Category Creative Commons

The ancillary copyright for press publishers is more and more often covered by German media recently. However, the choice of words differs tremendously: While conservative media worship the Holy Günther as their patron saint, the innovators identify the major risks deriving from his proposal and discuss them. Read more

Canada is infected. It took some time but now it is there. The very persistent thought that already overran Germany and Spain and is currently trying to subdue the European Union. Its name: Ancillary copyright for press publishers – or just the link tax. Read more

Yesterday, I was invited to speak at a public debate in the Press Club in Brussels. Main topic was the Commission’s proposal on the ancillary copyright. What I heard was a bunch of lies and a good measure of ignorance. Read more

After countless hours of work our new brochure "Ancillary Copyright for press publishers – Background and key issues" has arrived! It is easy to read and answers all relevant questions regarding an Ancillary Copyright for press publishers (AC). You can download it here for free. Read more

It is always a great thing when politicians join the public discussion. Yesterday, EU-Commissioner Günther Oettinger tried to defend his proposal on an ancillary copyright for press publishers on Twitter. But what he let loose was enough to drive one to despair.

Read more

EU-Commissioner Günther Oettinger gave a speech last Monday at the annual meeting of the Federation of German Newspaper Publishers (BDZV). There he explicitly called on the publishing houses to create more buzz in favor of his proposed ancillary copyright for press publishers/neighbouring right/link tax meaning he wants them to shush down their online magazines. Read more

Two weeks ago, Communia together with EDRi held the event "Copyright reform – unlocking copyright for users?" in the European Parliament. It was hosted by MEPs Comodini Cachia (EPP) and Carlos Zorrinho (S&D). Several represantatives of digital rights' organizations, publishers, creative industries, collecting societies and artists took part and discussed the future of copyright. Film maker Sebastiaan ter Burg asked some of the experts from civil society organizations for their view on the current copyright reform and later created this nice short video to show their answers: Read more

Today, the EU Commission has published its plans on introducing an ancillary copyright for basically any press publisher lasting a little over 20 years. Glyn Moody wrote an article published by ArsTechnika UK criticizing the draft. Read more

Finally it is out: The draft for the new Digital Single Market Directive (DSM directive). The result is even worse than we expected it from the recently leaked preliminary draft document. Whereas the wish list of the press publishers gets ultimately fulfilled in the slightly changed final version, the public interest falls even more behind. Read more

We are pleased to announce Allied for Startups as our newest supporter! The worldwide network of advocacy organizations focuses on improving the policy environment for startups to grow digital entrepreneurship and digital economy at large. They are the voice of startups. That is why, besides many other things, they have opened an office in Brussels last year with Lenard Koschwitz as the new director for European Affairs. As an ancillary copyright for press publishers is a great threat to startups, we could not be happier to have Allied for Startups by our side.

Yesterday we informed you about most of the downsides – there are not really upsides – of the leaked draft for a new EU copyright directive. There is particularly one more thing to be added: The #creatorgate clause. Read more

We have just received the draft proposal of the European Commission for a new copyright directive. It shall complement – i.e. in general not amend – other directives inter alia the InfoSoc directive from 2001. As it had to be expected from the Impact Assessment that was leaked last week, the draft reads like an answer to the wish list of the publishing industry. Here comes a first assessment.

  Read more

Yesterday, Statewatch leaked a draft version of the Impact Assessment (IA) report for the upcoming copyright reform. Concerning the area of publisher’s rights it leaves a devastating impression. The authors of the IA suggest introducing a new ancillary/neighbouring right for news publishers with a broad scope. And they make it sound like this would be an obvious and particularly good choice.

  Read more

Eco, the German Association of Internet Industry, looks back on three disastrous years with an ancillary copyright for press publishers: Not only do they strongly reject this particular ancillary copyright, but also do they urgently warn against a European attempt. Read more

Last Wednesday, the European Commission's consultation "on the role of publishers in the copyright value chain and on the 'panorama exception'" came to an end. And so has the #FixCopyright campaign by Copyright for Creativity (C4C). An incredible number of 2819 people have used the answering tool. All the answers have already been transfered to the Commission. Read more

Today, June 15 2016, the European Commission’s “Public consultation on the role of publishers in the copyright value chain and on the 'panorama exception' (http://ancillarycopyright.eu/news/2016-03-23/commission-launches-public-consultation) ends. It introduces a new euphemism into the debate on publisher’s rights: The “neighbouring right for publishers”. Sounds harmless enough, does it not? Yet, this new angle is far from harmless. On the contrary, this “neighbouring right” is in fact more dangerous than an ancillary copyright for press publishers (AC) alone could ever be. It’s an AC on steroids.Getting rid of the infamous term “ancillary copyright for press publishers” in favour of a more generic “neighbouring right for publishers” is a crafty trick that seeks to distance this new consultation from the fundamentally failed German and Spanish approaches to copyright for press publishers. The re-phrasing aims to make us believe that a “neighbouring right” will not have massive detrimental effects on Internet communication, searching and linking and other key aspects of the digital world. Read more

There are two new websites (links below) regarding the creation of a new ancillary or neighbouring right for (press) publishers in the EU answering all the relevant questions digital entrepreneurs, startups and publishers might have. The aim is to inform these groups what a negativ impact such a right would have on them and their business. Also provided are two open letters you can sign to sperak out against these rights. The sites are available in English, French, Polish, German, Italian and Spanish. Check them out and spread the word!

The NGO La Quadrature du Net that promotes digital rights and freedoms of citizens has positioned itself clearly against a new "publisher's right" the EU Commission is suggesting in its still ongoing consultation on the role of publishers in the copyright value chain and on the 'panorama exception'. Read more