The Publishers Association, the Booksellers Association and the Society of Authors have all welcomed the European Parliament’s vote in favour of the new draft copyright directive, but concerns have been expressed that the UK could leave the EU before the directive becomes law.
On Wednesday 12th September MEPs passed the draft law, which was put together to modernise copyright for the digital age and will force platforms such as YouTube and Facebook to take greater responsibility for the creative content they host. The new law would offer greater protection against infringement of intellectual copyright.
Stephen Lotinga, chief executive at the Publishers Association, said: “The progress made today is a good thing for publishing and the wider creative industries, but there are still a number of further steps to go down before this becomes law. We’ve seen through the powerful lobbying efforts of some very large tech firms just how little regard they hold for intellectual property, and ensuring that creators and rightsholders are rewarded fairly for their endeavour. We should be pleased with today, but cautious about where they take the fight to next as it’s certainly not over.”
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