NUJ unhappy at Government over copyright law

The NUJ says it is "disappointed" at the government’s response to Professor Ian Hargreaves' report on copyright.

The union claims it fails to foster creative opportunities for journalists to make a living as independent professionals dedicated to making high-quality new work.

The proposal that the use of work by uncontactable authors is licensed and the fee reflecting the commercial value of such uses is welcomed by the NUJ.

It says this is some recognition of the distorting effect that Hargreaves’ proposals would, if carelessly implemented, have on the market in which individual journalists, including reporters and photographers, make their living.

If there were to be licensing of so-called “orphan works” it must be done by bodies accountable to journalists and other creators; and the licences must be reviewed if the creator shows up.

The NUJ also welcomes the commitment to set up a copyright small claims jurisdiction for cases involving sums of £5,000 or less.

It urges the government to introduce new rights for creators in UK copyright law because under the current laws, creators do not have an enforceable right to be identified – that is, given a credit or byline – nor to defend the integrity of their work.

According to the union, this new measure could be introduced alongside legislation that permits the use of works whose creators cannot be identified.

The NUJ wants all creators to have the right to be identified with their work and says to ignore this issue would be to guarantee that there was a growing number of “orphan works” and create a system that promotes abuse.

It claims these “moral rights” of identification and integrity are crucial to creators in building and maintaining a career and that creators should have the right to be identified so they are able to negotiate on a level playing field to obtain fair remuneration for their work.

NUJ general secretary Michelle Stanistreet said: “Journalists should be able to publically claim their work and decide who and how journalistic work is used. This is vital for fostering a creative and sustainable economy able to grow and flourish. Creative rights are vital for journalists to be able to make a living as independent professionals dedicated to making high-quality new work.”

NUJ responds to Hargreaves' copyright report

The NUJ has given Professor Ian Hargreaves' report on copyright a mixed welcome.

The union was among organisations that made submissions to Professor Hargreave’s review through the Creators’ Rights Alliance.

NUJ freelance organiser John Toner said: “We are pleased that the report rejects the so-called ‘fair use’ doctrine which is based on questionable notions of fairness. The doctrine, which comes from United States law, permits the use of a creator’s work without permission and requires potentially huge legal costs for a successful challenge.

“The Creators’ Rights Alliance pointed out to Professor Hargreaves that Google continues to claim that its scanning of 15 million books without permission is "fair use" - but, when authors and publishers collectively raised the money to challenge this, found it worthwhile to offer a $125 million settlement.

"Clearly, this does not reflect a system based on fairness towards the creators of work being made available by other parties.

“We are also pleased by the recommendation to introduce a small claims track for IP cases in the courts. The NUJ has been calling for this for a number of years, and we are delighted that someone has finally listened.

“This should improve the position of freelance journalists, and the difficulty that they face in enforcing their rights against infringers, whether individuals or – far more often – against the very publishers and broadcasters who in the Digital Economy Act 2010 gained new means by which they may pursue infringements of their own interests.

“We have serious concerns, though, over the intention to introduce a digital copyright exchange. This might be feasible for other industries, but it could be problematic for our members, particularly photographers.

“Equally we would be concerned about the use of extended collective licensing and the impact that this could have: the interests of individual authors and performers and not just ‘the industry’ must be defended in developing and running any such scheme.

“We are particularly disappointed by the refusal to improve moral rights legislation, a request made in a number of submissions from creators’ organisations. It would be a serious anomaly to legislate for the licensing of orphan works without improving the UK’s weak moral rights legislation.

“We will continue to campaign on this point at each stage of the process.

“It has been NUJ policy for a number of years to call for the replacement of the UK’s current copyright legislation, which tends to treat intellectual property as a commodity, with law in the international mainstream Authors’ Rights tradition. Improved moral rights would be a step in the right direction.”