A4-0255/96

Resolution on the Green Paper on copyright and related rights in the information society (COM(95)0382 - C4-0354/95)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to Articles 7a, 52 et seq., 59 et seq. and 100a of the EC Treaty,

- having regard to the Commission Green Paper on copyright and related rights in the information society (COM(95)0382 - C4-0354/95),

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Citizens' Rights and the opinions of Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy and Committee on Culture, Youth, Education and the Media (A4-0255/96),

A. whereas the European Union must urgently adopt a consistent approach to the issues of copyright and related rights in the information society in order to provide effective protection for the rights in question, at both Community and international level,

B. whereas it is a matter of the greatest importance and urgency to expand or revise the instruments designed to protect authors' rights in the context of the information society,

C. whereas the new system must be established in good time,

D. whereas the texts adopted so far, although they cannot cover every new aspect of the problem, are of a high quality and provide an indispensable starting point from which to seek solutions to a number of essential questions,

E. convinced that it is necessary to lay down guidelines and rules to achieve genuine European harmonization, which must remain open and able to adapt to rapid, unpredictable technical developments,

F. whereas it is essential that the harmonization process take account of a number of uniquely European features, such as the moral right of authors,

G. convinced that the provisions to be adopted in the area of copyright and related rights must also ensure the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms;

H. whereas the information society must develop with due regard for cultural and linguistic diversity, providing an appropriate level of accessibility for all,

1. Welcomes the work done by the Commission in defining and identifying the main aspects of copyright and related rights which should be given priority in the information society and hopes for further investigation of the issues discussed; considers, in particular, that it is necessary to find a correct balance between the defence of copyright and appropriate consideration for consumers;

2. Calls on the Commission to take due account of the legal aspects of the protection of copyright and related rights on the basis of the general principle that protection of such rights is the essential pre-condition for the harmonious development of the information society;

3. Draws attention to problems arising from the relationships between the traditional copyright of the author of a work of art and the new rights emerging with the development of information technology, and particularly the risk that the position of the author of the original work could be weakened;

4. Considers it essential and a matter of urgency to take measures to harmonize legislation on the legal basis of Articles 100a and 57 of the EC Treaty in order to remove obstacles to the operation of the Single Market in this sector;

5. Points out that it is important to attain a far-reaching and optimum level of harmonization at European level while respecting the principle of subsidiarity and taking due account of the cultural aspects of the information society in accordance with Article 128(4) of the EC Treaty;

6. Believes that the fundamental criterion should be that the legal protection given to a work must be effective, whatever the technology used for transmission;

7. Considers that the Commission should actively draw on developments in international forums, particularly by combining the conclusions reached during the consultation process with the proposals made in the World Trade Organization and the new problems relating to digital technology within the World Intellectual Property Organization, bodies in which the European Union should speak with one voice;

8. Advocates the systematic insertion, in bilateral agreements concluded between the Community and non-member countries, of clauses guaranteeing an equivalent level of protection of copyright and related rights in those countries and calls on the Commission to monitor their practical application;

9. Calls for greater attention to be given to issues such as protection of citizens' rights, confidentiality and the free circulation of information which may arise in the development of the information society;

10. Draws attention to the risks to users that may arise from the new technologies designed to contribute to the identification and protection of protected works and calls on the Commission to ensure that the application of such technologies is in conformity and compatible with the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens, and in particular their right to protection of privacy and of personal data;

11. Takes the view that it is necessary constantly to seek a correct balance between the protection of intellectual property and the general interest in such a way as to promote, as far as possible, citizens' rights to access to all information as a fundamental democratic right;

12. Calls on the institutions of the European Union and the Member States to take appropriate measures to enable citizens to have equal access to works and services deemed to be of public interest;

13. Considers it important, with reference to public libraries and services of public interest in general, to guarantee the application of specific standards, by analogy with those applying to books, in order to promote maximum dissemination for cultural and scientific purposes and to take account of the public service role of the establishments concerned;

14. Calls for consideration to be given to the general consequences arising from the relationship between the exclusive rights that form the core of copyright and of competition policy, with particular reference to the implications of the Court of Justice judgment in the Magill case ((Judgment of 6 April 1995 in Joined Cases C-241/91 and C-242/91.));

15. Takes the view that as far as the applicable law is concerned it is not possible to refer only to that which is in force in the country in which the service originates but that full account must be taken of the application of the law of the country of reception so as not to undermine the protection of works and, in particular, the substance of the laws and the way in which they are applied, and points out that any provisions concerning the applicable law must comply with the principle of legal certainty;

16. Takes the view that, as far as the right of reproduction is concerned, this can be applied, on the basis of the principle enshrined in Article 9 of the Berne Convention, to digitalization techniques;

17. Is of the opinion that further thought must be given to issues such as identifying the law applicable to the on-line dissemination of protected works, avoiding any general solution that conflicts with the relevant international texts, primarily the Berne Convention, the Rome Convention and TRIPS;

18. Agrees with the Commission's view on the inapplicability of the principle of exhaustion of Community rights to the dissemination of works incorporated in services subject to protection;

19. Draws attention to the need for careful consideration of the specific rights which are of importance in the information society, in the light of the consultation process, in order to identify, on the one hand, any new rights that should be accorded to authors and holders of related rights and, on the other, the appropriate legal position of rightholders involved in preparatory work and coordination when multimedia works are created;

20. Reminds the Commission of the principle that it is up to the author and holders of related rights to decide whether, and on what terms, to allow their works to be exploited on the basis of contractual licences;

21. Considers it essential for the moral right of authors to continue to be adopted as the distinctive feature of Community and Member States' legislation; believes that the option to exercise these rights personally should also be safeguarded;

22. Considers that careful consideration is needed in order to

- identify all the problems raised by networks such as the Internet;

- ascertain whether existing legislation in the various sectors concerned (e.g. personal data protection) is suitable for dealing with the specific nature of such networks;

- find effective solutions involving legislation, codes of conduct, international conventions or a combination of these measures;

23. Takes the view that, as regards the right to communicate to the public, the problem to be tackled is that of defining the use of this principle in the digital context, by clearly delimiting its scope, which is much more extensive than in the traditional context;

24. Believes that the right to communicate to the public must be given careful consideration and properly defined, as currently provided for in the Berne Convention, in order to make it applicable to all interactive digital transmissions;

25. Believes that the definition of television broadcasting must be broadened so as to include all types of transmission which, while activated by individual request, are potentially addressed to a mass public;

26. Is puzzled by the hypothesis of establishing a specific exclusive right for digital broadcasting, given that this could lead to solutions based on different approaches according to the transmission technology;

27. Calls on the Commission to give full consideration to the problems related to the holding of rights with a view to regulating them effectively following the changes that are in progress;

28. Deplores the fact that the decision-making procedure has still not resumed on the directive on private copying, which is indispensable to harmonize the rules which should govern, in each of the Member States, the tax to be levied on the various media used for duplication;

29. Calls on the Commission to follow as closely as possible, and if necessary propose the introduction of specific rules to regulate, technological developments designed to create systems for identifying and protecting protected works in order to facilitate procedures for acquiring rights; calls on the Council and the Commission, in parallel with the work in progress within the Council of Europe, to work towards the conclusion at international level of a multilateral agreement to combat piracy; stresses that technical identification systems will facilitate the normal exploitation of digital works and help to counter piracy, and emphasizes the value of public research into copyright management information and of international standards acceptable to all the parties concerned;

30. Considers that studies and experiments should be launched with a view to exploring the possibility of adopting electronic systems for identifying works which might make the collective and individual management of rights an attractive option, given that the accessibility of content to the public depends on the rationalization of the rules for acquiring and managing those rights, which nevertheless must not cancel out the individual responsibility of rightholders;

31. Considers that the 'one-stop shop' could also be a useful instrument, while warning against the attendant risks;

32. Considers that the growing and independent role of collective copyright management companies must be strengthened and defined without giving rise to distortions of the rules of competition and whilst preserving complete transparency;

33. Asserts the need for harmonized common rules in national legislation that provide for civil and criminal penalties for those who produce, market, possess, use, manufacture, sell or install devices or who offer, solicit, advertise or perform services capable of rendering systems of protection ineffective.

34. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council and the governments of the Member States.