The Minister of Culture, Andras Demeter, states, in a statement given to AGERPRES, that through the amendments proposed by the Ministry of Culture (MC) to Law No. 8/1996 on copyright and related rights, authors and artists will have nothing to lose and may even gain more.
The Minister of Culture's clarifications come after some opinions for and against the amendments proposed by the Minister of Culture to Law No. 8/1996 on copyright and related rights, expressed in the public space.
"The topic is quite technical and perhaps not that interesting for everyone, but very important for authors and for users who use musical works for environmental purposes ('public communication' is the exact term). Collective management bodies also intervene here and, obviously, each party involved has its observations. We have taken into account all the proposals to the extent that they subscribe to European legislation and practice. The amendments to the GEO, which we are discussing, were requested by the European Commission for 8 years, in 2017, then in 2021, then in June 2025. So Romania has been postponing the alignment with European legislation and continues to violate it for years, for which it risks huge penalties, of tens of thousands of euros per day for each day of delay. This money will be paid by all of us, through the state budget," the minister declared.
The Minister of Culture stated that the delays, complaints and comments appearing online are caused, on the one hand, by poor information and, on the other hand, by certain interests, but assured that authors and artists will have nothing to lose, but, on the contrary, will be able to gain more.
"And the beneficiaries of music, that is, the users, will pay reasonably, no one has an interest in causing damage or complications. In short, each author can manage his own compositions in several ways: a) directly or through an impresario, agent, etc.; b) through OGC (collective management organizations); c) through independent management entities; d) mixed - that is, part of the repertoire is authorized directly, and another part, through OGC or EGI. It is a situation similar to savings that are not deposited in the same account, at the same bank, but in different accounts, at different banks, depending on the most advantageous contractual conditions, maximizing, as much as possible, profit and avoiding risks," said Andras Demeter.
He emphasized that, through the proposed amendments to the OUG, the ministry wants "the freedom of the author and the performer, respect for the beneficiary, that is, the user of music in public spaces, and a fair business for the OGC".
"Yes, that's why there are different opinions, because in the case of other creations this technique is practiced and the actors who signed this letter of support the other day say that everyone should be treated the same, we don't make different laws based on financial interests or unfounded fears. I want my colleagues in the executive branch to understand the complexity and particularities of the situation; we know that it's not easy even for many professionals in the field, but it's important that we all make an effort so as not to find ourselves with costs that we will also pay, and then it really won't matter if the opponents were lawyers, engineers, actors or musicians," said the Minister of Culture, Andras Demeter.
According to the Ministry of Culture, the ordinance that is to align national legislation on copyright and related rights with European norms and practices provides for the elimination of extended collective management (LCEE) for the public communication of musical works, a measure that puts the will of the author and rights holders first, as a fundamental principle of the exercise of exclusive rights, and opens the market to a modern competitive environment, in full accordance with the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and the practices of the Member States.
"In the European music industry, individual licensing is a common practice, and authors must be able to choose freely between individual management (directly or through impresarios), collective management organizations (OGCs) and independent management entities (EGIs). The elimination of the LCEE encourages fair competition and efficiency on the market. The emergence and operation of EGIs, such as Soundreef (Ireland) or Jamendo S.A. (Luxembourg), offer real licensing alternatives, while stimulating the increase in the quality of services provided by OGCs", specifies the cited source.
Authors who consider that individual solutions or those offered by EGI do not meet their needs can always mandate an OGC, which leads to an increase in the number of association members.
The decrease in the level of collected remunerations, invoked by the OGC in the public space, takes into account the (own) management commission, not the actual income of the authors, who continue to collect remunerations according to the freely expressed option (individual management or EGI), the rights of foreign authors remaining protected by mutual representation agreements between bodies in Romania and those abroad, including when certain rights are managed collectively on a voluntary basis.
In order to simplify the authorization procedure and increase the transparency of the activity of collecting and distributing OGCs, the Ministry of Culture supports the establishment of a single methodology and the establishment of a common collection body, in the case of public communication of works for environmental purposes.
Currently, there are several common collectors and four methodologies with similar content, but with different licensing procedures and distinct categories/subcategories, which over time has generated bureaucracy, inconsistencies and a base of payers below potential, the Ministry of Culture also informs.
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