Category: Uncategorised

In the light of coming copyright reforms in EU the draft impact assessment concerns some important copyright issues. One of them is enforcement.

Pirated material can literally be sent by everybody from everywhere to anybody anywhere. Moreover, infringements of copyrighted content online have become do frequent that they are no longer considered by consumers as illegal or even if illegal, as causing economic harm. At the same time, given that technology allows for almost perfect copies at low cost, piracy has become an even more profitable business. The exclusive rights that are recognised, with the appropriate boundaries, should be meaningful in the online environment, and the tools to enforce those rights should be available. At the same time the framework should guarantee the protection of fundamental rights, namely the right to property, the protection of personal data, the right to privacy and to information as well as the freedom of expression of all citizens.

According to Izvestia, Russian Ministry of Culture proposed “tax remission” for students, pupils, pensioners and people with disabilities. “Tax remissions” could also apply to schools, universities and medical institutions. Telecommunication operators, who must collect “licence fees” from internet users and pay collected sums of money to the accredited collecting society, could independently decide who must pay in a case of use of content in internet. It means, if internet user does not use or download content from or in internet, such user is free from internet tax.

As reported Vedomosti the administration of Russian president dislike the idea of internet tax. The negative review was prepared in response to the proposed amendments to Russian copyright legislation. Proposed internet tax was intended to be collected from internet service providers, about 300 roubles in year for each subscriber. In return of this sum the service provides would receive so called global licence allowing to subscriber to download content from internet without any limits.