Photo: istockphoto.com
The battle over the value gap is intensifying. Next week, the EU Parliament will vote on a new copyright directive. TONO's umbrella organization, CISAC, is now calling on the EU to take responsibility.
/ 22/03/2019 / Kristian DugstadThe battle over the value gap is intensifying. Next week, the EU Parliament will vote on a new copyright directive. TONO's umbrella organization, CISAC, is now calling on the EU to take responsibility.
Text: Kristian Dugstad / TONO
Photo: iStock
International technology giants are currently making billions of kroner from music. Those who own the music are paid little or nothing. This is called the value gap, and is due to a loophole in EU legislation.
Read more about what the value gap is here: A gaping copyright hole – TONO.
Organizations representing copyright holders have long attempted to close the value gap, and negotiations on a new copyright directive for the digital area have been taking place in the EU since 2016. It will be decided next week.
– There have been many obstacles along the way, but now we have finally reached the moment of truth. When the EU Parliament meets from Monday to Thursday next week, they will vote yes or no to the new copyright directive, says Inger Elise Mey, Department Director of Online Media at TONO.
Mey has active roles in both the European TONO companies' lobbying organization GESAC and the international umbrella organization CISAC. She sits on a legal expert group that has assessed the various drafts of the new directive.
CISAC, of which artist and musician Jean-Michel Jarre is president, sent a letter to EU bodies this week, urging them to vote yes, thereby laying the foundation for fair conditions for authors worldwide.
- For years, artists have been struggling to obtain fair remuneration for the use of their works online. While major digital platforms have benefited hugely, the creators of these works have been the last party to share in their commercial success. The new Directive is an important step towards correcting this imbalance and bringing fairness to the internet.
If the EU Parliament votes in favor of the new directive, user-generated platforms, such as YouTube and Facebook, will be responsible for the music content on their websites.
– Until now, they have claimed to be irresponsible, and refused to pay for the lion's share of the music content that users upload to the platforms. With the new copyright directive, the loophole in EU law disappears, and TONO can negotiate new, fair agreements that benefit our members financially.
