E Hyppönen/as                                                                         3 September 2008

Ministry of Education

P.O. Box 29

00023 Valtioneuvosto

Statement regarding the Ministry of Education's report on the incorporation of an employment-based copyright presumption provision into the Copyright Act

The Union of Journalists in Finland makes the following statement:

1. The aim of the copyright protection based on international agreements and legislation is to protect both the author of a creative work and the work itself. The restrictions of copyright and licence to use, as secured by law, are in place to ensure the usage by private persons or the public at large or for the greater social good.

The employment-based copyright presumption is a deviation from the prevailing Continental European principles safeguarding both moral and economic rights.  With the presumption included, the law would protect the employer, not the author.

2. The Finnish copyright system is strongly based on the principle of mutual negotiation and contracting. In this regard as well, the employment-based copyright presumption deviates from the principles of the contractual-based community and contractual system. The employment-based copyright presumption represents a spoken presumption, not a contractual presumption.

3. The proposed presumption provision transfers copyright to the stronger party within the employment relationship. This principle is also a blatant deviation from the principle of labour law governing employment relationships in general; the legislation is in place to protect the weaker party within the employment relationship, namely the employee.

4. The employment-based copyright presumption would transfer the sole right to decide on the use of the products from an assigned task to only one party. This may endanger, among other things, the extensively licensed further utilisation of copyright material for uses that have been mutually approved by the parties involved. If a decision on the further use of the material were unilaterally made by the employer, based on its own earnings logics, the well-functioning KOPIOSTO system may be compromised.

5. The employment-based copyright presumption fundamentally complicates journalistic work and compliance with the ethical principles of journalism. In accordance with the Guidelines for Journalists, a journalist must be able to notify a person being interviewed or photographed as to when and where that material will be utilised. This must be the case in the future as well.

6. The employment-based copyright presumption may lead to the mass use of a material, which, in turn, may create a biased presentation of viewpoints and opinions in the media.

7. The proposal suggests applying the employment-based copyright presumption only to specific author groups, with the largest group being journalists. This line and, in particular, its background and foundations are disquieting.

8. The Union of Journalists in Finland views the proposed employment-based copyright presumption provision as unsuccessful in terms of its technical legislative aspects, and highly subject to interpretation. For example, the phrases "use and dispose of", "in any manner required for its own business operations", "later exploitation of the work" and "broader transfer of copyright" are ambiguous.

The same is true for the reference "within a collective bargaining agreement or otherwise mutually agreed on by the organisations" is unclear from the standpoint of the practical negotiation and contractual activities and is interpretative in nature.

The Union of Journalists in Finland finds the proposed employment-based copyright presumption provision to be completely unsuccessful and unfeasible.

UNION OF JOURNALISTS IN FINLAND

Arto Nieminen                          Eila Hyppönen

President                                 General Secretary