The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister YU In Chon, MCST) and the European Commission (President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, EU) hosted the “1st EU-Korea Copyright Roundtable” in Seoul on July 4 (Thur).

The “1st EU-Korea Copyright Roundtable” was established to lead the global copyright norm by strengthening cooperation between the EU and Korea, at a time when the copyright use environment accelerates across borders. Policymakers and industry experts from both parties are to meet regularly to discuss copyright policy issues and draw collective solutions.

At the first meeting, the discussion centered on the copyright collective management system in music, one of the areas of common interest between Korea and the European Union. Specifically, the session reviewed the legal systems and practical cases from the two parties and held discussions to identify areas where mutual cooperation can be made.

First, Deputy Director Junhyuk CHOI from Copyright Industry Division of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Ms. Anneli ANDRESSON-BOURGEY, Far-East IP Policy Officer, Directorate General 

for Trade of the European Commission, introduced collective management regimes of Korea and EU respectively. Following the two speakers, the Korea Music Copyright Association (KOMCA), the Korean Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (KOSCAP), the German Society for Musical Performing and Mechanical Reproduction Rights (GEMA), and the French Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music (SACEM) shared their presentations on the progress of the organization management, and insights on the topic.

After presentations, professor SeungJae CHOI from Sejong University, College of Law, served as a moderator and shared future tasks and insights on the EU-Korea music copyright collective management system.

“Workshop on Public Performance Right” was also organized

Meanwhile, on the afternoon of July 4th (Thur), a separate workshop on public performance rights of the EU and Korea was held to discuss thoroughly how Korea and the EU can engage in cooperation for smooth operation and improvement of collection and distribution of performance fee.