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About Swiss-copyright.ch

The revision

We are all authors – whether of love letters, original photos or our own website on the internet. At the same time we are all users and consumers, whether we are reading a book, purchasing a song online or watching television. Many of these works and activities are protected under copyright. To continue protecting them appropriately in the digital age, today’s copyright law needs to be revised. But what is appropriate protection?

To make this protection appropriate for the digital age, copyright law is being revised worldwide. In Switzerland, the revision is already well-advanced. The Federal Council sent the revised draft to Parliament in the first quarter of 2006. Copyright is now being debated up and down the halls of the National Council and Council of States.

 

The debate

The copyright revision is complex, touching on many issues. For this reason the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property decided to invite all involved interest groups to sit down together and discuss the goals, consequences, opportunities and risks involved in the revision. This website and the accompanying brochure "Copyright in the Digital Age: Highway or Dead-end?" are the results. The intent is to provide facts and explanations of various terms dealing with copyright, as well as the views of those involved so that the public can form their own opinion. The new copyright – a highway or a dead-end? You decide.

 

The involved

The following interest groups or individuals have contributed to the debate and this website:

 

Commissioned and published by

Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE), Bern

 

Project leader

Felix Addor (IGE)

 

Project coordination

Michael Girsberger (IGE)

 

Participating interest groups

(in alphabetical order)

• Archives/libraries/museums/science: Mathis Berger (Swiss Forum for Communication Law), www.sf-fs.ch; Jarka Looks (Swiss Institute for Comparative Law), www.isdc.ch
• Artists and performers: Yolanda Schweri und Bernhard Wittweiler (Suisseculture), www.suisseculture.ch
• Collecting societies: Pierre-Henri Dumont (Society of Swiss Authors), www.ssa.ch; Ernst Brem (SWISSPERFORM), www.swissperform.ch
• Consumers: Matthias Nast und Andreas Tschöpe (Foundation for Consumer Protection), www.konsumentenschutz.ch
• Electronic media: Dominique Diserens (SRG SSR idée suisse),
  www.srgssrideesuisse.ch; Frederik Stucki (Association of Swiss Private Radios), www.vsp-asrp.ch
• Entertainment industry: Stefan Meierhans und Roger Chevallaz (Audiovision Schweiz), www.audiovisionschweiz.ch
• Federal agencies: Felix Addor (editorial chairman), Michael Girsberger (editorial vice-chair), Emanuel Meyer (IGE), www.ige.ch
• Information technology: Jürg W. Stutz (Swiss Association for the Information, Communication and Organisational Technologies), www.swico.ch;
  Josef Erni (Swiss Information and Communications Technology Association), www.sicta.ch
• Open Source: Christian Laux, Urs Gehrig (openlaw), www.openlaw.ch
• Print media: Hanspeter Kellermüller (Swiss Press Association), www.schweizerpresse.ch, Mathieu Fleury (impressum – Swiss Journalists), www.impressum.ch
• Users: Peter Mosimann, Claudia Bolla-Vincenz (DUN, umbrella organization for users of copyright and neighboring rights), www.dun.ch

Web design

MEDIAparx AG, Bern
www.mediaparx.com

 

Cartoons

Reto Fontana, Basel

www.fontana-cartoon.ch

 

Disclaimer

For purposes of readability, only the male pronoun is used. All quotations are personal opinions only. These pages were prepared with all due care. However, the Institute makes no guarantee as to the correctness, completeness or currency of the content, nor does it guarantee the contents or currency of the external links.

© 30.1.2006