Update to the Grant of Rights
The partial amendment to the Copyright Act that came into force last spring gave us new opportunities and contractual licensing regulations to developing work licences further. Therefore, two entirely new categories of rights were added to Kopiosto’s Grant of Rights for publishers and authors who create text, images or photos, while one category of rights was expanded. The categories of rights determine the types of use for which Kopiosto may grant licences.
Due to these amendments, authors and publishers must update their existing Grant of Rights to Kopiosto document. During the year, we held several briefing sessions about this topic for our member organisations. We also provided the organisations with communications materials to support them in sharing information about the topic and added an informative Q&A section to our website where the organisations can direct authors to.
The information was quickly passed on to the authors and publishers, and, by the end of the year, we had more than 43,000 updated Grant of Rights documents.
Copying reviews behind user licences
Our licences which allow for the easy use of works protected by copyright works are often based on reviews of the ways they are copied and used. Last autumn, we reviewed the copying and use of books, newspapers and texts and images published online taking place in universities. More than 2,700 people involved in higher education teaching answered our survey.
The survey showed that copying as a whole has decreased in higher education institutions when compared to 2019. Works such as articles, images or photos and excerpts from different publications are copied and shared for teaching purposes. Based on the study, we negotiated the licence for a new three-year contract term with the Rectors’ Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Arene and Universities Finland UNIFI. The licence enables the copying and using of copyrighted material in institutes of higher education.
Clearer licence terms through redesigned rights
Towards the end of the year, we launched a project to make the terms of our copyright licences more accessible to our customers. We are redesigning the wording of the copying licence for companies, societies and public administration and putting it in layman’s terms, but the actual content of the licence does not change.
In autumn, we reviewed the comprehensibility of our licensing terms from the perspective of our customers. Based on the customer interviews, we will clarify the language and visual image of the licence terms. The new licence terms will be published in 2024.
Instructions for teachers on the use of works in teaching
The use of works in teaching has been facilitated by the 2023 amendment to the Copyright Act and the extended licences. Now, for example, video excerpts from content posted online and on social media platforms can be used as demonstration tools in teaching. However, the teachers must know in which situations and how do the permits and licences allow the copying and use of works.
Together with the Finnish National Agency for Education, we put together a set of instructions for teachers on the use of works in teaching. During last autumn, these instructions were delivered to some 75,000 teachers as an attachment to the Opettaja, Läraren and VOL magazines.
Library licence pilot gathered feedback from users of works
In spring 2023, we launched a new user licence pilot for libraries with the aim of facilitating the use of illustrations online.
The licence was designed through consultation with representatives of libraries, the Association of Finnish Municipalities and the organisations representing authors, photographers and publishers. The advantage of a municipal level licence is that an employee of an individual library does not need to obtain a licence separately for each use.
We received plenty of feedback about the licence pilot from the users of works, based on which we changed the licence to better meet the needs of libraries.
AVEK and the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s Kehittämö – Talent Development Lab programme started
The first work projects for the Kehittämö programme focusing on the professional development of new filmmakers were selected in early 2023. The authors who were included promoted their projects with the help of both financial support and the mentoring of international top talents in the audiovisual sector.
After the successful first round, the Kehittämö programme started for the second time in late 2023. The programme is made possible with the financial support of the Finnish Cultural Foundation, which is providing the audiovisual industry with almost one million euros in additional funding over a period of four years.
AVEK award anniversary year
Finland’s most significant recognition in the field of media art, AVEK Award, was awarded for the 20th time in September. The awarded artist of the anniversary year, Pilvi Takala is known for her documentarist video art that examines social structures in various communities. The award is worth EUR 15,000.
More goal-oriented sustainability
The first Kopiosto sustainability programme was completed last summer and extends to 2030. Our vision is to make responsible and sustainable choices to promote creative work. Our programme includes four themes: Fair and transparent partner, Responsible user of funds, Healthy and competent working community, and Towards carbon neutrality. Our first sustainability report will be published in 2025, and then every two years after that.
