FITUG e.V.
Förderverein Informationstechnik und Gesellschaft
FITUG e.V.Förderverein Informationstechnik und Gesellschaft |
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http://www.patent.gov.uk/dpolicy/accdirec.html
Implementation of Conditional Access Directive
Article 6 of Directive 98/84/EC on the legal protection of conditional access services requires Member States to transpose the Directive into national law by 28 May 2000. Draft Regulations amending the current UK regime in this area (sections 297-299 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) have been prepared. The draft Statutory Instrument and a draft Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) may be viewed and downloaded by clicking here. The text of the Directive can be viewed on the web site of the European Community:
http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/lif/dat/1998/en_398L0084.html
The purpose of the Directive is to create a uniform legal environment for the protection of conditional access services, that is, services offered to the public where access is subject to payment of subscriptions such as pay-TV. The Directive requires Member States to prohibit, and provide suitable sanctions against, the manufacture and commercial dealing in illegal decoders, smart cards and the like. UK law already addresses this important subject, and the Regulations simply bring the list of infringing activities into line with the requirements of the Directive, and clarify that the regime applies to services transmitted from any place in the EU. Full information is set out in the draft RIA, including the results of earlier consultations on the Directive.
As required by Community law, it is intended that these Regulations will be made and laid before Parliament in order to enter into force before the due date, and Copyright Directorate would therefore be grateful if any comments you may wish to make on the draft Statutory Instrument and RIA could reach us as soon as possible, and certainly no later than 22 March 2000. In setting this rather short deadline we have borne in mind the limited scope of the Directive, the positive reaction of UK interests to earlier consultations, and the fact that the proposed changes to UK law will not impose burdens on legitimate business. It is essential that the message of a reinforced crackdown on those dealing in pirate devices and services is made clear by timely implementation of this important Directive.
Comments should be sent to Teresa Arnesen, Copyright Directorate, The Patent Office, Harmsworth House, 13-15 Bouverie street, London, EC4Y 8DP: e-mail to copyright@patent.gov.uk. In particular, we would welcome any additional quantitative information on the likely benefits of the improved legal protection for UK interests.
(Please note that responses to this consultation will normally be made public and respondents are requested to indicate their agreement to this when commenting. Where respondents request confidentiality, they should, in accordance with the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, provide a summary of their response and a specific reason why their full response should remain confidential.)
Last updated 24 February 2000
For details, see:
http://www.patent.gov.uk/dpolicy/pdf/draftsi.pdf