Copyright and Related Rights Commission (CDADV)
Joint Committee on Remuneration of Journalists and Other Authors under Copyright and Related Law of News Agencies and News Publishers
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Law no. 2019-775 of 24 July 2019, resulting from Directive (EU) 2019/790 of 17 April 2019, completes the mechanism initiated by Law no. 2009-669 of 12 June 2009 entitled HADOPI relating to the right to exploit journalists' works, which provides that journalists are entitled to additional remuneration (in the form of copyright or wages) for the various forms of reuse of their works in press titles. It creates a neighbouring right for publishers and news agencies to be remunerated for the resumption of their publications by online public communication services. These provisions aim to take into account the impact of the digital revolution on the economy of the press sector and thus preserve the pluralism and quality of information accessible online.
If the law favours collective bargaining through company agreements for professional journalists or through specific agreements for other authors, it provides, in the absence of agreement, that an administrative committee be called upon to facilitate these agreements and, failing that, to lay down the arrangements for the remuneration due to authors.
Decree no. 2021-539 of 29 April 2021 abolishes the Journalists' Copyright Board (CDAJ) and puts an end to the mandate of its members.
The latter shall be replaced by a joint committee provided for in Articles L . 132-44 and L.218-5 of the intellectual property code, the composition of which is defined by the aforementioned decree. It is presided over by Mr. Bertrand Chevalier, advisor to the Court of Cassation. Its members were appointed by an order of 31 January 2022 of the Minister of Culture for a renewable term of five years.
The work of the Committee began on 14 March 2022 with the adoption of the Rules of Procedure which define its operating procedures. The Directorate-General for Media and Cultural Industries (DGMIC) provides the secretariat for the committee.
The new Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Commission (CDADV) consists of two colleges, one for copyright and one for neighbouring rights.
The college rights d'author
It takes over the missions of the former CDAJ and rules on disputes over the determination of journalists' copyright. This first college is composed of six full members nominated by the representative professional press organisations and six full members nominated by the representative trade union organisations of professional journalists.
The law of 12 June 2009 promoting the dissemination and protection of creation on the internet, known as the HADOPI law, has established, in article 132-44 of the Code of Intellectual Property (CPI), the payment of additional remuneration to journalists for the exploitation of their works, beyond the period covered by the salary for the first exploitation or outside the initial press title.
The terms and amounts of such additional remuneration must be the subject of company agreements or collective agreements.
If the negotiation could not take place or if it did not make it possible to reach a company agreement and there is no collective agreement, the employer, the shop stewards or, failing that, the employee representative organisations or, failing this, journalists appointed by a trade union of professional journalists, or failing this, any journalist who regularly collaborates with the company, The Commission, and more specifically the College of Copyrights, may seek a compromise solution. It is then that college that determines the methods and bases of the remuneration due to journalists in return for the exploitation rights.
The college shall render its decision within two months of the referral of the committee declared admissible by the secretariat.
The college droits voisins
In the event of failure of negotiations under company or collective agreements and upon referral, this college rules on the sharing between publishers and news agencies and professional journalists and other authors of works included in press publications of the remuneration due under neighbouring law by online public communication services. It is composed of five full members nominated by the professional organisations of representative press companies, one full member nominated by the professional organisations of representative press agencies, four full members nominated by the trade union organisations of representative professional journalists and two full members nominated by the professional organisations representing authors or collective management organisations representing authors.
Under the new Chapter VIII on “Rights of Publishers and News Agencies” of the Single Title introduced in Book II of the Intellectual Property Code (ICC), the online public communication services are indebted to publishers and news agencies of neighbouring law because of the resumption of the publications they publish on their platform or search engine.
The law now requires these services to pay a sum to publishers and news agencies calculated on the basis of specific criteria such as the human, material and financial investments made by publishers and news agencies, the contribution of press publications to political and general information and the importance of the use of press publications by online communication services to the public” or a lump sum in accordance with the provisions of Article L 218-4 of the CPI.
Once this amount has been recovered by the beneficiaries, they are required to pay an appropriate and equitable share of the remuneration to their professional journalists and more broadly to all authors involved in the production of the content. This distribution is fixed under conditions determined by a company agreement or, failing that, by a collective agreement; for the other authors, it is determined by a specific agreement.
However, in the event of failure of the negotiations, one of the parties to the negotiation or any person having an interest in acting may refer the matter to the Commission, and in particular to the College of Neighbouring Rights, for agreement: the commission then seeks a compromise solution with the parties in order to reach an agreement. If the disagreement persists, it shall determine the appropriate and equitable share of the remuneration of journalists and other authors and the manner in which it is distributed among the authors concerned.
The College of Neighbouring Rights shall give its decision within four months of referral to the committee declared admissible by the Secretariat.
Requests should be sent (by registered mail with AR or delivered against receipt) to the following postal address:
Commission for copyright and related rights CDADV - DGMIC - 182 rue Saint Honoré - 75001 PARIS
or by electronic means, with request for acknowledgement of receipt of the message, to the following address:
Decisionons
Minutesx number of sessions
- Article L 132-44
- Articles L 218-1 and following
- Article R 312-1
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