EU governments clash over plans for levy on blank tapes

Date: 02/03/2000

By Peter Chapman

A FIERCE argument has broken out between EU governments over whether member states should be forced to set up harmonised levy schemes to compensate artists for digital copies of their works.

The row has erupted as the Portuguese presidency tries to broker a compromise deal on the Commission's draft information society copyright directive in time for a 16 March meeting of internal market ministers.

Diplomats had originally predicted that this issue would be settled without much difficulty, allowing the debate in the run-up to this month's meeting to focus on a raft of other controversial clauses in the draft copyright rules.

But the Commission proposal, which states that member states should establish suitable schemes to ensure artists are "fairly renumerated" for copies of their works but leaves it up to governments to decide how to fund this compensation, has run into opposition from some member states.

France and Germany are leading the campaign for harmonised levies on digital copying equipment, with the UK, Sweden, Finland and the Netherlands in the vanguard of those who oppose digital levies altogether.

UK diplomats say London would support a compromise deal which would allow member states to choose what rate to charge, and give them the option of setting a 'zero-rate' levy.

The prospect of new 'digital' levy schemes to repay artists is viewed

with unease by consumer electronics manufacturers, which make the equipment that would be used for copying digital works.

Gerry Wirtz, chairman of the industry's EU lobby group EACEM, said such levies would amount to a tax on electronic commerce and the Internet and would put a break on Europe's race to catch up with its rivals.

He added that the Union would be the only trade bloc in the world to impose levies for digital copying if it went down this road, pointing out that the US had rejected the idea in its own legislation on the issue. He also warned that levies would act as a disincentive for companies to develop 'matching technology' to prevent copying.

Other controversial issues which will have to be resolved before governments can reach provisional agreement on the text include the scope of exemptions from the legislation for Internet service providers and telecoms operators which carry copyrighted material over their networks.

Rights holders are anxious to ensure they will be able to veto digital copying of their works over computer networks. But the network operators claim they have little control over material they transport, and insist they should not be held liable for any copyright breaches which occur.

A fierce argument has broken out between EU governments over whether Member States should be forced to set up harminised levy schemes to compensate artists for digital copies of their works. The row has erupted as the Portuguese Presidency tries to broker a compromise deal on the Commission's draft information society copyright directive in time for a meeting of internal market ministers on 16.3.00.