Romania

[RO] New Working Group to Improve Copyright Protection

IRIS 2006-8:1/27

Mariana Stoican

Journalist, Bucharest

Thirty-two representatives of Romanian state institutions and organisations with responsibility in the copyright field have signed an agreement founding an institutionalised working group. The aim is to create a structure through which, on the basis of extensive expertise and application of copyright legislation, monitoring and protection of these rights can be improved. Copyright in Romania is protected under Act No. 8/1996, which was improved and completed by Government Decree No. 123 of 1 September 2005 ( Ordonanţa de Urgenţă Nr. 123 din 1 septembrie 2005 pentru modificarea şi completarea Legii Nr. 8/1996 privind dreptul de autor şi drepturile conexe ).Although an inter-institutional structure for improved protection and monitoring of compliance with copyright law was first created two years ago, it has since been functioning without any independent institutionalised status.

Under the agreement signed at the end of June 2006, representatives of the following institutions are currently members of the working group: public prosecutor's office ( Parchetul General) , customs office ( Vama), Ministry of Education and the Arts ( Ministerul Culturii şi Cultelor) , border police ( Poliţia de Frontieră ), finance police ( Garda Financiară) , national body for consumer protection ( Autoritatea Naţională pentru Protecţia Consumatorilor ), Romanian copyright office - ORDA ( Oficiul Român pentru Drepturile de Autor ), state office for inventions and trademarks ( Oficiul de Stat pentru Invenţii şi Mărci) , Romanian anti-forgery association (Asociaţia Română pentru Combaterea Contrafacerilor), Romanian centre for the protection of performers' copyright - CREDIDAM ( Centrul Român pentru Administrarea Drepturilor Artiştilor Interpreţi) , Romanian association of phonogram producers ( Uniunea Producătorilor de Fonograme din România ),association of producers of films and audiovisual works in Romania ( Uniunea Producătorilor de Film şi Audiovizual din România). The members of the working group have been split into three subgroups: an anti-piracy group ( Grupul Antipiraterie ), an anti-counterfeiting group ( Grupul Anticontrafacere) and a group of organisations for collective copyright administration ( Grupul Organismelor de Gestiune Colectivă a Drepturilor de Autor şi a Drepturilor Conexe ) . The working group as a whole is led by a President and six Vice-Presidents, two from each subgroup. Its members will work together to improve existing legislation; they also plan to combine their efforts to combat piracy and counterfeiting. Police Chief Dan Fătuloiu explained that, according to data collected by the General Inspectorate of the Romanian police, the number of secret workshops in which CDs are illegally copied in Romania has risen sharply in recent years. In response to this, a network of 110 police officers specialising in copyright protection was set up in 2005 and is currently operational.

ORDA has reported that around 600,000 illegally copied phonograms have been destroyed following five operations in Romania; a further 100,000 are due to be destroyed as part of a similar measure.