EUOBSERVER / CREATIVE RIGHTS FOCUS - With digital publishing fast-becoming a multibillion euro market in the EU, artists, consumers, publishers and computer companies have taken off the gloves in a fight on regulation. In this special focus, EUobserver examines upcoming EU legislation in the sector and talks to the key players.
02.05.2008 - 09:14 CET
The EUobserver sits down with the heads of the European Federation of Journalists, the International Federation of Journalists and Marianne Mikko, the Estonian MEP behind a new report on media pluralism in Europe to discuss the media landscape in Europe, and how, according to them, new technologies and media ownership concentration are transforming European democracy - and not always to the good.
See more >
José Manuel Barroso, Nana Mouskouri, Katalin Lévai, Ruth Hieronymi and many others discuss the future of European online music.
Video speeches and
photos are available online.
10.04.2008 - 17:39 CET
In defiance of the major music companies and film industry, the European Parliament has voted against punishing alleged file-sharers by shutting off their internet connection, an idea that has been pushed by both the record labels and French President Nicolas Sarkozy over the last year.
See more >
08.04.2008 - 18:00 CET
Search engines should not hold on to personal data at the end of six months due to privacy concerns, the European Commission's data protection watchdog has recommended in a report.
See more >
11.03.2008 - 17:36 CET
The European Commission on Tuesday approved the €2 billion takeover of online advertsing firm Double Click by search engine giant Google without conditions. It said its decision was based strictly on antitrust worries as data privacy concerns from MEPs and consumer groups about the acquisition were not part of its mandate.
See more >
07.03.2008 - 17:29 CET
A €2 billion takeover by US-based search engine giant Google, of online advertising firm DoubleClick, is set to be approved unconditionally by European antitrust regulators, according to three people close to the case. Data protection advocates worry however that the takeover will create a "data collection colossus".
See more >
15.02.2008 - 09:29 CET
Singers and musicians could almost double the period during which they can collect royalty fees, following the announcement of commission intentions to introduce proposals on the extension of copyright protection for performing artists.
See more >
12.02.2008 - 07:06 CET
If culture were to fall under commercial law, then protection of cultural diversity could be regarded more and more as an obstacle to the single market, warns German MEP Ruth Hieronymi, who is calling on the European Commission to ensure that the UNESCO convention is properly implemented.
See more >
29.01.2008 - 17:42 CET
In a major set-back to the European record industry, the European Court of Justice has ruled that internet service providers do not have to hand over the names of file-sharers in civil cases.
See more >
29.01.2008 - 09:11 CET
China, the largest source of pirated goods seized at EU borders, is moving toward co-operation with the EU on the exchange of data between ports and the development of an action plan on intellectual property rights.
See more >
25.01.2008 - 17:16 CET
With sales of compact discs across Europe in free-fall, the record industry has called on the EU to follow French president Nicolas Sarkozy's lead and force internet service providers to disconnect customers who illegally download music.
See more >
25.01.2008 - 17:58 CET
UEFA president and former French football star Michel Platini has made a passionate plea for preserving the exclusivity of football and sport across EU regulations, arguing the game is a vital cog in the process of social and cultural integration for Europe.
See more >
11.01.2008 - 17:51 CET
The European Commission has launched a public consultation on the future of funding for state broadcasters. The consultation marks the start of a review of the sector that, amongst other things, hopes to see a "limitation of state aid".
See more >
09.01.2008 - 17:39 CET
High-level discussions between Apple CEO Steve Jobs and commissioner Neelie Kroes have resulted in Apple matching UK iTunes prices with those of eurozone iTunes shops, but consumers still will not have access to the same songs across Europe.
See more >
09.01.2008 - 10:56 CET
The newly launched 'European Year of Intercultural Dialogue' has been criticised by personalities in the field of culture who say that the European Commission's sudden interest in cultural pluralism is at odds with its own day-to-day policy-making.
See more >
04.01.2008 - 09:22 CET
The European Commission announced Thursday that it is looking to create a single market in online music, films and games in Europe, but has indicated it will avoid taking the legislative route.
See more >
09.12.2007 - 08:11 CET
José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, has said that the commission will not make a far-reaching decision on the future of the online music market in the short term, adding that more time is needed to find an appropriate solution.
See more >
03.12.2007 - 17:40 CET
The European Commission is currently not drawing up any binding rules to regulate the online music market, despite repeated calls by the European Parliament.
See more >
30.11.2007 - 09:25 CET
The European Union has rubberstamped new EU-wide rules on media services, relaxing TV advertising restrictions and allowing 'product placement' in television shows.
See more >
21.11.2007 - 17:44 CET
The European Commission is ignoring the economic potential of cultural issues, focusing too much on standard industry policies and not enough on creative industries, say experts.
See more >
16.11.2007 - 17:41 CET
The recording industry has called on the European Commission to do more on the massive Chinese music piracy problem, two weeks ahead of the EU-China summit.
See more >
15.11.2007 - 17:37 CET
In a bid to force the Dutch government to reduce the burden of levies on CD-R and DVD-R sales in the Netherlands, Imation Europe, a manufacturer of data storage products, has taken its complaint against the Dutch copyright levy system to the European Commission.
See more >
14.11.2007 - 09:12 CET
New EU rules allowing the placement of products in TV programmes could be signed off by the end of the year following agreement by MEPs in the culture committee earlier this week.
See more >
30.10.2007 - 17:37 CET
The European Commission is being questioned over its decision earlier this month to approve a merger between Sony and Bertelsmann's music divisions named Sony BMG Music Entertainment.
See more >
09.10.2007 - 09:28 CET
Independent music labels are challenging what they call the dominance of the Universal Music Group and call on the European Commission to examine the sale of some publishing assets of the largest business group in the recording industry.
See more >
04.10.2007 - 09:33 CET
The EU's competition authority has for the second time approved a merger between Sony and Bertelsmann's music divisions named Sony BMG Music Entertainment – making it the world's second biggest music company.
See more >
18.09.2007 - 17:44 CET
Shortly after their legal victory over software giant Microsoft, European Commission anti-trust officials are targeting Apple's online music store iTunes and major record companies over allegations they charge EU consumers different prices depending on their country of purchase.
See more >
25.07.2007 - 17:16 CET
The music industry has reacted with anger after the UK government refused to pursue at EU level a longer copyright term on sound recordings beyond the current 50 years.
See more >
20.07.2007 - 08:55 CET
Internet service providers (ISPs) are not obliged to hand over information about people suspected of illegally sharing music and other copyright material online, an advisor to the EU's highest court has said.
See more >
17.07.2007 - 17:22 CET
European lawmakers have called for the creation of a multilingual European digital library aimed at securing easy access to the continent's cultural heritage.
See more >
11.07.2007 - 17:48 CET
Some of Europe's biggest media groups and telecom companies have asked the European Commission to reject an offer from most of the EU's national royalty-collecting societies to settle an anti-trust case.
See more >
10.07.2007 - 17:43 CET
A Belgian court has ruled that one of its national internet service providers must install a filter to prevent its internet users from illegally downloading music. Copyright groups have hailed the judgement as an important step in fighting criminal file sharing across Europe.
See more >
28.06.2007 - 09:14 CET
The European Commission this week restarted an investigation into the merger between music company giants Bertelsmann Music Group and Sony Music, after the European Court of Justice last year overruled the EU executive's previous green light to the merger.
See more >
08.06.2007 - 17:42 CET
The consumer is the boss on the web and about to end fifty years of rule by mass media, TV, publishers and phone operators, European digital advertisers were told while celebrating a 35% growth in advertising revenues in 2006.
See more >
01.06.2007 - 20:39 CET
Bee Gee Robin Gibb is set to "champion" the rights of creators in Europe, saying artists should have royalties for life. Singer-songwriter and part of the former brotherly trio the Bee Gees has become the president of an organisation representing creative 2.5 million creative artists cross the world, it was announced on Friday in Brussels.
See more >
29.05.2007 - 09:26 CET
The world of creative rights holders and the media industry will descend on Brussels for a two-day meeting this week for the first international Copyright Summit to debate about the future of copyrights in the multi billion euro music and movie industry.
See more >
25.05.2007 - 09:28 CET
EU data protection officials are questioning whether Google - the company behind the world's most popular search engine - is violating EU law on data protection by storing personal information of the search engine user for up to two years.
See more >
23.05.2007 - 14:29 CET
The European Commission has approved the €1.63 billion takeover of the German music publishing business of Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) by Universal, making it the world's largest music publisher.
See more >
09.05.2007 - 09:27 CET
The reform of EU television rules – legalising product placement – has come one step closer after lawmakers in the European Parliament have adopted the second draft report on the EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive.
See more >
24.04.2007 - 09:20 CET
The European Parliament is for the first time ever set to vote for EU-wide criminal penalties – including imprisonment – for crimes breaching intellectual property rights, but critics say the proposal is badly drafted and would affect millions of young Europeans including MEPs own teenagers.
See more >
19.04.2007 - 17:36 CET
The European Union could have a common patent by 2012, the bloc's research and industry commissioner Guenter Verheugen has said, while blaming EU capitals for the 20-year deadlock which has harmed innovation in the 27-nation union.
See more >
19.04.2007 - 09:29 CET
An EU expert group on digital libraries has agreed to a basic model for handling copyrights for digitalised cultural publications in libraries.
See more >
03.04.2007 - 16:40 CET
The European Commission has started a legal battle with consumer icon Apple and major record companies, saying their agreements on how to sell online music in Europe violates the freedom of consumers.
See more >
29.03.2007 - 09:29 CET
The French national library BNF has launched a prototype version of its contribution to a European digital library aimed as one of the European alternatives to US digitalisations of books and documents.
See more >
21.03.2007 - 17:47 CET
A proposal for the EU's first-ever directive harmonising criminal law in all member states has been backed by MEPs as they voted for a draft report on criminal penalties - including imprisonment - for crimes breaching intellectual property rights.
See more >
20.03.2007 - 17:33 CET
EU internal market commissioner Charlie McCreevy wants to give his own online music recommendation more time before following a European Parliament call for binding rules to regulate the EU's online music market, disappointing MEPs.
See more >
19.03.2007 - 08:58 CET
MEPs will on Tuesday vote on a draft law that could see EU-wide criminal penalties for counterfeiting and violating intellectual property rights.
See more >
14.03.2007 - 17:42 CET
The European Parliament has called for binding rules to regulate the EU's online music market and to protect the bloc's cultural diversity. European lawmakers meeting in Strasbourg on Tuesday have with an overwhelming majority adopted a report by Hungarian socialist MEP Katalin Levai calling for the EU executive to replace its soft law recommendation with binding legislation.
See more >
13.03.2007 - 09:27 CET
A petition signed by more than 350 songwriters and composers – including Annie Lennox and Robbie Williams – urging European lawmakers to reject a report on cross-border management of online music copyright, has been withdrawn after signatories denied having signed such a petition.
See more >
12.03.2007 - 17:43 CET
EU consumer affairs commissioner Meglena Kuneva has criticised Apple's online music store iTunes saying consumers should have free choice of where they want to play their music bought on iTunes.
See more >
26.02.2007 - 17:40 CET
MEPs are set to adopt a report on collective cross-border management of copyright on Tuesday shooting down a European Commission proposal and saying a 'big-bang' style introduction of competition into the collective management of authors' rights could damage cultural diversity in Europe.
See more >
15.02.2007 - 09:19 CET
Seven leaders of big-hitting electronics firms say their confidence is shaken in European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso, after Brussels late last year buried reforms of the EU internet download market.
See more >
13.02.2007 - 17:44 CET
California-based internet giant Google may have to rethink its popular news.google.com service after Belgian courts on Tuesday said it is illegal to publish summaries of news stories and links without newspapers' consent.
See more >
07.02.2007 - 17:43 CET
Apple's chief executive has told European consumer groups unhappy with the company's policy of not making music playable on competitors' devices to direct their anger towards the big music companies instead - as they are the ones demanding copyrights restrictions.
See more >
25.01.2007 - 18:02 CET
Norway has deemed Apple's iTunes illegal because its downloaded songs cannot be played on music players from rival companies. European consumer groups are working closely with Norway and want Brussels to make EU-wide legislation in the area.
See more >
13.12.2006 - 14:34 CET
European Commission boss Jose Manuel Barroso has kicked into the long grass plans to overhaul EU artists' levies after pressure from French prime minister Dominique de Villepin.
See more >
05.12.2006 - 17:38 CET
A twenty-year long deadlock on how to set up a European patent system, aimed at boosting the EU's economy, is still in place after a fresh failure of talks over the issue on Monday.
See more >
30.11.2006 - 15:29 CET
The European Commission is trying to bypass democracy by using soft law instruments called "recommendations" to shape the EU's internal market, MEPs accused single market commissioner Charlie McCreevy in Brussels on Wednesday.
See more >
29.11.2006 - 17:18 CET
The European Commission's upcoming memo on "private copy levies" looks set to come down on the side of computer companies instead of artists, single market commissioner Charlie McCreevy signalled in a speech at EUobserver's Creative Rights conference in Brussels on Wednesday.
See more >
29.11.2006 - 09:29 CET
MEPs in the legal affairs committee are calling on the European Commission to adopt mandatory rules on copyright management instead of issuing a softer so-called "recommendation" on the issue in December, as artists, record labels and computer companies get together for a major conference on creative rights in Brussels today.
See more >
27.11.2006 - 17:50 CET
The UK treasury is set to refuse extending copyright on sound recordings from 50 years to 95 years when a report looking at intellectual property rights in the UK is published next week, in a situation that could see EU copyright expire on some Beatles songs in 2013.
See more >
22.11.2006 - 09:26 CET
EU internal market commissioner Charlie McCreevy has said he will not challenge authors' right to remuneration for the copying of their work, but he still questions whether consumers are getting a fair deal when they pay extra for technical gadgets.
See more >
14.11.2006 - 17:45 CET
The French government has urged the European Commission to properly consider its plan for reforming EU digital rights, which could have a profound effect on European artists and funding for cultural projects.
See more >
14.11.2006 - 15:02 CET
The EU is set to allow the displaying of brand logos in European TV productions, which is currently illegal in most member states. But some critics fear the move could jeopardise EU citizens' faith in European television programmes.
See more >
08.11.2006 - 09:19 CET
Pedro Almodovar, Ken Loach, Lars von Trier and other top film directors have warned the European Commission against ending private copy levies - a system that impose a charge on all sales of equipment used to make unlicenced copies of their work.
See more >
02.11.2006 - 09:29 CET
Experts from around the world gathering for the first Internet Governance Forum in Athens have criticised the predominant use of English on the World Wide Web.
See more >
30.10.2006 - 17:41 CET
European musicians suffered a double whammy on Monday as news broke the European Commission and a leading UK think-tank are both pushing to cut back artists' digital music copyright privileges.
See more >
19.10.2006 - 09:17 CET
Movie director Pedro Almodovar and singers Victor Manuel and Paloma San Basilio are calling on the European Commission to keep copyright levies on electrical goods like mp3 players that help fund the work of artists and performers.
See more >
13.10.2006 - 16:20 CET
The US is still leading in sales of digital music, but Europe is catching up, according to new figures from IFPI, representing the recording industry worldwide.
See more >
19.09.2006 - 17:17 CET
Europe's cultural diversity would be seriously jeopardised if the current system of collective management of creators' rights were destroyed, argues Robin Gibb, singer/songwriter and founding member of the Bee Gees.
See more >
04.10.2006 - 17:40 CET
Brussels wants to open up the European market of creative rights management, which will break down the current system of national societies and set up a few pan-European rights management groups. But music authors fear such a move could have grave cultural effects for Europe.
See more >
19.09.2006 - 17:16 CET
Explosive growth in the online music market has pushed musicians, record labels, computer firms and EU politicians into a fight over how to manage authors' rights on the internet, with one Hungarian MEP confident she has found the right model for the digital era.
See more >