A report named “Copyright In The EU — What Next?” landed on my desk. I didn’t have to read any longer than the introduction, explaining the values, to shake my head in disbelief.

The name of the report is the EU-esque IP/A/STOA/FWC/2008-096/LOT6/SC1, and it begins with the usual “copyright [monopoly] is difficult, there are many troubles on the roads ahead, it is territorial, international cooperation derives from Berne 1886 and WIPO Copyright Treaty 1996” etc etc etc. Then, it tries to give the background for policymaking. I get to, and balk at, this part in its section 3.1.2, “Copyright basics” (my highlights):

The so-called copyright industries are comprised of two main groups: the core copyright industries are based upon the creation distribution, and sale of copyright products and services (e.g., magazines, motion pictures, recorded music, software). Copyright dependent industries are defined as those industries that would not be present without the existence of products and services subject to copyright. Cases in point would be television set manufacturers, DVD player manufacturers or computer manufacturers.

Did you get that?



The people who set the copyright monopoly policy do it from the assumption that computers would not exist if it were not for the passive entertainment industry’s products. For real. This is not a typo.

This is so depressing and penny-dropping at the same time, I don’t know where to begin. “Everything depends on the copyright monopoly, and therefore, it must be safeguarded.” Uhm, no, it doesn’t, and therefore, no, it doesn’t.

UPDATE: Commenter Hans J found the report online as well. It can be read here. I will keep reading it for more in the coming days.