COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION On content in the Digital Single Market
Date: 2012-12-18
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Internet, access to information, audiovisual document, audiovisual industry, copyright, economic growth, scientific press, single market, trade licence

EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 

Brussels, 18.12.2012  
COM(2012) 789 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION 

On content in the Digital Single Market 

EN 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
  
 
COMMUNICATION 

On content in the Digital Single Market  

1.  Introduction 

The  digital  economy  has  been  a  major  driver  of  growth  in  the  past  two  decades,  and  is 
expected to grow seven times faster than overall EU GDP in coming years. Online there are 
new  ways  of  providing,  creating  and  distributing  content,  and  new  ways  to  generate  value. 
The emergence of new business models capitalising on the potential of the internet to deliver 
content  represents  a  challenge  and  an  opportunity  for  the  creative  industries,  authors  and 
artists as well as for the other actors in the digital economy. Against this backdrop, one of the 
Commission's  objectives  is  to  ensure  that  copyright  and  copyright-related  practices,  such  as 
licensing, stay fit for purpose in this new digital context. 

In 2010, in its Digital Agenda for Europe,1 the Commission endeavoured to open up access to 
content  as  part  of  its  strategy  to  achieve  a  vibrant  Digital  Single  Market  and  identified  a 
number of actions in the field of copyright. In 2011, in its Intellectual Property Strategy "A 
Single  Market  for  Intellectual  Property  Rights"2,  the  Commission  recognised  the  strategic 
importance  of  copyright  for  the  development  of  the  Digital  Single  Market.  The  Strategy 
sought to develop solutions targeted and designed to address specific obstacles with the most 
appropriate  tools  available,  be  they  commercial  or  contractual  solutions,  technology-based 
solutions, or legislative intervention. 

Against  this  background,  the  Commission  has  already  taken  a  number  of  actions,  including 
new  legislation  on  orphan  works  and  a  pending  legislative  proposal  on  collective 
management; a contractually-based solution in the form of the Memoranda of Understanding 
on  out  of  print  books,  and  access  to  works  by  the  Visually  Impaired;  and  support  for  the 
development of technological solutions. The Commission has also published a call under the 
CIP-ICT Policy Support Programme 2012, on ' European Rights Information Management'. 

In  the  Compact  for  Growth  and  Jobs  in  June  2012  the  Heads  of  State  or  Government 
underlined, among other measures needed to achieve a well-functioning Digital Single Market 
by 2015, the importance of modernising Europe's copyright regime and facilitating licensing, 
while ensuring a high level of protection of intellectual property rights and taking into account 
cultural diversity. 

Whilst good progress has been made in delivering the copyright-related actions identified in 
the Digital Agenda and the Intellectual Property Strategy, there remains work to be done to 
ensure an effective single market in the area of copyright.  

The Commission will therefore work on two parallel tracks of action.  On the one hand, it will 
complete  its  on-going  effort  to  review  and  to  modernise  the  EU  copyright  legislative 
framework. 

1 COM (2010) 245 final/2 

2 COM(2011) 287 final 

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In parallel, the Commission will set out to address a number of issues on which rapid progress 
is  necessary  and  possible.  Thus,  a  structured  stakeholder  dialogue  will  be  launched  by  the 
Commission, with the assigned objective of delivering by the end of 2013 practical industry-
led  solutions  to  these  issues,  without  prejudice  to  further  public  policy  action,  including 
legislative  reform,  as  appropriate.  Under  the  name  of  "Licensing  Europe",  this  process  will 
seek  to  tap  the  potential  and  explore  the  possible  limits  of  innovative  licensing  and 
technological solutions in making EU copyright law and practice fit for the digital age. 

2.  Structured stakeholder dialogue 

"Licensing Europe" will comprise four parallel work strands, tasked with delivering effective 
market-led solutions, without prejudging the possible need for public policy action. For this 
reason,  the  participants  will  be  hands-on  representatives  of  rights  holders,  licensing  bodies, 
commercial and non-commercial users of protected content, as well as internet end-users. The 
process  will  be  launched  at  an  initial  plenary  meeting  beginning  2013,  and  working  groups 
will be established to take forward work and report back to the plenary at mid-term (June) and 
finally in the fourth quarter of 2013. The process will cover the issues as set out below. The 
specific detail for the work on each them should be considered indicative. 

 (i) Cross-border access and the portability of services 

The  Commission's  objective  is  to  foster  cross-border  on-line  access  and  "portability"  across 
borders  of  content.  To  benefit  from  new  developments,  like  cloud-computing,  cross-border 
legal access to cloud-stored content and services should also be facilitated. Service providers 
interested  in  providing  their  services  to  consumers  across  the  EU  need  to  ensure  that  they 
have  secured  all  the  necessary  rights  in  the  Member  State  in  which  they  wish  to  provide 
services.  Both  multi-territory  and  single  territory  licensing  is  possible,  depending  on  the 
sector,  the  service  provider  and  the  rights  holder.  However,  distribution  of  content  is  often 
limited  to  one  or  a  few  Member  States  (e.g.  using  geo-blocking),  with  service  providers 
(online platforms) or rights holders electing to impose cross-border sales restrictions.  

(cid:190)  This work strand should identify the main categories of restrictions on cross-border access 
and portability by sector (taking into account some aspects of the consultation responses 
to the 2011 Green Paper on the online distribution of audiovisual works in the EU) and the 
main  reasons  behind  these  restrictions.  On  this  basis  it  should  take  stock  of  current 
industry initiatives and deliver practical solutions to promote multi-territory access. 

(ii) User-generated content and licensing for small-scale users of protected material 

The Commission's objective is to foster transparency and ensure that end-users have greater 
clarity  on  legitimate  and  non-legitimate  uses  of  protected  material,  and  easier  access  to 
legitimate solutions. Content generated by users themselves is often covered by some form of 
licensing  by  rights  holders,  in  partnership  with  certain  platforms.  However  the  scale  and 
coverage of such licences is not transparent to the end user. Furthermore, such arrangements 
create rights and obligations for the contractual partners, but do not necessarily provide legal 
certainty to the end-users. In parallel, small-scale users of content, such as small companies 
who wish to use some images or music in their websites, struggle to identify how to acquire 
licences for low value uses of protected content.  

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(cid:190)  This work strand should identify the extent to which user-generated content is licensed to 
relevant platforms, and identify how to ensure that end-users are informed about what is 
legal and illicit use on the internet. 

(cid:190)  It should seek to ensure that end users benefit from easier access to, and greater clarity on 
what  are  the  legitimate  and  non  legitimate  uses  of  protected  material.  To  that  effect,  it 
should identify the range and extent of "one-click" licensing initiatives in the EU, deliver 
solutions  to  extend  the  development  and  interconnection  of  such  initiatives  and  explore 
the appropriateness of licensing or appropriate terms – e.g. the possibility of free licenses. 

(iii) Audiovisual sector and cultural heritage institutions 

The Commission's objective is to facilitate the deposit and online accessibility of films in the 
EU  both  for  commercial  purposes  and  non-commercial  cultural  and  educational  uses.  It 
remains  difficult  for  online  service  providers  to  develop  catalogues  of  European  films  for 
online availability, particularly those which are "out-of-distribution" i.e. works whose rights 
holders are unwilling or unable to exploit on an individual basis: it may be difficult to identify 
the  existence  of  films,  or  the  rights  may  be  complex  and  time-consuming  to  clear.  Film 
Heritage Institutions also consider that the current situation in some Member States does not 
allow them to fulfil their public interest mission. 

(cid:190)  This  work  strand  should  identify  successful  collaborative  solutions  to  improve  the 
discoverability  and  the  making  available  online  of  audiovisual  works,  particularly  those 
which are out of distribution on a voluntary basis. It should deliver concrete solutions to 
spread  best  practice  approaches  throughout  the  EU  both  for  commercial  and  non-
commercial uses.  

(cid:190)  Recommendations should be made on how to ensure that Member States provide adequate 
scope in a practical manner for cultural heritage institutions to 'reproduce' or 'format shift' 
archived material in order to digitise for preservation purposes.  

(iv) Text and data mining 

The Commission's objective is to promote the efficient use of text and data mining (TDM) for 
scientific  research  purposes.  TDM  currently  requires  contractual  agreements  between  users 
(e.g. typically research institutions) and rights holders (e.g. publishers of scientific journals) to 
establish the modalities for technical access to the relevant data sets. 

(cid:190)  This work strand should identify the scale of demand for TDM access at EU level for text 
mining  of  scientific  publications  and  underlying  data  for  research  purposes,  and 
appropriate  means  of  meeting  this  demand.  It  should  explore  the  potential  and  possible 
limits of standard licensing models, as well as assess the appropriateness and feasibility of 
technology platforms to facilitate TDM access. 

In  addition  to  these  areas,  during  2012  the  issue  of  private  copying  levies  has  been  the 
subject  of  an  industry  mediation  process,  fostered  by  the  Commission  and  led  by  former 
Commissioner António Vitorino. Mr. Vitorino is expected to deliver a report on this issue at 
the  beginning  of  next  year,  including  a  number  of  recommendations.  On  this  basis  the 
Commission  will  draw  conclusions  as  to  appropriate  follow-up  actions  for  the  specific 
recommendations,  including  the  further  involvement  of  stakeholders  to  contribute  to  the 
finding of future-proof and internal market friendly solutions. 

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3.  Review of the copyright framework 

In parallel the Commission will complete its on-going review of the EU copyright framework, 
based  on  market  studies  and  impact  assessment  and  legal  drafting  work,  with  a  view  to  a 
decision  in  2014  whether  to  table  the  resulting  legislative  reform  proposals. The  following 
elements  will be  addressed:  territoriality  in  the  Internal  Market;  harmonisation,  limitations 
and exceptions to copyright in the digital age; fragmentation of the EU copyright market; and 
how  to  improve  the  effectiveness  and  efficiency  of  enforcement  while  underpinning  its 
legitimacy in the wider context of copyright reform. 

4.  Conclusion 

Over  the  next  two  years  the  Commission  will  continue  to  work  for  a  modern  copyright 
framework  that  remains  fit  for  purpose  and  seeks  to  foster  innovative  market  practices  in 
order  to  guarantee  effective  recognition  and  remuneration  of  rights  holders;  to  provide 
sustainable incentives for creativity, cultural diversity and innovation; to increase the choice 
of and open up access to legal offers by end users; to allow new business models to emerge; 
and to more effectively contribute to combating illegal offers and piracy. 

The  Commission  is  confident  that  the  stakeholder  dialogue  can  work  as  an  incubator  for 
innovative win–win solutions for all stakeholders. Such solutions are vital for driving forward 
the  Digital  Single  Market  and  EU  cultural  policy  and  complement  work  on-going  in  the 
implementation of the Digital Agenda, the modernisation of copyright in the single market, or 
the successful implementation of the MEDIA and Culture programmes. 

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