Badung Hosts 35-Country Forum on Copyright Royalties

Badung — Indonesia brought delegates from 35 countries, international organizations, copyright institutions, creators, industry representatives and experts together on Oct. 7 for a three-day forum on managing copyright royalties across borders. The Global Dialogue on Cross-Border Copyright Royalty Governance in the Digital Era is being held in Badung, Bali, through Oct. 9.

The meeting is examining transparency, accountability and interoperability in digital royalty systems. Indonesian Minister of Law Supratman Andi Agtas said the country is seeking shared rules and systems that can record, calculate and distribute royalties as creative works move across international markets.

Why the Badung forum matters to foreign creators and rights holders

For foreign creators, publishers and other rights holders whose works are used in Indonesia or whose Indonesian works are used overseas, the issues discussed affect how usage information and royalty payments move between national systems. Better interoperability could make it easier for organizations in different countries to exchange reliable data about works, rights holders and payments, while stronger accountability would clarify responsibility within royalty-management processes.

The forum is not a negotiation intended to produce binding international legal rules or commitments. Instead, it is designed to compare national practices and identify areas for voluntary cooperation. Discussions include information openness, royalty-allocation methods, payment reporting, automated systems, unallocated royalties, audits, dispute resolution and technical standards.

Participants include members of the World Intellectual Property Organization, along with regional groups and international organizations. The dialogue is expected to produce a Bali Chair's Summary describing areas of agreement and issues requiring further study, as well as a document outlining possible voluntary cooperation on information exchange, capacity building, technical assistance, research and system interoperability.

Sources

• The Jakarta Post — report on the 35-country copyright forum
• RRI — report on Indonesia’s cross-border royalty transparency forum
• lmkn.id