WIPO Beijing Treaty a ‘significant’ move to protect performers, actors say

The new Beijing Treaty approved at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Diplomatic Conference on the Protection of Audiovisual Performances this week will help performers maintain the integrity of their works and obtain financial compensation for their use, industry groups say. The seven-day conference brought countries and about 700 delegates to China to discuss moral and economic rights associated with audiovisual performances. The conference culminated with the approval of the treaty Sunday by WIPO members and the signing of the document by several nations Tuesday. In a June 20 release, WIPO said the conference “is the culmination of twelve years of negotiations” and seeks to strengthen the rights of performers and find ways to draw more income from their work. Stephen Waddell, executive director of the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) who attended the conference in Beijing, said in a phone interview from China that the treaty is “a very significant achievement for performers globally.” Waddell said the industry has been working towards an agreement since 1996 when the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) was established. He said the WPPT brought economic rights for audio performers and recordings but not to audiovisual performances. The new treaty, Waddell said, grants moral rights to artists to ensure their audiovisual performances are not distorted or used in a way that would harm their reputations. Waddell said moral rights also protect artists’ works from being associated with products or advertising campaigns without consent. Article 5 of the new treaty states that a performer has the moral right “to object to any distortion, mutilation or other modification of his performances that would be prejudicial to his reputation taking due account of the nature of audiovisual fixations.” The economic rights ensure artists are compensated for the use of their performances, Waddell said. “If it’s used without compensation, then it would give the performer the statutory right, or the ability to go to court, to enforce the payment for such use,” he said. ACTRA said in a release Tuesday that it participated in the conference as part of the International Federation of Actors (FIA) delegation, which was comprised of 27 representatives from performers’ unions around the world. The Canadian government did not send a diplomatic representative to the conference. “I think it was close to a hundred countries present, all the way from Bangladesh to Haiti,” Waddell said, “so it’s regrettable that there were no representatives from the Canadian government here.” Waddell said the treaty, first signed by Bangladesh, must be ratified by 30 parties to be implemented. “We’re asking the government to sign the treaty and then to ratify it so that we can then incorporate the rights and establish them globally into Canadian law,” he said. Erica Redler, an independent broadcast consultant who has represented the North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) on WIPO issues, said in an emailed statement that the Canadian government’s “non-attendance” should not be interpreted as a lack of support for the treaty. She said the new treaty was “mostly” negotiated and agreed to at the WIPO committee level. “Essentially, the deal was done before the Diplomatic Conference opened,” Redler said. The Wire Report asked the Heritage Department why Canada did not participate in the conference and whether it will support the treaty. Pierre Manoni, a spokesman for the department, said in an emailed statement that “Canada will continue to work with international partners in WIPO on these and other matters.” Michael Hennessy, the new president and CEO of the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA), said in a statement that the organization is looking forward to working with ACTRA and the government as the treaty’s review and ratification process unfolds. “For two decades, ACTRA has demonstrated leadership and persistence in working to achieve this important international milestone,” Hennessy said. “Other copyright treaties have addressed the rights of other creators. Now, audiovisual performers are finally getting their due.” The CMPA said in a release Tuesday that although the new treaty was adopted by WIPO it would be effective in Canada only after a signature and ratification by the federal government and approval by Parliament. The U.S. Copyright Office said in a release Tuesday that the United States and “more than 50 WIPO member states signed the treaty, which marks the first multilateral agreement on copyright adopted in WIPO since 1996.” Francis Gurry, director general of WIPO, said in a statement that the Beijing Treaty is an “important milestone” as the new international copyright framework “will no longer discriminate against one set of performers.” dgrenier@thewirereport.ca

WIPO Beijing Treaty a ‘significant’ move to protect performers, actors say

News | 06/26/2012 9:13 pm EDT

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