Copyright laws for the 21st century

Senator the Hon Richard Alston Minister for Communications, the Information Economy and the Arts

The Hon Daryl Williams AM QC Attorney-General

- New Copyright Bill Released for Public Comment -

The Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Richard Alston, and the Attorney General, Mr Daryl Williams, today released for public comment the draft Copyright Amendment (Digital Agenda) Bill 1999 which will update Australia's coypright standards to meet the challenge of new technology, while protecting creators and owners of copyright material online.

The exposure draft legislation implements the Government's April 1998 decision on the Digital Agenda copyright reforms, and is part of the Government's overall commitment to the information economy.

The draft Bill will update Australia's copyright law to meet the challenges posed by new communications technology, particularly the internet. The reforms will substantially improve protection for many important industries on the internet. The centrepiece of the draft Bill is a new technology-neutral right of communication to the public.

The new right of communication will replace and extend the existing technology-specific and limited broadcast and cable diffusion rights.

The reforms will also include new enforcement measures to enable copyright owners to protect their rights in cyberspace. These include the introduction of criminal sanctions and civil remedies for commercial dealings in devices designed to circumvent technological protection measures. Such devices include software to break password protection of material on the internet.

The amendments will also provide civil remedies for tampering with rights management information that is electronically attached to copyright material, such as digital watermarks.

To ensure reasonable access to copyright online, the reforms will include an important package of exceptions to the new right of communication to the public. As far as possible, the proposed exceptions will replicate the balance struck between the rights of owners and the rights of users that has applied in the print environment.

The amendments will include the extension of the existing exceptions to the new right, which includes fair dealing and the exceptions which apply to large institutional users such as libraries, museums, and galleries. The reforms will also include the extension of the existing statutory licences which apply to educational institutions such as universities.

These amendments are especially good news for cultural institutions, such as museums, galleries, archives and libraries, which will be able to use material electronically for the same purposes that they may make hard copies, such as preservation and management, and to assist researchers. Non-profit galleries and museums will be covered by these reforms.

The information and telecommunications industries will also benefit from an environment of legal certainty as a result of the amendments, which will ensure that internet service providers and telecommunications carriers are not liable for copyright infringements on their customers' websites simply because they host the works on their equipment.

The draft legislation will clarify and limit carrier and ISP liability for copyright infringement. The result will be a workable legal regime which will encourage the growth of online activity, including electronic commerce.

Finally, the draft Bill provides for the 'fine-tuning' of the computer software provisions in the copyright law.

The release of the draft Bill will provide an opportunity for interested parties to comment on the technical operation of the proposed amendments. The draft legislation is available on the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DOCITA) website www.dcita.gov.au and the Attorney-General's website at www.law.gov.au. Hard copies are available by calling (02) 6250 6655 or (02) 6271 1574.

Written submissions should be forwarded by Friday 19 March 1999 to:

Mr Simon Cordina
Intellectual Property Branch
Attorney-General's Department
National Circuit
BARTON ACT 2600

Media Contact:
Nick Harford, Mr Williams's office 02 6277 7300
Terry O'Connor, Senator Alston's office 02 6277 7480
Website www.richardalston.dcita.gov.au

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26 February 1999