WIPO Copyright Committee: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
‘Broadcast Treaty Chair’ Remains, Limitations and Exceptions to Copyright Considered
(15 March 2008) The WIPO Copyright Committee (SCCR) met from 10-12 March 2008 in Geneva to debate the future work program for the committee after the Member States of the WIPO General Assembly told the committee last Fall to put the proposed Broadcast Treaty on the back-burner. This meeting was the first time that any consideration could be given to an important proposal by Chile in 2005 to update limitations and exceptions to copyright to balance the current practice of ever-expanding rights.
Despite significant progress made in 2007 at WIPO to begin to bring accountability and reform to the quaint IPR-obsessed organization, WIPO’s Copyright Committee slipped back into business as usual by allowing Jukka Liedes of Finland to remain as Committee Chairman, a position he has held for more than a decade. Liedes is well-known for his dictatorial style, silencing of public interest groups, and insistence that WIPO Member States adopt a Broadcast Treaty that would only benefit a small handful of large European broadcast companies while harming the rights of the world’s consumers and artists. Liedes was also at the helm when WIPO passed the 1997 "Internet Treaties," ushering-in the controversial DMCA-style anti-circumvention laws throughout the world. Liedes’ chairmanship was secured through back-room negotiations resulting in a 6-hour meeting that was closed to civil society during the first day of the 16th session.
In addition to Chile’s proposal to work on minimum exceptions and limitations to copyright, Jukka Liedes is trying to revive his beloved Broadcast Treaty and the WIPO press release on the meeting supports Liedes’ efforts. The EU proposed eliminating consumers’ "First Sale" rights by creating "resale rights" and it also renewed its long standing proposal to create new rights over audiovisual performances.
Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, and Nicaragua proposed a detailed work plan in follow-up to Chile’s original 2005 proposal to consider minimum limitations and exceptions to copyright. Wealthy countries such as the US, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and EU opposed various parts of proposals from the developing country block including public-interest oriented limitations and those for the blind. However, most agree that progress was made at this meeting and that public-interest oriented limitations and exceptions will continue to be seriously considered at WIPO. Read the text adopted by the SCCR on limitations and exceptions here. The next WIPO Copyright Committee meeting will likely be held in the Fall of 2008.
Last year, I published a 2007 Global Information Society Watch report that described some of the accountability problems at WIPO and in particular, with the Broadcast Treaty discussion in the WIPO Copyright Committee.
Read these detailed reports from SUNS / Third World Network on the (16th session) WIPO Copyright Committee meeting:
- WIPO: Work plan on "limitations and exceptions" proposed at copyright meeting by Riaz K. Tayob (13 March 2008)
- WIPO: Copyright meeting ends, retains 3 items on its agenda by Riaz K. Tayob (14 March 2008)
- Action Needed to Expand Copyright Limitations and Exceptions by Gwen Hinze (12 March 2008)
And read IP-Watch’s reports on the WIPO SCCR 16th Session:
- WIPO Copyright Committee Done for Year, Exceptions and Limitations are Here to Stay by William New (13 March 2008)
- WIPO Copyright Committee Begins Year with New Agenda, Same Chair by William New (11 March 2008)