§ Mr. KidneyTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment she has made of the loss of protection afforded by law to copyright holders by computer developments with particular reference to digital copying and Internet Jukebox. [24805]
§ Mr. Ian McCartneyUnited Kingdom copyright law, the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, already gives copyright owners protection for uses of their works based on new technology. In particular, the rights to authorise reproduction conferred by the Act apply to digital copying as to other kinds, and the Act also grants rights enabling control over transmissions of music and sound recordings to members of the public on request, as are involved in "Internet jukebox" services. We do not consider, therefore, that recent developments in technology have led to a loss of protection for copyright owners in the UK. Comparable standards of protection overseas also need to be established, however, especially in view of the global nature of the Internet, and accordingly we support EU and international initiatives aimed at achieving this.