World Creators Forum Discusses Copyright Protection
By Bob Meng, China IP,[Copyright]
On November 28th, the World Creators Forum, which was co-hosted by the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) and China Intellectual Property Law Association (CIPLA), was grandly held in Beijing. Over 250 creators, artists, specialists, representatives of Copyright Collective Administration Organizations and overseas copyright certification authorities from over 30 countries including China, France, Spain and Japan were present at the forum, jointly discussing creative industry protection and creators' right to get payment in digital era.
The two themes of the forum are right of pursuit for visual artists and fair right of audiovisual work creators to get payment (like screenwriters and directors). World Creators Forum discussed about six issues which are “the problem of web service authorization and ‘value chain’”, “the role of collective administration in 21 century”, “the challenge faced by collective administration”, “the appeal for copyright protection of music creators in Asian-Pacific Region”, “the right of screenwriters and directors that can not give up” and “striving for the right of pursuit”. Based on their own experiences, creators and representatives of collective administration organizations in the world set forth the current situation and change of copyright protection in their own countries.
CISAC is a joint venture of copyright collective administration organizations, which has 90 years history. It is also the most important network of Global Creators Association, representing 4 million creators from 123 countries in categories of music, audiovisual, drama, literature and visual art etc. CISAC transferred its headquarter of Asian-Pacific Region from Singapore to Beijing in 2014, turning into the first copyright international organization which locates regional headquarter in China.
The director general of State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of the People's Republic of China, director general of National Copyright Administration of the People's Republic of China Nie Chenxi entrusted the address to Yu Cike, department chief of Copyright Administration Department of National Copyright Administration of the People's Republic of China. Possessing of extensive influence around the world, CISAC promoted the protection for the right of China's creators and level of China's copyright collective administration , encouraged cultural exchange and copyright cooperation between China and foreign countries. Creation is the basic of one culture and culture makes a colorful world. Copyright is the core competitiveness of one country, which connects creation and culture. The system of copyright protection developed from directest spirit and beneficial demand of “protecting creators”. More and more countries focus on copyright's positive effects in promoting national innovation ability and national core competitiveness. China's copyright protection is facing difficulties and challenges. Comparing with developed countries, China's copyright collective administration started later. China's copyright system is solving the problems under traditional environment which have been settled by developed countries and many developing countries, and it will answer to challenges brought by new-tech and new situation together with other countries around the world. Chinese government's standpoint of protecting copyright is firm, and our efficiency will be notable with our unshaken attitude. As China's economic development stepping into the New Normal, and the establishment of innovative nation and powerful country of intellectual property right gradually carrying out, copyright industry, which took its shape based on works creation, spreading and social public consumption, will welcome a new era of vigorous development.
The secretary-general of CISAC Gadi Oron says that the first forum in China demonstrates the importance of China's market. Chinese government took great efforts in copyright protection in order to protect creators' right and future development of digital market.
The vice chairman of CISAC J ia Zhangke emphasizes that the third Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China that is being revised brings scriptwriters and directors into the field of writers of audiovisual works, which is a crucial development for the undertaking of copyright. If this law can be promulgated favorably, it will lay prosperous and fair legal foundation for China's creators to have right to get payment. The improvement of copyright environment for Chinese film industry workers is very important for the maintenance of Chinese movie ecology. Movie itself is a artistic work which needs a long period of creating. Only the right to get payment is proved, can creators devote themselves to deeper creation truly, and the fickleness of Chinese movie industry would be relieved. Like peers in foreign countries, if China's scriptwriters and directors can achieve sustained royalty income from other people's subsequent use of their own works around the world. It is no doubt that this will absorb more and more talents devoting themselves to the movie industry, thus to really achieve the prosperity of Chinese movies.
Professor Liu Chuntian, president of CIPLA and dean of intellectual property college of Renmin University of China , says that China has experienced a thoroughly social transformation during last 30 years, and our regimes are still being completed. Creators who provide splendid spiritual life to us should be respected. Creators are “one”, industry and consumption are “zero”. There's no use for no matter how many “zero” without “one”. I t is irreplaceable and important for creation and social operation to enhance the strength of intellectual property right protection and to increase the awareness of intellectual property right in the whole society.
In the discussion link of “the right of scriptwriter and director that can not give up”, Professor Wang Qian of East China University of Political Science and Law states that although the Draft Amendment to Copyright Law (Manuscript) introduces the definition of “secondary right to get payment”, it has following problems: The first one is “priority of agreement”, which means the producer and writer could make an agreement of lump-sum payment, and “secondary right to get payment” belongs to the right that can give up. The second one is that the remuneration is paid by “producer” who has no way to get payment in the majority of situations. The third one is that the profit gainer of “secondary right to get payment” are limited to the people of directors, scriptwriters and song writers and producers, and there's no explicit stipulation for creators beyond those people. The vice chairman of CISAC Jia Zhangke states that the China Film Director’s Guild always devote itself to boost the confirmation of “secondary right to get payment” clause in the process of the third revision for Copyright Law. Like peers in foreign countries, if China's script writers and directors can achieve sustained royalty income as an additional income (even more than the amount of the income) from other people's subsequent use of their own works around the world, which will boost the prosperous development of Chinese movie industry.
In this World Creators Forum, the secretary-general of Images Copyright Society of China (ICSC) Lin tao and Havel who is the vice chairman of the board of CISAC and the secretary-general of the International Council of Creators of Graphic, Plastic and Photographic Arts (CIAGP) signed the strategic partnership agreement, which aims at sharing the successful experiences and methods of CIAGP for protecting the copyright of visual artists, providing successful experience for rights protection of Chinese Photography Copyright Association, thus to achieve the target of serving Chinese photographers.
As the key link of this World Creators Forum, the Asia-Pacific Music Creators Alliance (APMA) was announced in Beijing. Thereby, the Asian-Pacific Region will connect all musical creators with Africa, Europe, South-America and North-America through CIAM. Creators from over 15 countries and regions including Australia, Mongolia, New Zealand, Thailand, Korea, Japan, Vietnam and Taiwan district signed principle and intention constitution. APMA will assist creators to jointly voice, realize their rights, increase their awareness and guide organizations to protect creators and their works. The chairman of APMA and creator of Japan, Shun Tokura said, “I'm very honored to witness the establishment of APMA and to be the first chairman of APMA. As a creator in Asian-Pacific Region, we will protect the right of creators in this region by closer cooperation. APMA will promote the development and progress of talented music creators in Asian- Pacific Region.”
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