In light of the planned copyright reform by the European Commission, EDRi today (7 April, 2016) sent an open letter addressed to President Juncker, First Vice-President Timmermans, Vice-President Ansip and other commissioners. In the letter, we demand an ambitious copyright reform that “that upholds and strengthens fundamental principles such as the limitation of intermediaries’ liability and rights of citizens to freedom of communication and access to knowledge.”

The letter also calls for legislation to bring an end to the fragmentation of 28 different national copyright regimes in the EU. This fragmentation results in problems in operating across borders for companies and public institutions. This broken regime is also outdated and negatively impacts citizens by placing absurd restrictions on use of cultural goods that benefit neither authors nor the rest of the society.

Lastly, the letter calls for our laws to “allow companies to do business across the EU, give individuals the possibility to access and use cultural goods, enable researchers to collaborate across borders using the latest technologies and help creators make a living from their work and contribute to Europe’s rich cultural heritage.”

We will publish the response to this letter once we receive it.

(Click on the image below to access the full letter)