Forwarded from the digital-copyright listserv:
> -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: IPJ News: Consumers Rally at EU Today Against Dangerous IP > Enforcement Directive > Date: Mon, 08 Mar 2004 01:11:22 -0800 > From: IP Justice Newsletter <annou...@ipjustice.org> > Organization: IP Justice > To: newslet...@ipjustice.org > > IP Justice Newsletter ~ 8 March 2004 > > Consumers Rally at EU Today Against Dangerous IP Enforcement Directive > Artists Claim Law Will Not Help Them and Will Harm Consumers > > Consumers, artists, and representatives of civil liberties groups from > across Europe will join together today in Strasbourg, France to > demonstrate against the controversial European Union Intellectual > Property Rights Enforcement Directive. > > The proposed directive is scheduled for debate and a final vote in the > European Parliament tomorrow, 9 March, and threatens to become EU law > two days later. > > The enforcement directive has been widely criticized for its lack of > balance and over-broad scope, since it treats individuals who engage in > unintentional non-commercial infringements the same as if they were > major commercial counterfeiters. > > Sponsored by a broad coalition of consumer groups, today's rally takes > place outside the EU Parliament in Strasbourg between 4:30-6:30pm as > MEPs enter the building for the evening's debate. Rally organizers > include members of the Campaign for an Open Digital Environment (CODE), > including the European Digital Rights Initiative (EDRi), the Foundation > for Information Policy Research (FIPR), the Foundation for a Free > Information Infrastructure (FFII), IP Justice and others. > > Consumer groups aim to convince MEPs to either reject the bloated > directive or to vote for amendments that would reduce it's danger to > ordinary consumers for non-commercial infringements. > > "The proposed directive would allow recording industry executives to > privately invade the homes of P2P file-sharers in order to gather > evidence for civil prosecutions," said Robin Gross, Executive Director > of IP Justice, an international civil liberties organization that > promotes balanced intellectual property laws. > > Popular artists have spoken out against this directive and it's backers' > > claim that it protects creators: > > "Prosecuting fans who share music files in order to prevent piracy is > like outlawing sex to prevent pregnancy," said Michael Franti, leader of > > the acclaimed hip-hop band Spearhead. "I do not support the spirit of > this legislation because it does more to punish fans than it does to > help artists and labels adjust to the expansive future of the electronic > > revolution. Fans, labels and artists alike are going to need to make > changes in the way we buy, sell and market music, but the draconian > nature of these laws is more of an attack on civil liberties than it is > a solution to the changing times we are living in." > > "The EU Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Directive has nothing > to do with protecting the interest of artists, or at least the > overwhelming majority of us," stated Italian rock/folk musician Alberto > Cottica. "Rather, it seems like an effective tool to protect major > recording companies, and it was these 'majors,' not artists, lobbying > for it," added Cottica, a member of the band Fiamma Fumana and > previously with the Modena City Ramblers, an Italian recording group who > > has sold over 350,000 albums world-wide. > > First introduced in January 2003 by the EU Commission, the proposed EU > IP Rights Enforcement Directive was placed on a fast-track approval > process by French MEP and the directive's Rapporteur Janelly Fourtou. > Fourtou is married to the CEO of one of the worlds largest music > companies, Vivendi-Universal and will directly profit from this > proposal's adoption. Fourtou has pushed for its adoption through a > rarely used "First Reading" emergency procedure, rather than permit it > to be fully debated in the usual "Second Reading" procedure. > > "As an artist, I am vehemently opposed to the European Union > Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Directive," exclaimed John > Perry Barlow, song writer for the Grateful Dead and co-founder of the > Electronic Frontier Foundation. "Before imposing this directive, I hope > > the European Union will stop to consider who really benefits from it. If > > it is intended that artists and creators be compensated, if it is > intended that culture be enriched, and that the right both to speak and > to hear will be preserved, then this directive should never become > European law," added the lyricist who wrote over a quarter of the songs > for the Grateful Dead, the most popular touring band in the US. > > "The primary rationale for enacting the enforcement directive is > supposed to be the reduction of distortions in the EU Single Internal > Market by reducing disparities between national laws," declared MEP > Marco Cappato, who has tabled 5 amendments to the directive in order to > protect consumers from its excesses. "However, this rationale does not > apply to unintentional or non-commercial scale acts of infringement. > Given the differences in Member States' copyright and related right > laws, and trademark laws, there are significant differences as to which > acts constitute infringement under different national laws. For > instance, when consumers create an MP3 copy of an audio CD that they > have purchased and burn it on to a CD-ROM for personal use in their > cars, this may be infringement in one Member State, but not in another. > Furthermore, small businesses that in good faith use software that is > later alleged to infringe copyright should not be targeted in the same > way as commercial counterfeiters. Accordingly, it is appropriate to > harmonise enforcement only at the level of intentional commercial > infringement, since it is the only standard that is common across Member > > States, and is the relevant focus for removal of distortions within the > Internal Market," explained MEP Cappato of the Italian Radical party. > > Immediately after the plenary debate on the directive and just before > its final vote on 9 March from 11:30-12:00, CODE coalition members will > hold a press conference at the EU Press Facility in Strasbourg together > with Cappato and other MEPs who support narrowing the directive's scope > to commercial infringements. > > > More Information: > > CODE Rally Info: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/rally.shtml > > Campaign for an Open Digital Environment (CODE): > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE > > Text of Proposed EU IP Rights Enforcement Directive: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/021604.html > > Alberto Cottica Statement: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/cottica_stmt.html > > Michael Franti Statement: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/Franti_stmt.html > > John Perry Barlow Statement: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/Barlow_stmnt.html > > Word doc of all 3 Artist Statements: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/artist_opposition.doc > > IP Justice's Top 8 Reasons to Reject the EU IP Rights Enforcement > Directive: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/release20040302_en.shtml#top8 > > MEP Marco Cappato Declaration: > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/Cappato_Declaration.html > > FIPR/Cappato Amendments: > http://www.ffii.org.uk/ip_enforce/andreas2.html > http://www.ipjustice.org/CODE/FIPR_Cappato_Amendments.doc > > > IP Justice is an international civil liberties organization that > promotes balanced intellectual property laws. IP Justice defends > consumer rights to use digital media worldwide and is a non-profit > organization based in San Francisco. IP Justice was founded in 2002 by > Robin Gross, who serves as its Executive Director. To learn more about > IP Justice, visit the website at http://www.ipjustice.org. --- You are currently subscribed to mcn_mcn-l as: rlancefi...@mail.wesleyan.edu To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-mcn_mcn-l-12800...@listserver.americaneagle.com
