UK Music Calls On British Euro MPs To Ensure Fair Rewards For Music Creators And Investors

21 June 2018 - Press release

UK Music is urging British Euro MPs to protect the music industry by backing crucial changes to copyright law.

CEO Michael Dugher called on the UK’s Euro MPs to back the proposed Copyright Directive following its approval by the European Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee today (Weds June 20).

The draft Directive contains welcome provisions for tackling the transfer of value from the music industry to online platforms.

The UK music industry has long campaigned to close the value gap which has resulted in platforms such as YouTube offering music without being fully licensed for the use of content, depriving creators and investors of music of revenue.

One of the key elements of the proposed Directive is Article 13 which creates a new legal framework to ensure that large online services pay creators and respect the content they use. 

It was passed today and will help address the issue of transfer of value which has hit the ability of rightsholders’ to earn income from their work published on digital platforms. 

The European Parliament as a whole will now vote on the proposals in early July.  UK Music said it was crucial that Euro MPs recognised the importance of backing these copyright changes.

Commenting, UK Music CEO Michael Dugher said:

“Companies like YouTube pay only a fraction of the royalties of other music services. Not only does this badly distort the development of the digital economy, but it also fundamentally denies music creators, and those that invest in them, fair financial rewards. 

“Google’s YouTube have made a fortune from music content that has been created by others. This is one of the great scandals of the internet age and it has to stop now. 

“UK MEPs must now seize this opportunity to put this right. They should do the decent thing. We need to address the transfer of value and close the value gap once and for all.”