No more levies as Spain takes the Nordic route

Private copying: how best can
Spain a-Fjord to pay?

This weblog is grateful to Sandra Alverà (Manager, European Legal and Government Affairs, Panasonic Europe) for some big news from Spain: the country has abolished its copyright levy system and is to establish a fresh one, based much on the Norwegian system: calculation of the payments will be determined by the government following dialogue with stakeholders, payments then being integrated into the national budget. Sandra adds that The Netherlands is also moving towards abolishment of copyright levies --  but is not there yet!

As for Spain itself, Sandra explains that the government is meeting commitments made in the recent electoral campaign: eight years after the controversial implementation of the “canon digital” [subsequently shot down by the Court of Justice of the European Union in Case C-467/08 Padawan], the government decided to abolish the present copyright levy system on Friday 31 December 2011. Criteria for payment under the new scheme will be defined in an official decree within the next two months. At the same time, the government agreed to pass the “Ley Sinde” (Law against Internet-Piracy and illegal downloads) which, among other things, is to introduce a Commission to protect Intellectual Property.