A dispute between European commissioners over reforming the European Union’s rules on intellectual property has forced Michel Barnier, the European commissioner for internal market and services, to remove his white paper on copyright from the agenda of next week’s meeting of commissioners.

Neelie Kroes, the European commissioner for the digital agenda, who is bent on breaking down barriers to an EU-wide digital market, has marshalled opposition inside the Commission to Barnier’s paper, which she considers to be insufficiently ambitious.

In public, she has warned that existing copyright laws are “irrelevant” in the modern world and has deplored the Commission’s “endless” reflections on the issue.
Reforming copyright is “a major, essential part” of the EU’s commitment to creating a single digital market, she said.

She has found strong support from Màire Geoghegan-Quinn, the European commissioner for research, innovation and science, who wants copyright rules to
be less of a burden on researchers and companies, particularly over their use of publicly available data. Other commissioners have also expressed disappointment with the paper’s ambition.

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Barnier’s approach is deliberately cautious. He is aware that his predecessor, Charlie McCreevy, lost a battle on copyright levies. His home country, France, is fiercely protective of its creative industries, including the music and film industries.

Androulla Vassiliou, the European commissioner for education, culture, multilinguism and youth, has stressed the importance of protecting artists and other creatives and of promoting diversity. She is broadly happy with the white paper.

Barnier is wary of tipping the balance in favour of one group of interests, such as online platforms or retailers, over another, such as publishers or creators. He argues that certain often-cited problems with copyright – such as restrictions on reproducing photos of the Atomium, an example cited by Kroes, or restrictions on data mining – can be
resolved if member states apply existing rules and exemptions.

Above all, Barnier sees the adoption of copyright reforms as an inherently divisive issue. His decision to publish a white paper, rather than to work on a proposal, reflects a desire to build consensus with member states and MEPs before legislating.

José Manuel Barroso, the president of the Commission, warned Barnier against reforms that could upset established business models.

Within the next few days the Commission is expected to publish a report on the 11,000-odd responses received in response to its consultation on the reforms. As many as 50 Commission officials were involved in assessing them.

Barnier’s draft of the white paper is being sent back to officials for further inter-departmental consultations, in an attempt to build greater consensus. Adoption of the white paper has therefore been delayed until September. That pushes the publication date even closer to the end of the current Commission, and runs the risk that it may be deemed too controversial to publish. The hearings for new commissioners are expected to take place in September.

Jean-Claude Juncker, the Commission president-elect, may also object to the white paper’s content. Kroes has seized on comments by Juncker that “national silos” ought to be broken down as a sign that he backs her approach.

Juncker will in the coming weeks be deciding on portfolios for incoming commissioners and on the structure of the Commission’s departments. He could decide to attribute copyright from the department for internal market to the department for communications networks, content and technology, or to change the structure of the departments.
It is also possible that investigations being conducted by the directorate-general for competition into issues including online copyright, in its investigation into Google, and territorial restrictions when licensing content, in its investigation into satellite broadcasters, could give rise to precedents at odds with the white paper.