The digital age is certainly upon us and it looks like this revolutionary new era could soon be making its way into the copyright industry in the UK. This follows proposals recently announced by the government to reform intellectual property laws, which would bring them into line with the expectations and demands of this 21st century world.
The proposals are based on a number of recommendations outlined by Professor Ian Hargreaves in his earlier May review – ‘Digital Opportunity: A review of intellectual property and growth’. These changes shine light on a potential new dawn for UK intellectual property and in practice, it means that it could no longer be an offence to copy music and DVDs on to digital devices such as ipods, even though many are currently unaware that this is in fact illegal. As it stands today, Britain is one of the very few countries where transferring content from CDs or DVDs on to a different format is in fact illegal.
The proposals could also benefit businesses. As reported in the media, companies like Google and Amazon could too be smiling especially as it potentially means they could be able to develop and build an economy around online storage systems for UK consumers. The proposals also present new services for film and music fans while artists, such as comedians couldcopy someone else's work without any approval from the copyright holder.
While this radical overhaul has yet to be confirmed by Vince Cable, the UK Government and its ministers have firmly pledged their support to change the laws. The underlying objective is to boost economic growth with the value for the economy pinned to be in the realms of £7.9 billion whilst also delivering greater value to creators and consumers.
Many will, of course, be delighted with the proposals, however, if implemented, these changes will certainly impact businesses on many different fronts. It is strongly advised to seek specialist legal advice from an established IP Lawyer to ascertain what these laws dictate and, if and how they should be integrated into any business.
