Ministers' Dossier

Widening Access to Cultural Products

The proliferation of cultural products offers enormous and ever-growing possibilities for all citizens in Europe. This is especially true for the rapid growth of electronic cultural content. The recent technological innovations and advances have profoundly changed the ways cultural goods are distributed, reproduced and consumed. But in order to realize the full potential of the Internet, and for each citizen to realize their own potential, the full range of online content needs to be made available to all - quickly, easily and in a form appropriate to the individuals' needs.

Cultural institutions and organisations are making significant amounts of online content available to their respective communities - in education, museums, archives, research, public libraries, and so on. However, as the Common Information Environment, a group of public sector stakeholders observes, "the barriers between [cultural] sectors mean that not all this content is accessible to all who might need it or want it. Too much remains hidden amongst the low-quality information that clutters the web and behind technical, commercial and administrative barriers."

In order to achieve a more inclusive Europe, and a true cultural democracy in Europe, it is crucial that the barriers to the free flow of ideas and knowledge between different communities and cultural sectors are dismantled. For the individual citizens, inclusion means creating equal opportunities, chances for all to participate in the global exchange of cultural goods and content. For the communities, inclusion means enjoying, without barriers, and actively recreating their own cultural heritage.

On various levels and in various fields of cultural production, different civic organizations, communities and stakeholders have already contributed to the dismantling of these barriers and the widening of access to cultural goods and works of art: the BBC has opened its Creative Archive ; the various free software and "copyleft" movements have initiated the introduction of new, non-commercial licenses for the distribution of documents, software, and works of art; the Creative Commons initiative has established a range of copyright techniques for the authors and producers of cultural goods from which they can select the licensing option best suiting their artistic and economic interests; and so on. The governments are lagging behind in this process; it is their turn now to take initiative.

The Adelphi Charter on Creativity, Innovation and Intellectual Property - prepared by international experts from the arts, creative industries, human rights, law, economics, science, R&D, technology, the public sector and education, including Gilberto Gil, Brazilian Minister of Culture - responds to one of the most profound challenges of the 21st century: How to ensure that everyone has access to ideas and knowledge, and that intellectual property laws do not become too restrictive?

The Charter states that "The expansion in the law's breadth, scope and term over the last 30 years has resulted in an intellectual property regime which is radically out of line with modern technological, economic and social trends. This threatens the chain of creativity and innovation on which we and future generations depend."

In order to overcome this trend and to promote a new, fair, user-friendly and efficient way of handing out intellectual property rights in the 21st century, the Charter sets out new principles for copyrights and patents (see the Document below). The Charter emphasizes the crucial role of governments in initiating policies to stimulate creativity, innovation, and access - especially for those underprivileged citizens who currently have lesser opportunities to encounter with the wide range of cultural products.

Besides action on the side of the governments, it is important that a common European strategy is developed to reform the existing intellectual property regulation. The European IP regime of the 21st century should focus on the dual aims to improve productivity and competitiveness in the global economic arena and to provide the European citizens with a wider access to cultural goods as a source of their creativity.

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Document
Adelphi Charter on Creativity, Innovation and Intellectual Property

Humanity's capacity to generate new ideas and knowledge is its greatest asset. It is the source of art, science, innovation and economic development. Without it, individuals and societies stagnate.

This creative imagination requires access to the ideas, learning and culture of others, past and present.

Human rights call on us to ensure that everyone can create, access, use and share information and knowledge, enabling individuals, communities and societies to achieve their full potential.

Creativity and investment should be recognised and rewarded. The purpose of intellectual property law (such as copyright and patents) should be, now as it was in the past, to ensure both the sharing of knowledge and the rewarding of innovation.

The expansion in the law's breadth, scope and term over the last 30 years has resulted in an intellectual property regime which is radically out of line with modern technological, economic and social trends. This threatens the chain of creativity and innovation on which we and future generations depend.

We call upon governments and the international community to adopt these principles.

1. Laws regulating intellectual property must serve as means of achieving creative, social and economic ends and not as ends in themselves.
2. These laws and regulations must serve, and never overturn, the basic human rights to health, education, employment and cultural life.
3. The public interest requires a balance between the public domain and private rights. It also requires a balance between the free competition that is essential for economic vitality and the monopoly rights granted by intellectual property laws.
4. Intellectual property protection must not be extended to abstract ideas, facts or data.
5. Patents must not be extended over mathematical models, scientific theories, computer code, methods for teaching, business processes, and methods of medical diagnosis, therapy or surgery.
6. Copyright and patents must be limited in time and their terms must not extend beyond what is proportionate and necessary.
7. Government must facilitate a wide range of policies to stimulate access and innovation, including non-proprietary models such as open source software licensing and open access to scientific literature.
8. Intellectual property laws must take account of developing countries' social and economic circumstances.
9. In making decisions about intellectual property law, governments should adhere to these rules:

• There must be an automatic presumption against creating new areas of intellectual property protection, extending existing privileges or extending the duration of rights.

• The burden of proof in such cases must lie on the advocates of change.

• Change must be allowed only if a rigorous analysis clearly demonstrates that it will promote people's basic rights and economic well-being.

• Throughout, there should be wide public consultation and a comprehensive, objective and transparent assessment of public benefits and detriments.

We call upon governments and the international community to adopt these principles.