A draft amendment to the Copyright Law released by the State Copyright Bureau has sparked controversy among musicians and producers. Despite the assurance of the Copyright Bureau that the proposed regulations are set to protect the rights of copyright owners, they held a press conference on Wednesday expressing their concern over the issue.
Renowned musicians and 40 representatives from record companies gathered together to voice their view on the draft amendment. The most controversial content was Article 46, which allows non-copyright owners to use recordings by musicians three months after their release, as long as they apply with the State Copyright Bureau, pay the necessary fees to the copyright owner and clearly state the copyright owner.
The article is causing major concern among musicians.
Liu Huan, Chinese musician, siad, "As musicians we all treasure our work enormously, and it deserves basic protection. Under this article, once they pay us the fees then it’s theirs, take it or leave it. So we are forced to sell our work."
Record companies have suffered a rapid decline in sales ever since the advent of the internet, and musicians and producers are worried that the amendment might be the last straw for them.
Xiao Ke, Chinese musician, said, "I used to be able to make hundreds of thousands off an album back in the 1990s, but now I can only earn a few thousand yuan. That’s the harsh reality."
Representatives for the musicians and producers are proposing to ban the distribution of their work on the internet and prolong the protection period among other measures. The proposals will soon be submitted to the State Copyright Bureau as musician and producers see this as a critical window of opportunity to protect their work.