Recording industry deplores ineffective Ukraine CD plant law
London, January 17, 2002 - The international recording industry today voiced its deep disappointment after the rushed adoption of a highly flawed CD plant licensing law through the Ukraine Parliament.
IFPI Chairman and CEO Jay Berman said: "The Ukraine Parliament has once again let down the country's creative community by adopting a totally ineffective optical disc regulatory process. It has also missed the last opportunity to avoid the entry into force of US trade sanctions. IFPI would have preferred the adoption of an adequate law to sanctions, but sanctions now seem inevitable."
The US Government confirmed the imposition of trade sanctions on Ukraine on December 21, one day after the Rada (Ukraine Parliament) rejected an earlier draft CD plant licensing law which had been strongly backed by the recording industry and by the US Government. The sanctions, affecting Ukrainian exports up to US$400 million, are due to come into force on 23 January.
Background
Ukraine has annual CD manufacturing capacity of up to 70 million CDs, a level totally mismatched to legitimate demand of less than 5 million CDs. Pirate CDs from Ukraine have been found in more than 30 countries around the world.
In June 2000, US President Clinton and Ukrainian President Kuchma signed Joint Action Plan under which Ukraine agreed to:
- close down and prosecute CD plants that have been involved in large-scale production
- seize and destroy all pirate materials
- carry out regular and unannounced inspections of CD plants
- introduce and enforce strict optical disc production control regulations, including the compulsory use of identification codes in the CD replication machinery and control of trade in equipment and raw materials
- introduce new laws to improve protection for foreign artists and record producers, and appropriate criminal penalties for copyright and related rights infringement
For further information, contact: Adrian Strain, 44 207 878 7900