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EU: Copyright chief wants competition probe

By  |  June 24, 2014

The head of copyright at the European Commission is calling for the competition arm of the authority to open an investigation into unfair copyright contracts, according to report.

The Head of the Copyright Unit for the Internal Market Directorate General (DG MARKT), Maria Martin-Prat, told reporters that the Commission should probe the matter with specific focus on the requirement in the EU that authors must agree to infinite rights to have their work published. According to reports, in some member states authors have to assign their rights to an intermediary in “infinite” deals; in Germany, however, those rights can’t be assigned at all.

While the official said the Commission may soon open up a case into the matter, reports did not indicate whether DG Comp had confirmed this.

Full content: The Register

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