MORE INFORMATION
Methods, to govern the culture, The songs that no one listens (still) dominate the collection of the SGAE
The Congress of deputies approved Tuesday by a unanimous vote (and barring last-minute surprises) a report of the presentation on the reform of the Law on Intellectual Property, which adapts Spanish law to the european patterns. The Culture Commission will ratify the report, which goes to the Senate and, possibly, at the end of January the new law will enter into force. Among the most important measures underlines the commitment of the four main groups (PSOE, PP, We and Citizens) will limit the benefits of the fundraising music night broadcast on television.
As it advanced this newspaper, the law will order for the first time the distribution of the call wheel and the total of the funds raised by this strip in the tv —defined as “testimonial”— shall not exceed 20%. This amount is the maximum proposed by the award of the World Organization of Intellectual Property organization (WIPO) in July of 2017. The opinions gathered among the spokespersons of each of the parties agree that it is an “understanding decisive” to clear the doubts about the collective management of copyright.
The SGAE shall apply in cases in which “the commercial value of the use of the protected works and services is testimonial by the absence of significant audience”. That is to say, during the early morning hours. Right now, in a time band (from three to six in the morning) of a 1% audience generates almost 70% of the funds raised by the music on the tv. The goal is to stop the “arbitrariness in the allocation and ensure that the participation of right holders in proportion to the use of their works”. A concert of Alejandro Sanz in schedule of maximum audience, for example, is outside of this regulation. The music assumes an 80% of the income of the SGAE (eur 248 million in 2017) and most of that percentage comes from fundraising by the songs played on television stations.
The National court investigates the excesses of a system that is legal, but which, for years, used without control. The plot of the wheel, investigating the courts, would have defrauded between 2006 and 2011 some 100 million euros by the fraudulent registration of alleged modifications of original works.
The deputies want to clean up the SGAE, the entity of which more raises in Spain, starting with collection and delivery, the issues most demanded by the partners themselves, who are demanding more transparency and fairness. There are available in the standard assurance of the transparency and “traceability” of the process.
Thanks to the versatility of the holders of the rights will be able to identify and track, for the first time, all stages of collection, from the source to the deal. It is a method of tracking digital location code for that is not raise to bulge, and in a generic manner. With the approval of this point will be detailed in the invoice and, as they say since we Can, “avoiding bad practices”.
The last paragraph that reinforces the democratic mechanisms of the rights management companies is one which requires entities to raise more than 100 million a year (which is the case only of the SGAE) to the creation of a supervisory body which audits from within the entity. This measure has a clause essential: you must have as many independent members as of the entity itself. The objective is to ensure the independence of the control and eliminate the conflicts of interest that may drive the entity of its objectives agreed.
The new Board of Directors of the SGAE, with José Ángel Hevia to the head, you need to adapt the new statute to this directive that will enter into force in three months.
