New Artist Announcement: Here is TONO's input

The Storting has asked the government to prepare an artist report that will review artist policy measures to see how they meet today's artist practice and artist economy. The goal is to form a basis for designing relevant measures for the future. TONO has submitted a consultation contribution where we outline some of the most important elements we believe the artist report must include. You can read TONO's contribution here.

The cultural and creative sectors are of great importance to the European and Norwegian economies. A 2014 survey conducted by EY on behalf of 15 music organisations concluded that the creative and cultural sector employs 7 million Europeans, five times more than the telecommunications sector. In Norway too, the creative and cultural industries will be of great value in the years and decades to come.

The value gap

TONO's members have in common that they create music and lyrics for music. For this professional group, good copyright frameworks that protect their ideal and economic interests are absolutely crucial. The new Copyright Act from 2018 is good, but we still face significant challenges in the area of ​​copyright on the Internet. Under the cover of safe harbor exceptions in the e-commerce directive from 2001, user-generated services have long claimed to be exempt from liability for the content that users upload, share and consume on the services. The companies behind them claim that they do not need to enter into ordinary licensing agreements with the rights holders' organizations, and therefore do not share their revenues with creators in a fair manner.

TONO, together with our sister societies in Finland and Denmark, is behind an annual survey on music habits in the Nordic countries. The survey from 2018 showed that 69 percent of Norwegians now use YouTube as a music service, and 25 percent Facebook. Enormous amounts of music are used on these services without following ordinary copyright principles. Consequently, the creators do not get their fair share of this internet economy. (Read the survey here: https://www.tono.no/ny-undersokelse-9-av-10-nordmenn-streamer-na-musikk/)

The EU's work on a new copyright directive has been ongoing since 2016, and it is expected that a final vote in the EU Parliament will take place in the spring of 2019. Article 13 in the latest draft of the directive text places responsibility on the services and, if adopted, will mean that a broken area of ​​the internet economy can be put into order. At the time of writing, it is far from certain that this article will be given a final form that is suitable for creating a good framework for authors. TONO encourages the Norwegian authorities to work to ensure that ordinary copyright principles will also cover user-generated services. We believe that this is crucial for authors' ability to assert their interests and to be able to obtain their fair and just shares of the internet economy.

Low Norwegian shares

TONO works for both Norwegian and foreign authors in Norwegian territory and therefore has no role in working for the Norwegian repertoire at the expense of foreign ones. Nevertheless, it is natural to draw the attention of the Ministry of Culture to the fact that the share of Norwegian-written music in streaming services is less than 15 percent. In comparison, the Norwegian share of CDs sold in the period around 2000/2001 was close to 50 percent. Little Norwegian music is also used in Norwegian broadcasting, and the transition to DAB also means that requirements for Norwegian shares are reduced. TONO refers here to the consultation input from NOPA, the Norwegian Composers' Association, Gramart, and Creo.

Protecting the collective management model

TONO is a cooperative owned and managed by Norwegian authors. Since its establishment in 1928, collective management has proven to be the authors' best tool for asserting themselves in meetings with music users - broadcasters, media companies, concert organizers, etc. The model is also positive for music users, as with TONO they receive one license to be able to play both Norwegian and foreign music. Collective management also forms the basis for other organizations within the music and cultural life, such as Gramo, Norwaco, Kopinor, etc. In an increasingly fragmented time, authors are dependent on the collective model being protected, also by the Norwegian authorities.

The private copying fee must be increased.

The InfoSoc Directive from 2001 states that countries that have allowed for the legal private copying of intellectual property in their national legislation must have a scheme that ensures fair compensation to rightholders for the lost income that private copying entails. In Norway, the compensation is provided through the state budget, and the funds are distributed collectively through the Sound and Image Fund and individually through Norwaco, and further via TONO, to rightholders in musical works. Copying is carried out on a large scale, and has increased since the private copying scheme was established in 2005. With the new Copyright Act, which came into force on 1 July 2018, the private copying scheme has been expanded to also include literary and visual works. It is positive that more artist groups will benefit from compensation for private copying, but it is problematic that the state budget (Chapter 337, item 70 – Prop 1 S (2018-19)) did not increase the financial level of the scheme at the same time. In practice, this means a reduction for authors in the field of music. It is necessary to rectify this, and to set guidelines for future allocations to the scheme that strengthens the position of music authors. At a time when streaming services have led to an economy where a few winners make a good profit from music, and where many have small incomes, the private copying scheme can be an important tool for strengthening the author economy in Norway.

Rights in Norwegian hands

The Norwegian music industry has been growing in recent years. Norwegian authors, musicians and artists are increasingly gaining an international audience. TONO's foreign income in 2018 was NOK 79,3 million. This represents growth of 162,6 percent over the past five years. If the Norwegian music economy is to continue this growth, it is necessary that authors, musicians, artists and music publishers do not move their businesses and rights to foreign companies. We believe that an active business policy must be pursued within the music field that has this in mind. The industry and authorities must work together to develop measures to keep Norwegian rights in Norwegian hands. This can create jobs and help the industry grow. Measures may involve funds, support and scholarship schemes and cultural VAT. We encourage dialogue with the music industry in this work.

Maintain the width

An active music life at the grassroots level must be stimulated, and a good apparatus of instruments is necessary. Good arenas are needed for musicians to grow in and where authors can have their works performed. This includes everything from a focus on cultural schools to a policy that strengthens the organizing field. A European study, reported by ballade.no on April 25, 2018 (http://www.ballade.no/sak/norsk-klubbstotte-pa-bunn-i-europa/) states that Norwegian venues are at the bottom of Europe when it comes to support for year-round concert activities. Only Spain and Germany have a lower percentage of support for organizers as a share of total income. Norwegian Concert Organizers stated in the article that “Year-round organizers are the springboard for many artists (…) You can’t travel without getting practice on a stage”. We encourage the development of a policy that helps Norwegian music life to flourish and grow, both on the author, performer and organizer side.