Category: PASA and the Copyright Amendment Bill

Pursuing the recommendations of the Copyright Review Commission (2011), the South African Department of Trade and Industry released the first version of the Copyright Amendment Bill in 2015. PASA supported the need expressed by numerous copyright stakeholders for a review of the 1978 Copyright Act and its regulations. After comprehensive feedback from stakeholders – in which many raised severe concerns about the direction the Bill was taking and the drafting errors it contained – the revised Copyright Amendment Bill was published in 2017.

PASA has participated in the consultation process throughout, presenting in parliament during public hearings and submitting written comments on the Bill on behalf of its members. The documents submitted are available below.

The report of the Copyright Review Commission, mentioned above, is available here for background reading: Read more

Supplementary submissions
In addition, PASA, in conjunction with DALRO, the Dramatic Arts and Literary Rights Organisation, sent the following supplementary submissions to elucidate existing positions and provide new information.

– On ‘fair use’: Read more
– On library exceptions: Read more
– On a two-phase process for the Bill, and support for an exception for the visually disabled in line with the Marrakesh Treaty: Read more

Research Report – Absence of Proper Impact Assessment for Copyright Amendment Bill

Find attached the ANFASA DALRO PASA research report May 2022….

PASA Submission – Copyright Amendment Bill [B13B-2017], 28 January 2022

PASA submission on Amendments proposed Final 28012022 Find attached a PASA submission to parliament on specific proposed amendments of the Copyright Amendment Bill.

Copyright Amendment Bill, February 2019

In February 2019, the National Council of Provinces’ Select Committee on Trade and International Relations invited submissions from stakeholders to make written submissions in respect of the Copyright Amendment Bill, No B13 of 2017, which will be deliberated in conjunction with the Performers’…

Media Statement: Rushing the Copyright Amendment Bill Through Parliament Will Compromise SA’s Literary and Publishing Industry – 14 November 2018

A controversial Copyright Amendment Bill is on the verge of being introduced to the South African National Assembly for its Second Reading. The Publishers’ Association of South Africa (PASA) questions whether the Bill will benefit those that rely on copyright in creative works.

IPA Statement, 13 November 2018

“When South Africa announced its intention to review and modernize its copyright law, the original purpose was to benefit South African performers and authors who were not receiving fair remuneration for their own intellectual property creations. Unfortunately, the Copyright Amendment Bill strays…

Monica Seeber’s Article in City Press, 11 November 2018

“The idea was to improve the law for creators – specifically for musicians, but also for authors of written works and for visual artists. But this ran into strong opposition from those who wished to disseminate books and journal articles freely to pupils and students under the principle of…

IAF Statement, 9 November 2018

“IAF is concerned that, as it stands, the proposed reforms to the Copyright Amendment Bill would have the unintended consequences of harming the livelihoods of creators and undermining the creative industries of South Africa. These reforms would harm authors’ earnings, particularly for those who…

In October 2018, the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry invited submissions from stakeholders on a closed list of new provisions, mainly concerning collective licensing and parallel importation, in the revised Copyright Amendment Bill. PASA and DALRO’s joint submission in response to this…

IFRRO Statement, 24 October 2018

“The International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organisations (IFRRO), at its Annual General Meeting in Athens, strongly urges the South African Parliament to protect authors’ rights, support creativity, and to reject proposals that would weaken copyright protection. “In South Africa,…

On 19 June, the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry invited submissions from stakeholders on a closed list of 21 provisions included in the revised Copyright Amendment Bill, 2018. PASA’s submission in response to this invitation is available below