The EESC:
- welcomes the package to adapt copyright to the requirements of the digital economy;
- stresses that regulating copyright must serve to strike a balance between the rights of all these parties, avoiding bureaucracy and unnecessary requirements;
- stresses that swift ratification by the EU of the Marrakesh Treaty on copyright in relation to the blind is important and necessary;
- suggests a number of amendments e.g. on text and data mining or copies of works for the preservation of cultural heritage to adjust copyright more closely to current requirements;
- refers to the ECJ judgement stating that, under certain conditions, the lending of a digital copy of a book has similar characteristics to the lending of printed works;
- urges that "freedom of panorama" exception should be harmonised by European rules;
- supports the exclusive related right of publishers to authorise or prohibit the digital use of their press publications for a period of twenty years;
- welcomes that authors are entitled to fair remuneration for their creative endeavours, to be associated with the commercial success of their works and to benefit from a high level of protection and funding of works.
Other relevant EESC opinions:
- Modernisation of copyright rules (INT/774)
- Digital contract rights (INT/775)
- Trade secrets (INT/725)
- Collective management of copyright (INT/659)
- Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights (INT/591)
- Protection of intellectual property rights/OHIM (INT/585)
- Term of protection of copyright and related rights (INT/449)
- Copyright in the music sector (INT/418)