the Unesco General Conference which passes on the UCC program and budget. The Berne Convention provides the highest and most comprehensive level of copyright protection. Its administration by the World Intellectual Property Organization, WIPO, is professional, and its secretariat of proven competence, expertise and dynamism. The dilemma of the impact of new technologies on copyright will escalate during the immediate future and continue to present increasing complications. The interests of the U.S. copyright community are parallel to those of other developed countries. We should participate fully in the future resolution of these dilemmas on the international level, in the company of our partners in interest in copyright, Berne Convention members all, within the established continuity and broad scope of that organization. Our present access to Berne protection is through the back door. We believe that this is certainly not a model procedure and that it is beneath the dignity of our Nation to use such a devise to secure higher protection. The report of the ad hoc working group on the compatibility or lack thereof between the 1976 U.S. copyright law and the Berne Convention outlines clearly three or four problems which may exist between our law and Berne's provisions. None is insoluble if it is our will to do so. Some will require flexibility and perhaps ingenuity. We respectfully submit that the time has come at long last for our Nation to take these positive measures so that we may soon adhere to the Berne Convention. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the privilege of testifying on this important matter, and our particular thanks to you for creating and maintaining momentum toward its resolution. [Mr. Feist's submissions for the record follow:] JOINT STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF COMPOSERS, AUTHORS, AND PUBLISHERS; BROADCAST MUSIC, INC.; THE HARRY FOX AGENCY, INC.; THE MUSIC PUBLISHERS' ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES; THE NATIONAL MUSIC PUBLISHERS' ASSOCIATION; SESAC; AND THE SONGWRITERS' GUILD OF AMERICA Mr. Chairman: I am Leonard Feist, former president and presently advisor of the National Music Publishers' Association. I appear before this committee today representing the music community to express in broad general terms its strong support for adherence by the United States to the Berne Convention. The organizations on whose behalf I convey this positive position are the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers; Broadcast Music, Inc; the Harry Fox Agency, Inc.; the Music Publishers' Association of the United States; SESAC; and the Songwriters Communications to the committee to convey in detail the individual perspectives and points of view of the various organizations would be valuable in supplementing this brief endorsement. We would appreciate it if the Committee would receive such additional amplifying submissions. The music community believes that adherence to the Berne Union is a desirable goal of the country's policy and would be beneficial to American interests in intellectual property around the world. It will increase our government's and the private sector's influence in the councils of international copyright and better assure the protection of our works abroad. The United States is the world's leading producer and exporter of intellectual property of all sorts. In many ways music may be the most abundant of all categories of our copyright exports. This abundance rises from the sheer volume of individual copyrighted works, the multiplicity of the means of their diffusion and the potential life span of their circulation. Thus music is uniquely affected by the state of our international copyright relations and the highest level of protection is of fundamental importance. Our present international copyright relations rest principally on the Universal Copyright Convention which provides a low level of protection and is of limited scope, while the Berne Convention provides the highest and most comprehensive level of protection. It spells out in great detail the subject matter of copyright and nature of its protection. The administration of the Universal Copyright Convention is inadequate for greater responsibilities, partly because of its political orientation, partly because it is a rather minor aspect of the overall activities of the United Nations. Moreover, as a result of our resignation from UNESCO we have lost our only direct influence in international copyright matters since we no longer participate in the UNESCO General Conference which passes on the UCC program and budget. The administration of the Berne Convention by the world Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is professional and its secretariat of proven competence, expertise and dynamism. The dilemma of the impact of new technologies on copyright will escalate during the immediate future and continue to present increasing complications. The interests of the United States copyright community are parallel to those of other developed the countries. We should participate fully in the future resolution of these dilemmas on the international level and must do so in the company of our partners in interest in copyright developed countries Berne Convention members all within the established continuity and broad scope of that organization. As the Berne Convention enters its second century, the adherence of the United States will provide a positive psychological reinforcement to the status of the international law of intel lectual property. Our present access to Berne protection is through the "back door". We believe that this is certainly not a model procedure and that it is beneath the dignity of our nation to use such a device to secure higher protection. It has been pointed out by government spokesmen as recently as last week that by belonging to the higher level international convention, we would be in a much stronger position in our present vigorous struggle against rampant international piracy. The report of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the compatability or lack thereof between the 1976 U.S. Copyright Law and the Berne Convention outlines clearly the three or four problems which may exist between our law and Berne's provisions. None is insoluble if it is our will to do so. Some will require flexibility and, perhaps, ingenuity. But we respectfully submit that the time has come at long last for our nation to take these positive measures so that we may soon adhere to the Berne Convention. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the privilege of testifying on this important matter and our particular thanks to you for creating and maintaining momentum toward its resolution. 1 SUMMARY OF STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN The members of the music community listed above strongly support adherence by the United States to the Berne Convention. Since our joint statement expresses our support in general terms, individual organizations would appreciate the opportunity of subsequently submitting more specific amplifying statements. Adherence to the Berne Convention would aprovide us with the highest and most comprehensive level of copyright protection and its effective administration. As the world's leading producer and exporter of intellectual property, it will increase our influence, both government and private, in determining the course of international copyright. The low level of protection of the Universal Copyright Convention on which our present international copyright protection is based is inadequate to provide us with the highest and most comprehensive level of protection and our recent resignation from UNESCO diminishes the influence we may have in the UCC. The copyright interests of the U.S. are parallel to those of other developed countries that are our partners in interest and our adherence to Berne would enable us to participate with them toward the resolution of the dilemmas which are being created by the swift march of technology. Our present access to the Berne level of protection is through the "back door" which is beneath the dignity of our nation and not necessarily a satisfactory procedure. Finally, as government spokesmen have stated, in our struggle against international piracy a stronger international copyright status would increase our effectiveness. April 15, 1986 |