NCC Calls For Shake-Up Of 'Absurd' UK Copyright Laws

by Robin Pilgrim, LawAndTax-News.com, London

15 May 2006

The National Consumer Council (NCC) last week dubbed the UK's current copyright legislation 'absurd'.

According to a YouGov poll conducted on the Council's behalf, more than half of British consumers are infringing copyright law by copying their CDs onto other players they own.

Three in five of those questioned (59%) thought copying was perfectly legal, despite the fact that current UK law does not provide a right to reproduce copyrighted material for private use - including CDs, DVDs and downloads.

The survey's findings back up NCC’s recent submission to the Government’s Gowers review that the law is out of step with modern life, and discriminates unfairly against consumers by putting unrealistic limits on their private listening and viewing habits.

Jill Johnstone author of NCC’s submission observed that:

"We need to shake up the copyright law to incorporate consumers’ ‘fair use’ rights - including the right to copy for private use."

She went on to challenge the current long periods of copyright protection, arguing that:

"Whether for films, literary or musical works, sound recordings or broadcasts, the length of all copyright terms should be reduced to fit more closely the time period over which most financial returns are normally made."

"The current campaign by the music industry to extend copyright terms for sound recordings beyond 50 years has no justification. Evidence shows that music companies generally make returns on material in a matter of years not decades. Current terms already provide excessive protection of intellectual property rights at a cost to consumers."

Recommended