Appeal to senators for changes to the Copyright Act

“During a closed session of the Sejm Committee on Culture and Media, lobbyists from collective rights management organizations convinced the MPs to introduce an amendment to the pending draft law on copyright imposes double fees on entrepreneurs and subscribers for re-broadcasting. We, cable and satellite television operators, strongly oppose this and ask Senators to submit and support an amendment to Senate Paper No. 111 in order to delete point 6 added to Article 70, paragraph 2, which will prevent double charging of our subscribers,” we read in the appeal.

It was emphasized that “over 50 percent of the annual revenue of cable and satellite operators is allocated to royalties, licenses and fees for creative communities.”

“Our sector supports the television ecosystem, enabling artists, producers and distributors to develop and create content for Poles. If double re-broadcast fees are adopted, we will be forced to inform subscribers about the additional costs on invoices, specifying the specific amount they are responsible for under the amendment and citing the legal act,” the appeal stated.

It also added: “We are not against remuneration for creators – they undoubtedly deserve it. However, various taxes, including copyright fees and licenses, already constitute the majority of the costs of pay TV. We bear these costs in order to provide customers with the best and most professional product. However, we are against deceiving our subscribers through legislative errors.”

The appeal noted that “the current conflict between actors and producers of audiovisual works is visible in the ongoing work on the act”, with “actors transferring their rights to producers, which means that royalties for actors are included in the fee that operators pay to organizations such as the Polish Filmmakers Association (SFP)”, so “it is the SFP that is responsible for transferring the appropriate part of the funds already collected to the actors”.

“It is incomprehensible that OZZ actors are pushing for further fees for those exercising their rights in the amendment to the act,” it was written.

According to chambers and organisations working on behalf of the cable and satellite sector, “it is necessary to remove unjustified burdens on entrepreneurs and ensure that artists receive remuneration from the funds already provided”.

“Double billing will burden our subscribers, which is unfair and unacceptable. The Polish state should take responsibility for fixing bad regulations, rather than shifting the burden to entrepreneurs and consumers,” the appeal stated.

The appeal was signed by the following people and organizations: Bogdan Łaga, Polish Chamber of Electronic Communications; Stefan Kamiński, Polish Chamber of Commerce for Electronics and Telecommunications; Karol Skupień, Polish Chamber of Ethernet Communications; Krzysztof Kacprowicz, Association of Employers of Electronic Media and Telecommunications Mediakom; Krzysztof Czaja, Nasza Wizja Foundation; Andrzej Dulka, Polish Chamber of Information Technology and Telecommunications; Jacek Silski, Polish Chamber of Digital Radiodiffusion; Teresa Wierzbowska, ZPPM Lewiatan; Paweł Wołoch, Association of Cable Televisions in Poland Chamber of Commerce.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk On July 10, during a roundtable with publishers on the issue of changes to copyright law, he said that the government “will find satisfactory solutions in the current July Senate cycle.” The current Senate session ends on Thursday, the next one is scheduled for July 24-26.

After meeting with publishers, the Senate Speaker told journalists that the talks were substantive and that publishers and Polish authorities agreed on most points. Asked whether work on the copyright amendment could be completed this month, she replied that it “must be completed” during the last session of the Senate in July. – This directive is very important and we cannot wait to adopt it. The matter must be closed in July – Kidawa-Błońska stated.

When asked about the composition of the government group that will work on changes to copyright law, Deputy Minister of Culture and National Heritage Andrzej Wyrobiec informed that it will include lawyers and the director of the Department of Copyright and Film at the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage Maciej Dydo, as well as representatives appointed by the Chamber of Press Publishers and the Association of Journalists and Publishers Repropol. – We want to talk to a group that represents publishers as broadly as possible – he explained.

The Prime Minister's invitation is a response to an appeal by publishers and journalists from Polish media to politicians to change the copyright and related rights provisions adopted in the Sejm that are unfavourable to the media. The appeal emphasises that during the adoption of the copyright regulations in the digital world, their postulates, which they had been seeking to implement, were ignored.

Publishers fear that the regulations will lead to “media starvation” by large digital platforms. In the event of a dispute over royalties, compensation for content exposure on the web and protection against copying, they would also like to introduce a mediation instrument between platforms and publishers. According to publishers, these postulates have been ignored by both the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the Sejm.

Publishers emphasize that during the adoption of copyright regulations in the digital world, their postulates, which they sought to implement, were ignored. “We expected the introduction of mediation instruments between platforms and publishers in the event of a dispute over royalties, compensation for the exposure of content on the web and protection against its copying,” they wrote. The appeal was signed by publishers and journalists of Polish media – a total of over 350 newspaper titles and local portals.

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