% 0.32% 0.12% 0.16%
Source: Evidence from company, Eurostat, own calculations
Summary table: Costs and time per company by size groups
Average annual reporting cost as % of turnover
Company size Micro Small Medium Large
Book Publishers 0.39% 0.05% 0.02% 0.02%
Audio-visual* 0.1% - 2.3% 0.01% - 0.2% 0.06% - 0.10% 0.07% - 0.08%
* the range illustrates estimations for three scenarios for the annual reporting described above.
Average time spent on reporting annually as % of average working time
Company size Micro Small Medium Large
Book Publishers 1.12% 0.18% 0.08% 0.11%
Audio-visual 0.4% 0.05% 0.03% 0.24%
Common data used for cost calculations
-Hourly wage – €23.21 per hour. EU average hourly wage of “Technicians and associate
professionals” of 2010 adjusted by 25% overhead as reported in Eurostat: Structure of Earnings
Survey
-Number of hours actually worked and paid per employee (EU28, 2012) (hours per year) – 1808 hours
(Estat, lc_nnum2_r2)
219
ANNEX 14D – CONTRACT ADJUSTMENT MECHANISMS IN LEGISLATION AND IN PRACTICE
Examples of contracts adjustment mechanism in Member States legislations
This list of contract adjustment mechanisms on the basis of a disproportion between the agreed
remuneration and the generated revenues (hereafter: "better-seller clause" for the purposes of this
impact assessment, as explained under description of option 3) is non-exhaustive and is only intended
to provide examples of legislations and soft-law regulations.
BELGIUM
Belgium legislation provides for better-seller clauses for publishing and performance contracts:
- Publishing contracts: in case of flat remuneration, an imperative beter-seller clause allows the
author to claim for a revision of the remuneration agreed upon by the parties, in case of
success.
- Performance contracts: there is an imperative better-seller clause in case the success of the
shows is significantly disproportionate to the flat remuneration according to which the author
is entitled to claim for an “equitable remuneration”.
Article XI.196 (2)306: "If the author has assigned to the publisher the publishing rights to such
conditions that, given the success of the work, the agreed fixed remuneration is manifestly
disproportionate to the benefit derived from the exploitation the work, the publisher shall, at the
request of the author, agree to a salary modification in order to grant a fair share of the profit to the
author. The author may not waive enjoyment of this right ".
Article XI.202: "If the author has authorized the public performance of a work to conditions such
that, given the success of the work, the agreed lump sum is clearly disproportionate to the benefit
derivate from the public performance, the holder of a performance contract shall, at the request of the
author, agree to a salary modification in order to grant the author a fair share of the profit. The
author may not waive enjoyment of this right."
CROATIA
Croatian copyright legislation provides for a better-seller clause where the profit derived from use of
the work is obviously disproportional to the agreed or fixed remuneration to which the author cannot
renounce.
Article 54307 - Right of the author to modify a contract for the purpose of fairer share in the
profit: "(1) If the profit derived from use of the work is obviously disproportional to the agreed or
fixed remuneration, the author shall be entitled to demand the amendment of the agreement for the
purpose of fixing more equitable share in the profit deriving from the use of his work.(2) The author
may not renounce the right referred to in paragraph (1) of this Article".
CZECH REPUBLIC
Czech copyright legislation provides for a better-seller clause.
306
Loi du 19 avril 2014 portant insertion du Livre XI « Propriété Intellectuelle » dans le Code de droit
économique, et portant insertion des dispositions propres au Livre XI dans les Livres I, XV et XVII du
même Code
307
Copyright and Related Rights Act (O.G. 167/2003)
220
Article 49(6)308: "Where the amount of the royalty has not been derived from the proceeds from the
utilization of the licence and where such an amount is so low that it is in obvious disproportion to the
profit from the utilisation of the licence and to the importance of the work for the achievement of such
profit, the author shall be entitled to an equitable supplementary royalty".
FINLAND
The Finnish copyright legislation provides for a general renegotiation provision if the case where a
condition in an agreement on a transfer of copyright is unreasonable in view of good agreement
practices in the field or in other respects. The law expressly mentions that a compensation for a
transfer should be deemed as a condition in an agreement. Finnish creators can therefore seek
adjustment of their remuneration on the basis of this legal provision.
Section 29309:"The adjustment of an unreasonable condition in an agreement on a transfer of
copyright
(1) If a condition in an agreement on a transfer of copyright is unreasonable in view of good
agreement practice in the field or in other respects, or if its application would result in an
unreasonable situation, the condition may be adjusted or ignored.
(2) The assessment of the reasonability of a condition shall take into account the entire content of the
agreement, the position of the parties, conditions prevalent at the time of making the agreement and
afterwards, as well as other factors.
(3) If the condition referred to in subsection 1 is such that the staying in force of the rest of the
agreement in unadjusted form cannot be considered reasonable because of the adjustment of the
condition, the agreement may be adjusted in other respects or made expire.
(4) A compensation for the transfer of a right shall also be deemed a condition in an agreement.
(5) Provisions on the adjustment of an unreasonable condition in an employment contract on a
transfer of copyright are laid down in section 2 of Chapter 10 of the Employment Contracts Act
(55/2001).
(6) Other provisions on the adjustment of an unreasonable condition are laid down in section 36 of the
Contracts Act (228/1929)".
FRANCE
French legislation provides that, in case of flat remuneration, the author might claim a revision of the
remuneration if his prejudice amounts to at least 7/12 of the remuneration he would have been entitled
to if the remuneration had been proportional.
Art. L. 131-5310: "If the exploitation right has been assigned and the author suffers a prejudice of
more than seven-twelfths as a result of a burdensome contract or of insufficient advance estimate of
the proceeds from the work, he may demand review of the price conditions under the contract.
308
Consolidated version of Act No. 121/2000 Coll., on Copyright and Rights Related to Copyright and on
Amendment to Certain Acts (the Copyright Act)
309
Copyright Act (404/19610)
310
French Intellectual Property Code
221
Such demand may only be formulated where the work has been assigned against lump sum
remuneration.
The burdensome contract shall be assessed taking into account the overall exploitation by the assignee
of the works of the author who claims to have suffered a prejudice.".
GERMANY
German copyright law provides for a fairness clause when the agreed remuneration is significantly
disproportionate to the proceeds and benefits derived from the exploitation of the work.
However, it is currently highly debated whether German courts can revaluate flat fees on the basis of
common rules of control of general terms and conditions set out in the German Civil Code (in
particular, in s. 307 BGB).
Article 32a311 -Author’s further participation:
"(1) Where the author has granted an exploitation right to another party on conditions which, taking
into account the author’s entire relationship with the other party, result in the agreed remuneration
being conspicuously disproportionate to the proceeds and benefits derived from the exploitation of the
work, the other party shall be obliged, at the author's request, to consent to a modification of the
agreement which grants the author further equitable participation appropriate to the circumstances. It
shall be irrelevant whether the parties to the agreement had foreseen or could have foreseen the
amount of the proceeds or benefits obtained.
(2) If the other party has transferred the exploitation right or granted further exploitation rights and if
the conspicuous disproportion results from proceeds or benefits enjoyed by a third party, the latter
shall be directly liable to the author in accordance with paragraph (1), taking into account the
contractual relationships within the licensing chain. The other party shall then not be liable.
(3) The rights under paragraphs (1) and (2) may not be waived in advance. An expected benefit shall
not be subject to compulsory execution; any disposition regarding the expected benefit shall be
ineffective. The author may, however, grant an unremunerated nonexclusive exploitation right for
every person.
(4) The author shall not have a right pursuant to paragraph (1) if the remuneration has been
determined in accordance with a joint remuneration agreement (Article 36) or in a collective
agreement and explicitly provides for a further equitable participation in cases under paragraph (1)".
HUNGARY
Hungarian legislation provides for a better-seller clause in case a work becomes more popular than
what was expected when the contract was concluded. In such as case, the author has the possibility to
initiate a court proceeding to modify the initially agreed remuneration.
Article 48312: "According to the general provisions of civil law the court may alter the license
agreement even if such an agreement infringes the author's substantive lawful interest in having an
equitable share in the income on use for the reason that because of the considerable increase in the
311
Copyright Act of 9 September 1965 (Federal Law Gazette Part I, p. 1273), as last amended by Article 8
of the Act of 1 October 2013 (Federal Law Gazette Part I, p. 3714)
312
Act LXXVI of 1999 on Copyright (as of 28/10/2014)
222
demand for the use of the work following the conclusion of the agreement the difference in value
between the services respectively provided by the parties becomes strikingly great".
NETHERLANDS
The new Dutch copyright law enacted on 1 July 2015 has introduced a better-seller clause provision
into the copyright legislation. An author may claim additional fair compensation in court if the agreed
compensation is seriously disproportionate to the proceeds from the exploitation of the work. It the
rights were assigned to a third party, the author may also claim such compensation against that third
party.
Article 25d313: "1. The maker may claim additional fair compensation in court from the other party to
the contract if, having regard to the performances delivered by both parties, the agreed compensation
is seriously disproportionate to the proceeds from the exploitation of the work.
2. If the serious disproportion between the maker’s compensation and the proceeds from the work’s
exploitation arises after the other party to the contract with the maker assigns the copyright to a third
party, the maker may bring the claim as meant in the first paragraph against that third party".
POLAND
Under Polish copyright law, a better-seller clause allows the author to request to a court to reassess his
remuneration in case of gross discrepancy between remuneration of the author and benefits of the
acquirer of author’s economic rights or licensee.
Article 44314: "In the event of gross discrepancy between the remuneration of the author and the
benefits of the acquirer of the author's economic rights or the licensee, the author may request the
court for a due increase of his/her remuneration".
PORTUGAL
Portuguese copyright law provides for a better-seller clause and details on how the remuneration
should be adjusted. The case of proportional remuneration is specifically mentioned (the percentage
established is clearly lower than that customarily paid in transactions of the same nature).
Article 49 - Additional Compensation315: "1 - When the intellectual creator or his successors which
transferred its right, suffers grave economic injury resulting from the manifest disproportion between
their income and profits earned by the beneficiary of those acts, he may claim additional
compensation, which will focus on profits generated by the exploitation. 2 - In the absence of
agreement, the additional compensation referred to in the previous paragraph shall be fixed taking
into account the normal results of exploitation of all the similar works of the author. 3 - If the price of
the transfer or assignment of copyright has been fixed in the form of participation, the right to
additional compensation shall apply only where the percentage established is clearly lower than that
customarily paid in transactions of the same nature. 4 – This right expires if it is not exercised within
two years from the discovery of the suffered serious injury ".
313
Law of March 6, 2003, on the Supervision of Collective Management Organizations for Copyright and
Related Rights
314
Act No. 83 of February 4, 1994, on Copyright and Neighboring Rights (as amended up to October 21,
2010)
315
Code of Copyright and Related Rights
223
ROMANIA
Under Romanian copyright law, a better-seller clause allows the author to request to a court to reassess
his remuneration in case of an obvious disproportion between the remuneration of the author of the
work and the profits of the person who has secured the transfer of the economic rights.
Article 43(3)316: "Where there is an obvious disproportion between the remuneration of the author of
the work and the profits of the person who has secured the transfer of the economic rights, the author
may request the competent jurisdictional bodies to revise the contract or increase the remuneration
accordingly".
SLOVENIA
Slovenian copyright law provides for a general better-seller clause under which the author may request
that the agreed remuneration be reviewed in case of a disproportion with the profit generated by the
exploitation of his work.
Article 81(2)317: "Where the profit derived from the exploitation of the work is in manifest
disproportion to the agreed upon or determined royalty or remuneration, the author may demand that
the contract be revised, so that a more equitable share of the revenues is provided for him".
SPAIN
Spanish copyright legislation grants to authors, in case of lump-sum remuneration, a possibility of
action during ten years following the transfer of rights, to request the revision of the contract if there is
a manifest disproportion between the remuneration of the author and the benefits obtained by the
contractual counterparty.
Article 47318: "Where a lump-sum remuneration has been agreed, if there is an obvious disproportion
between the author's remuneration and the benefits obtained by the assignee should occur in the
transfer lump sum, the author may demand that the contract be revised and, failing agreement, request
to the court to determine a fair remuneration in the light the circumstances of the case. This authority
may be exercised within ten years following the transfer of the rights".
316
Law No. 8 of March 14, 1996 on Copyright and Neighboring Rights
317
Copyright and related rights act of 30 March 1995 as last amended on 15 December 2006
318
Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1996, de 12 de abril – Last modification 31/12/2011
224
ANNEX 15 – LIST OF MAIN RELEVANT DIRECTIVES RELATED TO THIS IA
AND GLOSSARY
ANNEX 15A – LIST OF MAIN RELEVANT DIRECTIVES RELATED TO THIS IA
Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on
the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information
society (the "InfoSoc Directive" or "the Directive").
Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September 1993 on the coordination of certain rules
concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting
and cable retransmission (the "Satellite and Cable Directive").
Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on
the legal protection of databases (the "Database Directive").
Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December
2006 on rental right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the
field of intellectual property (the "Rental and Lending right Directive").
Directive 2009/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on
the legal protection of computer programs (the "Software Directive").
Directive 2012/28/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012
on certain permitted uses of orphan works (the "Orphan Works Directive").
Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February
2014 on on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial
licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market (the "CRM
Directive")
ANNEX 15B – GLOSSARY
"Collective management organisations (CMOs)": organisations traditionally set up by
rightholders at national level to manage copyright or related rights on their behalf.
"Collective rights management": includes one or more of the following services: the grant of
licences to commercial users, the auditing and monitoring of rights, the enforcement of
copyright and related rights, the collection of royalties and the distribution of royalties to
rightholders.
"Commercial users" or “service providers”: any person or entity involved in the provision
of goods or services that for these activities needs a licence from rightholders of copyright
and/or related rights.
"Creative industries": include services such as publishing activities (e.g. books, periodicals),
motion pictures, video and television programme production, sound recording and music
publishing activities, programming and broadcasting activities, computer programming,
advertising, design activities, photographic activities, translation and interpretation activities,
creative arts and entertainment activities.
225
"Distribution right": the right to authorise or prohibit any form of distribution to the public
of the original or copies of a work or other protected subject matter, by sale or otherwise.
(Article 4 of the InfoSoc Directive and Article 9 of the Rental and Lending Directive).
"Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)": online courses aimed at unlimited participation
and open access via the internet.
"Open Educational Resources (OERs)": any type of educational materials that are in the
public domain or released under an open license. The nature of these open materials means
that anyone can legally and freely copy, use, adapt and re-share them. OERs range from
textbooks to curricula, syllabi, lecture notes, assignments, tests, projects, audio, video and
animation.319
"Orphan works": a work is considered to be orphan if none of the rightholders in that work
is identified or, even if one or more of them is identified; none is located despite a diligent
search.
"Other protected subject-matter": output of holders of related rights i.e. performers,
phonogram and film producers and broadcasting organisations.
"Repertoire": the sum of the works and rights of all rightholders that a collecting society
directly represents.
"Reproduction right": the right to authorise or prohibit direct or indirect, temporary or
permanent reproductions of a work or other protected subject matter by any means and in any
form, in whole or in part (Article 2 of the InfoSoc Directive).
"Reprography copying": a possible exception or limitation of the reproduction right in
respect of reproductions on paper or any similar medium, effected by the use of any kind of
photographic technique or by some other process having similar effects (Article 5(2)(a) of the
InfoSoc Directive)
"Right of communication to the public": the right to authorise or prohibit any
communication to the public of a work or other protected subject matter, by wire or wireless
means. Recognised as a broad exclusive right encompassing the making available right (see
below) to authors (Article 3(1) of the InfoSoc Directive); of a more limited scope for other
rightholders (Article 8 of the Rental and Lending Directive).
"Right of making available": the right to authorise or prohibit the making available to the
public of a work or other protected subject matter in such a way that members of the public
may access them from a place and at a time individually chosen by them (Article 3 of the
InfoSoc Directive).
"Three-step test": Copyright exceptions may only be applied in certain special cases (first
step) which do not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work or other subject-matter
(second step) and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the rightholder
(third step).
"Work": creative output of authors protected by copyright. It includes: literary (a novels ,
poetry, etc.), dramatic (plays, opera librettos, etc.), musical (e.g. a musical comositon) and
artistic (photography, painting, etc.) works.
319
UNESCO definition.
226
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
COM(2016) 595 final
2016/0279 (COD)
Proposal for a
REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
on the cross-border exchange between the Union and third countries of accessible
format copies of certain works and other subject-matter protected by copyright and
related rights for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise
print disabled
EN EN
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1. CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
• Reasons for and objectives of the proposal
The proposed Regulation will allow the Union to fulfil an international obligation under the
Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who Are Blind,
Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (ʻthe Marrakesh Treatyʼ). The Marrakesh
Treaty was adopted in 2013 at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) with the
aim of facilitating the availability and cross-border exchange of books and other print material
in accessible formats around the world. It was signed by the Union1 in April 2014. The Treaty
requires the parties to provide exceptions or limitations to copyright and related rights for the
benefit of blind, visually impaired and otherwise print disabled persons and allows for the
cross-border exchange of special format copies of books, including audio books, and other
print material among the countries that are parties to the Treaty.
The Union has thus made a political commitment to implement the Treaty, which both the
Council and the European Parliament have since strengthened. The Commission separately
presented a proposal for a Council Decision for the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty by the
Union in October 2014. In May 2015, the Council submitted a request to the Commission
under Article 241 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), in which
it underlined its full commitment to the rapid entry into force of the Marrakesh Treaty and
asked the Commission to submit, without delay, a legislative proposal to amend the Union
legal framework in accordance with the Treaty.
The beneficiaries of the Marrakesh Treaty, i.e. persons who are blind, visually impaired, or
otherwise print disabled face many barriers to accessing books and other print material
protected by copyright and related rights. The availability of books in formats that are
accessible to print-disabled persons is estimated to be between 7 %2 and 20 %3 despite the
fact that digital technology greatly facilitates accessible publishing4. Accessible formats
include e.g. Braille, large print, e-books and audiobooks with special navigation, audio
description and radio broadcasts.
The Marrakesh Treaty obliges the contracting parties, on the one hand, to bring their internal
legal provisions into line with the Treaty and, on the other hand, to allow for the cross-border
exchange of accessible format copies made under national exceptions or limitations with third
countries that are parties to the Treaty. In order to implement the Marrakesh Treaty within the
Union, Directive […] requires Member States to introduce a mandatory exception to certain
rights of right holders harmonised by Union law for the benefit of beneficiary persons and to
ensure cross-border access to special format copies within the internal market. The purpose of
the proposed Regulation is to implement the Union’s obligations under the Marrakesh Treaty
in respect of the exchange of accessible format copies between the Union and third countries
that are parties to the Marrakesh Treaty, for the benefit of beneficiary persons.
1
Council Decision 2014/221/EU of 14 April 2014 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of
the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are Blind, Visually
Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled (OJ L115, 17.4.2014, p. 1.).
2
LISU for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), ʻAvailability of accessible publications -
2011 updateʼ, October 2011.
3
Catherine Meyer-Lereculeur ʻException ʻhandicapʼ au droit d’auteur et développement de l’offre de
publications accessibles à l’ère numériqueʼ, May 2013.
4
These figures refer to availability in some but not all accessible formats.
EN 2 EN
This proposed Regulation therefore ensures that accessible format copies that have been made
in any Member State in accordance with the national provisions adopted pursuant to Directive
[…] may be exported to third countries that are parties to the Marrakesh Treaty. In addition,
the Regulation allows the import of accessible format copies made in accordance with the
Marrakesh Treaty in third countries that are parties to the Treaty, for the benefit of beneficiary
persons in the Union. Both beneficiary persons and authorised entities established in the
Union should be able to obtain such copies and those copies should be able to circulate in the
internal market under the same conditions as accessible format copies made in the Union in
accordance with the national provisions adopted pursuant to Directive [...].
The proposed Regulation is also in line with the Union's obligations deriving from the United
Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (ʻthe UNCRPDʼ). The EU has
been bound by the UNCRPD since January 2011, pursuant to Council Decision 2010/48/EC5.
The provisions set out in the UNCRPD have thus become an integral part of the Union's legal
order. The right of access to information and the right of people with disabilities to participate
in cultural life on an equal basis with others are enshrined in the UNCRPD. Its article 30
requires parties to the convention to take all appropriate steps, in accordance with
international law, to ensure that laws protecting intellectual property rights do not constitute
an unreasonable or discriminatory barrier to access by persons with disabilities to cultural
materials. In its Concluding observations on the initial report of the European Union6, adopted
on 4 September 2015, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities has encouraged the Union to take all appropriate measures to implement the
Marrakesh Treaty as soon as possible.
• Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area
The proposed Regulation relates to the exchange of accessible format copies of certain
copyright protected content with third countries that are parties to the Marrakesh Treaty.
Together with Directive […], it therefore serves to implement the Marrakesh Treaty in Union
law. The proposed Regulation will be the first piece of EU legislation to introduce provisions
specifically on the international exchange of accessible format copies for beneficiary persons.
• Consistency with other Union policies
The proposed Regulation, together with Directive […], fulfils the Union's commitments and
obligations relating to the integration of persons with disabilities as set out above. It is
consistent with other EU legislation and policy in this area.
2. LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY
• Legal basis
The legal basis for the proposal is Article 207 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union (TFEU).
5
Council Decision 2010/48/EC of 26 November 2009 concerning the conclusion, by the European
Community, of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (OJ L23,
27.1.2010, p. 35).
6
CRPD/C/EU/CO/1, available at:
http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CRPD/Shared%20Documents/EUR/CRPD_C_EU_CO_1_21617_E.
doc.
EN 3 EN
• Proportionality
The Union is obliged to comply with its international obligations under the Marrakesh Treaty.
This Regulation serves to implement the provisions contained in the Treaty on the exchange
of accessible format works with third countries that are parties to the Treaty. Such measures
can only be taken at Union level as the exchange of accessible format copies of works and
other protected subject-matter concerns the commercial aspects of intellectual property. A
Regulation is therefore the only appropriate instrument. In accordance with the principle of
proportionality, as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union, this Regulation does
not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve this objective.
• Choice of the instrument
The proposed instrument is a Regulation, in accordance with Article 207 of the TFEU.
3. RESULTS OF EX-POST EVALUATIONS, STAKEHOLDER
CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
• Ex-post evaluations/fitness checks of existing legislation
The purpose of the proposed Regulation is to fulfil new international obligations as regards
Union law. A retrospective evaluation of existing European law in this area is therefore not
relevant and not required in this context. Available information on related European
legislation was however taken into account, notably the results of public consultations and
existing expert input.
• Stakeholder consultations
No specific stakeholder consultation was carried out for the purposes of the proposed
Regulation, which implements provisions established at international level. The extensive
public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules carried out by the Commission
between December 2013 and March 2014 also included a section on limitations and
exceptions for the benefit of persons with disabilities and on the access to and circulation of
works in accessible formats, which also referred to the Marrakesh Treaty7. Among other
aspects, the views expressed by end users, consumers and institutional users (including
organisations serving the needs of people with disabilities and libraries) pointed to a diverging
scope of national exceptions or limitations, making it difficult to have legal certainty when
exporting and importing accessible format copies made under a national copyright exception
or limitation. Those institutional respondents were consistently of the opinion that the
Marrakesh Treaty would satisfactorily address these concerns. Right holders and collective
management organisations generally felt that there were no problems arising from the national
implementation of the optional exception or limitation provided for in Union legislation. They
also remarked that the existing market mechanisms were effectively addressing the problem
of access to works for persons with disabilities. This view was not shared by end users,
consumers or institutional users.
7
Report on the responses to the Public Consultation on the Review of the EU Copyright Rules, July
2014, p. 61-63. http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-rules/index_en.htm
EN 4 EN
• Collection and use of expertise
No expertise was collected specifically in preparation of this proposal. The Commission took
into account a 2013 study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC8, which assessed inter
alia the application in 11 Member States of the EU optional exception or limitation for
persons with a disability in Article 5(3)(b) of that Directive.
• Impact assessment
The proposed Regulation will adress the implications of the Marrakesh Treaty for the
exchange of accessible format copies with third countries and aims to bring Union law into
line with the Treaty in that respect. The Better Regulation Guidelines9 do not require an
impact assessment to be carried out when the Commission has no discretion over the policy
content.
• Fundamental rights
The proposed Regulation supports the right of persons with disabilities to benefit from
measures designed to ensure their independence, social and occupational integration and
participation in the life of the community, as enshrined in Article 26 of the Charter of
Fundamental Rights of the European Union (ʻthe Charterʼ). The Regulation also reflects the
Union's commitments under the UNCRPD. The UNCRPD guarantees people with disabilities
the right of access to information and the right to participate in cultural, economic and social
life on an equal basis with others. In view of this, it is justified to restrict the property rights
of rightholders in light with the Union's obligations under the Charter10.
The proposal would have a limited impact on copyright as property right as recognised in the
Charter (Article 17(2))11. In this context, it is noteworthy that Directive […] has introduced a
mandatory copyright exception for the benefit of the beneficiary persons of this proposal. The
impact of this Regulation will thus be limited to regulating the exchange of accessible format
copies with third countries that are parties to the Marrakesh Treaty.
4. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS
The proposal has no impact on the Union budget.
5. OTHER ELEMENTS
• Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements
In accordance with Better Regulation Guidelines and no sooner than five years after the date
from which the Regulation shall apply, the Commission shall carry out an evaluation of the
Regulation and present the main findings to the European Parliament, the Council and the
European Economic and Social Committee, accompanied, where appropriate, by proposals for
8
"Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information
society", December 2013, De Wolf and partners, available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/131216_study_en.pdf , p. 417 et seq.
9
SWD(2015) 111 final.
10
Article 52(1) of the Charter allows for restrictions interfering with the exercise of the freedoms of the
Charter: those restrictions must (i) be provided for by law; and (ii) respect the essence of those rights
and freedoms. In addition, the limitations are (iii) ʻsubject to the principle of proportionalityʼ and ʻmay
be made only if they are necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognized by the
Union or the need to protect the rights and freedoms of othersʼ.
11
OJ C 83, 30.3.2010, p. 389–403.
EN 5 EN
the amendment of the Regulation. In the same way, it will also carry out an evaluation of
Directive […].
• Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal
Article 1 specifies the subject-matter and the scope of the proposal. The proposed Regulation
will regulate the exchange of accessible format copies of certain works and other subject-
matter protected by copyright or related rights between the Union and third countries, in
accordance with the Marrakesh Treaty.
Article 2 gives the definitions of the terms ‘work or other subject-matter’, ‘beneficiary
person’, ‘accessible format copy’ and ‘authorised entity’ that apply for the purposes of the
proposed Regulation.
Article 3 contains provisions on the export of accessible format copies from the Union to third
countries.
Article 4 contains provisions on the import of accessible format copies from third countries to
the Union.
Article 5 serves to specify the obligations that authorised entities are required to fulfil when
exchanging accessible format copies with third countries.
Article 6 sets out the applicable rules for the protection of personal data.
Article 7 sets out the arrangements on the evaluation of this Regulation, in accordance with
Better Regulation rules.
Article 8 specifies the Regulation's entry into force and Article 9 its application in time.
EN 6 EN
2016/0279 (COD)
Proposal for a
REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
on the cross-border exchange between the Union and third countries of accessible
format copies of certain works and other subject-matter protected by copyright and
related rights for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise
print disabled
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular
Article 207 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,
Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,
Whereas:
(1) Persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled continue to face
many barriers to accessing books and other print material. The need to increase the
number of works and other protected subject-matter in accessible formats available to
those persons and improve their circulation and dissemination has been recognised at
an international level. The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works
for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (ʻthe
Marrakesh Treatyʼ) was signed on behalf of the Union on 30 April 201412. It requires
contracting parties to provide exceptions or limitations to the exclusive rights of
holders of copyright and related rights for the making and dissemination of copies in
accessible formats of certain works and other subject-matter and for the cross-border
exchange of those accessible format copies. The beneficiaries of the Marrakesh Treaty
are persons who are blind, visually impaired or have a perceptual or reading disability,
including dyslexia, preventing them from reading printed works to the same degree as
persons without such disability, or are unable to hold or manipulate a book or to focus
and move the eyes to the extent that would be normally acceptable for reading due to a
physical disability.
(2) Directive […] endeavours to implement the Union's obligations under the Marrakesh
Treaty in a harmonised manner in order to improve the availability of accessible
format copies for beneficiary persons and their circulation within the internal market.
The Directive requires Member States to introduce a mandatory exception to certain
rights of right holders that are harmonised by Union law. The objectives of this
Regulation are to implement the obligations in the Marrakesh Treaty with respect to
the export and import of accessible format copies for the benefit of beneficiary persons
between the Union and third countries that are parties to the Marrakesh Treaty, and to
12
Council Decision 2014/221/EU of 14 April 2014 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of
the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are Blind, Visually
Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled. (OJ L115, 17.4.2014, p. 1.)
EN 7 EN
lay down the conditions for such export and import. Such measures may only be taken
at Union level as the exchange of accessible format copies of works and other subject-
matter concerns the commercial aspects of intellectual property. A Regulation is the
only appropriate instrument.
(3) The Regulation should ensure that accessible format copies of books, journals,
newspapers, magazines and other writings, sheet music and other print material, which
have been made in any Member State in accordance with the national provisions
adopted pursuant to Directive […] may be exported to third countries that are parties
to the Marrakesh Treaty. Accessible formats include Braille, large print, adapted e-
books, audio books and radio broadcasts. The distribution, communication or making
available of accessible format copies to print disabled persons or to authorised entities
in the third country should only be carried out on a non-profit basis by authorised
entities established in the Union.
(4) This Regulation should also allow for the importation of and access to accessible
format copies made in accordance with the implementation of the Marrakesh Treaty
from a third country, by beneficiary persons in the Union and authorised entities
established in the Union, for the benefit of print-disabled persons. It should be possible
for those accessible format copies to be circulated in the internal market under the
same conditions as accessible format copies made in the Union in accordance with
Directive [...].
(5) In order to improve the availability of accessible format copies and to prevent the
illegal dissemination of works and other subject-matter, authorised entities which
engage in the distribution or making available of accessible format copies should
comply with certain obligations.
(6) Any processing of personal data under this Regulation should respect fundamental
rights, including the right to respect for private and family life and the right to
protection of personal data under Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter of Fundamental
Rights of the European Union and must be in compliance with Directive 95/46/EC of
the European Parliament and the Council13, which governs the processing of personal
data, as may be carried out by authorised entities within the framework of this
Regulation and under the supervision of the Member Statesʼ competent authorities, in
particular the public independent authorities designated by the Member States.
(7) The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (ʻthe
UNCRPDʼ), to which the EU is a party, guarantees people with disabilities the right of
access to information and the right to participate in cultural, economic and social life
on an equal basis with others. The UNCRPD requires parties to the Convention to take
all appropriate steps, in accordance with international law, to ensure that laws
protecting intellectual property rights do not constitute an unreasonable or
discriminatory barrier to access by persons with disabilities to cultural materials.
(8) This Regulation respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised
in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. This Regulation should
be interpreted and applied in accordance with those rights and principles.
13
Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the
protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of
such data (OJ L 281, 23.11.1995, p. 31).
EN 8 EN
HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Subject matter and scope
This Regulation lays down rules on the cross-border exchange of accessible format copies of
certain works and other subject-matter between the Union and third countries that are parties
to the Marrakesh Treaty without the authorisation of the right holder, for the benefit of
persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall apply:
(1) ‘work or other subject-matter’ means a work in the form of a book, journal,
newspaper, magazine or other writing, including sheet music, and related
illustrations, in any media, including in audio form such as audiobooks, which is
protected by copyright or related rights and which is published or otherwise lawfully
made publicly available;
(2) ‘beneficiary person’ means:
(a) a person who is blind;
(b) a person who has a visual impairment which cannot be improved so as to give
the person visual function substantially equivalent to that of a person who has
no such impairment;
(c) a person who has a perceptual or reading disability, including dyslexia, and is,
as a result, unable to read printed works to substantially the same degree as a
person without an impairment or disability; or
(d) a person who is otherwise unable, due to a physical disability, to hold or
manipulate a book or to focus or move their eyes to the extent that would be
normally acceptable for reading.
(3) ‘accessible format copy’ means a copy of a work or other subject-matter in an
alternative manner or form that gives a beneficiary person access to the work or other
subject-matter, including allowing for the person to have access as feasibly and
comfortably as a person without a visual impairment or any of the disabilities
referred to in paragraph 2;
(4) ‘authorised entity’ means an organisation providing education, instructional training,
adaptive reading or information access to beneficiary persons on a non-profit basis,
as its main activity or as one of its main activities or public-interest missions.
Article 3
Export of accessible format copies to third countries
An authorised entity established in a Member State may distribute, communicate or make
available to beneficiary persons or to an authorised entity established in a third country that is
a party to the Marrakesh Treaty an accessible format copy made in accordance with the
national legislation adopted pursuant to Directive [...].
EN 9 EN
Article 4
Import of accessible format copies from third countries
A beneficiary person or an authorised entity established in a Member State may import or
otherwise obtain or access and thereafter use, in accordance with the national legislation
adopted pursuant to Directive [...], an accessible format copy that has been distributed
communicated or made available to beneficiary persons or to authorised entities, by an
authorised entity in a third country that is a party to the Marrakesh Treaty.
Article 5
Obligations of authorised entities
1. An authorised entity established in a Member State carrying out the acts referred to
in Articles 3 and 4 shall ensure that:
(a) it distributes, communicates and makes available accessible format copies only
to beneficiary persons or other authorised entities;
(b) it takes appropriate steps to discourage the unlawful reproduction, distribution,
communication and making available of accessible format copies;
(c) it demonstrates due care in, and maintains records of, its handling of works and
other subject-matter and of their accessible format copies; and
(d) it publishes and updates, on its website if appropriate, information on the
manner in which it complies with the obligations laid down in points (a) to (c).
2. An authorised entity established in a Member State carrying out the acts referred to
in Articles 3 and 4 shall provide the following information, on request, to any
beneficiary person or right holder:
(a) the list of works and other subject-matter of which it has accessible format
copies and the available formats; and
(b) the name and details of the authorised entities with which it has engaged in the
exchange of accessible format copies pursuant to Articles 3 and 4.
Article 6
Protection of personal data
The processing of personal data carried out within the framework of this Regulation shall be
carried out in compliance with Directive 95/46/EC.
Article 7
Review
No sooner than [five years after the date of application], the Commission shall carry out an
evaluation of this Regulation and present the main findings to the European Parliament, the
Council and the European Economic and Social Committee, accompanied, where appropriate,
by proposals for the amendment of this Regulation.
Member States shall provide the Commission with the necessary information for the
preparation of the evaluation report.
EN 10 EN
Article 8
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in
the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 9
Application in time
This Regulation shall be applicable as of [date of transposition of Directive […]].
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels,
For the European Parliament For the Council
The President The President
EN 11 EN
Euroopa Liidu
Nõukogu
Brüssel, 16. september 2016
(OR. en)
12253/16
PI 95
CODEC 1270
RECH 269
EDUC 284
COMPET 487
AUDIO 96
CULT 78
DIGIT 101
TELECOM 167
SAATEMÄRKUSED
Saatja: Euroopa Komisjoni peasekretär,
allkirjastanud Jordi AYET PUIGARNAU, direktor
Kättesaamise 14. september 2016
kuupäev:
Saaja: Jeppe TRANHOLM-MIKKELSEN, Euroopa Liidu Nõukogu peasekretär
Komisjoni dok nr: COM(2016) 592 final
Teema: KOMISJONI TEATIS EUROOPA PARLAMENDILE, NÕUKOGULE,
EUROOPA MAJANDUS- JA SOTSIAALKOMITEELE NING REGIOONIDE
KOMITEELE autoriõigustel põhineva õiglase, tulemusliku ja
konkurentsivõimelise Euroopa majanduse edendamine digitaalsel ühtsel
turul
Käesolevaga edastatakse delegatsioonidele dokument COM(2016) 592 final.
Lisatud: COM(2016) 592 final
12253/16 nr
DGG 3B ET
EUROOPA
KOMISJON
Brüssel, 14.9.2016
COM(2016) 592 final
KOMISJONI TEATIS EUROOPA PARLAMENDILE, NÕUKOGULE, EUROOPA
MAJANDUS- JA SOTSIAALKOMITEELE NING REGIOONIDE KOMITEELE
autoriõigustel põhineva õiglase, tulemusliku ja konkurentsivõimelise Euroopa
majanduse edendamine digitaalsel ühtsel turul
ET ET
1. SISSEJUHATUS
Komisjoni digitaalse ühtse turu strateegias 1 , mis võeti vastu 2015. aasta mais, toodi
digitaalne infosisu esile ühe peamise digitaalmajanduse kasvu hoogustava tegurina.
Strateegias rõhutati vajadust võtta meetmeid, mis muudaksid digitaalse sisu (sealhulgas
audiovisuaalne sisu, muusika, raamatud ja muu) ning juurdepääsu turu- ja
õiguskeskkonnale kasutajate jaoks veebipõhiselt laialdasemalt kättesaadavaks, mis on
endiselt loovust, selle jätkusuutlikku rahastamist ja kultuurilist mitmekesisust toetav
tegur.
Autoriõigusi käsitlevate ELi eeskirjade sihipärane ajakohastamine nende eemärkide
saavutamise võtmeelemendina on välja toodud komisjoni 2015. aasta detsembri teatises
„Autoriõiguse euroopalikuma ja aja nõuetele vastava raamistiku suunas“ 2. Teatises on
esitatud suunatud meetmed ja pikaajaline nägemus, mis kajastab vajadust ühtset turgu
kõnealuses valdkonnas edasi arendada, ajakohastada eeskirju vastavalt reaalse digitaalse
olukorraga, tagada, et Euroopa loomemajandus on endiselt konkurentsivõimeline, ning
säilitada vajalik tasakaal autoriõiguse ja muude avalikku huvi puudutavate
poliitikaeesmärkide nagu hariduse, teadusuuringute, innovatsiooni ja puuetega inimeste
vajaduste vahel.
Lisaks 2015. aasta detsembri ettepanekule võtta vastu määrus veebisisuteenuste piiriülese
kaasaskantavuse kohta 3, mille eesmärk on võimaldada ELi elanikel kodus ostetud või
tellitud digitaalse sisuga reisida, teeb komisjon nüüd ettepaneku mitme seadusandliku
meetme kohta, millel on kolm eesmärki: i) tagada kogu ELis kasutajatele ulatuslikum
juurdepääs digitaalsele sisule veebis ning pakkuda seda ka uutele kasutajatele, ii)
kohandada digitaal- ja piiriülesele keskkonnale teatavad erandid ning iii) edendada
hästitoimivat ja õiglast autoriõiguse turgu. Veel töötab komisjon välja meetmed
tulemusliku ja tasakaalus oleva autoriõiguste kaitse tagamise süsteemi loomiseks. See on
eriti oluline võitluses kaubanduses lokkava autoriõiguse rikkumise vastu.
Nagu on rõhutatud detsembri teatises, ei saa autoriõigust käsitlevaid ELi eeskirju
käsitleda eraldi laiemast poliitikameetmete kogumist, sealhulgas eelkõige programmist
„Loov Euroopa“, 4 mis edendab Euroopa rikkalikku kultuuriloomingut ja mõjutab
kultuuri- ja loometööstuse, innovatsiooni- ning kultuurilise mitmekesisuse keskkonda.
ELis asuvad muu hulgas ühed suurimatest kirjastustest, dünaamiline muusikatööstus ja
ülemaailmselt tunnustatud filmisektor. Seetõttu on Euroopa üks ülemaailmse tööstus- ja
kultuuritegevuse juhtivatest eestvedajatest. Samas seisab mõni Euroopa kultuuri- ja
loomemajanduse valdkond silmitsi eriti suurte konkurentsi- ja ettevõtlusalaste ning
rahastamisprobleemidega. Näiteks Euroopa filmitööstusele oleks abi uuest
vaatajaskonnast nii Euroopa Liidus kui väljaspool seda. Sellel peaks olema positiivne
mõju uute ärimudelite ja uute tuluallikate arendamisele, võttes arvesse toodangu suuruse,
kättesaadavuse ja nähtavusega seotud küsimusi.
Lisaks kultuurilise ja keelelise mitmekesisuse edendamisele, kultuuri- ja loomesektori
professionaalsemaks muutmise toetamisele ning kultuuri ja loomesisu kättesaadavamaks
muutmisele on programmi „Loov Euroopa“ eesmärk käsitleda mõningaid konkurentsiga
1
Komisjoni 6. mai 2015. aasta teatis „Euroopa digitaalse ühtse turu strateegia“. COM(2015) 192
final.
2
COM(2015) 626 final.
3
COM(2015) 627 final.
4
Programmi 2014.–2020. aasta eelarve on 1,46 miljardit eurot. Programm „Loov Euroopa“ hõlmab
lisaks sektoriülesele tegevusele kultuuri- ja muu meediavaldkonna allprogrammi.
seotud probleeme, sealhulgas rahastamise võimaldamist uuest tagatisrahastust, mis on
juba loodud ja mille eelarve on 121 miljonit eurot 5.
Komisjon teeb ettepaneku algatada seadusandlikke ja mitteseadusandlikke meetmeid
sisaldav laiaulatuslik tegevuskava, et aidata Euroopa autoriõiguse sektoril ühtsel turul
areneda ja Euroopa autoritel jõuda uute sihtrühmadeni, muutes samal ajal Euroopas
loodud teosed laialdaselt kättesaadavaks nii Euroopa kodanikele kui ka piiriüleselt.
Käesolevas teatises käsitletakse pärast detsembri teatise vastuvõtmist toimunud viimaseid
arenguid ja hetkeolukorda.
2. Meetmed tagamaks digitaalsele sisule laialdasem juurdepääs kogu ELis
Detsembri teatises tõi komisjon välja eesmärgi kaotada järk-järgult tõkked, mis
takistavad piiriülest juurdepääsu infosisule ja teoste levikut üle kogu ELi, võttes eelkõige
arvesse järjest levinumat internetiühendust ja digitaaltehnoloogiat. Eesmärk on
suurendada teoste kättesaadavust Euroopa kodanike jaoks, pakkuda loojatele uusi
turustuskanaleid, edendada liikmesriikide kultuuri ja tõsta tähelepanu keskmesse ELi
ühine kultuuripärand.
Detsembri teatises esitati sihipärased meetmed, et hõlbustada televisiooni- ja
raadioprogrammide piiriülest levitamist veebis, tellitavate videoteenuste (VoD)
platvormidel pakutavate Euroopa audiovisuaalteoste litsentsimist ning selliste teoste
digiteerimist ja laiemat levitamist, mida enam ei turustata. Nagu on märgitud detsembri
teatises, on programmi „Loov Euroopa“ allprogrammi MEDIA raames 6, mis on Euroopa
päritoluga teoste arendamist, levitamist ja nende müügi soodustamist toetanud juba 25
aastat, võetud mitu meedet, mille eesmärk on teha Euroopa filmid laiemalt
kättesaadavaks kogu ELis nii äri- kui ka mitteäriliste kanalite kaudu. Need meetmed on
esitatud allpool koos uute kavandatavate autoriõigust käsitlevate õigusaktidega.
Esiteks määruse ettepanek, 7 mille eesmärk on luua soodsad tingimused televisiooni- ja
raadioprogrammide selliste uute internetipõhiste piiriüleste levitamisviiside
kasutamiseks, mis on võrreldavad traditsiooniliste edastusviisidega satelliidi vahendusel
ja kaabli kaudu. Uued eeskirjad, mis põhinevad kehtiva satelliit- ja kaabellevi direktiivi
sätetel, 8 muudavad teatavate ringhäälinguorganisatsioonide osutatavate teenuste
(programmid, mida ringhäälinguorganisatsioonid edastavad veebis reaalajas, ja
kordusülekannete teenused) ja selliste vahendite kaudu nagu IP-televisioon (televisiooni-
või raadioteenused sisetelevisioonisüsteemis internetiprotokollil põhinevates võrkudes)
järelvaatamisteenuste saamiseks vajalike õiguste saamise lihtsamaks ja kiiremaks.
Kõnealuste eeskirjade eesmärk on hõlbustada turu arengut ja levitada laiemalt Euroopa
raadio- ja telesaateid, mis on eurooplaste jaoks olulised teabe- ja meelelahutusallikad.
See omakorda suurendab tarbijate valikuvõimalusi ja kultuurilist mitmekesisust.
Paralleelselt nähakse ettepanekuga võtta vastu digitaalsel ühtsel turul autoriõigusi
käsitlev direktiiv 9 ette uus läbirääkimiste mehhanism, mis lihtsustab litsentsilepingute
5
Komisjon uurib ka muid selle sektori rahastamise allikaid, sealhulgas omakapitali kaudu
rahastamist ja ühisrahastamist.
6
Programmi „Loov Euroopa“ allprogramm.
7
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu määrus, milles sätestatakse eeskirjad, mis käsitlevad
selliste autoriõiguste ja nendega kaasnevate õiguste teostamist, mis kuuluvad kohaldamisele
teatavate ringhäälinguorganisatsioonide veebiülekannete ning televisiooni- ja raadiosaadete
taasedastamise suhtes, COM(2016) 594.
8
Direktiiv 93/83/EMÜ.
9
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiiv, mis käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel
turul, COM(2016) 593.
3
sõlmimist audiovisuaalteoste kättesaadavaks tegemiseks tellitavate videoteenuste
platvormidel. See on osa laiemast poliitikast, mille eesmärk on käsitleda erinevaid
tegureid, mis põhjustavad Euroopa audiovisuaalteoste, eelkõige filmide vähest
kättesaadavust kogu ELis 10 . Euroopa filme, mida üldjuhul toodavad väikesed
filmiettevõtjad, levitatakse ELis veebi kaudu märkimisväärselt vähem kui USA filme 11.
Sellistes piirkondades, kus kohalike levitajatega lepinguid sõlmitud ei ole, puudub
Euroopa kodanikel võimalus neid filme seaduslikul viisil vaadata. Litsentsimisküsimusi
ja nendega seotud õiguslikke ja lepingulisi probleeme Euroopa audiovisuaalteoste
kasutamisel tellitavate videoteenuste kaudu käsitletakse ka struktureeritud dialoogis
sidusrühmadega. Komisjoni eesmärk on dialoogi edendada ja kutsuda regulaarselt kokku
kõiki väärtusahelas osalejaid (tootjad, autorid, müügiesindajad, levitajad,
ringhäälinguorganisatsioonid, koondavad ettevõtjad, tellitavate videoteenuste
platvormid). Dialoogi eesmärk on ühtlustada litsentsimistavasid ja soodustada
valdkondlikke kokkuleppeid ning see tooks kaasa Euroopa teoste jätkusuutlikuma
kasutamise ning laiaulatuslikuma kättesaadavuse. Komisjon esitab aruande dialoogi
tulemuste kohta 2018. aasta lõpuks.
Komisjon julgustab ka selliste praktiliste meetmete väljatöötamist, mis muudaksid
audiovisuaalteoste litsentsimise nende kasutamise erinevates piirkondades kõikjal ELis
lihtsamaks ja tõhusamaks. Need hõlmavad litsentsimiskeskuste ehk selliste veebipõhiste
vahendite arendamist, mis võimaldavad Euroopas loodud teoste digitaalset levitamist
riikides, kus neid ei ole kinodes levitatud või kus ei ole üleriigilist levitajat, ning
erinevate tootjate audiovisuaalteoste selliste kureeritud kataloogide loomist, mida on
võimalik tellitavate videoteenuste osutajatele pakkuda. Lisaprobleemid tulenevad sellest,
et audiovisuaalsektoris puudub ühtne identifitseerimissüsteem. Selle asemel on turul
kasutamiseks olemas kaks teoste standardtunnust 12 , kuid audiovisuaalsektoris ollakse
nende kasutamise suhtes kõhkleval seisukohal, kuna tunnused ei ole
koostalitlusvõimelised. See tähendab, et litsentsimistegevus on koormav ja seda ei ole
lihtne automatiseerida. Kahe eraldi standardtunnuse eest vastutavad organisatsioonid
töötavad hetkel koos komisjoniga selle nimel, et nende andmebaasid ja tunnused oleksid
koostalitlusvõimelised 13 . Komisjon uurib ka võimalusi, kuidas ajendada õiguste
omanikke tegema need teosed, mille levitamiseks saadakse toetust programmi „Loov
Euroopa“ allprogrammist „MEDIA“, kättesaadavaks piirkondades, kus levitamise
lepingut ei ole sõlmitud.
Võetud on meetmeid, et lahendada puuduliku nähtavuse ja keelebarjääri probleemid, mis
takistavad Euroopa kasutajatel Euroopas loodud teostele ligi pääseda. Subtiitrid ja
dubleerimine on audiovisuaalteoste piiriülese levitamise võtmeks 14 ning neid
10
Euroopa filmid jõuavad keskmiselt 2,8 liikmesriiki, võrreldes USA filmidega, mis jõuavad
tavaliselt 6,8 ELi liikmesriiki. Kinodes on vahe Euroopa filmide (2,6) ja USA filmide (9,7)
näidatavuse vahel veelgi suurem (Euroopa Audiovisuaalsektori Vaatluskeskuse aruanne „Kuidas
levitatakse Euroopa Liidus filme tellitavate videoteenuste ja kinode kaudu“, mai 2016).
11
Vähemalt ühe tellitavate videoteenuste platvormi kaudu on ajavahemikus 2005–2014 ELi
kinodesse jõudnud ELis toodetud filmidest kättesaadavad 47 % (5 046 filmi 10 828st), samas kui
osutatud ajavahemikus ELi kinodes näidatud USA filmidest on vähemalt ühe tellitavate
videoteenuste platvormi kaudu kättesaadavad 87 % (2 404 filmi 2 748-st) (Euroopa
Audiovisuaalsektori Vaatluskeskuse aruanne „Kuidas levitatakse Euroopa Liidus filme tellitavate
videoteenuste ja kinode kaudu“).
12
ISAN (audiovisuaalteose rahvusvaheline standardnumber (International Standard Audiovisual
Number)) ja EIRD (audiovisuaalteoste identifitseerimisnumbrite rahvusvaheline süsteem
(Entertainment Identifier Registry)).
13
2016. aasta lõpuks teeb komisjon ettepaneku näha programmi MEDIA kaudu toetuse saamise
kriteeriumina ette ühtse standardtunnuse kasutamine.
14
Teatavate audiovisuaalteoste puhul on vajalik minimaalne arv keeleversioone.
4
rahastatakse nii programmi „Loov Euroopa“ allprogrammist „MEDIA“ kui ka muudest
riiklikest vahenditest. Komisjoni eesmärk on suurendada riiklikku rahastamist ning
subtiitrite ja dubleerimise kasutamist programmi „Loov Euroopa“ allprogrammi
„MEDIA“ alusel käimasolevate projektide ja sellise elektroonilise andmebaasi kaudu,
mis võimaldab ELis tegutsevatel ettevõtjatel olemasolevatele subtiitritele ja
dubleerimisele lihtsalt juurde pääseda ja mis käivitatakse 2016. aasta lõpuks. Ka interneti
otsingumootorid on tõhusad vahendid, mille abil on tarbijatel võimalik leida seaduslikke
võimalusi filmide vaatamiseks. Euroopa Liidu Intellektuaalomandi Amet on välja
töötamas sellist otsingumootorit, mis toimiks Euroopa tasandil, ja riiklike
otsinguvahendite loomise meetmete kogumit, mis hakkab täielikult toimima 2017. aastal
ja on mõeldud liikmesriikidele tasuta kasutamiseks. Komisjon soodustab ka andmete ja
automatiseeritud vahendite kasutamist sisusoovituste jaoks. See võimaldab võtta arvesse
laiemat huvi- ja soovideringi ning arendada ja suurendada Euroopa päritoluga teoste
publikut. Laiemas plaanis on on eesmärk tutvustada Euroopa filme oluline väljakutse,
mille üle peab komisjon arutelusid Euroopa filmiagentuuride direktorite ühendusega.
Arvestades võimalust, et koostöös toodetud filme levitatakse Euroopas ja väljaspool, 15
uurib komisjon koos Euroopa filmiagentuuride direktorite ühendusega 2017. aastal
Euroopas koostööna valminud filmide ühiste müügiedendusmeetmete arendamise
võimalust. Kõik need meetmed täiendavad hiljuti vastu võetud ettepanekut muuta
audiovisuaalmeedia teenuste direktiivi 16 . Ettepanekuga nähakse ette tõhustatud nõue
edendada Euroopa päritolu teoseid tellitavate videoteenuste platvormide kaudu, tagades
nii teoste kättesaadavuse kui ka nähtavuse.
Lisaks teeb komisjon tööd selle nimel, et uurida alternatiivseid rahastamis-, tootmis- ja
levitamismudeleid, mille puhul võetakse algusest peale arvesse ühtset turgu ja
ülemaailmset turgu. Sellega seoses pöörab komisjon erilist tähelepanu Euroopa
animafilmide sektorile. Selles valdkonnas on lugude jutustamine erilise tähtsusega ja
teosed liiguvad piiriüleselt lihtsamini. Animafilmide tootjad töötavad enamasti
üheaegselt erinevate projektidega televisioonis ja filmitööstuses ning neil on võimalik
teha teiste stuudiotega eraldi projektide kallal ühistööd. Paralleelselt olemasoleva
toetusega, mida antakse programmi „Loov Euroopa“ allprogrammi MEDIA alusel,
algatab komisjon enne käesoleva aasta lõppu dialoogi Euroopa suuremate animafilmide
stuudiotega, et arutada, kuidas seda sektorit arendada. Dialoogist peaks ka selguma selle
sektori vajadused erinevates valdkondades alates ajude äravoolu vähendamisest kuni
animafilmide ja tele-animafilmide levitamise tõhustamiseni. Kõnealuse dialoogi eesmärk
oleks leppida 2017. aasta keskpaigaks kokku ühine tegevuskava selle sektori jaoks.
Ettepanekus võtta vastu digitaalsel ühtsel turul autoriõigust käsitlev direktiiv 17 nähakse
kultuuripärandi valdkonna asutuste jaoks ette lahendused õiguste lihtsamaks
litsentsimiseks. See on vajalik selliste tööde digiteerimiseks ja levitamiseks, mida enam
ei turustata, kuid millel on suur kultuuriline väärtus. Töödele ligipääsu võimaldamine
mittekaubanduslikel eesmärkidel nt haridusasutustele, avalikele raamatukogudele ja
muudele platvormidele kui kino on samuti väga oluline vahend kultuurilise
15
Euroopa Audiovisuaalsektori Vaatluskeskuse hiljutise aruande „Kuidas levitatakse Euroopa
Liidus filme tellitavate videoteenuste ja kinode kaudu“ (mai 2016) kohaselt levivad koostöös
valminud filmid paremini kui muud Euroopa filmid. Euroopa filmid on kättesaadavad keskmiselt
2,8 riigis, samas kui koostöös valminud Euroopa filme levitatakse 3,6 riigis.
16
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiiv, millega muudetakse direktiivi 2010/13/EL
audiovisuaalmeedia teenuste osutamist käsitlevate liikmesriikide teatavate õigus- ja
haldusnormide koordineerimise kohta, et võtta arvesse muutuvat turuolukorda, COM(2016) 287
final.
17
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiiv, mis käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel
turul, COM(2016) 593.
5
mitmekesisuse tagamiseks, hariduslikel eesmärkidel ja ühiskonnaelus osalemiseks.
Sellistel kanalitel koos paranenud meediapädevusega võib olla oluline roll Euroopa
päritolu teoste tutvustamisel ja neile jätkusuutliku publiku loomisel. Lisaks uurib
komisjon koos Euroopa filmiagentuuride direktorite ühenduse ja audiovisuaalsektoriga
võimalust luua 2017. aastal hariduslikel eesmärkidel Euroopa filmide kataloog ja seda
rahastada. See oleks kasulik katseprojekt tutvustamaks noortele Euroopa filmide
mitmekesisust ja kvaliteeti.
6
3. ERANDITE KOHANDAMINE DIGITAALSELE JA PIIRIÜLESELE KESKKONNALE
Erandid autoriõigusest võimaldavad teatavatel eesmärkidel ja tingimustel kasutada
autoriõigusega kaitstud teoseid ilma autoriõiguse omaniku loata. Need erandid on
kooskõlas avaliku poliitika eesmärkidega ELi tasandil ja neil on oluline roll autoriõiguse
raamistikus laiemalt. Praegu on siiski enamik autoriõigusest tehtavad erandid
vabatahtlikud ja neil ei ole piiriülest mõju. Veelgi enam, mõned neist eranditest tuleb
tänapäeva tehnoloogiat arvesse võttes ümber hinnata, suurendades vajadusel ühtlustatuse
taset, ent mõjutamata seejuures tõhusalt toimivaid riiklikke süsteeme.
Täna ette pandud seadusandlike meetmetega viiakse erandite raamistik kooskõlla
digitaalse keskkonnaga sellistes olulise tähtsusega valdkondades nagu haridus, teadustöö
ja teadmiste kättesaadavus ning need meetmed on eeskätt keskendunud piiriülesele
kasutusele, aidates nii kaasa ühtse turu süvendamisele. Ettepanekus võtta vastu
digitaalsel ühtsel turul autoriõigust käsitlev direktiiv 18 nähakse ette uued kohustuslikud
erandid hariduse, teadustöö ja kultuuripärandi säilitamise valdkonnas.
Uus erand õppetöös näitliku materjali kasutamise suhtes annab täieliku õiguskindluse
kaitstud teabesisu kasutamiseks digipõhiste õpetamismeetodite ja internetipõhise õppe
puhul, sealhulgas piiriüleselt. See soodustab uusi õppemeetodeid, eeskätt kaugõpet, ning
õpilaste ja õpetajate piiriülest liikuvust kõikjal ELis.
Ettepanekuga kehtestatakse ka uus kohustuslik erand teadusuuringute eesmärgil tehtava
teksti- ja andmekaeve suhtes. See erand võimaldab teadusasutustel kasutada teksti- ja
andmekaeve tehnoloogiat täie õiguskindlusega. Kohustuslik erand kõnealuses
valdkonnas võimaldab vältida eri lähenemisviiside järgimist erinevates liikmesriikides
sellisel tegevusalal nagu teadusuuringud, kus tehakse üha sagedamini laiaulatuslikku
piiriülest ja valdkondadevahelist koostööd. Sellega toetatakse teaduse ja innovatsiooni
arengut ELis.
Kavandatavas direktiivis on kultuuripärandi säilitamisega tegelevate asutuste jaoks ette
nähtud ka uus kohustuslik erand seoses digitaalse säilitamisega, mis võtab arvesse
digitaalse sisu vajadusi ja digitaaltehnoloogia kasutamist kultuuripärandi säilitamisel. See
peegeldab nii digiteerimise kasutamist säilitusmeetodina kui ka suuremat hulka
digitaalsena loodud teoseid kultuuripärandi säilitamisega tegelevate asutuste varamus.
Suurem säilitamise määr on kasulik kultuuripärandi alalhoidmiseks ja võimaldab
kodanikel selles protsessis kauem osaleda.
Paralleelselt võetakse täna vastu kaks seadusandlikku ettepanekut 19 Marrakechi lepingu
rakendamiseks ELi õiguses 20. Lepinguosalistelt nõutakse erandite kehtestamist trükikirja
18
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiiv, mis käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel
turul, COM(2016) 593.
19
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiiv, mis käsitleb autoriõiguse ja sellega seotud
õigustega kaitstud teoste ja muu materjali kasutamise lubamist nägemispuudega või muu
trükikirja lugemise puudega isikutele ja millega muudetakse direktiivi 2001/29/EÜ autoriõiguse ja
sellega kaasnevate õiguste teatavate aspektide ühtlustamise kohta infoühiskonnas, COM(2016)
596 ning ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu määrus, mis käsitleb teatavate autoriõiguse
ja sellega seotud õigustega kaitstud kättesaadaval kujul teoste ja muu materjali piiriülest
7
lugemise puudega inimeste ligipääsuks raamatutele ja muudele trükistele, mis on neile
juurdepääsetavad. Direktiivi ettepanekus nähakse ette kohustuslik erand ja tagatakse selle
toimimine selliste juurdepääsetavas vormis teavikute valmistamisel ja vahetamisel ühtse
turu raames. Määruse ettepanek võimaldab kõnealuste teavikute piiriülest vahetust ELi ja
lepinguosalistest kolmandate riikide vahel.
Komisjon analüüsib jätkuvalt mitmeid teisi detsembri teatises välja toodud eranditega
seotud küsimusi. Mõned neist küsimustest tuleb võib-olla uuesti üle vaadata hilisemas
etapis, võttes arvesse praegu Euroopa Liidu Kohtus pooleliolevate kohtuasjade
lahendeid. See hõlmab ka erandit, millega antakse raamatukogudele ja muudele
asutustele õigus võimaldada nende ruumides teostega teadustöö ja eraviisilise uurimistöö
eesmärgil tutvuda. 21
Komisjon kinnitab avaliku konsultatsiooni tulemuste analüüsi põhjal sobivaks nn
panoraamierandi 22 , millega lubatakse inimestel pildistada alaliselt avalikus ruumis
paiknevaid teoseid, näiteks hooneid või skulptuure, ja need pildid üles laadida. ELi
õigusaktide kohaselt on liikmesriikidel selliste erandite kehtestamisel lai kaalutlusõigus.
Peaaegu kõik liikmesriigid on panoraamierandi oma siseriiklikusse õigusesse üle võtnud.
Nüüd on ka liikmesriigid, kes varem seda ei olnud teinud, nimetatud erandi oma
õigusnormidesse sisse viinud või arutavad selleks võetavaid meetmeid. Komisjon jätkab
sellise arengu jälgimist ja soovitab tungivalt, et kõik liikmesriigid kõnealuse erandi
kehtestaksid.
4. MEETMED, MIS ON VAJALIKUD AUTORIÕIGUSE SEISUKOHAST HÄSTI TOIMIVA TURU
SAAVUTAMISEKS
Viimastel aastatel on internetist saanud peamine kauplemiskoht autoriõigusega kaitstud
infosisule ligipääsuks ja levitamiseks. Internetiteenused on nüüd üks peamisi teostest ja
muu kaitstud infosisust saadava tulu allikaid ja nende osakaal eeldatavasti kasvab. Siiski
teeb üha rohkem muret veebisisu uutest vormidest saadava väärtuse õiglane jaotamine
kogu väärtusahela ulatuses. Õiguste omanikud on teada andnud raskustest seoses nende
loodud veebisisu kasutamise lubamise ja sellest saadava õiglase tasuga. Selline olukord
võib asetada ebasoodsasse olukorda ka need teenusteosutajad, kes tegelevad
samalaadsete levitamisvormidega. Sellega on seotud küsimus – mis mõjutab ka offline-
kasutust – autorite ja esitajate õiglasest tasustamisest ning läbirääkimisvõime erinevusest,
kui nad oma õigusi taotlevad või need üle annavad.
Kõnealused raskused kahjustavad direktiivi eesmärki tagada digitaalsel ühtsel turul
kõigile õiglane investeeringutasuvus. Need küsimused on olulised kõigis kultuuri- ja
loomesektorites, sealhulgas kirjastamis-, kujutava kunsti ning muusika- ja
vahetamist liidu ja kolmandate riikide vahel nägemispuudega või muu trükikirja lugemise
puudega isikute huvides (COM(2016) 595.
20
Marrakechi leping avaldatud teostele juurdepääsu lihtsustamise kohta nägemispuudega või muu
trükikirja lugemise puudega isikutele, millele kirjutati ELi nimel alla 30. aprillil 2014.
21
Kohtuasi C-174/15. Vereniging Openbare Bibliotheken vs. Stichting Leenrecht.
22
Vt https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/public-consultation-role-publishers-
copyright-value-chain-and-panorama-exception.
8
audiovisuaalvaldkonnas. Lisaks detsembri teatisele kinnitati nende küsimuste käsitlemise
vajadust ka 2016. aasta mai teatises veebiplatvormide kohta. 23
Ettepanekuga võtta vastu digitaalsel ühtsel turul autoriõigust käsitlev direktiiv 24
tagatakse ajakirjanduse kirjastajatele õiguskindlus ja parem läbirääkimispositsioon
lepingulistes suhetes internetipõhiste teenuste pakkujatega, kes nende pakutavat infosisu
kasutavad ja sellele ligipääsu võimaldavad. Direktiiviga antakse neile uus autoriõigusega
seotud õigus, millega tunnustatakse ajakirjanduse kirjastajate olulist rolli investeeringute
tegemisel ja nende üldist panust kvaliteetse ajakirjandusliku sisu loomisel ning antakse
neile kaitse, mida nad enda avaldatud materjali digitaalses keskkonnas kasutamisel
vajavad. Ettepanekus nähakse ka liikmesriikidele ette võimalus luua süsteeme, mille
kaudu on kirjastajatel (sh raamatu- ja teaduskirjastused) võimalik osa saada sellistest
hüvitusmehhanismidest nagu on ette nähtud isiklikuks tarbeks kopeerimise ja
reprograafia valdkonnas.
Lisaks tugevdab ettepanek õiguste omanike positsiooni selliste veebiteenuste osutajatega
läbirääkimiste pidamisel ja neilt enda loodud infosisu veebipõhise kasutamise eest tasu
nõudmisel, kes säilitavad infosisu, mida nende teenuste kasutajad üles laevad, ning kes
võimaldavad sellele infosisule ligipääsu. Võttes arvesse selliste teenuste olulisust
kaitstud infosisu edastamisel, nõutakse ettepanekus teenuste osutajatelt, kes säilitavad
suurt hulka allalaetavaid teoseid ja kes võimaldavad neile ligipääsu, et nad võtaksid
koostöös õiguste omanikega sobivaid ja proportsionaalseid meetmeid, sealhulgas sisu
tuvastamise tehnoloogial põhinevaid meetmeid, et tagada õiguste omanikega sõlmitud
kokkulepetest kinnipidamine. Selles valdkonnas on oluline ka aktiivne koostöö
sidusrühmadega. Tarbijatel on jätkuvalt võimalik sellist infosisu üles laadida ja kasutada
laiaulatuslikku infosisu pakkumisi õiglasemas ja õiguskindlamas keskkonnas.
Lõpuks saavad autorid ja esitajad kasu nende teoste ja esituste kasutamisega seotud
suuremast läbipaistvusest ning parematest tasustamisvõimalustest. See peaks endaga
kaasa tooma paremini toimiva raamistiku kõigile osalistele tulenevalt õigusselgusest
õiguste omandajate jaoks ning suuremast usaldusväärsusest autorite ja esinejate jaoks,
sealhulgas internetikeskkonnas. Kõnealuste meetmete tõhus kasutamine nõuab
liikmesriikidelt valdkonnaspetsiifiliste arutelude korraldamist, et määrata praktikas
kindlaks asjakohased läbipaistvuskohustused iga infosisu liigi ja valdkonna osas.
Komisjon jälgib tähelepanelikult tööd liikmesriikide tasandil, et tagada tulemuste tõhusus
ja sidusus. Komisjon jätkab üldiste või valdkondlike dialoogide kaudu ka koostööd kõigi
kultuuri- ja loomesektori huvitatud osapooltega, et arutada selles küsimuses toimivat
arengut ja vajadust edasiste meetmete järgi.
Kokkuvõttes aitavad need meetmed luua autoriõiguste turu, mis toimib kõikide poolte
jaoks tõhusalt, pakub õigeid stiimuleid veebikeskkonnas investeeringute tegemiseks ja
loomingulise infosisu levitamiseks ning kinnitab seda, kui oluline on ELi jaoks vaba ja
mitmekesise ajakirjanduse olemasolu.
23
Vt teatis „Veebiplatvormid ja digitaalne ühtne turg. Euroopa võimalused ja probleemid“,
COM(2016) 288 final.
24
Ettepanek: Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu direktiiv, mis käsitleb autoriõigust digitaalsel ühtsel
turul, COM(2016) 593.
9
5. MEETMED AUTORIÕIGUSE JÕUSTAMISE TÕHUSA JA TASAKAALUSTATUD SÜSTEEMI
LOOMISEKS
Autoriõiguse rikkumine kommertstasandil, kus rikkujad kasutavad tasuta teiste tööd ja
investeeringuid, kujutab endast Euroopa loomeinimeste jaoks tõsist ohtu, kuna see
takistab neid oma loomingu eest tasu saamast ja pärsib seega lõppkokkuvõttes loovust ja
innovatsiooni. Ilma tõhusa ja tasakaalustatud jõustamissüsteemita ei ole autoriõigus ja
muud intellektuaalomandiõigused piisavalt kaitstud, mis pidurdab investeeringuid
loovusesse ja innovatsiooni. Pärast detsembri teatises tehtud avaldust hindab komisjon
praegu kehtiva intellektuaalomandiõiguste jõustamise õigusliku raamistiku üldist
toimimist osana laiemast algatusest, mille eesmärk on parandada kõigi
intellektuaalomandiõiguste kaitset, keskendudes kaubandusliku mastaabiga rikkumistele.
Selle hindamise toetuseks algatati avalik konsultatsioon intellektuaalomandiõiguste
jõustamise õigusliku raamistiku hindamise ja ajakohastamise teemal 25 ning
konsultatsiooni tulemused kinnitasid et suurim probleem on intellektuaalomandiõiguste,
sealhulgas autoriõiguse rikkumine. Enam kui kolm neljandikku küsimustikule vastanud
autoriõiguse omanikest ja ametiasutustest märkisid, et intellektuaalomandiõiguste
rikkumiste arv on viimase 10 aasta jooksul suurenenud. Kuigi enamik vastanutest leidis,
et olemasolevad eeskirjad on aidanud intellektuaalomandit tõhusalt kaitsta ja
intellektuaalomandi õiguste rikkumist ennetada, olid paljud õiguste omanikud ja eelkõige
internetivahendajad seisukohal, et intellektuaalomandiõiguste jõustamise direktiivis ette
nähtud meetmeid ja õiguskaitsevahendeid 26 ei kohaldata kõigis liikmesriikides
ühetaoliselt. See võib kaasa tuua erineva kaitstuse taseme liikmeriikides ja võib
tähendada, et intellektuaalomandi õiguste jõustamise direktiiviga ei suudetud
intellektuaalomandiõiguste jõustamise erinevusi liikmesriikide tasandil täielikult
kõrvaldada. Märkimisväärne osa vastajatest leidis ka, et mõnda neist meetmetest on vaja
kohandada, et tagada õiguskindlus ja suurendada nende meetmete tõhusust, kehtestades
vahendusteenuste pakkujate suhtes ajutisi ja ennetavaid meetmeid ning tehes neile
ettekirjutusi või tehes kindlaks asjakohase kahju suuruse. Autoriõiguse omanikud tõid
eelkõige esile selle, et samade adressaatide suhtes rohkem kui ühes jurisdiktsioonis
ajutiste ja ennetavate meetmete rakendamiseks ja ettekirjutuste tegemiseks tuleb läbida
tülikas menetlus.
Pärast hindamist teeb komisjon ettepaneku viia õigusraamistikku sisse vajalikud
muudatused, mis aitavad parandada õigusliku jõustamise süsteemi
intellektuaalomandiõiguste, sealhulgas autoriõiguse rikkumise korral, selgitada ajutiste ja
ennetavate meetmete ning ettekirjutuste ulatust ja kohaldamist ning kahju arvutamise ja
maksmise korda. Samuti uurib komisjon võimalusi hõlbustada samade rikkumiste eest
samade adressaatide suhtes ajutiste ja ennetavate meetmete võtmist ning ettekirjutuste
tegemist rohkem kui ühes jurisdiktsioonis ELi piires.
Kiiresti arenev digitaalkeskkond ja tehnoloogia nõuavad aga, et intellektuaalomandi
õiguste jõustamise direktiivis ette nähtud meetmeid, menetlusi ja õiguskaitsevahendeid
võivad kohaldada ja nende suhtes korraldusi teha siseriiklikud kohtud põhjendamatu
viivituseta. See on eriti asjakohane teoste ja muu kaitstud materjali kaitsmisel.
Liikmesriigid peavad tagama, et nende kohtusüsteem suudab piisavalt kiiresti ja tõhusalt
25
Vt http://ec.europa.eu/growth/industry/intellectual-property/enforcement/.
26
Euroopa Parlamendi ja nõukogu 29. aprill 2004. aasta direktiiv 2004/48/EÜ intellektuaalomandi
õiguste jõustamise kohta.
10
reageerida olukorras, kus on vaja kaitsta intellektuaalomandiõigusi, eelkõige internetis.
Peale selle hindab komisjon võimalusi luua stiimuleid ajendamaks liikmesriikide
kohtunikke spetsialiseeruma intellektuaalomandiõiguste rikkumist ja kehtivust
käsitlevatele küsimustele, võttes arvesse nende liikmesriikide positiivseid kogemusi, kus
sellised spetsialiseerunud kohtunikud juba töötavad.
Detsembri teatises märkis komisjon veel, et „komisjon võtab viivitamatult meetmeid, et
koos kõigi asjaomaste isikutega luua ja hakata rakendama rahavoogude jälgimisel ja
isereguleerimisel põhinevaid mehhanisme“ 27. Lähtudes kehtivast ja hiljuti ajakohastatud
vastastikuse mõistmise memorandumist võltsitud kaupade internetimüügi kohta, 28 on
komisjon intellektuaalomandiõiguste kaitse eesmärgil heaks kiitnud vabatahtliku koostöö
lepingute sõlmimise teiste vahendusteenuste pakkujatega, 29 sealhulgas internetireklaami,
-maksete ja -pakiveoteenuste pakkujatega. Internetireklaam on autoriõigust rikkuvate
veebilehtede jaoks peamine sissetulekuallikas. Internetireklaamiga seotud algatuse
eesmärk on hoida ära reklaami paigutamist veebilehtedele, millel rikutakse
intellektuaalomandiõigusi kaubanduslikul eesmärgil, vältides nii
intellektuaalomandiõiguste rikkumise rahastamist reklaamitulust. Kuna autoriõigust
rikkuvad veebilehed pakuvad nn eliit- või liitumismudeleid, mis võimaldavad tasu eest
kiiremat juurdepääsu infosisule, võib ka makseteenuste osutajatel olla rahavoogude
jälgimise põhimõtte rakendamisel oluline roll finantstehinguid tuvastades ja vajadusel
oma teenuste osutamisest loobudes, muutes sellega nende ettevõtjate tegevuse
kahjumlikuks. Komisjon on võtnud endale kohustuse saavutada neis protsessides
reaalseid tulemusi, mis on määrava tähtsusega piraatluse vastu võitlemisel, ning loodab,
et nende protsessidega ühineb võimalikult palju sidusrühmi, lähtudes siseriiklikul
tasandil kehtivatest sarnastest kokkulepetest. Olenevalt nende algatuste edust uurib
komisjon ka muid võimalusi tugevdada vahendusteenuse osutajate kaasamist
intellektuaalomandiõiguste kaitsesse, näiteks nähes ette vahendajate vastutuse juhul, kui
vahendaja on teadlik, et tema teenuseid kasutab kolmas isik, kes rikub
intellektuaalomandiõigusi, kuid jääb seejuures tegevusetuks.
6. KOKKUVÕTE
Kultuuri- ja loomemajandus on Euroopa jaoks mitmel viisil oluline. Selle näol on
tegemist olulise majandussektoriga, kuid see on ka peamine teadmiste omandamise ja
meelelahutuse allikas ning eriti oluline Euroopa kultuurilise mitmekesisuse säilitamisel ja
edendamisel. Euroopa autoriõigusega seotud tööstusharude võime teha uuendusi
digitaalkeskkonnas on nende edu ja üleilmse konkurentsivõime eeldus.
Hästi kavandatud autoriõiguse raamistik ja seda toetavad meetmed on seega autorite,
esitajate ning kultuuri- ja loomesektorite jaoks määrava tähtsusega, et neil oleks võimalik
jõuda laiema publikuni ning lõppkokkuvõttes pakkuda kodanikele rohkem
valikuvõimalusi. Komisjon viib ellu ulatuslikku tegevuskava, mille eesmärk on
ajakohastada ELi autoriõiguse raamistikku kõigi sidusrühmade huvides ning toetada
27
Intellektuaalomandiõiguste rikkumine kaubanduslikul eesmärgil kujutab endast nii tasu maksmist
intellektuaalomandiõigusi rikkuvate kaupade ja teenuste valmistamise või pakkumise ning
levitamise või reklaamimise eest kui ka tulu saamist nende kaupade ja teenuste reklaamimise ja
müümise eest. Rahavoogude jälgimise põhimõte hõlmab intellektuaalomandiõiguste kaitse
valdkonnas erinevaid vahendusteenuste pakkujaid, nähes ette poliitikameetmed, mille eesmärk on
tuvastada rikkumise tulemusel saadavaid tuluvoogusid ja need katkestada
28
http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/18023/
29
Komisjoni avaldus siseturul kaubanduslikul eesmärgil intellektuaalomandiõiguste rikkumise
ärahoidmiseks sõlmitud vastastikuse mõistmise memorandumi täitmise hõlbustamise ja selle üle
järelevalve teostamise kohta: http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/18023/
11
Euroopa kultuurilise ja loomingulise infosisu kättesaadavust ja nähtavust, sealhulgas
piiriüleselt. Seadusandlike algatuste ja rahalise toetuse meetmed on vastastikku toetavad
ja tugevdavad. Komisjon jälgib kõnealuste meetmete mõju ja võtab järelmeetmeid
vastavalt jõupingutustele, mida tööstus on teinud eespool esitatud eesmärkide
integreerimiseks oma ärimudelitesse.
12
Council of the
European Union
Brussels, 16 September 2016
(OR. en)
12283/16
PI 103
COMPET 493
TELECOM 173
ESPACE 41
AUDIO 101
CULT 82
COVER NOTE
From: Secretary-General of the European Commission,
signed by Mr Jordi AYET PUIGARNAU, Director
date of receipt: 14 September 2016
To: Mr Jeppe TRANHOLM-MIKKELSEN, Secretary-General of the Council of
the European Union
No. Cion doc.: SWD(2016) 309 final
Subject: COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OF THE EVALUATION of the Council Directive 93/83/EEC on the
coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to
copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission
Delegations will find attached document SWD(2016) 309 final.
Encl.: SWD(2016) 309 final
12283/16 LK/np
DGG 3B EN
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
SWD(2016) 309 final
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE EVALUATION
of the
Council Directive 93/83/EEC
on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright
applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission
{SWD(2016) 308}
EN EN
The retrospective REFIT evaluation of the Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September
1993 on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright
applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission (the "Directive") was carried out
in preparation of the EU copyright modernisation initiative set out in the Digital Single
Market Strategy for Europe (Commission Communication of 6 May 2015, COM(2015) 192)
and the Commission Communication "Towards a modern, more European copyright
framework" (9 December 2015, COM(2015) 626). In particular, the evaluation contributes to
the evidence base for a decision whether and to what extent the legal mechanisms similar to
the ones established by the Directive could be used in the envisaged EU copyright
modernisation measures.
For satellite broadcasting the Directive introduced a harmonised exclusive right to authorise
satellite transmissions of broadcasts and a principle according to which the copyright and
related rights relevant act of communication to the public by satellite occurs solely in the
Member State from which the programme-carrying signals originate (the 'country of origin'
principle). The effect of this rule is that a broadcasting organisation, for its satellite
transmission, has to clear copyright and related rights only for the country of origin. For cable
retransmission the Directive provided a two-stop-shop copyright clearing mechanism
(individual licensing by broadcasters combined with mandatory collective management of all
other - "underlying" - rights) accompanied by an obligation to negotiate in good faith and a
possibility to call upon the assistance of mediators in case of dispute.
In accordance with the better regulation guidelines, the evaluation concentrated on
effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and EU added value of the Directive. It also
sought to establish the Directive's simplification potential.
The evaluation took place between August 2015 and June 2016 and was based, in particular,
on a study prepared for the Commission "The survey and data gathering to support the
evaluation of the Satellite and Cable Directive and assessment of its possible extension", a
questionnaire addressed to the Member States to gather details about the transposition and
application of the Directive in national law and legal orders as well as an on-line public
consultation carried out between 24 August 2015 and 16 November 2015. Obtaining
quantitative data, especially data pertaining to the costs and benefits generated by the
application of the Directive, has proved to be challenging.
The main conclusions of the evaluation are the following:
All Member States have introduced rules having as their objective the transposition of the
Directive. The transposed rules have generated over the years relatively few legal disputes.
The Directive can also be considered to have contributed to fostering thriving TV / radio
broadcasting and distribution markets: 28.7 million EU households receive free-to-air satellite
broadcasting services and 56.4 million - cable retransmission services.
As regards the effectiveness, there are indications that overall the specific mechanisms
introduced by the Directive have facilitated the clearance of copyright and related rights for
(free-to-view) cross-border satellite broadcasts and for the simultaneous retransmissions by
1
cable of broadcasts from other Member States. Similarly, these mechanisms can be
considered to have contributed to ensuring a high level of protection for right holders and
have improved, to different extents, access to TV and radio programmes from other Member
States. The negotiation and mediation mechanisms established under the Directive have been
used to a varying, but overall limited, degree; they were found helpful in the cases where they
have been used.
The Directive can be considered to have been a cost-efficient and overall beneficial
intervention. It has not created administrative burden or significant compliance /
implementation costs for either stakeholders or Member States. The Directive has helped to
reduce the transaction costs for the licensors and the licensees. Certain identified specific
costs resulting from the application of the Directive (fees charged by collecting societies for
managing cable retransmission rights) can be regarded to be outweighed by benefits - savings
in transaction costs. Some right holders referred to the Directive's possible negative impacts
on the market's functioning claiming that the country of origin principle undermines the
territory-by-territory content distribution strategies and that mandatory collective management
does not allow for the licensing of cable retransmission rights on fair market terms. However,
these concerns are not estimated to be significant either in the case of the country of origin
principle (since the Directive has left open the possibility to continue limiting the exploitation
of satellite broadcasting rights in compliance with Union law) or in the case of mandatory
management of cable retransmission rights (since individuals and SMEs, the category to
which most right holders belong, are generally considered, due to their limited capacity to
carry out multiple individual negotiations, to be the main beneficiaries of this approach).
The Directive remains relevant, as a tool facilitating licensing of (free-to-view) cross-border
satellite broadcasts and cable retransmissions of TV and radio broadcasts from other Member
States as well as, more generally, for improving consumers' access to TV and radio broadcasts
from other Member States. Within the scope of application of the Directive (satellite
broadcasting and cable retransmission) its relevance has been limited by two factors: the
proliferation of territorially-limited satellite pay-TV offerings and the practice to inject
program-carrying signals directly into cable networks (without any prior broadcast).
Otherwise the Directive - due to the technology-specific nature of its provisions - does not
cover various transmission and retransmission means that have emerged in recent years.
The Directive is coherent both internally and with other EU interventions pursuing similar
objectives, notably those in the audiovisual and media sectors. Moreover, the Directive's
objectives remain valid in view of the new Commission priorities, including the completion of
the digital single market.
As regards satellite broadcasting, the Directive has provided significant EU added value, since
no action with a comparable result could have been taken at the Member State level. As
regards cable retransmission, action at the Member State level is possible, but the Directive
has provided added value by establishing harmonised rules across the internal market.
In terms of REFIT, since the Directive has not created administrative burden or significant
compliance / implementation costs for either stakeholders or Member States and since its
2
provisions are, generally, setting out principles rather than procedures, the available
simplification potential is estimated as limited.
3
EUROPEAN
COMMISSION
Brussels, 14.9.2016
COM(2016) 596 final
2016/0278 (COD)
Proposal for a
DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
on certain permitted uses of works and other subject-matter protected by copyright and
related rights for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise
print disabled and amending Directive 2001/29/EC on the harmonisation of certain
aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society
(Text with EEA relevance)
EN EN
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1. CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
• Reasons for and objectives of the proposal
The proposed Directive will bring Union law into line with the EUʼs international
commitments under the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for
Persons who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (‘the Marrakesh
Treaty’).
The Marrakesh Treaty was adopted in 2013 at the World Intellectual Property Organisation
(WIPO) with the aim of facilitating the availability and cross-border exchange of books and
other print material in accessible formats around the world. It was signed by the Union1 in
April 2014. The Treaty requires the parties to provide exceptions or limitations to copyright
and related rights for the benefit of blind, visually impaired and otherwise print-disabled
persons and allows for the cross-border exchange of special format copies of books, including
audio books, and other print material between countries that are parties to the Treaty. The
Union has thus made a political commitment to implement the Treaty, which both the Council
and the European Parliament have since strengthened. The Commission separately presented
a proposal for a Council Decision for the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty by the Union in
October 2014. In May 2015, the Council submitted a request to the Commission under Article
241 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), in which it underlined
its full commitment to the rapid entry into force of the Marrakesh Treaty and asked the
Commission to submit, without delay, a legislative proposal to amend the Union legal
framework in accordance with the Treaty.
The beneficiaries of the Marrakesh Treaty, i.e. persons who are blind, visually impaired, or
otherwise print disabled ('beneficiary persons') face many barriers to accessing books and
other print material protected by copyright and related rights. The availability of books in
formats that are accessible to print-disabled persons is estimated to be between 7 %2 and 20
%3 despite the fact that digital technology greatly facilitates accessible publishing4.
Accessible formats include e.g. Braille, large print, e-books and audiobooks with special
navigation, audio description and radio broadcasts.
The objective of the proposed Directive is to increase the availability of works and other
protected subject-matter, e.g. books, journals, newspapers, magazines and other writings,
sheet music and other print material, including in audio form, in formats that are accessible to
beneficiary persons. It will do this by ensuring that all beneficiary persons and organisations
serving their needs on a non-profit basis can rely on a mandatory and harmonised exception to
copyright and related rights within the Union. This will allow to make accessible format
copies of otherwise non-accessible works and other subject matter that have already been
published or made available. The proposed Directive would amend the existing Union
legislative framework accordingly and ensure that the accessible format copies made in one
Member State can be disseminated and accessed throughout the Union. With respect to the
1
Council Decision 2014/221/EU of 14 April 2014 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of
the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are Blind, Visually
Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled (OJ L115, 17.4.2014, p. 1.).
2
LISU for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), ʻAvailability of accessible publications -
2011 updateʼ, October 2011.
3
Catherine Meyer-Lereculeur ʻException ʻhandicapʼ au droit d’auteur et développement de l’offre de
publications accessibles à l’ère numériqueʼ, May 2013.
4
These figures refer to availability in some but not all accessible formats.
EN 2 EN
obligations imposed by the Marrakesh Treaty on the cross-border exchange of accessible
format copies between the Union and third countries that are parties to the Treaty, this
Directive should be read together with Regulation […].
The proposed Directive is also in line with the Union's obligations deriving from the United
Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (ʻthe UNCRPDʼ). The EU has
been bound by the UNCRPD since January 2011, pursuant to Council Decision 2010/48/EC5.
The provisions set out in the UNCRPD have thus become an integral part of the Union's legal
order. The right of access to information and the right of people with disabilities to participate
in cultural life on an equal basis with others are enshrined in the UNCRPD. Its article 30
requires parties to the Convention to take all appropriate steps, in accordance with
international law, to ensure that laws protecting intellectual property rights do not constitute
an unreasonable or discriminatory barrier to access by persons with disabilities to cultural
materials. In its Concluding observations on the initial report of the European Union6, adopted
on 4 September 2015, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities has encouraged the Union to take all appropriate measures to implement the
Marrakesh Treaty as soon as possible.
• Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area
The Union has adopted a number of Directives in the area of copyright and related rights that
provide legal certainty and a high level of protection for rightholders. The rights that are
relevant for the proposed Directive are currently harmonised in Directive 2001/29/EC on the
harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society
(ʻDirective 2001/29/ECʼ)7, in Directive 2006/115/EC on rental right and lending right and on
certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property8, in Directive 96/9/EC on
the legal protection of databases9 and in Directive 2009/24/EC on the legal protection of
computer programs10.
Union law also provides for a number of exceptions or limitations to these rights, which
allow, under certain conditions and for the purpose of achieving certain policy objectives, the
use of content without the authorisation of the rightholder. The accessibility needs of persons
with a disability were recognised in this context, and were provided for notably by Article
5(3)(b) of Directive 2001/29/EC. This provision allows Member States to introduce
exceptions or limitations to copyright and related rights for the benefit of persons with
disabilities, including print disabilities, in respect of uses which are directly related to the
disability, of a non-commercial nature and to the extent required by the specific disability. In
accordance with the requirements of the Marrakesh Treaty, the exception introduced by the
5
Council Decision 2010/48/EC of 26 November 2009 concerning the conclusion, by the European
Community, of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (OJ L23,
27.1.2010, p. 35).
6
CRPD/C/EU/CO/1, available at:
http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CRPD/Shared%20Documents/EUR/CRPD_C_EU_CO_1_21617_E.
doc.
7
Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the
harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society (OJ L 167,
22.6.2001, p. 10-19).
8
Directive 2006/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on rental
right and lending right and on certain rights related to copyright in the field of intellectual property (OJ
L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 28-35).
9
Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on the legal
protection of databases (OJ L 77, 27.3.1996, p. 20-28).
10
Directive 2009/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the legal
protection of computer programs (OJ L 111, 5.5.2009, p. 16-22).
EN 3 EN
proposed Directive will be mandatory for Member States, and will apply to rights that have
been harmonised at Union level and that are relevant for the making and dissemination of
accessible format copies as defined in the Marrakesh Treaty. The exception complements the
existing optional exception or limitation provided for in Article 5(3)(b) of Directive
2001/29/EC by introducing a mandatory exception for the benefit of beneficiary persons that
will have effect throughout the internal market.
• Consistency with other Union policies
With the adoption of this Directive, the Union aims to ensure that all beneficiary persons have
access to books, journals, newspapers, magazines and other writings, sheet music and other
print material to substantially the same degree as persons without an impairment or disability,
and that the full potential of the internal market can be exploited to achieve this. In this
respect, the proposed Directive is consistent with and complements other legislation and
initiatives taken at Union level to ʻbuild on the strength of our single market and to fully
exploit its potential in all its dimensionsʼ11. These include a proposal for a Directive of the
European Parliament and of the Council on the accessibility of public sector bodiesʼ websites
and one for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the approximation
of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States as regards the
accessibility requirements for products and services (ʻthe European Accessibility Act
proposalʼ). In particular, the European Accessibility Act proposal includes obligations to
ensure that e-book services provided in the internal market as of its date of application comply
with certain functional requirements so that they are accessible from the moment they are put
on the market.
2. LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY
• Legal basis
The legal basis for the proposal is Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union (TFEU).
• Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence)
The Union may adopt measures in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in
Article 5 TFEU. The objective of this proposed Directive is to facilitate access to certain
content protected by copyright and related rights for the beneficiary persons of the Marrakesh
Treaty within the internal market in an area that is already harmonised by Union law and
consequently can only be amended by Union law. In the absence of Union intervention, this
objective could not be achieved by Member States. In addition, by reason of scale and effects,
this objective can be better achieved at Union level.
• Proportionality
The proportionality of the proposal is ensured as it does not go beyond what is necessary to
implement the Union obligations under the Marrakesh Treaty within the Union.
• Choice of the instrument
The choice of a Directive is consistent with previous measures in this area, notably Directive
2001/29/EC which harmonised the rights of authors and other rightholders and introduced an
optional exception or limitation for the benefit of people with a disability. The proposed
Directive would amend the existing Union legislative framework by providing for a new
11
President Junckerʼs Political Guidelines.
EN 4 EN
mandatory exception to the relevant harmonised rights and ensuring that accessible format
copies made in one Member State under that exception can be disseminated and accessed
throughout the Union. In so doing and by providing for clear definitions, it introduces a
uniform approach to the Union's obligations under the Treaty, including the free circulation of
accessible format copies in the internal market, providing the beneficiaries of the exception
with the necessary legal certainty in undertaking the uses that it covers. At the same time, it
allows for a certain margin of manoeuvre for Member States for adapting specific national
legislation that might be directly or indirectly affected by the provisions of this Directive, for
example in the area of education, healthcare or other social policies.
3. RESULTS OF EX-POST EVALUATIONS, STAKEHOLDER
CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
• Ex-post evaluations/fitness checks of existing legislation
The purpose of the proposed Directive is to fulfil new international obligations as regards
Union law. A retrospective evaluation of existing European law in this area is therefore not
relevant and not required in this context. Available information on related European
legislation was however taken into account, notably the results of public consultations and
existing expert input.
• Stakeholder consultations
No specific stakeholder consultation was carried out for the purposes of the proposed
Directive, which implements provisions established at international level. The extensive
public consultation on the review of the EU copyright rules carried out by the Commission
between December 2013 and March 2014 also included a section on limitations and
exceptions for the benefit of persons with disabilities and on the access to and circulation of
works in accessible formats, which also referred to the Marrakesh Treaty12. Among other
aspects, the views expressed by end users, consumers and institutional users (including
organisations serving the needs of people with disabilities and libraries) pointed to a diverging
scope of national exceptions or limitations, making it difficult to have legal certainty when
exporting and importing accessible format copies made under a national copyright exception
or limitation. These institutional respondents were consistently of the opinion that the
Marrakesh Treaty would satisfactorily address these concerns. Rightholders and collective
management organisations generally felt that there were no problems arising from the national
implementation of the optional exception or limitation provided for in Union legislation. They
also remarked that existing market mechanisms were effectively addressing the problem of
access to works for persons with disabilities. This view was not shared by end users,
consumers or institutional users.
• Collection and use of expertise
No expertise was collected specifically in preparation of this proposal. The Commission took
into account a 2013 study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC13, which assessed inter
alia the application in 11 Member States of the optional exception or limitation for persons
with a disability provided for in Article 5(3)(b) of that Directive.
12
Report on the responses to the Public Consultation on the Review of the EU Copyright Rules, July
2014, p. 61-63. http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/consultations/2013/copyright-rules/index_en.htm .
13
"Study on the application of Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information
society", December 2013, De Wolf and partners, available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/studies/131216_study_en.pdf , p. 417 et seq.
EN 5 EN
• Impact assessment
The proposed Directive will implement the Marrakesh Treaty in the internal market and aims
to bring Union law into line with the Treaty. The Better Regulation Guidelines14 do not
require an impact assessment to be carried out when the Commission has no discretion over
the policy content.
• Fundamental rights
The proposed Directive supports the right of persons with disabilities to benefit from
measures designed to ensure their independence, social and occupational integration and
participation in the life of the community, as enshrined in Article 26 of the Charter of
Fundamental Rights of the European Union ('the Charter'). The Directive also reflects the
Union's commitments under the UNCRPD. The UNCRPD guarantees people with disabilities
the right of access to information and the right to participate in cultural, economic and social
life on an equal basis with others. In view of this, it is justified to restrict the property rights of
rightholders in light of the Union's obligations under the Charter15. The proposed Directive is
an essential first step in ensuring such access to information and participation in cultural,
economic and social life.
The proposal would have limited impact on copyright as a property right as recognised in the
Charter (Article 17(2))16. It should be noted that, at present, all Member States have to some
extent made use of the optional copyright exception or limitation provided for in Article
5(3)(b) of Directive 2001/29/EC. The impact of the proposed Directive on copyright as a
property right will thus be limited to fully harmonising the existing divergent copyright
exceptions or limitations for persons with print disabilities that are in force in the Member
States.
4. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS
The proposal has no impact on the Union budget.
5. OTHER ELEMENTS
European Economic Area
The proposed act relates to an European Economic Area (EEA) matter and it should extend to
the EEA.E-
• Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements
Member States will be obliged to bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative
provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 12 months after its adoption. Member
States will be required to communicate to the Commission the provisions introduced to
comply with this Directive, and other major legislative provisions adopted in the field covered
by this Directive. The Commission will monitor the implementation of the proposed Directive
and, in accordance with Better Regulation Guidelines and no sooner than five years after the
14
SWD(2015) 111 final.
15
Article 52(1) of the Charter allows restrictions interfering with the exercise of the freedoms of the
Charter. Such restrictions must (i) be provided for by law; and (ii) respect the essence of those rights
and freedoms. In addition, the limitations are (iii) ʻsubject to the principle of proportionalityʼ and ʻmay
be made only if they are necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognized by the
Union or the need to protect the rights and freedoms of othersʼ.
16
OJ C 83, 30.3.2010, p. 389–403.
EN 6 EN
date of transposition, it shall carry out an evaluation of the Directive and present the main
findings to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social
Committee, accompanied, where appropriate, by proposals for the amendment of the
Directive. In the same way, it will also carry out an evaluation of Regulation […]. The
Commission will also monitor the availability in accessible formats of works and other
subject-matter other than those covered by this Directive, and the availability of works and
other subject-matter in accessible formats for people with other disabilities, within the Union.
The Commission will, by two years after the date of transposition of the proposed Directive,
present a report on this matter. That report shall include an assessment on whether expanding
the scope of this Directive in accordance with its findings should be considered.
• Explanatory documents
In the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the
Commission on explanatory documents17, Member States agreed to provide the Commission,
when notifying it of the measures taken to transpose a directive, with one or more documents
explaining the relationship between the provisions of the directive and corresponding
provisions of their national measures, where there is a justification for demanding this
additional information. The explanatory documentation will help to ensure that all national
legal systems put in place a mandatory exception in line with this Directive in the light of
Union obligations under the Marrakesh Treaty.
• Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal
Article 1 specifies the subject-matter and the scope of the proposal. The proposed Directive
will facilitate the use of certain copyright protected content, without the authorisation of the
rightholder, for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print
disabled.
Article 2 gives the definitions of the terms ʻwork and other subject-matterʼ, ʻbeneficiary
personʼ, ʻaccessible format copyʼ and ʻauthorised entityʼ that apply for the purposes of the
proposed Directive.
Article 3 provides for a mandatory exception and states the specific permitted uses by
beneficiary persons and authorised entities.
Article 4 relates to the circulation of accessible format copies in the internal market. The
provision aims to ensure that accessible format copies made under the exception provided for
in Article 3 may circulate or be accessed in any Member State.
Article 5 sets out the applicable rules for the protection of personal data.
Article 6 states the amendments to be made to Directive 2001/29/EC to ensure coherence with
this Directive.
Article 7 states that the Commission will present a report on the availability in the internal
market of works and other subject matter in accessible formats and for persons with
disabilities other than those covered by this Directive.
Article 8 sets out the arrangements on the evaluation of the proposed Directive, in accordance
with Better Regulation rules.
17
OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.
EN 7 EN
Article 9 sets the time frame for the transposition of the proposed Directive by the Member
States and specifies a number of accompanying obligations that must be met by the Member
States, e.g. to notify the Commission of the main provisions that implement the proposed
Directive in their national law.
Article 10 specifies the date of the Directive's entry into force and Article 11 states that the
Directive is addressed to the Member States.
EN 8 EN
2016/0278 (COD)
Proposal for a
DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
on certain permitted uses of works and other subject-matter protected by copyright and
related rights for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise
print disabled and amending Directive 2001/29/EC on the harmonisation of certain
aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society
(Text with EEA relevance)
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular
Article 114 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee18,
Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure,
Whereas:
(1) Union Directives in the area of copyright and related rights provide legal certainty and
a high level of protection for rightholders. This harmonised legal framework
contributes to the proper functioning of the internal market and stimulates innovation,
creation, investment and the production of new content, including in the digital
environment. It also aims to promote access to knowledge and culture by protecting
works and other subject-matter and by permitting exceptions or limitations that are in
the public interest. A fair balance of rights and interests between rightholders and
users should be safeguarded.
(2) Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council19, Directive
2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council20, Directive 2006/115/EC
of the European Parliament and of the Council21 and Directive 2009/24/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council22 harmonise the rights of rightholders. Those
Directives provide for an exhaustive list of exceptions and limitations to those rights,
which allow for the use of content without the authorisation of the rightholders under
certain conditions in order to achieve certain policy objectives.
(3) Persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled continue to face
many barriers in accessing books and other print material which are protected by
copyright and related rights. Measures need to be taken to increase the availability of
18
OJ C , , p. .
19
OJ L 77, 27.3.1996, p. 20-28.
20
OJ L 167, 22.6.2001, p. 10-19.
21
OJ L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 28-35.
22
OJ L 111, 5.5.2009, p. 16-22.
EN 9 EN
those works in accessible formats and to improve their circulation in the internal
market.
(4) The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are
Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (ʻthe Marrakesh Treatyʼ) was
signed on behalf of the Union on 30 April 201423. Its aim is to improve the availability
of works and other protected subject-matter in accessible formats for persons who are
blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled. The Marrakesh Treaty requires
contracting parties to provide exceptions or limitations to the rights of holders of
copyright and related rights for the making and dissemination of copies in accessible
formats of certain works and other subject-matter, and for the cross-border exchange
of those copies. The conclusion of the Marrakesh Treaty by the Union requires the
adaptation of Union law by establishing a mandatory exception for uses, works and
beneficiary persons covered by the Treaty. This Directive implements the obligations
that the Union has to meet under the Marrakesh Treaty in a harmonised manner, with a
view to ensuring that those measures are applied consistently throughout the internal
market.
(5) This Directive is designed for the benefit persons who are blind, have a visual
impairment which cannot be improved so as to give those persons visual function
substantially equivalent to that of a person who has no such impairment, or have a
perceptual or reading disability, including dyslexia, preventing them from reading
printed works to substantially the same degree as persons without such disability, or
are unable to hold or manipulate a book or to focus or move the eyes to the extent that
would be normally acceptable for reading due to a physical disability. The objective of
the measures introduced by this Directive is to improve the availability of books,
journals, newspapers, magazines and other writings, sheet music and other print
material, including in audio form, whether digital or analogue, in formats that make
those works and other subject-matter accessible to those persons to substantially the
same degree as to persons without an impairment or disability. Accessible formats
include Braille, large print, adapted e-books, audio books and radio broadcasts.
(6) This Directive should therefore provide for mandatory exceptions to the rights that are
harmonised by Union law and are relevant for the uses and works covered by the
Marrakesh Treaty. These include in particular the rights of reproduction,
communication to the public, making available, distribution and lending, as provided
for in Directive 2001/29/EC, Directive 2006/115/EC, and Directive 2009/24/EC, as
well as the corresponding rights in Directive 96/9/EC. As the scope of exceptions and
limitations required by the Marrakesh Treaty also includes works in audio form, like
audiobooks, it is necessary that these exceptions also apply to related rights.
(7) Uses laid down in this Directive include the making of accessible format copies by
either the beneficiary persons or authorised entities serving their needs — whether
public or private organisations, in particular libraries, educational establishments and
other non-profit organisations that serve persons with a print disability as their main or
one of their main activities or public interest missions —. Those uses should also
include making accessible format copies, for the exclusive use of the beneficiary
persons, by a natural person who does so on behalf of a beneficiary person or who
assists the beneficiary person in doing so.
23
Council Decision 2014/221/EU of 14 April 2014 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of
the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are Blind, Visually
Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled. (OJ L115, 17.4.2014, p. 1).
EN 10 EN
(8) The mandatory exception should also limit the right of reproduction so as to allow for
any act that is necessary in order to make changes to or convert or adapt a work or
other subject-matter in such a way as to produce an accessible format copy. This
includes providing the necessary means to navigate information in an accessible
format copy.
(9) The exception should allow authorised entities to make and disseminate online and
offline within the Union accessible format copies of works or other subject-matter
covered by this Directive.
(10) It should be possible for accessible format copies made in one Member State to be
available in all Member States, in order to ensure their greater availability across the
internal market. This would reduce the demand for redundant work in producing
accessible format copies of the same work or other subject matter across the Union,
thus generating savings and efficiency gains. This Directive should therefore ensure
that accessible format copies made in one Member State may be circulated and
accessed in all Member States. An authorised entity should thus be able to disseminate
those copies, offline or online, to beneficiary persons and authorised entities in any
Member State. Moreover, authorised entities and beneficiary persons should be
allowed to obtain or have access to those copies from any authorised entity in any
Member State.
(11) In view of the specific nature of the exception, its targeted scope and the need for legal
certainty for its beneficiaries, Member States should not be allowed to impose
additional requirements for the application of the exception, such as compensation
schemes or the prior verification of the commercial availability of accessible format
copies.
(12) Any processing of personal data under this Directive should respect fundamental
rights, including the right to respect for private and family life and the right to
protection of personal data under Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter of Fundamental
Rights of the European Union and must be in compliance with Directive 95/46/EC of
the European Parliament and of the Council, which governs the processing of personal
data, as may be carried out by authorised entities within the framework of this
Directive and under the supervision of the Member Statesʼ competent authorities, in
particular the public independent authorities designated by the Member States.
(13) The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (ʻthe
UNCRPDʼ), to which the EU is a party, guarantees people with disabilities the right of
access to information and the right to participate in cultural, economic and social life
on an equal basis with others. The UNCRPD requires parties to the Convention to take
all appropriate steps, in accordance with international law, to ensure that laws
protecting intellectual property rights do not constitute an unreasonable or
discriminatory barrier to access by persons with disabilities to cultural materials.
(14) Under the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the Union
recognises and respects the right of people with disabilities to benefit from measures
designed to ensure their independence, social and occupational integration and
participation in the life of the community.
(15) With the adoption of this Directive, the Union aims to ensure that beneficiary persons
have access to books and other print material in accessible formats. Accordingly, this
Directive is an essential first step in improving access to works for people with
disabilities.
EN 11 EN
(16) The Commission will monitor the effect of this Directive. As part of this, it will assess
the situation regarding the availability in accessible formats of works and other
subject-matter other than those covered by this Directive, as well as the availability of
works and other subject-matter in accessible formats for persons with other
disabilities. The Commission will review the situation closely. Changes to the scope of
this Directive may be considered, if necessary.
(17) Pursuant to Directive 2001/29/EC, Member States may continue to provide for an
exception or limitation for the benefit of persons with a disability in cases which are
not covered by this Directive.
(18) This Directive therefore respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles
recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
This Directive should be interpreted and applied in accordance with those rights and
principles.
(19) The Marrakesh Treaty imposes certain obligations regarding the exchange of
accessible format copies between the Union and third countries that are parties to the
Treaty. The measures taken by the Union to fulfil those obligations are contained in
Regulation […] which should be read in conjunction with this Directive.
(20) The objective of this Directive — implementing the Union's obligations under the
Marrakesh Treaty in order to improve access to works and other subject-matter
protected by copyright and related rights for persons who are blind, visually impaired
or otherwise print disabled in the Union — cannot be achieved by the Member States
acting independently, as it requires the adaptation of Union law. Furthermore, by
reason of its scale and effects, the objective can only be achieved through action at
Union level. The Union may therefore adopt measures in accordance with the principle
of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance
with the principle of proportionality as set out in the same Article, this Directive does
not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve that objective.
(21) In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member
States and the Commission on explanatory documents24, Member States have
undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition
measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the
components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition
instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of
such documents to be justified.
HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
Subject matter and scope
This Directive lays down rules on the use of certain works and other subject-matter without
the authorisation of the rightholder, for the benefit of persons who are blind, visually impaired
or otherwise print disabled.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Directive the following definitions shall apply:
24
OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.
EN 12 EN
(1) ‘work and other subject-matter’ means a work in the form of a book, journal,
newspaper, magazine or other writing, including sheet music, and related
illustrations, in any media, including in audio forms such as audiobooks, which is
protected by copyright or related rights and which is published or otherwise lawfully
made publicly available;
(2) ‘beneficiary person’ means:
(a) a person who is blind;
(b) a person who has a visual impairment which cannot be improved so as to
give the person visual function substantially equivalent to that of a person
who has no such impairment;
(c) a person who has a perceptual or reading disability, including dyslexia, and
is, as a result, unable to read printed works to substantially the same degree
as a person without an impairment or disability; or
(d) a person who is otherwise unable, due to a physical disability, to hold or
manipulate a book or to focus or move their eyes to the extent that would
be normally acceptable for reading.
(3) ‘accessible format copy’ means a copy of a work or other subject-matter in an
alternative manner or form that gives a beneficiary person access to the work or other
subject-matter, including allowing for the person to have access as feasibly and
comfortably as a person without a visual impairment or any of the disabilities
referred to in paragraph 2;
(4) ‘authorised entity’ means an organisation providing education, instructional training,
adaptive reading or information access to beneficiary persons on a non-profit basis,
as its main activity or as one of its main activities or public-interest missions.
Article 3
Permitted uses
1. Member States shall provide that any act necessary for:
(a) a beneficiary person, or a person acting on their behalf, to make an accessible
format copy of a work or other subject-matter for the exclusive use of the
beneficiary person; and
(b) an authorised entity to make an accessible format copy and to communicate,
make available, distribute or lend an accessible format copy to a beneficiary
person or authorised entity for the purpose of exclusive use by a beneficiary
person;
does not require the authorisation of the rightholder of any copyright or related right
in the work or protected subject-matter pursuant to Articles 2, 3 and 4 of Directive
2001/29/EC, Article 1(1) of Directive 2006/115/EC, Article 8(2) and (3) and Article
9 of Directive 2006/115/EC, Article 4 of Directive 2009/24/EC and Articles 5 and 7
of Directive 96/9/EC.
2. Member States shall ensure that the accessible format copy respects the integrity of
the work or other subject-matter, having due consideration for the changes required
to make the work accessible in the alternative format.
3. Article 5(5) and the first, third and fifth subparagraphs of Article 6(4) of Directive
2001/29/EC shall apply to the exception provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article.
EN 13 EN
Article 4
Accessible format copies in the internal market
Member States shall ensure that an authorised entity established in their territory may carry
out the acts referred to in Article 3(1)(b) for a beneficiary person or an authorised entity
established in any Member State. Member States shall also ensure that a beneficiary person or
authorised entity established in their territory may obtain or have access to an accessible
format copy from an authorised entity established in any Member State.
Article 5
Protection of personal data
The processing of personal data carried out within the framework of this Directive shall be
carried out in compliance with Directive 95/46/EC.
Article 6
Amendment to Directive 2001/29/EC
In Article 5(3) of Directive 2001/29/EC, point (b) is replaced by the following:
ʻ(b) uses, for the benefit of people with a disability, which are directly related to the disability
and are of a non-commercial nature, to the extent required by the specific disability, without
prejudice to the obligations of Member States under Directive […];ʼ
Article 7
Report
By [two years after the date of transposition], the Commission shall present a report to the
European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee on the
availability, in accessible formats, of works and other subject-matter other than those defined
in Article 2(1) for beneficiary persons, and of works and other subject-matter for persons with
disabilities other than those referred to in Article 2(2), in the internal market. The report shall
contain an assessment on whether an amendment of the scope of this Directive should be
considered.
Article 8
Review
No sooner than [five years after the date of transposition], the Commission shall carry out an
evaluation of this Directive and present the main findings to the European Parliament, the
Council and the European Economic and Social Committee, accompanied, where appropriate,
by proposals for the amendment of this Directive.
Member States shall provide the Commission with the necessary information for the
preparation of the evaluation report and the preparation of the report referred to in Article 7.
Article 9
Transposition
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative
provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by [12 month after entry into
force] at the latest. They shall forthwith communicate to the Commission the text of
those provisions.
EN 14 EN
When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this
Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official
publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions
of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.
Article 10
Entry into force
This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in
the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 11
Addressees
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels,
For the European Parliament For the Council
The President The President
EN 15 EN