GUADALAJARA, The Emirates Reprographic Rights Management Association (ERRA) organised a panel discussion as part of Sharjah’s Guest of Honour programme at the 36th Guadalajara International Book Fair (GIBF 2022), highlighting the UAE and Argentina’s experience in defending reprographic rights.
This event, which runs from 26th November to 4th December, 2022, marks the first international participation for ERRA.
The session, titled “Reprographic rights between the UAE and Latin America”, featured Dr. Alyazia Khalifa, President of the Board of Directors of ERRA, Dr. Afra Atiq, Vice-President of ERRA, and Vice president of CADRA Ana Maria Cabinillas, from Argentina, and was moderated by the writer Saleha Obaid, who is a board member of ERRA.
The session addressed the importance of collective management organisations for reprography and answered a set of questions related to the nature of organisations in this field and their work regarding reprographic rights, especially in Argentina who are of the top leading organisations in reprography across Latin America.
The session also highlighted the efforts that led to the establishment of ERRA, who have been signing contracts with publishers and authors in order to handle their reprographic rights management.
ERRA reflected on their various international experiences, and their benefit of being a member of the International Federation of Reprographic Organizations (IFRRO), which includes more than 80 countries across the world.
Dr. Khalifa highlighted the importance of copyright management organisations and intellectual property and its role in creating an advanced and innovative environment for both individuals and the society.
Dr. Khalifa also indicated that ERRA was established to protect the intellectual rights of content creators, as a first-of-its-kind organisation in the Arab region to address the challenges related to copying works and similar behaviours, in addition to devoting the principle of collective management for copyright policies, and supplement the applicable laws in the UAE related to the protection of intellectual property.
Ana Maria Cabinillas addressed the important role that collective management organisations play through benefiting from legislation and the interaction of stakeholders in the field.
She also highlighted the nature of transformations in the Argentine experience within the field of collective management, before and after the establishment of CADRA in Argentina, along with the most important challenges that need to be addressed in order to enhance Argentina’s role in this field.
As for Dr. Afra Atiq, she focused on the importance of such organisations in increasing the community’s interest in developing the creative industry and preserving the rights of content creators in the UAE and the Arab region.
She noted that right holders from publishers and authors in this field need to be supported, and have strong links with organisations, associations that contribute to creating an effective and economically-stable environment to help all of them make the best use of their works.
This session is part of a series of upcoming panel discussions and activities within the association’s programme, aiming to network with local as well as international organisations in the field of reprography and intellectual property, and to introduce ERRA and its work to public users and content creators and the public that is attending the Guadalajara International Book Fair this year.
Source: Emirates News Agency