European filmmakers and musicians spoke out Wednesday against any possible EU moves to end copyright levies on electronic equipment, saying this would deprive them of fair compensation for people copying their works.
Spanish director Pedro Almodovar was one of several high-profile artists pleading with the European Commission to retain the fees that most EU nations charge on music and video players and blank CDs to compensate for legal copying when listeners burn an extra disc so they can play an album at home and in the car.
Artists’ rights groups collect the fees and distribute them to music and film copyright holders, performers and recording companies. In some countries, a portion of the money also supports cultural projects, such as festivals and scholarships. The fees do not cover illegal copies a CD owner makes for other people.
Manufacturers claim these levies unfairly raise their products’ prices and are unnecessary as digital-rights management technologies are rolled out to restrict copying. They are lobbying for the levies to be dropped.
