Michel Barnier Appoints Antonio Vittorino as Mediator in the Private Copy Debate

Antonio Vitorino,  Portugese politician and a former  European Commissioner responsible for Justice and Home Affairs was appointed mediator in the dialogue on private copying levies. 

His task will be to moderate stakeholder discussions and explore approaches to harmonisation of both the methodology used to impose levies and the systems of administration of levies. Discussions in Brussels will start in the beginning of 2012 and should be completed before the summer of 2012.

"The fact that authors and other rightholders must receive fair compensation for the use of their work is not at issue" said Barnier." The issue is that all schemes used for the collection of this compensation should be organised in the most efficient way possible."

http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/barnier/docs/speeches/20111123/statement_en.pdf