The UK’s Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill, which aims to ‘modernise the UK’s copyright regime’ has recieved Royal Assent.
The Act promises to ‘bring in a new regime giving shareholders more say on directors’ pay, improve dispute resolution through reform of Employment Tribunals, establish the new Competition and Markets Authority and enshrine the aims of the Green Investment Bank’.
Of particular interest to music and the content industries is is promise to:
- Modernise the UK’s copyright regime to promote innovation in the design industry, encouraging investment in new products while strengthening copyright protections.
- Create a level playing field for collecting societies and the thousands of small businesses and organisations who deal with them by strengthening the existing regulatory regime.
- Ensuring orphan works will be licensed for use for the first time; these are copyrighted works for which the owner of the copyright is unknown or can’t be found. There will also be a system for extended collective licensing of copyright works
The Bill was introduced to the House of Commons on 23 May 2012, and completed its passage on 24 April 2013.
Some of its provisions will come into effect in June this year, but it appears at this stage that its copyright sections will be implemented later, either in October 2013 or April 2014.
Business Minister Jo Swinson said:
“The measures in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act will support the UK’s enterprise culture and help make it one of best places to do business.
“It will put in place fairer systems for directors’ pay, create a world-class competition regime, support the Green Investment Bank and improve our employment system. This will help businesses to start up, grow and employ more people.”
Source: Music Week
