Category presumption

In July 2017, the European People's Party (EPP) had adopted a joint position that fully endorses the Commission's plan for the introduction of an ancillary copyright for press publishers (link tax). But this has not changed the fact that party members are against this new right and actively try to prevent it. With MEP Svoboda, a very influential one has publicly renewed his criticism. Read more

Within the EU Parliament's Legal Committee (JURI), the discussions about the Commission's proposal for a new copyright directive are still dragging on. However, with MEP Axel Voss (EVP, Germany) as the Committee's rapporteur it is very likely that the terrible idea of an ancillary copyright for press publications a.k.a. the link tax will be supported. But the situation looks completely different in the EU Council where the number of varying opinions on this topic could hardly be any larger. Read more

Now that is some good news! An independent study reviewing the publisher's right a.k.a. link tax that had been requested by the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) has just been published this week. It confirms once and for all what we and others were saying for quite some time now: the link tax will be harmful and should therefore be abandoned right away. Read more

Summer break is over. Statewatch has leaked a compromise proposal from the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the European Union to the EU Commission's initial proposal for a directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market. When it comes to Article 11 containing the ancillary copyright for press publishers, the Presidency does not come up with only one but with two completely different proposals. Read more