Kulturudvalget 2014-15 (2. samling)
KOM (2015) 0192 Bilag 1
Offentligt
Joint inquiry from Nordic collective management organizations and their member organizations sent to the
Nordic governments.
June 2015
The Nordic extended collective licensing model should be excluded from the forthcoming EU copyright
reform.
To the Nordic ministers responsible for copyright:
It is with great concern that we have learned that the European Commission, in connection with its desire
to push for a reform of copyright as part of the digital single market agenda, is working to introduce a
harmonized exception for use of protected material in the field of education.
All educational institutions in the Nordic countries have wide access to both analogue and digital
copyrighted works from around the world as part of their education.
Access is achieved easily through a system of agreements with national collecting rights organizations,
making the Nordic extended collective licensing (ECL) system a strong and sustainable model where both
users’ and rights owners’ interests are protected.
With this licensing model, it is possible to continuously adjust the agreements to the actual needs of users,
so that new usage patterns, technologies and platforms can be implemented. It provides education with
flexibility and the ability to adapt to a future digital development.
The ECL model also ensures remuneration to authors and other rightsholders whose material is used, which
in turn means that they can continue to create new works, which help our school children and students in
their education.
Recognized in several EU Directives in the field of copyright, the ECL ensures a balance between the use of
the copyright protected works and the production of new material. It will be a step backwards if current
agreement models are replaced by inflexible legislation, thereby undermining the economic basis for the
production of new material.
A copyright reform as part of the digital single market agenda should not be achieved by detrimenting well-
functioning national schemes, particularly when such agreement-based models secure supply and flexibility
for the educational institutions, fair remuneration to the rightsholders and when cross-border usage in
practice plays a minor role.
We therefore urge the Nordic governments to stand united in a joint statement to preserve the Nordic
extended collective licensing model and prevent any changes to the system within the field of education.
Signed by the following organizations representing rightsholders: