Response to vote in European Parliament on the Guy Bono Report on the Cultural Industries

Brussels, 10th April 2008

The intention of the Report on the Cultural Industries by French MEP Guy Bono, voted by the European Parliament today, was to underline the economic and social importance of the cultural sector in the European Union.

Frances Moore, IFPI Executive Vice President, said: "Many of the recommendations in this Report stress the need to protect intellectual property as a driver of growth in the creative sector. The Report also calls on the European Commission and Member States to provide the necessary resources to ensure that intellectual property is respected and protected.

"However, one badly drafted, rushed through amendment was adopted which is in contradiction to the rest of the text. If the aim of the Report is to protect creative content, including in the online environment, we should be looking at all options available in the fight against copyright theft. Instead, this amendment suggested discarding certain options before there is even a proper debate.

"We should not allow this last-minute amendment to take away from the overall value of the Cultural Industries Report. We look forward to a full discussion in the European Parliament in the coming months on how best to address copyright theft online. "