Collective Copyright Management and Digitization: The European Experience

Abstract

This chapter gives an overview of the impact of digitization on the current activities of Collective Management Organizations and provides perspectives on the future of collective rights management in Europe. First, an introduction shows how the traditional system works, namely, by limiting the freedom of contract of right holders and users on the one hand and by transforming the exclusive rights into an entitlement to remuneration for use on the other. The second section presents the turning point of the legal framework applicable to CRMOs on the European level, a move initiated by two of the Commission's DGs (Directorates General): Internal Market and Services (DG Market) and Competition (DG Comp). The third section will examine the current state of collective rights management in the music and visual domains. The chapter ends with the conclusion that the collective rights management system is currently adapting to digitization notwithstanding the interventions by DG Market, especially in the music sector. In fact, the availability of copyrighted works will heavily rely on collective rights management in the future as well - if not more than ever.