Brussels, 16/06/2015 (Agence Europe) - Even though she regrets that certain “problematic” amendments were retained, Julia Reda MEP (Greens/EFA, Germany) welcomed the broad consensus reached by the European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee, which adopted her report on copyright on Tuesday 16 June (see EUROPE 11298).
The vote had been preceded by a very intense debate, with more than 550 amendments having being submitted. The MEP explained: “I'm very happy that we have managed the impossible to adopt a report in favour of a copyright reform with an extremely broad majority”. The report received the support of all political groups (23 for) only the Front National voted against (with 2 votes), “which is really a perfect result, judging where we come from, with extremely controversial discussions” held upstream, explained the Pirate Party MEP.
The report goes further than the European Commission in its digital single market strategy with regard to users' and consumers' rights. It therefore stipulates that copyright reform is essential, not just for reaching the objectives in favour of the digital single market but also to promote access for all citizens to knowledge and information. With regard to geo-blocking, for example, the Commission only considers it for pay-on-demand services. Moreover, the report calls for an end to geo-blocking for all content, including public content. The rapporteur believes that this is about providing a balanced framework that up until now was just devised for those having copyright but which failed to take into account the rights of consumers.
Another novelty can be illustrated in the fact that the Reda report proposes a raft of copyright exemptions so that it is adapted to the digital environment. It strongly opposes, for example, technical or contractual restrictions on content. It is also proposing to enhance protection in the public domain by facilitating the lending of digital books or content in libraries. Julia Reda regrets, however, the adoption of certain amendments, such as the one demanding that the commercial use of images of public buildings is still subject to authorisation. She criticised this as being “completely obsolete” and is hoping that the amendment will not go through at the plenary vote. The MEP also regrets that the provisions for more flexible legislation, which will help take into account future technological developments, such as those called for by all member states to respect exemptions, did not obtain a sufficient majority to get through.
The vote on the report during the plenary session has been set for 9 July. If it is adopted, “the European Commission is expected to be more ambitious and not just think of the market but also of users”, concluded Julia Reda. The European Commission proposal on copyright is expected before the end of the year. (Isabelle Lamberty)