British government asks for input on proposed Copyright Agency

The Intellectual Property Office of the British government has announced that the public has until March 30th to comment on the creation of a Digital Rights Agency. The creation of a Digital Rights Agency is one of main recommendations set forth in the Digital Britain Report.

The goal of the consultation is to get input on how the new agency can promote the legal use digital content, and how government and relevant stakeholders can work together to create an environment where investment in creativity is rewarded. What role the agency should play in combating piracy and illegal downloading is also under discussion. In particular, the consultation seeks input on the following issues:

* How to educate and change consumer behaviour towards copyright material;

* How to support industry efforts in developing new and attractive legal ways for consumers to access content;

* How to support legislation to address consumer activity that breaches civil copyright law and how to tackle persistent infringement;

* How to enable technical copyright-support solutions that work for both consumers and content creators;

* Whether or not the Agency should be an independent industry body with back-up legal powers held by Ofcom

* How such an agency can be funded.

Comments on the Rights Agency discussion paper can be submitted until the 30th of March via e-mail (DBR@ipo.gov.uk)