EU Negotiators Reach Agreement to Modernize Copyright Rules

Written February 15, 2019

The European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, announced on February 13, 2019, that it reached a political agreement on a new Copyright Directive that would require online platforms to compensate publishers and creators for the content that appears on their websites.

The new Directive intends to bring European copyright rules up-to-date with how digital technologies have transformed the way creative content is produced, distributed and accessed.

“To finally have modern copyright rules for the whole of EU is a major achievement that was long overdue,” said Vice-President for the Digital Single Market Andrus Ansip, “our creators will be better remunerated for their work.” The agreement needs to be confirmed by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.