TONO has been a member of CISAC since 1929. Here you can read CISAC President Jean-Michel Jarre's foreword to the organization's annual report, published on June 8.
/ 09/06/2017 / codexBy: Jean-Michel Jarre, President of CISAC, photo above: M. Kuenster
The foundation of our creative world is being rewritten today by the digital revolution. Never before have creators had access to so many ways to create and communicate their work. Never before has our work found such a large audience. This is a fantastic opportunity, and creators are embracing change in a big way. The digital world has empowered them, placing them at the very heart of the creative economy.
At the same time, the digital world has created new and urgent needs for creators around the world. Globalization has led to an ever-increasing concentration of technology giants, who with enormous power and influence want access to creative content – at a bargain price. They have enormous resources financially and in their lobbying. This means that today, more than ever before, creators need a voice with governments and decision-makers. CISAC’s annual report shows that creators’ voices are unique – and that they are being heard. As a global community, creators are creating change.
CISAC’s unquestionably most important priority today is the value transfer that takes place in the digital market. This is not tomorrow’s problem – it is a huge problem right now. It is being discussed in the European Parliament at the time of writing. CISAC has clear expectations that Europe will solve this problem. Fair value for the use of creative content must be channelled to those who have created it, and not to the digital platforms that exploit legal loopholes to make money from it.
Our campaign for a new inalienable right for audiovisual creators is also making important progress. Creators are working together on this campaign around the world, and we are seeing significant changes in countries like China and Chile as a result. Now we need to continue working on this in other parts of the world to make this issue global.
A campaign to establish a scheme that rewards visual artists when their works are resold (for example, via auction houses, editor's note) is also making progress. Visual artists are mobilizing all over the world, and we are also seeing that governments are increasingly on their side.
In all these cases, authors and CISAC have shown the way by becoming better at lifting together as a community. We set clear goals and put all our energy into achieving them together. In this way, authors will be part of the discussions and solutions for the future.
CISAC's annual report is a long but exciting read. Download it here (pdf, opens in a new window)
Visit CISAC's website by clicking here.
Read the story on TONO.no about the general meeting in Lisbon this week