ifj author's right newsletter

International Federation of Journalists
International Federation of Journalists

Spring Issue 2011
Authors’ Rights Newsletter

2
Spring Issue 2011






CAMPAIGN NEWS



The Netherlands
IFJ Authors’ Rights Campaign: No to


Rights-grabbing Contract!
NVJ Calls on AFP, Netherlands to Withdraw
Rights-grabbing Contracts


(23.04.2011) Journalists’ unions answered an IFJ


call by launching campaigns against rights-grabbing

contracts.
Romania



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IFJ affiliates in the Netherlands, Romania, France,
MediaSind Joins Call for Campaign against
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Belgium, Portugal, Germany and Spain joined
Rights-grabbing Contracts
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forces to support their French colleagues’ plead

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i
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against unfair contracts imposed by Agence France

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Presse (AFP). These contracts ask for a complete
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transfer of authors’ rights without any remuneration

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for additional uses.
SNJ-CGT Launches Campaign against AFP's
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Rights-grabbing Contracts

on
Letters of protests were sent to AFP’s regional


of
offices and unions launched their own national
Belgium
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authors’ rights campaigns to mark the World
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Copyright Day, 23 April.
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AJP Launches Campaign against AFP's Rights-

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grabbing Contract
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Earlier in March, the IFJ sent a letter to the AFP
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s
AJP letter to AFP

management in France calling for an end to the


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rights-grabbing contracts and dialogues for fair
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negotiation.
Portugal
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The letter highlighted the increasing difficulties
Portuguese Journalists Call on AFP to Stop
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faced by journalists in securing their authors’ rights
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Rights-grabbing Contracts
and
condemned
major
media
organisations
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News

Agence-France-Press (AFP) and the German

publisher, Bauer, for having imposed unfair
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contracts on their journalists.
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FAFE Joins Call for Campaign against AFP's


AUTHORS’ RIGHTS CAMPAIGNS AROUND
Rights-grabbing Contracts



THE WORLD

FESP Supports EFJ Campaign on Right-


grabbing contracts

Germany



CCOO Calls on Remuneration for Secondary

Campaigning for Fair Payment to Freelance

Uses of Journalistic Works on Copyright Day
journalist





Please click HERE and join the campaign now.
Fair Compensation Ensures Quality of the


Media, Say DJV and Ver.di on Copyright Day









EFJ






EFJ Calls on AFP to Withdraw Rights-grabbing


Contracts

© International Federation of Journalists  Belgium
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International Federation of Journalists

Spring Issue 2011
IFJ NEWS


Commissioner
Barnier
Backs
IFJ Marks World Copyright Day by
Journalists in Fight to Protect Authors’
Demanding an End to Authors' Rights
Rights in Europe

Grab



(23.04.2011) To mark International Copyright Day
on April 23 the International Federation of

Journalists calls on media organisations to put an

end to rights-grabbing contracts that deprive
journalists of a major part of their income and

influence over the use of their work.


"The increasing abuse of buy-out contracts
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whereby media employers require the total
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ownership of journalists' authors' rights is a great
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threat to our profession", says Beth Costa, IFJ
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General Secretary.
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The EFJ delegation met Commissioner Michael Barnier l F
"Journalists are often faced with a take it or leave it
and his cabinet. © Andreas Bittner
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situation when offered buy-out contracts. We
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demand the end of these contracts because they
(26.01.2011) The leading voice in European
on
are unfair, imbalanced and contravene authors'
Copyright Policy, Commissioner Michel Barnier, has

of
rights legal regimes throughout the world".
given strong backing to the EFJ and its members in
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their fight to protect journalists' authors' rights.
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Journalists' authors' rights are protected by

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international treaties such as the Berne convention
During the meeting with the EFJ representatives,
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and the WIPO Copyright Treaty. While economic
Mr Barnier, the Commissioner responsible for the
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rights grant journalists the sole power to authorise

Internal Market and Services in the European Union

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use of their works and receive remuneration for it,
underscored the important role journalists play in
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moral rights enable journalists to be identified in
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Europe's democracy and cultural diversity.
connection with all their works and to defend the
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integrity of these works.
EFJ representatives warned that journalists’
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authors’ rights in the digital era are in danger,
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"Depriving journalists of their economic and moral
especially the principles of economic and moral
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rights has significant consequences in terms of
rights of authors.
income but also in terms of ethics by allowing any

media organisation to distribute, reuse, or sell
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Commissioner Barnier assured the delegation that
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journalistic content to third parties without any
"the European legislative framework will allow
compensation nor respect of journalists' right of
creators, including journalists, to be appropriately

integrity," says Costa.
remunerated for their works, and to enforce their


rights when they are infringed."


The IFJ joined the campaign against rights-

Read More

grabbing contracts initiated by its European


regional group, the European Federation of



Journalists in March this year.



The campaign calls in particular for more
EFJ Hails Victory for Authors’ Rights


awareness-raising on authors' rights amongst
following Court’s Ruling in Morel Case

journalists' unions, targeted actions against media
against AFP

organisations offering rights-grabbing contracts, a


general demand for fair remuneration for journalists
(04.01.2011) The EFJ welcomed the decision by

and effective collective agreements securing strong
the US court to reject AFP's license claim over

authors' rights.
iconic photographs of the Haiti earthquake in 2009



taken by photographer Daniel Morel.

Visit the campaign web site HERE.


© International Federation of Journalists  Belgium
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International Federation of Journalists

Spring Issue 2011
The EFJ said the Morel case is a victory for authors’
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
rights.
& COURT CASES
The legal dispute between Morel and AFP began on
13 January 2009 when Morel uploaded his
photographs of the Haiti earthquake on the social
Belgian Court Says Google News

networking website, Twitpic.
Violates Copyright Law

The AFP published Morel’s photographs without
obtaining his permission and wrongly credited Mr.
(05.05.2011) Journalists and newspaper publishers

Lisandro Suero, who had re-posted Morel’s
finally won the battle against the internet search
pictures, as the author. When confronted later by
giant, Google, as the Belgian Court of Appeal

Morel, the AFP argued that Morel granted third
decided that Google News violated the copyright of

parties (including AFP) a broad license to use his
Belgian newspapers by posting extracts of news on
photographs posted on Twitpic. However, the US
the Google News web site without their permission.

district court in New York rejected the AFP’s
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arguments in its ruling on 23 December.
“This is a major victory for journalists,” said the
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Collecting Society for Journalists in Belgium (SAJ).
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Please visit HERE to read the judgement.
“This case could have broad implications for
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indexing news by search engines”.
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Under the ruling, Google can no longer offer links to
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EFJ Calls for Stronger Authors’ Rights
articles or post extracts of articles or photographs
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from French-and-German-language newspapers in
Protection in the Digital World for all
Belgium. Google has to remove copyrighted
on
Journalists
content belonging to the plaintiff publications from

of
Google News or else it faces a penalty payment of
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(12.12.2010) Fifty representatives of journalists’
25000€ per day for the delay.
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unions convened in Thessaloniki, Greece, on 11-
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12th December at a seminar on Authors’ rights in
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The lawsuit was brought by the Belgian collecting
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the digital age - a fair deal for journalists.
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societies for journalists and newspapers, SAJ,


Copiepresse and Assucopie, in January 2006. In
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Participants condemned the increase of rights-
2007, Google made an appeal against a ruling in
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grabbing contracts in the media industry and the
favour of plaintiffs by the Belgian court.
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difficulty to retain their rights when their works are
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used and reused on different platforms of the same
Please visit HERE to read the judgement in French.
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ht
media or different titles of the same media group.
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News
Participants at the seminar concluded that more

actions need to be taken by journalists’ unions and
UK Court Approves Law to Disconnect
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civil society groups to protect authors’ rights and
ter
Internet of Copyright Infringers
creativities.

(20.04.2011)The UK High Court approved a

As parts of the authors’ rights project, an updated
controversial UK law allowing internet service

providers (ISPs) to disconnect users of copyright

handbook on authors’ rights wil be published in

June. The handbook will serve as a practical guide
infringers.

on authors’ rights issues for journalists in the digital

age. It will be published in both English and French.
According to the Digital Economy Act (DEA),


copyright holders can request ISPs to disconnect


users who violated their copyrights. The judge said
Read More

that the DEA will create a fair system for copyright



holders whose rights are violated. The judge also

ruled that ISPs could be made to pay a share of the


cost of operating the system.




However, ISPs challenged the decision saying that

the law would make them responsible for the

copyright infringement of users and bear the cost

for copyright infringement. The decision is being

© International Federation of Journalists  Belgium
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International Federation of Journalists

Spring Issue 2011
appealed. Please visit HERE to read the
made in accordance with the three-step-test (i.e.
judgement.
applying to certain special cases only, not
conflicting with a normal exploitation of the work

and not unreasonably prejudicing the legitimate
interests of the rights holder).
CJEU
Advocate
General
Clarifies

Authors’ Protection in Cases of
Read full opinion HERE.
Quotations for Criticisms and Reviews



(12.04.2011) In an opinion delivered on April 12,
AFP Launches Devices to Detect
the Court of Justice of the European Union

(CJEU)’s Advocate General Trstenjak interpreted
Manipulated photos
quotations for criticisms and reviews as listed in the

EU Directive on the harmonisation of certain aspect
(05.04.2011) The Agence France-Presse (AFP)

of copyright and related rights in the information
recently launched a new device that can alert photo
society (“the Infosoc directive”).
editors whether an image has been manipulated
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before its publication.
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The case involved newspapers Der standard, Der
According to the AFP, the new device uses a set of
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Spiegel, Express, Bild, and Die Welt which
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reproduced in 2006 photos of Austrian kidnappee
filters that can detect potential tampering in digital
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images. A specialist unit has also been set up

Natasha Kampush taken by freelance photographer
F
ed
Eva-
Maria
Painer.
Following
Kampush's
within its photo department to detect suspect
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kidnapping security authorities in Austria launched
photos.
a search appeal in which Painer’s photos were
on
used. After Kampush had escaped from her
Image manipulation has been a great concern for

of
abductor, the newspapers published the contested
journalists, in particular photojournalists. “It does
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pictures to illustrate their stories without neither
not only damage the reputation of photojournalists
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crediting Painer nor obtaining her consent or
and their moral rights,” said Pamela Moriniere, the
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payment of a fee.
IFJ authors’ rights officer, “It is also an unethical
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practice in journalism that propagates falsehood
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According to the Infosoc directive, quotations for
among the public and goes against the cardinal

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principle of truth-telling in journalism.”
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the purposes of criticism and review are allowed
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provided that the work has already been made
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lawfully available to the public, that the source is
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indicated unless it turns out to be impossible and
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that the use is made in accordance with fair
Unpaid Bloggers Demand $105m over
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practice to the extent required by the criticism or
News
Huffington Post Sale
review.
(12.04.2011) The popular American news site,
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Asked on her interpretation of the Infosoc
Huffington Post, faces $105m lawsuit from a group
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directive’s provisions on quotations by the Austrian
of bloggers who contributed free content to the

commercial Court, Advocate General Trstenjak held
website over the years and did not receive any

that “the framework for consent-free quotations was
payment after AOL bought the Post for the $315

exceeded where the name of the author of a photo

sale earlier this year.
was not indicated even though this did not turn out


to be impossible”. She held that the person making
The class action lawsuit was led by the American

the quotation should take “all the measures to

writer and trade unionist, Jonathan Tasini, who was
identify the author which appear reasonable having

among the 9,000 unpaid bloggers, contributed to
regard to the circumstances of the case”.

the news site.


She added that the quotation should also serve as
Tasini argued that the content contributed by the

unpaid bloggers helped contributed a third of the

basis for discussion which is not the case in

situations where it is used as a “teaser to attract
sale value of the site, which amounts to $105m.

readers without discussing those photos in the
Tasini said that "Huffington bloggers have

accompanying text”. She also insisted that the
essentially been turned into modern day slaves on

Arianna Huffington's plantation". Read full

reproduction of a photo for quotation purposes

amounted to a full quotation of the photo and not an
complaint HERE.

abstract. The quotation therefore needed to be

© International Federation of Journalists  Belgium
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International Federation of Journalists

Spring Issue 2011
French and US Courts Rule Google
shared by its customers, after legal action by
Guilty of Copyright Infringement
Belgium’s publishing rights collecting society
Sabam. For more information, please visit HERE.
(07.03.2011) The French and US courts recently

ruled the internet search giant, Google, is guilty of
copyright infringement.

In France, Google was ordered by the court to pay
EU AFFAIRS

430,000 EUR fine for copyright infringement and
incurred “moral damages” to the copyright holders.

European Commission to Present New

According to the Court of Appeal in Paris, Google
Strategy on Intellectual Property rights
had infringed the copyright of the film producers of

“Mondovino” by making illegal copies of the film
(03.05.2011) The new European Union strategy on

available through its search engines and on Google
Video. However, Google said they will make an
intellectual property rights (IP) is expected to be
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announced by Michel Barnier, European Union
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appeal against the decision.
Commissioner for the Internal Market on 18 May.
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On 22 March, Google’s controversial settlement on
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books which was brought by a class action was
While recognising the strength of the creative
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rejected by the US district court. The judge
industry in the employment market, the European
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Commission wants to promote as much as possible
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outlawed Google to exploit the rights of authors,
the public’s access to IP goods.
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whose books are scanned by Google without prior
authorisation. Following the court decision, Google
on
said it will review the court’s decision and the
“Our strategy will have a double objective,” said

Michel Barnier in a conference in Brussels.
of
Google Books Settlement. The next hearing for the
“Acknowledging the need to remunerate creation
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case is yet to be announced by the US district
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court.
and allowing for its widest access to all.”
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The strategy to be issued on 18 May will provide a
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To read the French court’s ruling, please visit
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foretaste of separate pieces of legislations covering

HERE.

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multi-territory licensing, a directive on orphan works
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for the print, audiovisual archives and photography
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To read the US district court’s ruling, please visit
sectors
and
a
directive
to
introduce
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HERE.
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greater transparency and better governance in
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collective rights management.
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News



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CJEU Advisor Says Filtering System to
European Parliament Working Group on
ter
Track
Right-infringement
Could
be
Copyright Tackles Journalism

Illegal

(03.05.2011) The Working Group on Copyright set

(14.02.2011) Belgian courts could violate European

up by the Committee on Legal Affairs of the
privacy law and limit freedom of information by

European Parliament will hold a hearing on

allowing Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to track
"Copyright:
Journalism,
newspapers
and

and filter data of copyright-infringers.
photographs" on Wednesday 1 June 2011 in


theParliament. The EFJ has been invited to speak

According to Pedro Cruz Villalon, a legal advisor at
at this event.

the Court of Justice of the European Union, the

filtering and blocking system could breach the right

The Working Group on Copyright is coordinated by

to personal privacy and restrict freedom of
parliamentarian Marielle Gallo (France, European

information.
People’s Party). The aim of the Group's work is to

review copyright policies within the EU legislative


The Belgian case (Sabam vs Scarlet case),
framework in order to examine the challenges and

originally in court back in 2007, involved an ISP
prospects for the future of copyright in the

called Scarlet, which was ordered by the country’s
European Union – particularly in relation to

courts to filter out copyright infringing content being
technological advances and the information society.

© International Federation of Journalists  Belgium
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International Federation of Journalists

Spring Issue 2011
AGENDA


Global and European Initiatives for
Contact:
Sharing
Work
between
Intellectual

Pamela Morinière (pamela.moriniere@ifj.org)
Property Authorities
OR

Yuk Lan Wong (yuklan.wong@ifj.org)
Budapest, 17 - 18 May 2011


For more news on Authors’ Rights, please
The Hungarian Intellectual Property Office is to hold
visit the IFJ Authors’ Rights homepage.

a two-day conference discussing new challenges to


copyright protection. For more information, please
visit HERE.



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World Copyright Summit 2011
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7 – 8 June 2011, Brussels
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A world summit on copyright will bring together
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representatives of the creative community around
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the world to discuss the future of authors’ rights, the
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role
of
creators
and
the
collective
rights
on
management organisations.

of
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For more information, please visit HERE.
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t
s
IFRRO Authors’ group


A
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9th June 2011, Brussels
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’
The IFRRO’s authors’ group wil address recent EU
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developments in the field of orphan and out of
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commerce works, the WIPO agenda and the
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strengthening of the International Authors’ Forum.

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Standing Committee on Copyright and

Related Rights: Twenty-Second Session



15 June 2011, Geneva


The World Intellectual Property Organisation is to


hold its 22nd session of Standing Committee on

Copyright and Related Rights. Issues to be tackled:

copyright exceptions, protection of audiovisual


performances and of broadcasting organisations.

For more information, please visit HERE.













© International Federation of Journalists  Belgium
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