...ALIA notes the intention to appoint an independent chair but is concerned that the committee does not have representation from the major stakeholder groups of copyright owners and copyright users. To achieve greater public and stakeholder acceptance the Code of Conduct Committee at the very sminimum must have at least one copyright owner and one copyright user appointed to it. ...

5 October 2001

Mr Brett Cottle
Chief executive officer
Australasian Performing Rights Association
Locked Bag 3665
St Leonards 2065

Copyright collecting societies: proposed code of conduct

Dear Mr Cottle

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Copyright Collecting Societies Draft Code of Conduct. ALIA is the professional association for the library and information sector. ALIA represents 6500 personal members, 800 institutional members and 10 million library users.

ALIA welcomes the development of a Code of Conduct for collecting societies but would like to make the following comments on the draft code.

A common reason for self-regulation is the desire to raise industry standards. Self-regulation is a means to exceed minimum legal requirements and can also enhance understanding and compliance with regulations. Various forms of self-regulation can set a benchmark for minimum service levels, and allow businesses flexibility in how these services are to be met and exceeded.

Self-regulation is the responsibility of industry, both consumers and the government are stakeholders. It is therefore essential that the code of conduct is acceptable to all stakeholders and addresses stakeholder concerns. Although there is no one model for good self-regulation, there are elements of good practice that are consistent amongst schemes.

Code of Conduct Committee
A code must outline fair procedures for handling complaints and to do this there must be a balance of interests in any dispute resolving mechanism. Therefore the interests of copyright owners and users must be represented. The code must also reflect the values of honesty and equity and best practice when dealing with stakeholders.

ALIA notes the intention to appoint an independent Chair but is concerned that the committee does not have representation from the major stakeholder groups of copyright owners and copyright users. To achieve greater public and stakeholder acceptance the Code of Conduct Committee at the very sminimum must have at least one copyright owner and one copyright user appointed to it.

It is important that to ensure that the decisions of the Code of Conduct Committee are fair and seen to be fair. An independent method of dispute resolution should be:

• accessible
• independent
• fair
• accountable
• efficient
• effective
• without prejudice to judicial redress

The Intellectual Property and Competition Review Committee report recommended that Collecting societies need to be more open and accountable and demonstrate fair and equitable dealings with all stakeholders. It was anticipated that the code would provide access to an efficient dispute resolution mechanism that was compliant with Australian Standard AS 4269 1995.

To be compliant with AS 4269 1955 the code must demonstrate the internationally accepted principle of preparing codes that involve transparency and consensus. This includes the use of committees to represent all relevant stakeholders.

If you have any queries or require any further information about our response, please contact me on 02 6215 8214.

Yours sincerely

Jennefer Nicholson
Executive director