Seminar AEPO-ARTIS
18 – 19 November 2010
Panel discussion 3 Collective management of rights in a globalised environment
Role and challenges
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
Rules of governance and aims of
Collective rights management
organisations, including cultural and
social aspects
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
1- Aims
 for members / stakeholders:
 to maximize collections and distributions
 for customers
 to offer an easy and secure access to the
world repertoire
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
2- Vision and values
 Transparency
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
3- Rules of governance
Internal regulation


Corporate Governance Charter

Definition of all decisional bodies within the society, their composition and
responsibilities.

Distinction between the strategic bodies (Board of Directors) and operational
bodies (management committee).

Ethic rules (including the individual signature of a Code of Conduct).
Code of conduct

To avoid conflicts of interests (functional and material interests).

To guarantee a professional and objective behavior.

To guarantee the secrecy of discussions held within the Board of Directors.
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
Legal framework
(Belgian law of 10th December 2009 on the status and the control of collective management
societies)
1- Authorization
 authorization in order to collect rights on Belgian territory
 Foreign societies must collect through a branch in Belgium.
 totally or partially withdrawn in case of infringement of the law
2- Rules
 Societies must comply with a set of rules imposing transparency
towards its’ members as well as towards users
 Website, annual reports, distribution sheets and invoices must
contain certain information.
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
3- Societies must foresee in an internal administrative structure, rules
of corporate governance and internal control.
4- Societies need to take the necessary measures in order to avoid
conflicts of interests .
5- Societies may deduct maximum 10% of the collected amounts and
use these rights for social, cultural and educative aims. The Board
of Directors must report how the monies were used to the General
Assembly.
6- Societies must appoint a commissioner to whom special tasks are
imposed.
7- Societies are controlled by the Minister of Economics to whom they
must submit certain information (including proposals to modify
tariffs, rules and regulations).
8- Societies must finance said control.
International self regulation
 Common declaration GESAC / ICMP
Representation within the Board of Directors
Categories of on-line rights in the rules and
regulations
 CISAC Professional Rules & binding Resolutions
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM,
Belgium
CISAC Professional Rules &
Binding Resolutions for
Authors’ Societies
TD08-3501
Author:
Original language: English
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM, Belgium
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The Professional Rules
TD08-3501
Author:
Original language: English
Christophe Depreter, CEO SABAM, Belgium
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Professional Rules
The rules consist of a set of binding principles
intended to promote
The fair and non-discriminatory collective management of
copyright
Cost efficiency and increased productivity
A professional approach to the management of the creator’s
rights
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What do the Professional Rules cover?
Governance & Membership
Establish who can be members of a collective management organisation,
members’ rights, Board of Directors composition and the society’s inherent
compliance with laws and regulations
Transparency & Confidentiality
Deal with the information that authors’ societies are required to share with
their members, sister societies and CISAC (annual report, licensing income,
distribution rules, etc.) and the policy concerning disclosure of confidential
information to third parties
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What do the Professional Rules cover?
Licensing & Collection
Detail the different criteria for authors’ societies related to the granting of
licences, the collection of royalties, and the monitoring of uses of their
repertoires
Documentation & Distribution
State that authors’ societies must carry out all documentation of works in
their repertoire and distribution of royalties in accordance with the Binding
Resolutions
Compliance & Conflicts
Describe the various principles related to compliance with the rules and the
various procedures for dealing with litigation and dispute settlement
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Compliance timetable
The Professional Rules for musical and visual
arts societies came into force in June 2008,
after being approved by the CISAC Board of
Directors and General Assembly. All musical
rights and visual arts societies must now be in
compliance with their respective Professional
Rules.
Compliance for the DLV societies has been
agreed in 2009
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Compliance timetable
Detailed information is available on CISAC website:
Full text of the rules for each repertoire
FAQ on Professional Rules
Online compliance declaration (available for the end of the year)
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Compliance with Professional Rules
Compliance means that a society operates
according to 100% of the principles established
in the Rules
All societies must fill out an annual online declaration stating that
their practices adhere to CISAC’s Professional Rules
The Secretariat has been asked by the Board of Directors to carry out
several random checks per year in each region
3 Societies per region – 2009 first PR Review conducted
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Compliance with Professional Rules
What are the consequences of noncompliance?
If a society is not in compliance with the Professional Rules, the
Governance and Compliance Committee will consult with the Board
of Directors who will determine an appropriate course of action
This could include modifications to the society’s membership status
or, in serious cases, expulsion
Nevertheless, CISAC will take all of the necessary measures
including assistance and training to ensure that all societies can
quickly adapt and easily function in compliance with the Rules
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The Binding Resolutions
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What are the Binding Resolutions?
The CISAC Professional Rules establish the general
principles necessary to ensure that a Society conducts its
operations with integrity, transparency and efficiency and
employs practices that are adapted to the market and
technological developments
The Binding Resolutions define the principles for
Documentation and Distribution, as a technical annex to
the CISAC Professional Rules for Musical Societies
They represent a consolidation of existing technical
rules established to ensure the smooth functioning of
societies
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What are the Binding Resolutions?
The principles of Binding Resolutions for musical
societies were adopted by CISAC Board of Directors and
subsequently endorsed by the General Assembly. The
Interim final legal document is available and the final
version should be submitted to the next Board meeting
and GA for approval
Binding Resolutions for audiovisual societies were
approved by the DLV Technical Committee in 2008 and
have been approved by the Board of Directors
Final versions of Binding Resolutions for the other
repertoires are being elaborated.
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What are the Binding Resolutions?
Compliance timetables are:
From 2009 to 2011 for musical societies
From 2009 to 2012 for audiovisual societies
The Binding Resolutions for musical societies are
classified into 3 categories:
Documentation
Distribution
Use of the CIS tools and format
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Why Binding Resolutions?
Assure that societies are compliant
with the common rules and
processes, enforce a “quality” level
for societies.
Commitment of societies on
documentation and distribution
practices to make international
distribution more efficient.
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Binding Resolutions Time Table
2009
2010
Official validation
of the Binding
Resolutions
2011
Developed and
Developing
Societies
compliance
Dead line
2012
Least Developed
Societies compliance
Dead line
From 2010 to 2012 for some of the Audiovisual Binding Resolutions
that are more complex to implement
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