Plans to overhaul the EU’s copyright laws were presented in Strasbourg this week.
Julia Reda, from the European Parliament’s legal affairs committee, set out proposals to radically alter legislation, arguing that existing laws had not kept up to date with new technology.
The German MEP said that a common copyright law – implemented across all 28 member states – would make it easier to protect fundamental rights.
It would also be an opportunity to take into consideration the rapid rise of social media; the EU’s previous rules were agreed in 2001, several years before the arrival of Twitter, YouTube and other hugely popular sites.
In a recent interview with The Independent, Ms Reda outlined her case for making radical changes across the continent.
“The EU copyright framework makes the protection of rights-holders mandatory, but the rights of the public only optional,” she told the newspaper.
“Every member state can decide whether it wants to make exceptions from copyright for uses like education, citation or parody, and that means that users of cultural works enjoy very different rights in different European countries.
“In the Internet age, when people are sharing culture across borders, that has led to a situation where nobody is certain what is allowed and what is forbidden any more. Taking a picture of a public building or work of art and putting it on your Facebook page may be legal in one country and illegal in another.”
The legal affairs committee will now consider Ms Reda’s recommendations. A final version of the report will then be presented to the European Commission, which is set to publish its draft proposals for new copyright laws later this year.