Copyright Summit

Prominent new media industry leader Ben Verwaayen outlines the key technology changes ahead. How are technological changes going to affect the entertainment industries? How will they affect the way creative works - such as music or films - are licensed, produced and disseminated?

What are the key technological revolutions or changes that will affect the livelihood of consumers, creators and economic players alike? Is the world going mobile? What will be the dominant distribution platforms for creative works? What will be the value of content in this brave new world?

Music legend Charles Aznavour and European Commission representative Odile Quintin outline the crucial role of creators in today's digital economy and give theirs view on the notions of copyright, authors' societies, cultural diversity and authors' relationships to the entertainment industry in Europe.

Technology has changed the way works of art are created, produced and disseminated. How does it affect creators? Should they care about these changes? Has it/will it change the way they create? Has it affected the relationship with their professional environment (labels, authors' societies, publishers, film studios, etc)? Has it empowered artists and given them more opportunities to take charge of their career and bypass the entertainment industry? Authors, composers, filmmakers and artists discuss their role in today's digital environment.

Entire sectors of the creative industries are faced with the burden of physical and online piracy. In addition, with digitisation, creative works have become ubiquitous and consumers are now able to access vast amounts of cultural goods through a wide range of online and mobile services, often through legally-questionable sources. This situation has led to an apparent blurring of the value of intellectual property and copyright. Is this trend here to stay? What impact does it have on the creative community? Which initiatives could be taken to raise IP and copyright awareness? Could educational campaigns help reach out to the consumers? Could legislation be the answer? What are the answers that are likely to stand the test of time?

Players with opposite viewpoints debate the role of copyright and IP in the 21st century. Should the Internet offer ''free'' cultural goods? What are the limits of copyright protection? Will music and film end up being a fully subsidised domain?

As the environment changes, so do societies representing creators. What are the changes taking place? What should societies focus on? Can geographical boundaries be suppressed? How can societies best represent the collective interests of creators? What are the best interests of creators? And of users and consumers? Do we need authors' societies in the 21st century? Will the concept of collective management be relevant in the future? What are the needs and expectations of the industry, creators and consumers toward authors' societies? What can authors' society do to make your life easier and make your business more efficient?

The advent of new platforms such as Google, YouTube and MySpace has changed the way content is generated, used and disseminated on the Internet. What are the new uses of content? Can the use of content be monetised? Can rights owners and service providers/content platforms benefit from each other's existence and harness the value of content? Where does user-generated content fit in the new paradigm? Is this dissemination compatible with copyright?

Business models and licensing schemes are shifting as digital technologies, new practices, copyright legislation and actions by policymakers redefine the conditions of the exploitation of creative works. How does this affect licensors and licensees? What are the latest developments in one-stop shop multi-territorial licensing? Is it possible to prevent or at least to mitigate the effects of repertoire fragmentation? Which repertoire can be licensed by whom? What should authors do? Heads of leading author's societies and experts provide answers to users as well as rights owners regarding the clearing of rights for mobile and online usage.

Online TV / Mobile content / Digital radio / Podcasts / Blogs / Ringtones - the platform using creative works are multiplying but who makes money and who is going to get paid? New legislation in the US (DMCA), and in Europe (Copyright Directive) introduced new rights - have these laws created new revenues?

A panel of technology experts discusses the range of options technology offers to answer some of the situations created by the development of digital technologies.
How do technological changes influence IP rights? Can technology offer solutions to the problems technology has created? How has the entertainment industry reacted to such changes (creation of DDEX, Moebius project)?

Technology/service provider executives dialogue with a panel of authors, artists and creative industry executives about the changes in their environment and how they can benefit from each other's vision. Beyond the hype, where do technology/service providers fit in the creative value chain? Is technology at the service of artists or the other way around? As technology changes the worlds of music and film, can the concept of all-free access to creative works and the notion of copyright be reconciled? Have new digital services transformed the relationship between artists and their audience to a point that they can bypass the middle man? What else can we expect from the likes of Apple, Google, MySpace and YouTube? Can they nurture new talent and the true expression of cultural diversity? Is there a need for a new set of rules between the various players in the food chain?