Brussels, 03/07/2013 (Agence Europe) - On 27 June, the European Commission welcomed the adoption of the Marrakesh Treaty which will facilitate access to printed works for the blind, visually impaired and print disabled people. Michel Barnier, Commissioner for the Internal Market said that “for a long time this community has been denied its right to knowledge and culture on the same footing as anyone else… We have taken a major step in the right direction”.
Negotiators from across the globe met last week in Marrakesh under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and adopted a new treaty that provides fresh impetus to access of millions of visually impaired and print disabled people to printed texts and books. This treaty is the culmination of several years of work to improve the access of this group of people to accessible formats such as braille, large print and audio. The treaty aims to rectify the “book shortage” by obliging contracting parties to adopt provisions into their national legislation that will allow (thanks to limitations and exceptions to the rights of copyright holders) for the reproduction, distribution and provision in accessible formats of published documents. It also concerns the cross-border trade in these accessible format documents by organisations providing services to the blind, visually impaired and print disabled. It will help harmonise copyright limitations and exemptions so that these organisations will be able to carry on their activities internationally. Currently, definition of authorised limitations and exceptions on copyright is decided by the different countries themselves. In practice, however, the limitations and exceptions included in national legislations vary significantly. This treaty will also guarantee authors and publishers that their work is not subject to abusive use or distributed to parties other than those for whom they are intended. The treaty will come into force after it is ratified by 20 WIPO member states that agree to observe the provisions in the treaty. (IL/transl.fl)