[pp.int.general] Fwd: Letter from pro-Harbour Lobby (TELECOMS Package, Torpedo Amendments)

[David Arcos]

Hi,

We have received this letter from Hammerstein's office. It's an Open letter,
so it can be published.

In this letter the discographic & audiovisual lobbies are asking the
eurodiputies to vote for the Torpedo Amendments.
It's just 4 pages, we should read it and make a fast (but complete) answer.


PS: Note that it talks about p2p and related, we should argue that more
important things can be lost: civil rights, privacy, espionage...


---------- Forwarded message ----------
Dear MEPS,

Please find enclosed an "Open Letter of the European Creative Community on
the Telecom Package Review" from the following organisations:

? CEPI - European Coordination of Independent Poducers
? www.cepi.tv
? ECSA - European Composer and Songwriter Alliance
? www.composeralliance.org
? EPC - European Producers Club
? www.europeanproducersclub.org
? EUROCINEMA - Association de Producteurs de Cinéma et de Télévision
? www.eurocinema.eu
? EVA - European Visual Artists
? www.evartists.org
? EWC-FAEE - European Writers' Council
? www.european-writers-congress.org
? FERA - Federation of European Film Directors
? www.ferainfo.org
? FSE - Federation of Screenwriters in Europe
? www.scenaristes.org
? IMPALA - Independent Music Companies Association
? www.impalasite.org
? UNI-MEI - Global Union in Media, Entertainement and Arts
? www.union-network.org/mei




Contact: Cécile Despringre, CEO of FERA - info at ferainfo.org - tel : 02 290
44 35.



Yours sincerely,

Pyrrhus Mercouris
FSE manager

Federation of Scriptwriters in Europe/Fédération des Scénaristes en Europe
(FSE)
C/O UNI-Europa, Box 9
31, rue de l'Hôpital
B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
Telephone:   (0032.2) 234-5654
Fax::   (0032.2) 235 0861
http://www.scenaristes.org






*OPEN LETTER OF THE EUROPEAN CREATIVE COMMUNITY*
*TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT*
*ON THE TELECOMMUNICATION PACKAGE REVIEW*
 ------------------------------
*Page 2*
2
 Brussels, 29 August 2008
Dear Members of the European Parliament,
The vote on the Telecommunication Package Review in the leading committees
(ITRE and
IMCO) on July 7
 th
 brought some positive amendments to the revision of the 2002 directives.
Nevertheless, it remains unsatisfactory regarding several elements which are
of the utmost
importance for the European creative community whose works highly contribute
to the
development of the electronic communications and services. These elements
need to be
addressed at the September plenary session.
We represent authors and independent producers who deserve greater benefits
from the
Internet, particularly for the distribution of their works as well as the
development of new
business models for European works. The most important tool at the disposal
of the creative
community is intellectual property rights to safeguard their works. These
rights have been
threatened on the web because lots of web users have lost respect for them
and consider
that illegal downloading does not harm the creative community. This is
false. Illegal
downloading harms the European creative community and prevents the
development of
business models for legal online offers.
*In this context, the creative community calls on all stakeholders,
including*
*telecommunication operators, to work together to find the best ways to
deter massive*
*online piracy and to develop legal alternatives for consumers. Dialogue and
co-*
*operation is only possible if the Telecom Package creates the appropriate
conditions*
*which will foster awareness on this issue.*
Therefore, we would like to inform you by this letter of the amendments
considered as
essential by the European creative community and we invite you to support
them in the
perspective of the September Plenary vote.
 *1. I*
 *NFORMATION ON THE RESPECT FOR COPYRIGHT*
 Compromise amendments, proposed by the draft person, MEP Malcolm Harbour
were
adopted in IMCO committee in order to supersede article 20.6 proposed by the
Commission
in the Universal Service Directive. In spite of our strong support to
article 20.6, we have been
convinced that the compromise amendments proposed by MEP Malcolm Harbour and
adopted in IMCO on July 7
 th
 are the only ones acceptable by all interested parties
(amendments 62 and 67). Furthermore, it reinforces subscribers' information
about their
rights and obligations in article 21.4a (amendment 76).
Indeed, it is indispensable to inform subscribers in their contract on the
use of electronic
communications networks and services to help them prevent that they carry
out unlawful
activities; it is equally important to distribute public interest
information on prejudicial activities
for the rights and freedoms of others, including copyright.
This general information is not directed in particular at copyright
infringers, but will be sent to
all subscribers. Therefore, these provisions cannot be compared in any way
to the "French
graduated response" which has been proposed by the French government in a
draft law on
June 18, 2008. We would like to add in this context that it is not the
purpose of the European
creative community to incorporate the "French graduated response" in the
Telecommunication package.
 ------------------------------
*Page 3*
3
 In addition, we call on you to reject amendment 120 of the ITRE committee
report which
deletes point 19 of the Annex I of the Authorisation directive introduced by
the Commission.
This provision incorporates the respect of implementation laws of
intellectual property
directives as a possible condition for an authorisation to be given to a
telecom operator and
should be maintained.
 *2. T*
 *HE COOPERATION FOR THE PROTECTION AND PROMOTION OF LAWFUL CONTENT*
 Despite its adoption in four out of five opinion committees (IMCO 26, JURI
14, CULT 20 and
LIBE 28), the so-called "cooperation amendment" was not adopted by the ITRE
committee
on July, 7
 th
 with just one vote of majority (amendment 308).
The European creative community considers that this amendment would be a
great
opportunity for all interested parties in the electronic communications
sector to create a
constructive dialogue in order to contribute to the development of creative
content online.
It seems that some MEPs believe that this amendment aims to introduce in
European law the
French graduated response mechanism. The European creative community would
like to
stress that the "cooperation amendment" only aims at creating a dialogue in
each Member
State between the sectors concerned by entrusting the National Regulatory
Authorities with
the mission of ensuring it. This amendment will not, in any case, set up any
obligation
concerning the form and the results of this dialogue.
Amendment 61 adopted by the ITRE Committee, which refers to article 33 of
the Universal
Service Directive is not enough in this context. Cooperation will only take
place if it is clearly
part of the mission of the National Regulatory Authorities to ensure it. A
simple reference to
article 33 of the Universal Service Directive related to the consultation of
interested parties
on consumers' information does not create any competence of the National
Regulatory
Authorities to ensure cooperation.
In addition, article 33 of the Universal Service Directive modified by
amendment 112 of the
IMCO report, only refers to cooperation for the promotion of lawful content;
the term
"protection" has been deleted. We consider that both aspects "promotion" and
"protection"
are inseparable. Protection of lawful content is necessary to ensure its
promotion. The 2005
UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of
Cultural
Expressions refers to both terms as you cannot promote something that you do
not respect
and protect.
Therefore, the European creative community urges you to support a
cooperation amendment
which should be tabled again in the plenary, in line with the one tabled by
Mrs Vlasto, Mr
Belet and Mrs Hieronymi in the ITRE committee (amendment 308) and adopted in
four
opinion committees (IMCO 26, JURI 14, CULT 20 and LIBE 28).
 *3. T*
 *HE APPROPRIATE BALANCE BETWEEN THE RESPECT OF PRIVACY AND THE*
*PROTECTION OF COPYRIGHT*
 We deeply regret that the opinions of the different committees on the
privacy issue were
taken into account neither by the Civil Liberties nor by the Internal Market
committees.
Indeed, two of them aimed at integrating into the "privacy directive" the
lessons taken from
the European Court of Justice in its decision in the Promusicae v.
Telefonica case.
The first one, which has been tabled and adopted by the Civil Liberties
committee,
incorporates a new amendment 30 b in the privacy directive (amendment 35 of
the IMCO
 ------------------------------
*Page 4*
4
 report) which states that *When implementing measures transposing Directive
2002/58/EC,*
*the authorities and courts of the Member States shall not only interpret
their national law in a*
*manner consistent with that Directive but also make sure that they do not
rely on an*
*interpretation of that Directive which would be in conflict with other
fundamental rights or*
*general principles of Community law, such as the principle of
proportionality. *This
amendment should be confirmed in the plenary.
The second one, adopted in two opinions' committees (JURI 32 and CULT 15)
but not in the
LIBE committee, should be tabled again for the plenary. It would contribute
to clarify the
reference to the 1995 framework privacy directive in article 15.1 of the
2002 privacy directive.
It would therefore establish a better balance between the respect for
intellectual property
rights and privacy protection, by providing the possibility for an exception
to the
confidentiality of private data in order to protect the rights and freedom
of others.
This amendment is essential to clarify the relationship between the two
fundamental rights. It
is also appropriate and balanced since article 15.1 on one hand already
provides that the
exception will be strictly limited to necessary, appropriate and
proportionate measures and
on the other hand, only gives Members States the possibility to introduce
such an exception
into their legislation.
*The European creative community represented by our organisations calls on
your*
*support for those amendments at the plenary vote in September. The
development of*
*the European electronic communication networks and services cannot be done
at the*
*expenses of the European artists and creativity.*
Yours sincerely,
Signatories:
*CEPI *– European Coordination of Independent Poducers
 www.cepi.tv
 *ECSA *– European Composer and Songwriter Alliance
 www.composeralliance.org
 *EPC *- European Producers Club
 www.europeanproducersclub.org
 *EUROCINEMA *- Association de Producteurs de Cinéma et de Télévision
 www.eurocinema.eu
 *EVA *– European Visual Artists
 www.evartists.org
 *EWC-FAEE *- European Writers' Council
 www.european-writers-congress.org
 *FERA *– Federation of European Film Directors
 www.ferainfo.org
 *FSE *– Federation of Screenwriters in Europe
 www.scenaristes.org
 *IMPALA *– Independent Music Companies Association
 www.impalasite.org
 *UNI-MEI *– Global Union in Media, Entertainement and Arts
 www.union-network.org/mei
 Contact: Cécile Despringre, CEO of FERA – info at ferainfo.org – tel : 02 290
44 35
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