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Stowarzyszenie Autorów ZAiKS

ZAiKS

The Society of Authors ZAiKS has been an organization for the collective management of authors’ rights since 1918.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Kosma Złotowski (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

2 Oct 2025 · Copyright and generative artificial intelligence

Meeting with Dariusz Joński (Member of the European Parliament)

29 Jan 2025 · Creators and cultural diversity in the age of artificial intelligence and mainstream platforms.

Meeting with Ewa Zajączkowska-Hernik (Member of the European Parliament, Committee chair)

29 Jan 2025 · Ochrona praw twórców i użytkowników utworów w rozumieniu prawa autorskiego

Meeting with Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus (Member of the European Parliament)

29 Jan 2025 · Technological Challenges and the Cultural Sovereignty of the EU

Meeting with Beata Szydło (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

23 May 2023 · Situation of Polish authors with regard to upcoming file 2023/2051(INL) - meeting held by APA

Meeting with Krzysztof Hetman (Member of the European Parliament)

23 May 2023 · Exchange of Views on social and professional situation of artists

Meeting with Bogusław Liberadzki (Member of the European Parliament)

8 Nov 2022 · Exchange of views

Response to Fairness in platform-to-business relations

22 Nov 2017

Society of Authors ZAiKS (ZAiKS) is a Polish organization representing artists and composers with the mission to protect their copyrights, especially in context of the rapid growth of new technologies and social media. ZAiKS is an organization set up by the authors and still managed by them. It does not conduct any gainful activity and all tasks entrusted to it are aimed at minimizing their costs, which are in the end borne by the authors themselves. In the age of digitalization and rapid social media growth music and audiovisual works are easily accessibly by various Internet platforms. In this paper we would like to focus on the reporting and data-exchange schemes, conflict resolution and possible consortia of CMO’s. Reporting and data-exchange schemes In order to receive royalties and issue claims both DSPs and CMOs (licensors) have to agree on certain kind of reporting data exchange system. The chosen by DSPs method is the one to which the CMOs has to abide. It brings us to a situation where CMOs operate in an ecosystem where almost each and every Internet platform proposes their own solutions, that have to be individually implemented and later also constantly up-dated. For example, originally some of the DSPs used DSR (Digital Sales Report) developed by Digital Data Exchange (DDEX) organization as a way to transcript their data, and others, for which the system was not convenient, decided to develop their own reporting tools. Moreover, Internet platforms also chose the methods used for issuing claims by CMOs on behalf of their authors. Those systems are changing at least once a year. It consumes a lot of financial and personal resources in order to introduce those deviations and educate the employees thereon. To sum up, CMO does not have any influence on the reporting method that is chosen solely by the Internet platform, whereas it has to implement and up-date the multitude of systems on the its own cost. We are firm believers that self-regulatory practices could be sufficient (Option 1). Conflict resolution Recently, DSPs are asking us for more and more specific data on the repertoire we represent. In the future ZAiKS shall report the list of right holders and a corresponding number of shares that their possess to the artistic work. All the data is supposedly collected in order to resolve conflicts arising from more than one CMOs claiming its’ right to the work, hence royalties thereof. Only You Tube developed a tool (CMS) that enables to certain extent such a conflict resolution. Nevertheless, the main flaw of the system is the fact, that it only enables case by case approach. Considering that in repertoire of a CMO are tens of thousands of works this system is inefficient. Other DSPs do not have any system at all and just cease to pay royalties to the CMOs until the conflict is resolved between the parties. We believe that DSPs should have an obligation of a higher scrutiny over the content they present. We propose that they should be oblige to develop conflict resolution tools, which would be user-friendly (API interface) and would enable managing the conflict on a larger scale with the possibility of automatic processing. ZAiKS is convinced that self-regulatory systems (Option 1) are not sufficient to ensure such actions, thus we would support a combination of Option 2 (sub-option 4) and/or Option 3. Low royalties It is not a secret that the royalties collected from free streaming services, in spite of the immense number of music displays, are fairly low. This issue stemsfrom the fact, that certain platform have oligopolistic or even near monopolistic status on relevant market, which makes it practically impossible to negotiate terms and conditions with them and certainly not on equal footing. The CMO has no room to maneuver as to conclude the licensing contract or not. From the perspective of the artist we represent, it is always better to obtain any remuneration to none.
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Meeting with Elżbieta Bieńkowska (Commissioner) and

27 Jul 2015 · Digital Single Market , Transfer of value, Compensation for the creators for private copying, Culture as a source of economic growth for the EU