Brussels, 11 September 2018:
Tomorrow, MEPs will vote in plenary on the EU Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market. The FAIR INTERNET coalition calls on all MEPs to safeguard the meaningful provisions seeking to improve the livelihoods of performers in Chapter III.

The FAIR INTERNET coalition, representing over 500.000 musicians, singers, actors, dancers and other performing artists, calls on members of the European Parliament – when considering amendments ahead of the plenary vote on 12 September on the draft directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market – to uphold and confirm the meaningful improvements to the benefit of performers obtained in Chapter III, articles 14-16.

These are the only provisions in the Directive that are truly addressing the fundamental imbalance in the relationship between performers and producers, with a view to barring some of the most unacceptable contractual practices carried out in our industry, among which the relentless recourse to “buy-out” contracts, that prevent performers from being fairly remunerated for the exploitation of their work. These measures are a step in the right direction, as they may contribute to promoting a fair and equitable remuneration of performers for all modes of exploitation including for on demand uses.

The FAIR INTERNET coalition also welcomes the fact that articles 14-16, as adopted by the Legal Affairs committee, remove certain limitations in the European Commission’s original proposal that may have excluded a large number of performers from the benefit of these provisions.

Failing to reach an agreement on the Copyright Directive during tomorrow’s plenary vote would mean that these important achievements would be lost and performers would lose all reasonable chances to be fairly remunerated from online streaming and downloading services such as Netflix, Spotify and iTunes.

The statement is available here: FAIR INTERNET Statement re Plenary Vote

For more information please visit www.fair-internet.eu or
contact Nicole Schulze: +32 478 250 951

Brussels, 5 July 2018: The FAIR INTERNET coalition, representing over 500.000 musicians, singers, actors, dancers and other performing artists, calls on members of the European Parliament – when considering amendments ahead of the plenary vote in September on the draft directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market – to safeguard the meaningful improvements to the benefit of performers obtained in Chapter III, articles 14-16.

These are the only provisions in the Directive that are truly addressing the fundamental imbalance in the relationship between performers and producers, with a view to barring some of the most unacceptable contractual practices carried out in our industry, among which the relentless recourse to “buy-out” contracts, that prevent performers from being fairly remunerated for the exploitation of their work. These measures are a step in the right direction, as they may contribute to promoting a fair and equitable remuneration of performers for all modes of exploitation including for on demand uses.

The FAIR INTERNET coalition also welcomes the fact that articles 14-16, as adopted by the Legal Affairs committee, remove certain limitations in the Commission’s original proposal that may have excluded a large number of performers from the benefit of these provisions. These improvements should be shielded against possible attempts by the industry to soften up the language, rendering the Directive utterly meaningless for performers.

The statement in full is available here: Fair Internet Statement

For more information please visit www.fair-internet.eu
or contact Nicole Schulze: +32 478 250 951

Brussels, 22 May 2018:
AEPO-ARTIS, the Association of European Performers’ Organisations, on behalf of the FAIR INTERNET coalition, representing over half a million music and audiovisual performers in Europe, and German actor Hans Werner Meyer, met with Mrs Gabriel, Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Society to discuss the improvement of the EU copyright acquis in the context of the Digital Single Market.

AEPO-ARTIS, a partner of the FAIR INTERNET coalition, reiterated its call to the European Commission to address the unfair treatment of all musicians, singers, actors, dancers and other performing artists in the digital environment as a matter of priority in this reform process by supporting the introduction of an unwaivable remuneration right for digital uses, collected from on demand platforms and subject to mandatory collective management.

The vast majority of performers signing their contracts still have no choice but to transfer all their rights to the producer in perpetuity and for use on all media and for a flat rate. This is where the persisting and main “value gap” is.

The European Commission is well aware of the precariousness of performers’ livelihoods and the weakness of the existing legal provisions. Yet it has not made any proposal to decently address this situation, other than by submitting a few coy measures that may, at best, solve a case or two. The Commission has, in other terms, been adamant not to upset corporate interests, expending the livelihood of the creative workers without whom the entertainment industry would not exist.

Hans-Werner Meyer, German actor, said “Our concerns have been neglected for over two decades. If culture is really high on the EU’s political agenda, then REAL measures are needed to support those who are the pounding heart of it: Europe’s musicians, singers, actors, dancers and other performing artists. They must be able to make a decent living from their work. Strengthening Europe’s artists means strengthening Europe’s creative industry”.

AEPO-ARTIS, on behalf of the FAIR INTERNET coalition, asked the European Commission to put culture before profits and support some of the very good work done by the European Parliament and in particular in the Culture and Industry committees who have voted in favour of inserting an unwaivable remuneration right for on demand uses therefore recognising the important role Europe’s performers take in the cultural and creative industries.

The press release is available here: Press Release: Meeting with Commissioner Gabriel

For more information please contact
Nicole Schulze: nicole.schulze@aepo-artis.org or +32 487 25 09 51
www.fair-internet.eu
@fairinternet4p

FAIR INTERNET coalition statement to the Presidency proposals regarding articles 13-16 of the draft Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market from 30 August 2017

The partners of the FAIR INTERNET coalition have read with great attention the compromise proposals put forward by the Estonian Presidency regarding the draft Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market (dated 30 August 2017).

They are very disappointed and concerned to see that the precarious situation of Europe’s performers is not addressed at all by these compromise proposals, which show a regrettable lack of understanding of what is really needed to provide a meaningful protection to performers in the digital environment.

The provisions in articles 14-16 will not lead to any increased remuneration.

Most performers cannot just rely on the measures in the original Commission proposal, as amended by the Estonian Presidency, to improve their situation, as they typically sign their contract without a chance to improve its terms. That is the way the industry works. If performers want to work, they must sign what is before them. Their only freedom is not to sign and thus not get their next engagement.

Transparency measures may only be of use for a small minority of performers with enough leverage to negotiate on-going payments. However, this is not the case for the overwhelming majority of performers who simply sign buy-out contracts. Assuming that performers would seriously consider requesting a contractual readjustment (article 15) ignores the negative impact that any such request would have on the relationship with their producer, jeopardising further work opportunities in the industry, not to mention the amount of resources required to enter into a lengthy litigation process.

As regards the sharing of value from digital use of works/performances, the discussions – also in the Council – have focused so far on article 13 and the so called “value-gap”, which will not – regardless of the final wording – address the needs of most performers. It will mostly benefit the corporate “creative” business who sign up performers and have the upper hand with respect to how they should be paid in return.

The FAIR INTERNET coalition therefore calls for a right for all performers to be paid when their performances are used online via on demand platforms such as iTunes, Netflix or Spotify. Such payment would be paid by the online platforms and be subject to mandatory collective management.

This is the only mechanism that can improve the livelihood of all performers in a meaningful way.

Comparable mechanisms already exist in European legislation. For instance, the right to equitable remuneration for broadcasting and communication to the public (e.g. TV and radio broadcasting) provides performers with a fair revenue share, irrespective of the terms of their contract.

The FAIR INTERNET proposal has already received support from within the European Parliament.

On 11 July 2017, members of the European Parliament Industry and Culture committees adopted opinions supporting the right of performers to receive an unwaivable remuneration for on demand use. Amendments tabled in the lead Legal Affairs committee also suggest broad political support.

The FAIR INTERNET coalition calls upon Member State governments to support a right to remuneration for all performers, in order to effectively rebalance copyright and ensure that Europe’s performers are at last fairly rewarded for the on demand use of their performances.

More detailed and extensive comments by the FAIR INTERNET coalition to the draft Copyright Directive are included in the ANNEX here attached.

We rest at your disposal, should you require any further information.

Yours sincerely,

The FAIR INTERNET coalition

 

Download pdf version here: FAIR INTERNET coalition statement to the Presidency proposals regarding articles 13-16 of the draft Directive on Copyright in the DSM

Download Annex here: Annex

 

Statement of the Fair Internet Coalition, On 11 July 2017, the members of the European Parliament Industry and Culture Committees adopted their opinions on the Draft EU Copyright Directive. While both bodies have only an advisory role to the leading committee on the file (the Committee on Legal Affairs) the two newly adopted opinions show the level of ambition of the MEPs to ensure that the Digital Single Market will be fair to all stakeholders.

We are delighted the Industry and Culture Committees of the European Parliament took into account the needs of European performers. Today, European politicians translated their words into action ensuring European performers will receive fair remuneration from streaming/downloading services such as iTunes, Netflix and Spotify.

By introducing an article stating that performers should be entitled to an unwaivable right to fair remuneration, paid by on demand platforms and subject to collective management, the Industry and Culture Committees took a decisive step to improve the livelihoods of performers across Europe. The Fair Internet Coalition is now looking towards the Legal Affairs Committee to follow through on this important step.

The statement of the Fair Internet Coalition in reaction to the adopted opinions of the Industry and Culture committees in the European Parliament on the Draft EU Copyright Directive is available in full here:

⇒ STATEMENT OF FAIR INTERNET COALITION IN REACTION TO ITRE AND CULT VOTES ON 11 JULY 2017

On 10 July 2017, the Fair Internet Coalition submitted the following statement to the Members of the European Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee with its comments to the amendments tabled to the Draft Report On The Proposed Directive On Copyright In The Digital Single Market.

“Dear Members of the EP Legal Affairs Committee,

The Fair Internet coalition welcomes the many amendments presented by this committee with a view to addressing the precariousness that performers and audiovisual authors endure on a daily basis and improving their livelihood.

In particular, we fully support the introduction of an unwaivable and non-transferrable right to equitable remuneration for on-demand uses, paid by online downloading or streaming platforms (e.g. iTunes, Netflix, Spotify, etc.) and, with respect to performers, subject to mandatory collective management.

This mechanism constitutes a fair, efficient and simple answer to the need for a modern and more balanced copyright, perfectly fitted to the Digital Single Market. It acknowledges the value of performers’ and audiovisual authors’ creative contribution and ensures that they are, at last, fairly rewarded for the use of their work in digital, on-demand networks.

As you surely know, the overwhelming majority of performers in Europe work under inequitable terms, whereby all their intellectual property exclusive rights are transferred to employers/engagers upfront, in return for a single payment. As a result, they do not receive any meaningful revenue, if at all, from the online exploitation of their exclusive right of making available.

Contrary to what audio or audiovisual producers like to claim, even though addressing the “value gap” (article 13) in whichever shape or form may allow the market to grow, it will not change the situation described above.

We therefore call upon the Legal Affairs Committee to resolutely endorse such a right to remuneration and build support with all political groups around a meaningful compromise.

We also call upon the Legal Affairs Committee to carefully address the unbalanced contractual relationship between performers (and audiovisual authors) and producers. Some amendments genuinely seek to improve the very weak proposal by the European Commission. They include measures making transparency obligations benefit all performers equally; banning unfair clauses stretching out to encompass future rights, modes of exploitation, uses, etc.; encouraging sector-specific reporting standards or collective claims to a contractual revision.

Other amendments however would make things even worse than they are now and should thus be resolutely rejected.

We trust that the members of the EP Legal Affairs Committee will seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to promote an equitable level playing field in our industries, enabling performers and audiovisual authors to finally envisage a better future.”

 

The full statement with all proposed amendments is available here:

⇒ FAIR INTERNET STATEMENT TO JURI ON COPYRIGHT 10 JULY 2017

 

On 11 January 2017, the FAIR INTERNET Coalition released a press statement calling on MEPs to make the necessary amendments to the draft Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market in order to rebalance copyright and guarantee a fair remuneration from streaming and download services.

“Regretfully the European Commission has failed to adjust EU Copyright legislation and adapt it to the digital environment. How the draft Directive is being sold by the European Commission does not correspond to what it will likely achieve in reality. It does not mean performers will be paid fairly nor will they be better placed to get a fair share of the value generated from online uses.

At the end of the day, whilst legal on demand Internet streaming and download services, such as, iTunes, Spotify and Netflix are ever growing in popularity and value, the vast majority of performers still remain empty handed.”

The full statement is available for download below.

⇒ FAIR INTERNET COALITION STATEMENT TO EP EXCHANGE ON PROPOSED DIRECTIVE ON COPYRIGHT 11 JANUARY 2017.

 

The AEPO-ARTIS seminar, amongst other issues, took stock of the European Commission’s proposal For a Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market, which is now being discussed in trilogue between the Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission.

In this regard, the fair remuneration of performers from on-demand services (iTunes, Netflix, Spotify, …) was at the heart of the discussion.

Supported by the findings of the 2018 AEPO-ARTIS study drawing upon data from 26 countries, available on the AEPO-ARTIS website, the economic situation of performers has barely changed after the introduction of the exclusive making available right in the 2001 Copyright Directive. The right is generally transferred in buy-out contracts to producers, with only few famous performers managing to negotiate the payment of royalties.

For most performers, however, this right has not been effective in practice despite the exponential growth of on demand streaming and download services, such as Spotify, iTunes and Netflix, in popularity, revenue and value. Performers are missing out of their fair share in this value uplift.

This is reflected in the findings of the AEPO-ARTIS study where it can be seen that in 2005, collections in respect of on demand services were effectively zero and by 2017, the amount collected by collective management organisations still only amounted to less than 2% of total collections. The EU law designed to protect and adequately reward performers has therefore failed.

Xavier Blanc, Secretary General of AEPO-ARTIS, partner of the FAIR INTERNET campaign, which represents over 500,000 performers across Europe, said: “It is unacceptable that still today the majority of performers receive no remuneration from downloading /streaming services such as iTunes, Spotify, Netflix, … EU legislators must free performers from the trap of their contracts “.

AEPO-ARTIS is pleased that the concern of over 500.000 performers in Europe has finally been heard by the European Parliament which introduced a new article -14 to the draft Copyright Directive.

This article asserts the principle that all performers should be paid a fair and proportional remuneration for all modes of exploitation, including for on-demand uses, and sends a clear signal against persistent and unacceptable buy-out practices.

While the European Parliament, unfortunately, falls short of granting performers an unwaivable right to receive remuneration directly from service providers making their performances available on demand, it nevertheless encourages Member States to achieve this aim by way of statutory remuneration mechanisms.

“We are grateful to the members of the European Parliament who are trying to make a real difference to performers in Europe and create a fair and stable creative industry for those at the heart of the value chain” concluded Tilo Gerlach, President of AEPO-ARTIS. “Article -14 is a first step in the right direction towards more equitable remuneration of performers that will be secured from on demand services through collective management which will hopefully be endorsed in the coming weeks during the trilogue negotiations”.

For more information:

Visit www.aepo-artis.org or contact
Nicole.Schulze@aepo-artis.org
+32 487 25 09 51