Publicpolicy May 2018

publicpolicy@lists.wikimedia.org

4 participants
9 discussions

Public consultation on measures to further improve the effectiveness of the fight against illegal content online
by Anna Mazgal 22 Jun '18

22 Jun '18

Dear All, we didn't wait long until - after the feedback sought on the Preliminary Impact Assessment - the European Commission wants to learn more about how to improve the efforts in fighting illegal content online. The consultation is open *until June 25th*[1] and it has a form of a concise questionnaire[2]. I will be working on the questionnaire where it requires a narrative (short answers) after May 15th and make the responses available on meta. The questionnaire is partially the same for everyone and partially customized according to the capacity in which you answer (as an individual, a digital rights organization, an online hosting service provider, etc.). Since the way we will in future implement and encounter illegal content moderation - whether as a notice and takedown or automated detection/filtering - is very important for the whole community, I encourage you to consider sending a separate response, in whichever capacity you feel it makes sense for you. It is clear that the questions steer us into the model that has been presented in both the Communication and the Recommendation for Tackling Illegal Content Online, and these solutions are not all great. It is important that we show that we care about this topic. I am happy to receive any feedback from you on both the general level as well as on detailed questions. If needed, I will help and share the approach we will have in Brussels on this in greater detail. Have a good week! Anna [1]https://ec.europa.eu/info/consultations/public-consultation-measures-further-improve-effectiveness-fight-against-illegal-content-online_en [2]https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/illegal_content_online -- Anna Mazgal EU Policy Advisor Wikimedia anna(a)wikimedia.be @a2na mobile: +32 487 222 945 51 Rue du Trône BE-1050 Brussels

2 4

EU policy monitoring report - May 2018
by Dimitar Parvanov Dimitrov 31 May '18

31 May '18

tl;dr The Council adopted a negotiating mandate on copyright. The European Parliament is discussed a seventh compromise proposal on “upload filters” today and is expected to vote on 20 June. After that, the two institutions will have to agree on a common version. This and past reports: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/EU_policy/Monitor === Copyright Reform --- The Council: The Bulgarian Presidency got its negotiating mandate [1] from the Council last Friday.It lays out the position that the Council representatives will be defending while trying to agree with the Parliament on a common final text. The mandate does not mention content recognition technologies (i.e. “upload filters”) particularly, but requires platforms to “prevent availability” of content, which amounts to ex-ante filtering of all user contributions. It also supports a new ancillary copyright on press publications. Wikipedia and our other projects are excluded from the scope of the new liability regime and thus the filters, but other online platforms, including code sharing services like GitHub, aren’t. --- The Parliament: This week the lead committee [2] held two negotiating rounds - on the ancillary copyright (Art. 11) and on upload filters (Art. 13). The rapporteur seems keen on using the Council decision to speed up the process and is likely to push a 20 June vote, with or without compromises. We feel that a majority against Art. 11 might be possible, while Art. 13 is moving toward a wording that might defuse its most dangerous elements, but would still do plenty of harm. The filtering majority looks razor-thin and relies on the Front National. Not to forget that we still have “safeguarding the public domain” (with Europeana, IFLA, Communia) and “Freedom of Panorama” (with EGDF [3] and the German car industry[4]) provisions to fight for. At this point everything is a toss-up and could go either way. --- The trilogue: An interesting nuance is that the Council voted on a “negotiating mandate” and not a “general approach” to start the trilogue (i.e. the talks between the Council and Parliament chaperoned by the Commission). The former is politically less binding and leaves more open questions, for instance which criteria should be used as a threshold for the new ancillary copyright (originality or length). Germany, Belgium, the Netherland, Slovenia, Finland and Hungary voted against the mandate given. As for the EP, it is an open question whether the rapporteur will try to enter the trilogue straight after the committee vote or will go to plenary first (resulting in a more binding Parliament position). --- Preparing for the trilogue: The process is unlikely to start before September meaning that it will be lead by the Austrian Presidency on the Council side. We are preparing several events with Wikimedia Österreich to flank this in Vienna, firstly a press event with Katherine Maher just before Austria takes over. [5] === Tackling illegal content online:Before the dust had a chance to set on the feedback on the Inception Impact Assessment[6] the European Commission had harvested, it is already surveying citizens on how to best regulate illegal content, which means anything from counterfeit shoes through hate speech to terrorism. A Techdirt article explains best what is at stake if these bad ideas that are evident in the biased study come to life, so go straight there[7] and then visit our meta page [8] to find all the relevant links and leave comments. It is important that we speak out before June 25th deadline; the Wikimedia Foundation, WMBXL and WMCZ are working on it. If you want to also respond, write to us! === ePrivacy Regulation: This important file (cookies and privacy of messengers) is on our radar, but even trying very hard we cannot report much. It has been an impressive 506 days that the Council hasn't managed get their act together and adopt a position. Looks like the Austrian Presidency may well inherit this dossier. === Trade Negotiations: The texts of the trade treaties between the EU and Japan [9] and the EU and Singapore [10] have been finalised. In parallel, the EU is preparing to finish the Mexico and MERCOSUR negotiations and to start the process with Australia and New Zealand. All of these have or will have important implications for the dissemination of free knowledge. The EU-Japan and Singapore treaties, for instance, fix copyright to at least lifelong plus 70, thereby internationally binding these sides to terms that go beyond the Berne Convention. As the EFF have recently announced they will allocate less resources to trade, the digital civil society seems uncoordinated and aimless in this sector. === Alliance on Disinformation: As part of the European Commission’s ongoing efforts to tackle disinformation (a.k.a. “fake news”) [11], an Alliance on Disinformation has been inaugurated this week with the goal to produce a Code of Practice for platforms and advertisers. Imagine a room full of reps of known domains (including us) and the large European advertising associations sprinkled with the odd bureaucrat in between. Expect commitments around defunding disinformation sources, boosting fact checkers and dealing with fake accounts/bots/sock puppets. Public results by year’s end, as the Commission wants to see measures implemented before the European Parliament elections next year and is threatening regulation if nothing happens. === >From Hungary: A proposed new anti-immigration act in Hungary would make it a crime, punishable with up to one year in prison, to create or distribute informational materials with the intent of supporting the asylum request of someone who "arrived from or through a country where they are not persecuted for their race, nationality, social group, religion or political views, or their fears of direct persecution are ungrounded”. Bill in Hungarian: [12] === [1]https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/35373/st09134-en18.pdf [2] http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?reference=2016/… [3] https://drive.google.com/file/d/1B8Eeuo2TymJu_BLJwrVu8D0hHgdnYFdH/view?usp=… [4] https://drive.google.com/file/d/18x3BpqqH3_MJs2NIOFfXOycVIxLahfkM/view?usp=… [5] https://www.ots.at/presseaussendung/OTS_20180529_OTS0108/pk-mit-k-maher-wik… [6] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/EU_policy/Illegal_Content_Feedback_2018 [7] https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20180503/23575539775/eu-commission-asks-p… [8] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/EU_policy/Illegal_Content_Consultation_2018 [9] http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1684&serie=1296&langId=… [10]http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=961 [11] https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/communication-tackling-o… [12]http://www.parlament.hu/irom41/00333/00333.pdf

1 0

Your Input for the European Policy Monitoring Report
by Dimitar Parvanov Dimitrov 30 May '18

30 May '18

Hi all, If anyone has some local/regional/national news to share on this month's EU policy monitoring report, please let me know! Cheers, Dimi

1 0

Fwd: [Wikimedia-l] Recent statement on the block of Wikipedia in Turkey
by Jan Gerlach 24 May '18

24 May '18

Dear all I wanted to forward a message from our General Counsel Eileen Hershenov regarding The Wikimedia Foundation's response to a recent statement by the Turkish Minister of Transport, Maritime, and Communications about the block of Wikipedia in Turkey. You can find our letter to Minister Ahmet Arslan here <https://blog.wikimedia.org/2018/05/22/a-letter-to-minister-ahmet-arslan/>. Best, Jan ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Eileen Hershenov <ehershenov(a)wikimedia.org> Date: Wed, May 23, 2018 at 3:22 PM Subject: [Wikimedia-l] Recent statement on the block of Wikipedia in Turkey To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org> Hello, Thank you to everyone who participated and supported the #WeMissTurkey efforts marking the one-year anniversary of the block in Turkey of all language versions of Wikipedia. The Wikimedia Foundation remains committed to restoring access to Wikipedia in full, upholding our values and stance against censorship, and supporting the local Wikimedia community in Turkey. As part of our ongoing efforts, we have been monitoring discussions and mentions in the media around Wikipedia in Turkey. Last Friday, May 18, the Turkish Minister of Transport, Maritime, and Communications, Ahmet Arslan, made a number of incorrect comments[0] to the press in Turkey about Wikimedia and the block of Wikipedia. Minister Arslan’s position includes oversight of the BTK, the Internet Regulatory Agency that sought the block of Wikipedia. The Foundation has replied to the Minister’s statements with an open letter sent to the Minister and shared with the media who covered the Minister's statements. The statement has also been shared with the local Wikimedia community in Turkey, and we have posted it on the Wikimedia Blog in both English[1] and Turkish[2] to address any further public confusion. We will continue to keep you updated as we work with the local community to monitor the situation, and take appropriate actions to restore access to Wikipedia in Turkey. Thank you, Eileen [0] https://www.ntv.com.tr/teknoloji/bakan-ahmet-arslandan-wikipedia- aciklamasi,UaPHfIgSq0yDPoVfXo5SOw <https://www.ntv.com.tr/teknoloji/bakan-ahmet-arslandan-wikipedia-aciklamasi…> [1] https://blog.wikimedia.org/2018/05/22/a-letter-to- minister-ahmet-arslan/ [2] https://blog.wikimedia.org/tr/2018/05/22/bakan-ahmet-arslan- vikipedi-dunyadaki-herkes-tarafindan-gelistirilmeye-aciktir-ve-turkiyedeki- editorler-icin-de-acik-olmalidir/ <https://blog.wikimedia.org/tr/2018/05/22/bakan-ahmet-arslan-vikipedi-dunyad…> _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, <mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe>

1 0

PSI Directive - Who wants to volunteer?
by Dimitar Parvanov Dimitrov 24 May '18

24 May '18

Dear list, If you have been reading the messages in this channel it won't be news to you that the European Commission has proposed a revision of the Public Sector Information Directive. [1] This legislation basically pushes public bodies to release as much information under open licenses as possible. And while the revision doesn't go as far as we wanted, it is one of the rare cases in which the Commission proposal is OK and we have a shot at improving (rather than having to fix bad proposals). Since we are always into finding new ways to involve community, we decided to test the following: We are looking for volunteers who can see themselves working with Wikimedia's Brussels team in a structured and durable manner to advocate for a more progressive PSI Directive reform. Actions may include: - Analysing the proposal - Drafting amendments - Mapping & contacting stakeholders - Building coalitions - Contacting MEPs and Member States to share our amendments Of course all these are optional, we would get additional help for every task, and the exact work will depend on the volunteer's skills and motivation. We are looking for someone willing to dedicate their energy to this file over a longer period. We'd prefer someone who could invest several hours per week over a year, rather than someone who can be very active, but for brief periods of time. Otherwise nothing is set in stone. If you are interested, please get in touch on or off list. Cheers, Dimi [1] https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/proposal-revision-public-sect…

1 0

our copyright reform resource pool
by Anna Mazgal 08 May '18

08 May '18

Dear All, as promised at our Big Fat BXL Meeting, we created a resource pool on copyright reform <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/EU_policy/Copyright_Reform_Resource_Pool> - in any case it is first version. It will be populated with more links and information, but for those that attended our meetings this initial batch should suffice for the following week or so. I am happy to take any suggestions for other types of content (I’d like to add blogs or organisations to follow, which out of brevity will be a highly subjective list ;)) as well as for other examples of resources that are already listed. I will be back on it next week. Please share! Cheers from sunny Brussels! Anna Anna Mazgal EU Policy Advisor Wikimedia anna(a)wikimedia.be @a2na mobile: +32 487 222 945 51 Rue du Trône BE-1050 Brussels

1 0

Recognizing the one-year anniversary of the Wikipedia block in Turkey
by Gregory Varnum 02 May '18

02 May '18

Hello, Today the Wikimedia Foundation, in cooperation with a number of volunteers who attended the Wikimedia Conference, have posted on Twitter and Facebook a video message speaking to the one-year anniversary of the block of Wikipedia in Turkey. The video re-enforces our message that this block is a lost opportunity both for the people of Turkey and the rest of the world. Any assistance that you all can offer in terms of helping circulate the video amongst your networks would be greatly appreciated! Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhrsnqvmhxg Tweet: https://twitter.com/Wikipedia/status/991663606856077312 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wikipedia/videos/vb.33138223345/10156176050713346/ Blog post: https://blog.wikimedia.org/2018/05/02/we-miss-turkey/ We have also made the video available on Wikimedia Commons if you would like to help us with translating: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_year_without_Turkey.webm This is a part of our ongoing efforts around the block in Turkey, and done with input from members of the local community in Turkey. We GREATLY appreciate the help of everyone involved in the development and all of you who are sharing these messages. If you have any questions, please let us know. -greg -- Gregory Varnum Communications Strategist Wikimedia Foundation <http://www.wikimediafoundation.org/> gvarnum(a)wikimedia.org Pronouns: He/His/Him

1 0

02 May '18

Dear list, If you are in Germany, you might have noticed, an anti-upload-filters banner went online on Wikipedia this morning. [1] The anti-filters copyright reform banner will be delivered until late Friday night to 50% of impressions from the Germany IP range and leads people to a new blogpost on this topic, one that inter alias makes suggestions for sharing the message on social media. [2] The timing for the banner is intentional, as the German position has a lot of weight in the Council of the EU, where we are right between two important meetings. The new German Justice minister Katarina Barley is also a guest at re:publica. [3] Cheers, Dimi [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/CentralNotice/Request/Danke,_aber_Nein_Dank… ? [2]https://blog.wikimedia.de/2018/05/02/danke-aber-das-reicht-n icht-nouploadfilter/ [3]https://18.re-publica.com/de/member/13921

1 0

EU Policy Monitoring Report - April
by Dimitar Parvanov Dimitrov 02 May '18

02 May '18

tl;dr The Council of the EU failed to reach a decision on copyright reform last Friday, meaning bickering between Member States will continue well into May. Meanwhile the Parliament is making timid progress towards a committee vote still scheduled on 21 June. This and past reports: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/EU_policy/Monitor === Copyright Reform --- The Council: COREPER I is a body made up of the deputy heads of missions of EU Member States. [1] A legislative file is usually put forward to this body when the attachés (technical experts) have reached a compromise and majority support seems ensured. The Bulgarian Presidency believed it had such a compromise capable to secure a majority and referred it to COREPER I. [2] There, it was discussed last Friday only to the rejected. Regardless of the positive spin the Bulgarian Presidency is trying put on it [3], this is a pretty embarrassing situation for them. --- So what? Had the proposal been accepted, the negotiations in Council between the Member States would have come to a halt waiting for the Parliament position. The compromise proposal put forward by Bulgaria was not good, to say the least. It essentially does prescribe ex-ante take-downs (so potential deletions of content before it even appears on sites) of user uploaded content that is deemed as infringing by rightsholders. And while there is a carve-out for an “online encyclopedia” (Guess who they mean!), the situation with Wikimedia Commons and open source code sharing platforms remained very unclear. The situation buys us some time to motivate some Member States, most importantly Germany, to update their position. Belgium and the Netherlands are the two countries still vocally standing up for user rights and facing off a large group of states demanding upload filters, which is lead by France. Big guns would be needed to stop them. --- European Parliament: Some bits of the current text in the European Parliament look better than in the Council, but we still cannot be contempt with it. It seems that the the rapporteur Axel Voss is prioritising Article 11 (ancillary copyright for press publishers) to Article 13 (upload filters). We are especially worried the potential for an ex-ante filtering provision, as in the Council. Other than that, the educational exception seems to be a done deal, while safeguarding the public domain, freedom of panorama, text and data mining and out-of-commerce works are still question marks. --- Next steps: This week the EP is kicking off a new round of discussions with a technical meeting (experts and legal advisors working on the Legal Affairs Committee) on Wednesday. We are bracing for one to two negotiation rounds each week and daily tactical manoeuvring on all sides until at least the end of June. === Revision of the Public Sector Information Directive proposed --- First run through: The European Commission proposed a revision of the PSI Directive last week. [4] The main goal is to broaden the current text by opening up transportation data (including private companies that run concession on behalf of public bodies), scientific data and to limit the situations in which public bodies can demand payment for giving access to data, documents and information. Skimming the proposal we see some very positive changes, albeit we would have wished for a more ambitious text. --- Particularly interesting: Article 5 (4) says “Public sector bodies and public undertakings shall make dynamic data available for re-use immediately after collection, via suitable Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).”, which is a great opportunity and of particular interest to data applications. The issue with the Directive is the still many carve-outs and exceptions to the rule. But this is one of the rare times where we are starting with a “rather OK” Commission proposal and have the chance to get something positive in the end without risking to worsen our situation. === French Jurisprudence: Chambord vs. Kronenbourg --- Beer vs. castle: Chambord is a 16 century French castle owned by the public. Kronenbourg is a popular French beer brand. The brewery used an image of the former in an advertising campaign. The authority maintaining the castle claimed that this was unauthorised use of images of the castle and demanded indemnities. The court disagreed. [5] This is a ruling we appreciate, as we are of the opinion that public domain works should be free for re-use by all. What is allowed in France? The legal situation in France remains complicated. In 2016 a French law established a new image right on national cultural heritage sites. [6] Wikimédia France and La Quadrature du Net petitioned the constitutional court claiming that this image right unlawfully restricts the public domain. [7] While this was rejected [8], it seems that the new decision in the Chambord case actually goes in the direction of the claim made by WMFR and LQDN. [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committee_of_Permanent_Representatives [2] https://www.parlament.gv.at/PAKT/EU/XXVI/EU/01/86/EU_18668/imfname_10803001… [3]https://twitter.com/zlateea/status/989838220740517888 [4] https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/proposal-revision-direct… [5] https://www.lanouvellerepublique.fr/loir-et-cher/commune/chambord/chambord-… [6] https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loi_relative_%C3%A0_la_libert%C3%A9_de_la_cr%… [7] https://www.laquadrature.net/fr/Wikimedia-La-Quadrature-domaine-public-Cons… [8] http://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/conseil-constitutionnel/root/bank/dow…

2 2

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

Publicpolicy May 2018