39th Session of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) - EU Opening Statement

21.10.2019
Geneva

39th Session of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR)
Geneva, 21-25 October 2019
EU Opening Statement

Chair,

The European Union and its Member States thank you for facilitating and directing discussions during the last session of this Standing Committee. We once again count on your commitment and expertise to lead this session towards constructive discussions and successful outcomes, for the benefit of the global intellectual property system. We would also like to express our gratitude to the Vice-Chairs and thank the WIPO Secretariat for the smooth preparation of this thirty-ninth session.

The discussions on the Treaty for the Protection of Broadcasting Organisations continue to be of great importance to the European Union and its Member States. We remain committed to advance these complex discussions constructively, with a view to ensuring further progress during this session. In this context, we look forward to the discussions this week, in order to be able to reach further understanding between Delegations on definitions, object of protection, rights to be granted and other issues, which have been further consolidated by the Chair in document SCCR/39/4 prior to this session.

In our view, we need a broad consensus on the extent of the protection to be granted, in order for the treaty to provide broadcasting organisations with appropriate protection. We would like to stress that, in our view, it is crucial that the treaty takes into account and responds to the technological realities of the 21st century and the corresponding current and future needs of broadcasting organisations. Considering this, we reiterate our continuous commitment to progressing towards the conclusion of a worthwhile treaty.

We have taken note with great satisfaction of the General Assembly’s endorsement of the recommendation originating from SCCR 38 for this Committee to continue its work towards convening a diplomatic conference, aiming for the 2020-21 biennium, and subject to certain conditions. We are hopeful that the Committee will reach the necessary consensus, and that the text will reach a level of maturity, that will allow us to meet the timeframe envisaged in the recommendation.

The European Union and its Member States also remain committed to an active and constructive continuation of the discussions on Limitations and Exceptions. We believe that the work carried out under the Committee’s Action Plans on Limitations and Exceptions through SCCR/39, contained in document SCCR 36/7, has provided a good basis for deepening our understanding of challenges faced by libraries, archives, museums as well as educational and research institutions and persons with other disabilities.

The International Conference on Copyright Limitations and Exceptions for Libraries, Archives, Museums and Educational & Research Institutions, held prior to this session, has allowed us to further develop our knowledge of practical challenges faced by these institutions, and we would like to thank the secretariat for its smooth organisation and the panellists for their numerous and valuable practical contributions. We have taken note of the broad support that emerged for further work at the national and regional levels and the reflections on how WIPO could best provide assistance in this regard.

The EU and its Member States have expressed consistently that in our view the existing international copyright framework already empowers WIPO Member States to introduce, maintain and update limitations and exceptions in their national legislation that can meaningfully respond to local needs and traditions, while continuing to ensure that the objective of the copyright system should be to encourage and reward creativity.

We therefore continue to believe, also against the background of the results of the conference prior to this session that the work of this Committee should aim at providing further guidance on how the different existing solutions and flexibilities in the framework of the international treaties could be implemented in national laws and as a result we do not see the need for any new and additional legally binding instruments in this area.

Lastly, as regards the "Other matters" item on the draft agenda, the EU and its Member States are looking forward to hearing the envisaged updates and reports regarding work on these topics. We would also like to stress once more that we give our strong support to the proposal by the delegations of Senegal and Congo from SCCR 27 to include artists' resale right (droit de suite) in the Agenda.

Thank you.