The Major Labels, through their international trade body, IFPI have targeted direct a number of artists to support the IFPI position on safe harbours in the European copyright review. Many of those artists asked us what to do. We have responded by issuing a letter to the European Commission to clarify our position.
There has been much debate about the operation of online platforms in the context of the Digital Single Market initiative in Brussels.
From the artists’ perspective major corporations in both music and technology have put forward arguments that the artists in the industry have found to be somewhat simplistic with not enough regard for the bigger picture or wider music ecosystem that is essential to ensure continued success for music artists around the world.
The International Artist Organisation has written to the European Commission to clarify the Artists’ position in respect of the copyright review.
Artists are the entrepreneur base on which the entire music industry is built and our sole aim is to help design a well functioning market in which we can grow our businesses.
Key to that are:
1. Transparency through the value chain where we have a direct financial interest through the value chain
2. A Fair Share of Value when we rely on revenue-share business models
3. Duty of Care that intermediaries must act in the aligned interest of both parties
4. Remuneration rights that are fit for the digital age and not allowed to be brushed aside in the move to digital
It is interesting that the Major labels are now asking for the first three of these points from Platforms in their proposed solutions to the safe harbours question.
It is clear to us that to fix our market, we need these proposals to be enshrined at the heart of the copyright reform and to ensure they apply across the value chain so value does not flow from one set of large international corporations to another only to get stuck there and not get back to the hands of the SMEs and individuals that have created that value.