France on Track to Legalize Peer-to-Peer Downloading

France's lower house of parliament recently has voted to legalize peer-to-peer file-sharing of films and music on the Internet, unleashing a wave of protest from the country's film, audiovisual and music industry organizations.

If the measure passes in the upper house, France would become the first country to legalize peer-to-peer downloading at a time when most Western nations are battling to curb illegal downloading on the Internet.

Introduced as two amendments to a government bill aimed at toughening digital copyright laws, the measure was approved by a vote of 30-28 last month, with very few of the National Assembly's 577 members present. The amendments have recommended that Internet users pay a fixed-royalties fee of $8.50 per month – in the form of a monthly subscription charge ' for unlimited downloading, thus legalizing all file sharing deemed for personal use.

France's professional film, music and audiovisual organizations displayed a rare show of solidarity at a recent news conference, resolving to do “everything in their power” to stall the measure, which would have to survive a vote in the Senate before it becomes law.

“This could be a catastrophe for French cinema, affecting present and future generations of creators and artists,” says producer Alain Terzian, who heads leading French film producers' union UPF.

The country's top artists and entertainers have sworn to oppose the law that might affect their livelihood, threatening to “march to the National Assembly if need be” to stop the bill from becoming a law, according to a spokesperson for audiovisual production union USPA.

“If my music is going to be free, then I insist that the government's representatives who work for the public good also do it for free,” popular French singer Michel Sardou says.

“It's a very bad idea (that) could spell disaster for French cinema and completely ruin the business model of pay TV companies like Canal Plus,” says Nicholas Seydoux, chairman of French film company Gaumont and ALPA, France's main audiovisual anti-piracy body.

Pointing out that the vote could jeopardize the livelihoods of artists in the music and film industry, Seydoux said in an interview that he was certain that the lawmakers who voted for the measure were “not at all clear about the true implications of such a law and only used their votes to assert their independence from the government.”

“We are not trying to ban anything, we just want to ensure that the work of others isn't stolen,” Seydoux added.

The government is in a position to overturn the amendments, either by calling for another debate or if the Senate votes down the bill.

The amendment, which is attached to a bill on intellectual property rights, seeks to bring France in line with a 2001 European Union directive, which stipulates that “authors cannot forbid the reproduction of works that are made on any format from an online communications service when they are intended to be used privately” and not for commercial use.

' Sam Fineman, Editor-in-Chief

France's lower house of parliament recently has voted to legalize peer-to-peer file-sharing of films and music on the Internet, unleashing a wave of protest from the country's film, audiovisual and music industry organizations.

If the measure passes in the upper house, France would become the first country to legalize peer-to-peer downloading at a time when most Western nations are battling to curb illegal downloading on the Internet.

Introduced as two amendments to a government bill aimed at toughening digital copyright laws, the measure was approved by a vote of 30-28 last month, with very few of the National Assembly's 577 members present. The amendments have recommended that Internet users pay a fixed-royalties fee of $8.50 per month – in the form of a monthly subscription charge ' for unlimited downloading, thus legalizing all file sharing deemed for personal use.

France's professional film, music and audiovisual organizations displayed a rare show of solidarity at a recent news conference, resolving to do “everything in their power” to stall the measure, which would have to survive a vote in the Senate before it becomes law.

“This could be a catastrophe for French cinema, affecting present and future generations of creators and artists,” says producer Alain Terzian, who heads leading French film producers' union UPF.

The country's top artists and entertainers have sworn to oppose the law that might affect their livelihood, threatening to “march to the National Assembly if need be” to stop the bill from becoming a law, according to a spokesperson for audiovisual production union USPA.

“If my music is going to be free, then I insist that the government's representatives who work for the public good also do it for free,” popular French singer Michel Sardou says.

“It's a very bad idea (that) could spell disaster for French cinema and completely ruin the business model of pay TV companies like Canal Plus,” says Nicholas Seydoux, chairman of French film company Gaumont and ALPA, France's main audiovisual anti-piracy body.

Pointing out that the vote could jeopardize the livelihoods of artists in the music and film industry, Seydoux said in an interview that he was certain that the lawmakers who voted for the measure were “not at all clear about the true implications of such a law and only used their votes to assert their independence from the government.”

“We are not trying to ban anything, we just want to ensure that the work of others isn't stolen,” Seydoux added.

The government is in a position to overturn the amendments, either by calling for another debate or if the Senate votes down the bill.

The amendment, which is attached to a bill on intellectual property rights, seeks to bring France in line with a 2001 European Union directive, which stipulates that “authors cannot forbid the reproduction of works that are made on any format from an online communications service when they are intended to be used privately” and not for commercial use.

' Sam Fineman, Editor-in-Chief