There is a lot going on at the moment with regard to how artistic works are treated. This is a brief round-up of Copyright and Intellectual property links which should interest writers. The issue of approach to Copyright Reform and how leaders seek to deal with issues of copyright is evidently of great importance. The artistic community should involve itself at every level of discussion as Intellectual property and the right to Freedom of Speech are a part of the issue. These areas have always interested the PEN International Community of Writers.
The Copyright Review Committee 2012 has closed to submissions. The terms of reference for the review have been published and linked on the Irish PEN site for some time, and we’d like to thank members and associates who have followed the issue . This link will bring readers to the .pdf of the published terms of reference for the Copyright Review Committee 2012. The Cearta website continously updated on the issue of Copyright Reform throughout the DJEI Submission Process . Copyrightreform.ie submitted a paper based in consultation and comment using an Opensource WordPress Website and encouraged people to think about the issues and headings that were proposed by DJEI. The entire submission by CopyrightReform.ie is available here.
Ireland’s business and artistic communities submitted to the CRC12 using a variety of means including surveys, website discussions and media. Those involved in highlighting the issue of what is believed to be an extensive reform process include Silicon Republic , Internet service Providers of Ireland , Cearta , CopyrightReform.ie , Irish Internet Association . The full list of submissions to the CRC12 will be published and should reflect a diversity of interests in what is an extremely complex area from the artistic standpoint.
ACTA. 4th July 2012: EU Parliament rejects ACTA. (ISPAI)
“This morning the EU Parliament voted to reject ACTA. The result was 478 MEPs voted against ACTA, 39 were in favour of adopting it and there were 165 abstentions. Despite 22 EU member states including Ireland having signed the Agreement, this vote means it cannot now be ratified by any EU country. ISPAI recognises the need for international agreements to protect business from counterfeit goods and to deter piracy of copyrighted works but ACTA had a poorly thought out one size fits all approach (due to online copyright piracy being shoe-horned in at a later stage) which was simply not practical for the Internet environment. Key issues for MEPs were lack of clarity defining scale for online piracy and protection of users fundamental rights. While ISPs would agree with such principles, industry had practical concerns that ACTA appeared to require ISPs to provide customer data to rights-holders and to impose sanctions against alleged infringing customers without court involvement.”
Read about ACTA here
Orphan Works (Techdirt.com)
“Orphan works (or maybe that should be “hostage works“) have become a really hot area in the copyright debate. That’s because increasing numbers of people have realized how insane the current situation is whereby millions of older works, that are out of print and have no obvious owners, remain locked away because of copyright. This has led to various proposals around the world to liberate them, while still protecting the copyright holders if they later appear and assert ownership.
Among these is the European Union’s Orphan Works Directive. Given the size of the EU and the huge number of cultural artifacts that could be freed up by the right kind of legislation, this is potentially a big deal, particularly in terms of allowing works to be digitized and used in new contexts.”
From Techdirt.com
Declaration of Internet Freedom
“We believe that a free and open Internet can bring about a better world. To keep the Internet free and open, we call on communities, industries and countries to recognize these principles. We believe that they will help to bring about more creativity, more innovation and more open societies.
We are joining an international movement to defend our freedoms because we believe that they are worth fighting for.
Let’s discuss these principles — agree or disagree with them, debate them, translate them, make them your own and broaden the discussion with your community — as only the Internet can make possible.”