29. 11. 2010

JOINT STATEMENT - ANEM, SOKOJ, OFPS AND PI

WE DEMAND THAT THE GOVERNMENT APPOINT THE COMMISSION FOR COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS

Belgrade, November 29, 2010 - The Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM), the Serbian Music Authors' Organization (Sokoj), the Organization of Phonogram Producers of Serbia (OFPS) and the Organization for Collective Administration of Performing Rights (PI) urge the Government of the Republic of Serbia to appoint, immediately and without further delay, the president and the members of the Commission for Copyright and Related Rights.

ANEM, SOKOJ, OFPS and PI point out that the new Law on Copyright and Related Rights, adopted last year, cannot be fully implemented as long as the Commission is not established.

The Law stipulates that tariffs of organizations for collective exercise of copyright and related rights should have a form of a written agreement reached through negotiations between collective organization, on one side, and a representative association of users, on the other side. ANEM, as a representative association of users - radio and television broadcasters, has been participating in negotiations with SOKOJ, OFPS and PI, as the only three organizations licensed by the Intellectual Property Office to perform collective management of copyright and related rights, but the negotiations have not resulted in an agreement on tariffs. The Law specifies that in such situation collective organizations shall deliver their tariff proposals to the Commission for Copyright and Related Rights, which is authorized to evaluate whether the proposed tariffs include the rights which are licensed to these organizations by the Intellectual Property Office, and whether the fee has been established in accordance with the rules prescribed by the law. The Commission's opinion decides if the proposed tariffs are to come into force or if the negotiation process should be repeated. In the case of repeated failure of negotiations, if the Commission is of the opinion that the new proposal of an organization's tariffs has not been made in accordance with the law, the Commission shall make its own decision on the tariff; the same shall apply if the organizations OFPS and PI fail to submit to the Commission a timely request for opinion on proposed single equitable tariffs. These provisions indicate that in the process of setting of collective organizations' tariffs it is crucially important and necessary to establish the Commission.

Due to Government's failure to appoint the Commission, the tariffs, established in accordance with the previous Law that has not been in force for almost a year, are still being applied. ANEM, as a representative association of radio and television broadcasters in Serbia, as well as SOKOJ, OFPS and PI, as organizations licensed by the Intellectual Property Office to perform collective administration of copyright and related rights, consider that the current situation is not acceptable and that it has negative effects on business activities of electronic media outlets and protection of copyright in Serbia, and that responsibility for failure to enforce the Law and the damage caused to all participants lies only with the Government of the Republic of Serbia.

SOKOJ, OFPS and PI, on one side, and ANEM, as a representative association of users, on the other side, have fulfilled all their obligations stipulated by the new Law. Obligations defined by the new Law have also been fulfilled by the Intellectual Property Office, who has already delivered proposed names of the Commission members to the Government. For the reasons unknown, the Government has not appointed the Commission for months.

ANEM, SOKOJ, OFPS and PI demand that the Government of the Republic of Serbia finally appoint the members of the Commission, in strict accordance with conditions for appointment of the body's members stipulated by the law, i.e. that the Government appoint experts whose previous work and knowledge of the field of implementation of copyright and related rights can contribute to realization of the Commission's goals, and whose interests are not in any way tied to collective organizations, users or their associations.

ANEM President, Sasa Mirkovic