This Saturday 26 April is World Intellectual Property Day, where we recognise the importance of intellectual property for creators worldwide, and why this right must be protected.
Intellectual property refers to creations of the mind, including creative works, and is protected in law by copyright. Under UK law, the copyright of a finished audiovisual work is jointly owned by the director and the producer (usually the production company or broadcaster). You can find out more about the basics of copyright as it relates to directors in the video below.
Directors UK is the Collective Management Organisation (CMO) for film and TV directors in the UK, meaning we negotiate, collect and distribute royalty payments for uses of the works directors make. This year marks 25 years of the UK Rights Agreement, an agreement with the main UK broadcasters that provides us with the bulk of the royalties distributed to you each year.
Today, we collect royalties from broadcasters in the UK as well as CMOs overseas. In January we paid out our largest distribution to date, with over £12.4 million in royalties distributed to over 4,070 Directors UK members.
These royalty payments go a long way in making directing a viable career for creative freelancers, providing them with financial security between jobs.
Last year, Directors UK Vice Chair James Hawes spoke at the government’s CMS committee on British High-end TV and Film, on the importance of protecting IP rights for directors. His evidence has been used to argue for better protection of IP to ensure a stable income for freelance creatives, in the resulting report. We’ve also been active in the debate on AI, and want to make sure that not only is there transparency and a dynamic licensing regime for the use of creators’ works - but that directors also benefit from fair remuneration for those uses.
It’s important to celebrate the contributions of creators on World IP Day, and recognise the importance of IP rights to our film and TV industry. If you would like to share your thoughts on what IP rights mean to you as a creator, be sure to use the hashtag #WorldIPDay.
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