Seven organizations representing key segments of the digital and telecommunications sectors in Poland have jointly developed a roadmap project for reforming the collective copyright management system. The document outlines changes in six crucial areas and was created in response to growing questions and uncertainties stemming from the activities of collective management organizations (CMOs). The authors plan to present their proposals to CMO representatives and officials from the Ministry of Culture.
According to a report published in March this year, prepared on behalf of the digital and telecommunications industry, collective management organizations increased their total revenues by about 35% from 2019 to 2023, reaching over 4 billion PLN. In comparison, during the same period, revenues in the media and entertainment sector decreased by 4%. “The current system does not operate in a balanced or fair manner. It is concerning that organizations collecting fees on behalf of creators, including fees from companies we represent, see rising revenues while simultaneously the amounts of unpaid funds due to rights holders and operating costs are also increasing. Numerous irregularities in the functioning of CMOs, which we have demonstrated based on financial statement analyses, raise many questions about financial management,” said Bogdan Łaga, President of the Polish Chamber of Electronic Communications (PIKE).
For this reason, industry experts believe urgent and concrete changes to the system are necessary. To support the Ministry of Culture in the reform process, the digital and telecommunications sectors prepared their proposals, compiled in a roadmap developed collaboratively by experts from seven organizations. The roadmap contains six main demands aimed at making the entire copyright management system more transparent. Its implementation would also strengthen the position of creators. What exactly do the industry experts propose?
Time for Fair and Proportional Royalty Calculations
One of the key demands is reforming the rules for calculating remuneration. Primarily, the amounts should be legally capped to end the unfair practice of double-charging for the same services, as currently often happens in paid television, the industry points out. The authors of the proposed changes also consider the current model—where fees are based on the total revenues of enterprises regardless of whether these are related to the exploitation of works—to lead to systematic overcharging. Instead, they advocate basing fees solely on actual revenues generated from the exploitation of specific audiovisual works. Moreover, the industry proposes that the new model should incentivize investments in market development, such as producing content in Poland or building technological infrastructure.
The proposal also calls for a redefinition of the rules governing fee-setting. Digital organizations emphasize that changes to CMO rates should be made exclusively according to clear, legally defined rules and with full transparency. “Users of works must have real influence over the process of setting these rates. It cannot be that rates are imposed top-down by CMOs themselves or increase detached from any objective criteria. This is a particular responsibility of the Copyright Law Commission,” notes Andrzej Dulka, President of the Polish Chamber of Information Technology and Telecommunications.
Among the proposed solutions to heal the copyright management system is also a “One Stop Shop” model, which would allow users to conclude a single agreement with a selected CMO and make a single consolidated payment. Currently, entrepreneurs are forced to sign separate agreements with multiple organizations, generating unnecessary administrative costs and increasing the risk of errors.
Money Must Reach the Creators
The roadmap is complemented by a call for guaranteed transparency in fund management. The authors of the reform proposal argue that users should have access to information on how the funds collected by CMOs are divided, to whom they are paid, and what portion actually reaches the rightful creators. It is unacceptable for an organization to collect remuneration for the use of works fully aware that it will not be passed on to the authors, they emphasize. Experts also point to the statute of limitations for claims, which in their view should finally be standardized (the industry proposes a period of 3 years from the end of the calendar year).
At the same time, to ensure the effective operation of the system after the changes, building an efficient state supervision over the activities of collective management organizations will be essential, the digital and telecommunications sectors believe. Additionally, the reform aims to end the widespread abuse of dominant positions by CMOs. The current situation means that in case of disputes, users of works often face high financial penalties even if rates were not approved by the Copyright Law Commission. The proposed change stipulates that in such cases, no additional fees should be charged until the dispute is resolved.
The signatories of the document unanimously stress that the proposed reform is not aimed against creators—in fact, it aims to strengthen their position within a transparent, fair, and predictable system. “Creators need real support, but this cannot come at the expense of entrepreneurs who invest, develop Polish content, and create space for culture,” says Teresa Wierzbowska, President of the Lewiatan Association of Private Media Employers.
The roadmap was jointly developed by: the National Chamber of Electronics and Telecommunications, the Polish Chamber of Information Technology and Telecommunications, the Employers’ Association of Electronic and Telecommunications Media Mediakom, the Polish Chamber of Electronic Communications, the National Chamber of Ethernet Communications, the Association of Private Media Employers, and the Digital Poland Association. These organizations will present their proposals personally to CMO representatives. The discussion will take place as part of the Nationwide Conference of Electronic Communications Operators in Sopot. “We hope that in a spirit of consensus, we will be able to develop a proposal for the final shape of the reform that will heal the CMOs themselves and meet the expectations of business, creators, and consumers,” says Bogdan Łaga of PIKE, organizer of the conference in Sopot.
Source: ceo.com.pl
