Assessing Copyright and Related Rights Systems

Cupore,
01 February 2012, Finland

This project reported here aimed at providing a methodology for a systematic assessment of the functioning, performance and balanced operation of a national copyright and related rights system. Its results are presented here as a framework that is supposed to be improved through application feedbacks.
The methodology, such as it is outlined in the framework is expected to serve as a basis for the formulation of copyright policies and strategies. It can also work as a framework for communication, a tool in education and information activities and a stimulant for research on copyright issues. It can also help in identifying commendable practices while acknowledging the national traditions and specificities. It also pertains to the transparency of the system and to serve the interests of different stakeholder groups by providing a basis for policy debates.

The development of the methodology was launched as a national project in Finland in the beginning of May 2009. The Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture accorded a financial appropriation for the carrying out of this project to the Foundation for Cultural Policy Research (CUPORE). CUPORE contracted Accenture, after a call for proposals, to act as the leader of the project for its initial stage in 2009. The core project group consists of experts from CUPORE, Ms. Tiina Kautio, Project Researcher and Mr. Jaakko Eskola, Ombudsman of the Foundation. Researchers Ms. Nathalie Lefever and Mr. Mikko Karaiste joined the core project group in autumn 2010. A steering group of the project consists of Ms. Ritva Mitchell, Research Director from CUPORE and Mr. Jukka Liedes, Director of the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture.

Two expert groups were established to support the work and comment the process. The Scientific Board comprises experts in impact assessment methodology and is chaired by Ritva Mitchell. The Expert Group on Copyright Matters, chaired by Jukka Liedes is comprised of Finnish copyright professionals. Additionally, there has been continuous participation of the Task Force for Copyright of the Ministry of Education and Culture in the project. Experts representing different stakeholder groups or having relevant competence were interviewed during the project. The Finnish Copyright Society has provided a forum for debates on the methodological work, and the project has been presented in two seminars of the Society.

A contact between this national project and the secretariat of WIPO was established at the early stages of the project. The project organization has followed the work carried out in the context of the WIPO ESCIA (The Economic, Social and Cultural Impact Assessment) project1, which is closely linked to the assessment of the functioning, performance and operational balance of the copyright system.

The architecture of the implementation organization of the project is illustrated in Appendix 1.

http://www.cupore.fi/copyright.php