Barriers on the Internet : copyright reform in a decisive Phase

Barriers to Internet
Copyright reform in a decisive Phase

The planned copyright reform in Germany has entered its decisive Phase.

In the legal Committee of the Bundestag several experts to word – including scientists, legal experts and representatives of authors, the media industry, as well as Internet platforms and their users reported on Monday.

You all requested – with different thrust – to Change the Details of the planned large-scale Reform. The Committee will review at a later date of a decision, recommendation, the Bundestag must decide on the Reform.

At the core of it is this: The copyright law should be more focused on the Internet tailored especially on platforms where users upload copyright-protected works, such as images, texts or Videos. In the case of non-compliance, the platforms are to be taken in the liability. With license models copyright are supposed to be financially involved in the value creation of such platforms.

It is also a matter of contract law for copyright and protection rights for the benefits of press publishers. Germany must have been implemented up to June, a corresponding EU Directive into national law.

The Initiative copyright represents authors and artists in Germany, in the Reform, by and Large, have great potential. Especially, the rights of authors and artists, which will directly have the compensation claims to be strengthened accordingly. Also, the information situation about their uses of works is improving.

Google’s Manager Sabine Frank said in the hearing, Youtube, parts of the interests of holders of rights, any copyright infringement bind on the platform. A System for license management (ContentID), the legal holder of the additional revenue could achieve but there already. Although Google understand to pay the objective of the draft law, authors and content creators directly. We fear, however, that the proposed process would hinder a quick and appropriate distribution to the Authors rather.

Frank was also critical to the design of self-citations and parodies of remuneration should be subject to. “This is incompatible with European and constitutional law, and attacks on non-acceptable manner in freedom of speech, of the press and the freedom of art.”

For Trouble in the media, Film and music industry had been developed in the past few months, a passage, with the Uploading of small excerpts of copyright-protected works on the Internet should be allowed platforms, the authors should receive compensation. Opponents stress that the EU provides for such a clause in their policy to do so. The Association society of the rights of freedom objected that the Federal government is set to the massive criticism from the industry, the size of the allowed cut-outs for the Upload down.

The managing Director of the Aschendorff Medien GmbH & co. KG, Eduard Hüffer, criticized, as representatives of the local and regional press to the passage, among others: “the press photos to be released is basically complete. Revenue opportunities affect these rights are solid.”

In March, the Federal Minister of justice Christine Lambrecht (SPD) had spoken at the first reading of the Reform in the Bundestag with a major challenge: to maintain freedom of communication in the network and to participate at the same time Creative how the creative economy is better to value creation in the digital space. “Great Upload platforms such as Youtube and Facebook are now responsible for all materials copyright, make them accessible,” said Lambrecht. With views of the users you added at the same time, new obligations of the platforms is not likely to cause that also allowed the content to be blocked.

dpa