AEPO-ARTIS representing collective management organisations for performers in Europe welcomes the European Commission’s work and reflections on issues related to Europe’s digital economy and in particular its creative and cultural aspects. On 17 May, Commissioner Neelie Kroes unveiled a report before specific proposals for a European digital agenda initiative are presented under the upcoming ‘Europe 2020’ strategy.

The report gives detailed economic data and makes recommendations for further developing ICT infrastructures through which content could be best delivered to citizens all over Europe. Music and film streaming or downloading services should be shaped in a way that they would be easy to use, technologically efficient and offer a large repertoire of copyrighted content, while at the same time providing fair remuneration for the concerned musicians, singers, actors.

Today, the situation of performers in the online and mobile sector is starkly clear, says the Commission: “The average remuneration of a main performer for a music download at € 0,99 is no more than € 0,04; as for all other performers, they simply do not receive any specific remuneration for the commercial use of their musical or audiovisual performances on demand. And there is no sign that the situation will change, unless strong policy measures are taken.”

In this context, AEPO-ARTIS is calling for the introduction at European level of:

- a specific measure for on-demand services that would enable performers, even after the transfer of their exclusive right for the making available of performances on demand, to enjoy an unwaivable right to equitable remuneration to be collected from users and managed by performers’ collecting societies;

- a legal obligation for commercial users and producers to make accessible to collective management organisations, on a free access basis, such complete and accurate information as is necessary to enable collective management organisations to identify all performers having participated in a given performance.

Story filed 23.05.10