Watch out, British politicians: here comes the CCC

An email that came whizzing into this Kat's laptop today reads, in relevant part, as follows:

"STARS SIGN UP TO SUPPORTING CREATIVITY ONLINE PETITION

Several high profile names from the UK’s creative sector have signed a new petition urging politicians to support measures to tackle the widespread theft of creative content online. The petition has been launched by the Creative Coalition Campaign (CCC), a partnership between creative businesses and unions that campaigns for creators’ rights online, and has already attracted almost 800 signatories.

Launching the new petition, Christine Payne, Chair of the CCC and General Secretary of Equity said:

"I’m delighted to launch this new petition calling on all political parties to stand up for creators and workers by committing to support the fight against online copyright infringement. This is a chance for all those whose livelihoods depend on copyright to make their voice heard".

High profile signatories to the petition include dance star Arlene Phillips CBE, CEO of the Featured Artists Coalition, Crispin Hunt, and actor Tim Piggott-Smith. Commenting on the petition, Piggot-Smith said:

“I am disturbed by the increasing number of projects which are under, or even un-funded. Because performers keep the arts world going by their love of what they do, with disregard for payment, it is increasingly difficult for people to make ends meet - particularly young people embarking on a difficult profession. Please protect those incomes they have a right to.”

The UK’s creative industries support 1.5 million jobs and thousands of businesses across the country yet huge amounts of creative content continues to be stolen online. Online copyright infringement threatens jobs, damages revenues and undermines investment in the creative industries. The CCC campaigns for measures to tackle online copyright infringement and plans to use this petition to urge the main political parties to back action on this problem in their 2015 election manifestos.

To view the petition and support the campaign please click here".

This Kat is fascinated to see how the CCC will fare. He is aware of the awesome political sway that appears to be exercised by high-profile media and entertainment personalities in the United States, but it seems to him that their influence is on the whole rather less powerful on this side of the Atlantic. He also doubts whether, even if the CCC can attract media attention and gain the ear of the politicians in the run-up to the 2015 General Election, their worthy cause will be a popular vote-catcher. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained.


This looks very interesting, says Merpel, but what a pity it is that this cause has chosen a name that shares its acronym with a CCC of a rather different nature, the Copyright Clearance Center -- which exists not as a lobbying group to pressure politicians into doing something about online theft but of legitimating use by facilitating copyright clearance and licensed use.

More CCCs here