Event Report: Copyright Protection and Management of Works of Music, 3rd February 2025.

 

Copyright Protection and Management of Works of Music

Monday 3^rd February 2025, 18:00

Location : Room LRC 012 – Filippos Tsiboglou Amphitheater, University of Cyprus

Hosted by: EDPI in collaboration with the Department of Law at the University of Cyprus

 

Liza Ioannou, officer at the Cyprus Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property of Cyprus welcomed everyone to the event. Liza emphasised the crucial role of copyright protection in enabling creators to generate revenue. Liza underscored the need for a regulatory framework that fosters an environment where artistic creativity can thrive while ensuring a fair balance between the interests of all stakeholders. Additionally, the welcome speech highlighted the importance of implementing effective copyright regulations in Cyprus to support and protect creative industries.

Liza Ioannou, officer at the Cyprus Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property of Cyprus.

Tatiana Eleni Synodinou, President of EDPI, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs and Professor in the Department of Law at the University of Cyprus welcomed everyone to this event. Tatiana highlighted that the digital era presents both challenges and opportunities for the music industry. Tatiana provided an overview of these key issues, setting the stage for the panel discussions. In particular, she emphasised that copyright empowers musicians to protect their works, while music licences serve as a bridge for users to generate revenue. She also addressed the challenges posed by artificial intelligence in relation to copyright authorship, ownership, and attribution. Additionally, she noted the growing difficulty of ensuring fair compensation for user-generated content. The speech concluded with a warm welcome to the panel chair, Achilleas Demetriades.

Tatiana Eleni Synodinou, President of EDPI, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs and Professor in the Department of Law at the University of Cyprus.

 

Achilleas Demetriades, Advocate at ldlaw, welcomed all speakers and attendees, setting a warm and inclusive tone for the event. While fostering an engaging atmosphere, he also emphasised the importance of speakers adhering to their allocated time slots to ensure a smooth flow of discussions. Attendees were reassured that there would be an opportunity for discussion at the end of the session.

Sylvia Koukounidou, Archivist, Librarian and the treasurer of EDPI, and Achilleas Demetriades, Advocate at ldlaw.

The panel began with Rudolf Leška, who is a Senior Assistant Professor at the University of Finance and Administration in Prague, but also an Associate Research Fellow at Palacký University Olomouc.  Rudolf’s presentation, titled “Collective Management of Works of Music, Sound Recordings, and Performers’ Rights”, explored the role of collective management organisations (CMOs) in balancing the interests of users and rightsholders. He traced the evolution of CMOs from their origins as trade union-like entities advocating for rightsholders to their current function as licensing bodies that facilitate access to works. In theory, this shift should simplify the process of clearing rights.

Rudolf also highlighted the role of CMOs in supporting local cultural communities through social funds, ensuring that revenue remains within these communities. He then discussed the ongoing tension between authors and users, remarking that “defending copyright feels like being in the trenches, fighting against copyright users.” He stressed the importance of striking a careful balance between fair remuneration, access to creative works, and the rights associated with licensing.

The presentation also covered recent case law, with particular attention to the Streamz and Others case. In this Belgian case, the Constitutional Court referred 13 questions on the DSM Directive to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), focusing on the compatibility of additional remuneration rights with EU law and their implications for collective management and licensing frameworks. While Rudolf outlined various commentators’ views on the case, he noted that the outcome ultimately depends on the forthcoming CJEU decision.

The session concluded with a discussion on the significance of developing a robust collective management framework to strengthen the local economy.

Rudolf Leška, Senior Assistant Professor at the University of Finance and Administration in Prague, and Associate Research Fellow at Palacký University Olomouc.

Next Nicoletta Epaminonda’s presentation (Advocate at ldlaw), titled “The Collective Management Regulations in Cyprus”, shed light on the challenges faced by collective management organisations (CMOs) in Cyprus due to the absence of an appropriate regulatory framework. She traced the historical development of this issue, explaining why Cyprus has yet to implement a proper system for collective rights management. Despite the EU framework being introduced eight years ago, regulations remain pending, leaving CMOs in a state of uncertainty.

The presentation concluded with a discussion on the ongoing legal proceedings, as stakeholders await a decision from the Cyprus Supreme Court, which has been asked to assess the constitutionality of recent amendments to the country’s copyright laws.

Nicoletta Epaminonda, Advocate at ldlaw.

Following Nicoletta’s presentation, Giorgos D. Vrakas, MSCA Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Cyprus, shared insights from his research conducted during his PhD. His presentation, titled “Cover Songs and Remixes on YouTube”, examined the licensing practices surrounding such derivative works on YouTube.

He presented his empirical findings which show that users who upload cover songs and remixes to YouTube often do not seek to obtain a license to reuse works, and those that do characterise the process as hard, time consuming and costly.

YouTube’s operationalisation of the regulatory frameworks through platform policies for handling copyright enforcement create a system where users are able to upload unauthorised cover songs and remixes to YouTube. YouTube essentially creates a new way for rightsholders to “license” their works after they have been uploaded using it automated filtering mechanisms called “Content ID”. Giorgos referred this new way as the “pseudo-pathway to rights clearance” where users now ask for forgiveness rather than permission when uploading cover songs and remixes to YouTube.

Giorgos D. Vrakas, MSCA Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Cyprus

Next, Pavel Zahrádka who is an Associate Professor at Palacký University Olomouc, presented his work entitled “Ethical Conflict Between Remix Culture and Copyright”, which explored the impact of copyright on Czech sampling artists. His empirical findings showed that copyright was of greater importance to musicians who intended to monetise their works. Respondents expressed opposition to sampling when they disliked the aesthetic reuse of a work. The findings also revealed extreme reactions, ranging from indifference to copyright to strong concern, with the latter potentially stifling creativity.

Ultimately, Pavel argued that ethical and moral criteria are the key factors determining when rightsholders choose to enforce their rights.

Pavel Zahrádka, Associate Professor at Palacký University Olomouc.

Finally, Philippe Jougleux, Professor at the European University Cyprus, presented his work entitled “AI-Generated Music: Lessons on Copyright Law.” Philippe began by acknowledging the oversaturation of research in this area, posing the question: what can we learn by dissecting what music truly is? He examined the regulatory framework governing AI-generated music, focusing on the input versus output dynamic. His analysis included the EU exceptions for data mining, the originality thresholds for copyright protection, and various contractual considerations. Philippe also presented several examples of AI-generated music to illustrate his points.

He then explored the concept of what makes music “original,” suggesting that for modern music, it is increasingly difficult to create something entirely new when breaking down a composition into rhythm, tempo, and melody. Ultimately, he concluded that the entirety of a work must be considered to determine if it is truly “original.” Philippe proposed that if someone combines AI-generated music with their own composition, this would merit copyright protection.

Philippe Jougleux, Professor, at the European University Cyprus.

 

The event concluded with an informative and engaging discussion between the panel speakers and the audience.

The coordinator of this event was Sylvia Koukounidou, Archivist, Librarian and the treasurer of EDPI.