EU Parliament passes new law to maintain copyright levies on mobile devices and potentially extend them to cloud services.
Computerworld UK reported that the EU Parliament approved the controversial new law put forward by French MEP François Castex, voting 252 to 122, with 19 abstentions.
Currently, the EU Copyright Directive sees “taxes placed on products that allow copying of copyright content”, including printers and smartphones, “that are then passed on to copyright holders”. The new rules however may see the list of leviable devices and services being updated to potentially include cloud services, meaning that “in a worst-case scenario, consumers could end up paying twice for transferring legally purchased content between their own accounts”.
Digital Europe, a European association representing the digital technology industry reported called the copyright levies system “outdated and fundamentally flawed” in a statement.
The association reportedly added that the MEPs voted the new rules in “against all logic”, as consumers must continue to pay hidden copyright tax when purchasing electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, MPS players and USB sticks; noting that they have also “inexplicably supported provisions which call for an extension of copyright levies to cloud services such as legal streaming platforms”. It concluded that “MEPs have taken a step backward and have signalled support for a system which harms EU consumers”.
It is thought that the new law, despite being approved by the European Parliament, may face opposition from a number of member states which do not have copyright levies, including the UK and Ireland.