New legislative proposal should be tabled to set EU rules on copyright exceptions and limitations for private copying, according to a non-legislative resolution voted by the Legal Affairs Committee on Tuesday. MEPs call for modernisation and transparency of existing private copying levies system so that consumers are better informed on the amounts and purpose of levies paid by them.
“Private copying levies system needs to be modernised, but it cannot be replaced by licensing, which would favor major companies rather than European creators,” said the rapporteur Françoise Castex (S&D, FR) after the vote.
“This topic has been a subject of intense lobbying, especially by non-European industry. They are willing to see the system of private copying levies removed in order to increase their profits at the cost of European culture. That is something we cannot accept,” she added.
Legal affairs committee adopted the own-initiative report by 15 votes to 5, with 3 abstentions.
Need for modernisation and harmonisation
Legal affairs MEPs point out that the system is worth preserving as there is no alternative system available at this moment to balance the rights of consumers and creators. However, further discussions will be needed to assess suitability of private copying system in the long term and to explore possible alternatives, they add.
MEPs call upon the Commission to present a legislative proposal to, inter alia, harmonise rules on limitations and exceptions with regard to private copying. In addition, Commission should look for common grounds on which products should be subject to copying levy and set criteria for the “negotiating arrangement for the rates applicable to private copying”.
Fair remuneration to rightholders
The draft resolution stresses that the system of private copying levies “balances the exception to copying for private use with the right to fair remuneration to rightholders”.
The private copying levy “should apply to all material and media that are used for private recording and storage capacity where private copying acts cause harm to creators”. The levies should be collected in the member state in which the end user who purchased the product resides, adds the text.
Transparency
The draft resolution calls for further transparency to ensure that consumers are more aware of the amounts and purposes of the private copying levies paid by them when purchasing recording or storage media or services.
Next steps
The plenary vote is scheduled for February 2014 (second session).
Source: European Parliament
