EU Agrees To Extend Music Copyright To Seventy Years

By Frances Robinson
The Wall Street Journal | Article Link

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones) -- European Union members agreed to extend copyright protection for performances of recorded music to seventy years, meaning works by The Beatles, Rolling Stones and Sir Cliff Richard won't come out of copyright in the near future, the EU said Monday in a statement.

"Today's decision to increase the term of protection for musicians' copyright from 50 to 70 years will make a real difference for performers," EU Commissioner for Internal Market and Services Michel Barnier said in a statement. "With increasing life expectancy, the previous 50-year protection term was clearly insufficient."

The move extends the term of protection for performers and producers of musical works from 50 to 70 years from the date of performance. It brings Europe's artists and producers closer into line with the protection offered to authors and composers, whose rights are enforceable for the duration of their life plus 70 years.

Without the extension, many of the 1960s' most famous albums would have reverted to the public domain in coming years, including the early hits of The Beatles, The Who and The Rolling Stones. In the U.K., the ruling is known as 'Cliff Richard's Law' after the veteran clean-living pop star campaigned for the terms to be extended when his 1958 hit 'Move It' came out of copyright.

"The new directive intends to increase the level of protection of performers by acknowledging their creative and artistic contributions," the EU Council said in a statement after it reached a compromise agreement on the extension. "Performers generally start their careers young and the current term of protection of 50 years often does not protect their performances for their entire lifetime."

Still, copyright terms are shorter than in the U.S. Sound recordings there are protected for 95 years from the date of release since the law was revised in 1989, and until 2049 at the earliest. The commission had originally sought a 95-year rule in Europe as well, but this was debated down to 70 by the member states and European Parliament.

The record industry welcomed the decision.

"It will generate new revenues for music performers and will help publishers and producers to continue to compete globally," read a joint statement by industry bodies including collective management societies, which collect royalty payments, the International Federation of Musicians, and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, the lobby group for the record industry.

IMPALA, the Independent Music Companies Association, which represents smaller record labels, said the extension would help small artists in particular.

"Those most affected by the extension will be [the] hundreds of thousands of individual artists and performers, as well as thousands of micro, small and medium-sized music companies," Helen Smith, Executive Chair of IMPALA said. "At a time when certain interests seek to weaken copyright for their own purposes, this sends a vital message that the right of creators to earn a living is taken seriously by the EU."

The new law also includes a so-called 'use it or lose it' clause, which means record companies will have to give copyright back to performers if it doesn't market the recording. The performer can then market the recording themselves.