UK implementation of Directive 2011/77: have your say!

Renato portrayed while singing in praise of the directive

Do you remember controversial Directive 2011/77/EU, which was adopted in September 2011 and extended the term of protection for performers and sound recordings from 50 to 70 years, the idea being that performers' protection was to be brought in line with that already afforded to authors?

Well, now the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) is seeking stakeholders' views on the draft regulations that will implement this piece of EU legislation into this Member State.

While requiring the UK to extend the length of copyright term in sound recordings and performers' rights in sound recordings, the directive includes specific provisions for performers, and also provides for the harmonisation of the copyright term for co-written musical compositions with words.

Use of ideograms is not mandatory to draft your response

At the time when the directive was adopted, Commissioner Michel Barnier was confident that

"[the] decision to increase the term of protection for musicians' copyright from 50 to 70 years w[ould] make a real difference for performers ... With increasing life expectancy [in light of recent studies, Merpel does not even dare to imagine how long protection would be in 2050, if these are the reasons behind constant term extensions], the previous 50-year protection term was clearly insufficient. Despite the fact that their music and songs are still popular, today many performers are left without income when they are older. The increase to a 70-year term means performers can still receive remuneration when their music is played once they have retired. [This] agreement gives performers the recognition and reward they justly deserve for their creative contributions to society and stimulates creation for future generations of music fans".

The closing date for IPO's public consultation, which was launched earlier today and is aimed at all interested parties (including musicians, record producers, lyricists and composers and representative organisations and individuals), is 4 March 2013 [Merpel is amazed at the idea of having such a long time to collect, elaborate and communicate her thoughts].

Any comments should be sent, preferably using the appropriate response form, before the closing date to:

Nick Ashworth

Intellectual Property Office

Concept House
Cardiff Road

Newport

South Wales

NP10 8QQ

United Kingdom

Email Term Directive Consultation team
Fax: +44 (0) 1633 817777