Danish Anti-Piracy Group allocates 700,000 kroner to new music and film projects

Copenhagen, 02 March 2007

Fifty artists from the Danish music and film industries are set to benefit from the local Anti-Piracy Group’s (APG) charitable trust, which has just allocated DKK 700,000 (around €100,000) to artistic projects. The money was generated from the damages that the APG has received so far from more than 1,300 anti-piracy cases.

The Anti-Piracy Group works to fight the illegal copying and distribution of music and film. An important element of the group’s work is to ensure that the artists, who lose earnings as a result of piracy, get a share of the damages that the Anti-Piracy Group obtains on behalf of the rights holders. For that reason, the Anti-Piracy Group took the initiative in the autumn of 2006 to establish a charitable trust, which can channel funding to new artistic projects within music and film.

More than 170 qualified applicants applied for a grant for a large number of interesting activities: The review committee of the trust has concluded a comprehensive review of these applications and the Anti-Piracy Group has disclosed the names of the first 50 recipients of an APG grant.

The group of applicants range from well-known names and lesser known artists. Marianne Van Toornburg, who as a representative for the Danish Artist Union has been a member of the review committee, says: "By and large all applicants to the Anti-Piracy Group's trust have been professional artists. It testifies to the fact that there is indeed a great need for endowment to develop the new productions of even well-recognised artists. The Anti-Piracy Group's trust is a great initiative. The group attempts in this manner to ensure that the money from illegal copying and file-sharing returns to the pockets, from which it was picked."

The applicants come from the worlds of music and film and a few of the projects that have received a grant are joint film and music ventures. The film director Gunvor Bjerre's APG grant will enable her to use newly written Danish music to her next documentary. Gunvor Bjerre says: "How nice that the money now benefits those of us who are otherwise cheated by the pirates. The money I have received today benefits both my film and the composer who I can now hire to write music to my film. That is cool!"

In this round of funding the Anti-Piracy Group allotted a total of DKK 700,000, but this is only the beginning.

"It is the intention that concurrently with receiving more damages from the many cases handled at the moment, we give more grants to the artists", explains Niels Bo Jørgensen;, who is the day-to-day head of the Anti-Piracy Group. He expects another portion of grants to be allocated at the same time next year.

Notes to editors:

About the Anti-Piracy Group

The Anti-Piracy Group has since 2004 forwarded claims for damages to more that 1,300 persons, who have illegally distributed music and film, in particular though file sharing services.

To date approximately DKK 4.5 million (approximately 600,000 Euro) has been obtained in damages.

The foundation of the Anti-Piracy Group's trust is the result of a decision taken in 2006 by the rights holders organisations, which form the base of support for the Anti-Piracy Group, to let a larger part of the damages benefit the artists.

In connection with the Anti-Piracy Group's first giving away, grants have been given to the following:

Nikolaj Heyman Christensen
Tobias Trier
Mia Fryland/Flemming Lynge
Jonas Olesen
Peter Peter Schneiderman
Nicolai Mariegård/Super 16
Christian Mortensen (Josty)
Klaus Kjeldsen
Jørgen Dickmeis
Ian Johansson
Anne Heeno
Mai Seidelin
Mads Mazanti
Lill Raste Bjørste
Emil Jørgensen
Peder Thomas Pedersen
Donna Cadogan
Thomas Negreijn
Henrik Lysgaard Madsen
Gunvor Bjerre
Jenka Music
Alice Rose
Janne Mark
Søren Høg
Karl Erik Pedersen
B-Joe Johansen
Ea Philippa Tange
Jorge Cordero
Jens Henrik Horslund Jensen
Morten Hampenberg
Jens Kristiansen
Andreas Sorgenfrei
Lise Cabble
Mikkel Stolt
Asger Baden-Jensen
Bo Andersen
Rasmus Broe
Jacob Anderskov
Inge Bruland
Rikke Lundforf
Per Hougaard
Eddie Van Lüthje
Jonas Gülstorff
Hugh Steinmetz
Torben Westergaard
Morten Elley
Henrik Koitzsch
Knud Odde
Peter Laugesen
Klaus Ib Jørgensen