AGCM

PRESS RELEASE

COPYRIGHT, THE ICA’S OPINION BEFORE THE PARLIAMENT AND THE GOVERNMENT

The Italian Competition Authority submitted an opinion to the Parliament and the Government - pursuant to article 22 of Law No. 287 dated 10 October 1990 - concerning the implementation of Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and Council, with reference to the collective management of copyright in the internal market. The ICA highlighted that the core of the Directive is based on the freedom to choose. In virtue of this principle, rightholders are acknowledged the power to identify a collective management organization “(…) regardless of the rightholders’ or collective management organizations’ EU nationality, residence or establishment (…)”. However, the value and ratio of the European regulatory system are seriously prejudiced by the national measure contained in art. 180 of Law No. 633 dated 22 April 194, (Legge sul Diritto d’Autore – LDA) , by now isolated in the panorama of the Member States’ regulations, which attributes to a single subject (SIAE) the copyright intermediation.

The ICA deems that, in an economic context characterized by deep technological changes, the non-opening of the national market towards copyright management limits operators’ freedom to carry out economic initiatives and users’ freedom to choose. According to the Authority’s opinion, the legal monopoly is in contrast with the aim to make effective rightholders’ freedom to choose among a plurality of operators capable of competing with the incumbent without discriminations.

The implementation of the Directive represents, according to the ICA’s opinion, an important opportunity for competitiveness in this intermediation sector. However, the bill delegating the Government to implement European directives and other acts of the European Union (2015 European delegation law), approved by the Chamber and currently in discussion at the Senate, does not explicitly provide for an intervention on SIAE’s legal monopoly.

Therefore, the ICA’s suggestion is for the reform of this monopolistic regime to be accompanied by an overall reorganization of the sector, so as to guarantee an adequate protection for authors, intermediate and final users. In this perspective, the liberalization intervention should be integrated by an overall reform of the measures outlined by the LDA as regards copyright intermediation, without neglecting a review of SIAE’s role and function in the changed context.

Rome, 6 June 2016