Writers Guild proposes broad creator levy collected at all digital distribution and storage points

OTTAWA--Canadian content creators should be compensated for the illegal sharing and distribution of digital content through a broad levy collected at all distribution and storage points, including Internet services, storage devices, and mp3 players, the Writers Guild of Canada (WGC) is proposing. As part of its study on emerging and digital media, WGC executive director Maureen Parker told the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage Tuesday that online activities that infringe the Copyright Act should be legalized through collective licensing agreements to compensate creators. “What we cannot address alone is the lost revenues from common consumer uses, like illegal file sharing and saving to hard drives, which are currently not allowed under the Copyright Act and are not compensated for,” she said. “We don’t want to stop these uses, but rather make them allowed uses for consumers, and put in place collective licensing to compensate creators for these services. There has to be a balance between consumers and creators.” Parker did not say with which stakeholders such agreements would be made. But Kelly Lynne Ashton, director of industrial and policy research at the WGC, clarified with The Wire Report that the WGC is proposing a broader levy for copyrighted works that covers all distribution and storage points on consumer items and services such as Internet access, storage devices and mp3 players. Ashton told the committee Tuesday that ISPs should contribute to a fund to compensate content creators—not just musicians—for their work. “We also need the ISPs, like Rogers and Shaw, to make an appropriate contribution to Canadian content under the Broadcasting Act. They are not just dumb pipes,” she said. Eddie Schwartz, president of the Songwriters Association of Canada, has proposed a $4 or $5 music licence fee tacked onto consumers’ monthly Internet bills to compensate artists, songwriters, and other rights holders for music file sharing. According to the proposal, subscribers who don’t share their music could opt out of the surcharge. The digital music levy proposal on mp3 players has been a contentious one in Parliament, with the Conservative government opposed to it and the NDP and the Bloc Québécois in favour. Parker said a challenge for screenwriters is that, in the digital environment, broadcasters are demanding more rights from producers, citing existing collective licence fees. “For example, if a broadcaster exploits a TV show by iTunes downloads, in most cases the broadcaster keeps that revenue and it is not shared with the production community,” Parker said. “We support terms of trade between the broadcasters and the producers because without it, no one but the broadcasters earns revenue from these new uses. We will be working with independent producers to ensure that compensation flows equitably to the creative community.” Parker told The Wire Report following the meeting that she hopes the WGC’s suggestions are included in the government’s upcoming consultations on the digital economy, expected to be announced this month. “We see that creators are at the forefront and must be part of that discussion. It can’t just be about expanding broadband, dealing with banking, and social networks,” she said. Ashton also told the committee that the government should create an interactive digital media tax credit and extend the federal government’s existing film and video production tax credit to linear original Web series to encourage online distribution on Canadian-owned website. Digital media tax credits are currently offered in several Canadian provinces. Claire Samson, president and CEO of the Association des producteurs de films et de télévision du Québec, suggested that the government create a new fund to encourage digital media production instead of rolling funding for sector into the newly created Canada Media Fund (CMF). “It would have been judicious to allow Internet service and platform providers to contribute to the creation of a fund for new media,” she told the committee. Jason Kee, director of policy and legal affairs Entertainment Software Association of Canada, told the committee Tuesday that it is difficult for new media companies to access sufficient capital due to the industry’s volatility. “Reliable access to financing and capital is essential to the development of robust digital media industries,” he said. “New sources of capital will incentivize investment by providing a means to hedge against risk, thereby reducing industry volatility.” Kee called for additional government funding for the industry and said he also supports incentives through a new tax credit. “New funds should be allocated for the experimental stream of the Canada Media Fund, or potentially in addition to a new interactive media fund,” he said. “The introduction of a robust digital media credit will ensure the competitiveness of the rapidly growing domestic industry and assist Canada in establishing and retaining a leading position in the digital economy.” kfournier@thewirereport.ca

Writers Guild proposes broad creator levy collected at all digital distribution and storage points

Broadcast | May 5, 2010

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Writers Guild proposes broad creator levy collected at all digital distribution and storage points

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