Swissperform

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SWISSPERFORM

logo
legal form society
founding February 10, 1993
Seat Zurich , Switzerland
management Bernhard Andreas Wegener (Director)
Number of employees 21 (end of 2015)
sales 51.55 million CHF (2015)
Branch Collecting society for ancillary copyrights
Website www.swissperform.ch

Headquarters at Kasernenstrasse 23 in Zurich

Swissperform (proper spelling SWISSPERFORM ), the Swiss Society for Performance Rights in Switzerland and Liechtenstein .

activity

Swissperform is a collecting society under state supervision for ancillary copyrights (also called related property rights or neighboring rights) in Switzerland and in the Principality of Liechtenstein. For its work, it relies on a license from the Institute for Intellectual Property (IGE) or a license from the Liechtenstein government. Swissperform exploits the rights of musicians, actors, music and film production companies and broadcasting companies, insofar as these are not exercised by the authorized persons themselves. The company negotiates tariffs with users and their associations and ensures that the relevant funds are collected and distributed to those entitled. Swissperform works together with the other Swiss collecting societies.

Members & beneficiaries

Performers ( performers ) and producers (of sound and audio-visual carriers) who are resident in Switzerland are entitled to remuneration from Swissperform . Performers and producers domiciled abroad can enjoy remuneration if they meet certain requirements. Broadcasting companies are also entitled to a share of the remuneration as holders of ancillary copyrights (e.g. retransmission income).

As of December 2012, over 11,305 members are members of Swissperform.

Supervisory authority

The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE) oversees the administration of the collecting societies operating in Switzerland, including Swissperform. It reviews and approves Swissperform's annual report.

The IPI holds a meeting with the collecting societies every spring. They are informed about the activities of the IPI and questions about the exploitation of copyrights and related rights are discussed.

Legal starting position

In addition to the works of authors, the Swiss Copyright Act also protects the services of interpreters (in the phono and audiovisual sectors), phonogram and audiovisual producers and broadcasting companies. The rights of these groups of beneficiaries are called neighboring rights, related rights or ancillary rights (LSR). Ancillary copyrights exist internationally in all states that have ratified the International Agreement on the Protection of Performing Artists, Manufacturers of Sound Carriers and Broadcasting Companies (also known as the Rome Agreement) or the WIPO Treaty on Performances and Phonograms (WPPT).

history

On July 1, 1993, the revised Swiss Copyright Act, which for the first time provides rights for performing artists, phonogram and audiovisual producers and broadcasting companies, came into force. The law stipulates that only one company should be responsible for the collectively exercised related property rights (cf. Art. 42 Para. 2 CopA).

The Swiss Interpretengesellschaft SIG (today the Swiss Interpretengenossenschaft), IFPI Switzerland , the Swiss Association for Feature and Documentary Film Production (today the Swiss Film Producer's Association), the Swiss Association for Contract Film and Audiovision (today the Swissfilm Association), IFPI-Video and the Swiss Radio and the television company SRG SSR jointly founded Swissperform as the collecting society for related rights in the form of an association .

The first board of directors included Karl Knobloch (President), André Amsler (Vice President), Ernst Brem, Hans-Joachim Frick, Polo Hofer (represented by Karl Zbinden), Heinz Marti, Marianne Sonder Stauffer, Jack Dimenstein, Ossi Drechsler, Willi Egloff, Wadek Glowacz, Peter Vosseler, Dominique Diserens, Anna Mäder-Garamvölgyi and Jürg Seiberth. Yvonne Burckhardt was entrusted with the management from 1993 to 2009. From 2009 to 2011 this office was held by Sabine Jones. The current director of Swissperform is Bernhard Andreas Wegener.

In 1994 Swissperform achieved its first tariff income. The distribution regulations drawn up by the specialist groups were approved by the supervisory authority, the IPI. In 1997, Swissperform distributed fees to those entitled for the first time. In the course of time, the distribution system for performing artists was changed from a distribution based on the fee for the production of audio or audio-visual carriers and broadcasts to a usage-based distribution. This brought a significant increase in the number of artists to whom remuneration could be paid. At an extraordinary assembly of delegates in 2009, a major revision of the statutes prepared by the board was approved. The association membership was abolished, two additional people were added to the board and the board and specialist groups were more closely intertwined.

organs

  • The delegate assembly is the supreme body of Swissperform, it consists of 50 delegates (20 performers, 20 producers, 10 representatives of the broadcasting companies).
  • The board is elected by the assembly of delegates and takes care of the administration of Swissperform. It consists of a total of 17 members, namely the Presidium (President and Vice-President) and 3 representatives from each specialist group.
  • The board committee consists of the presidium and the five department presidents. The Executive Committee, together with the management, handles the day-to-day business of Swissperform.
  • The specialist groups are responsible for the distribution of Swissperform's income within the individual entitled groups, resp. the distribution regulations, responsible.

National cooperation

Swissperform works closely with the collecting societies SUISA , SUISSIMAGE , SSA and ProLitteris , which represent the rights of the authors .

The cooperation relates in particular to the setting up of common tariffs in the same areas of use, the collection of remuneration d. H. debt collection (negotiating joint tariffs with user organizations), distribution of remuneration, joint PR campaigns, e.g. B. School campaign "respect © opyright!" and the collective internet presence of the collecting societies.

The copyright companies SUISA, SUISSIMAGE, ProLitteris and SSA exercise copyrights. If a person has different functions (e.g. author, producer, interpreter), different companies are responsible and the person must accordingly become a member of different companies.

Swissperform also cooperates with several associations of rights holders. Swissperform has delegated certain distributions to IFPI Switzerland (sound carrier manufacturer) and SIG.

International cooperation

Cooperation Swissperform is a member of the umbrella organizations SCAPR, AEPO-ARTIS and IPDA. The claims of foreign beneficiaries are primarily regulated through reciprocity agreements or unilateral management agreements with foreign collecting societies that represent the beneficiaries. If such contracts are not possible, the rights of the foreign right holders are exercised in the contractual relationship.

Rights of foreign performers Swissperform recognizes two different types of reciprocity agreements with foreign sister companies that exercise interpreter rights: Type A and Type B.

In the case of type A contracts , the remuneration to which the members of the contract partner in the catchment country are entitled are mutually transferred in full to the contract partner. This takes over the forwarding of the remuneration to the authorized practitioners.

In the case of a type B contract , the remuneration due to the members of the contract partner remains in the catchment country. They are used to compensate for the remuneration to which the own members would be entitled in the country of the contract partner. In the past, these non-exchange contracts were concluded when the companies were unable to settle remuneration to foreign beneficiaries due to a lack of usage and authorization data, or if the distribution rules were not compatible with one another.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. SWISSPERFORM - Annual Report 2015. SWISSPERFORM website. Retrieved June 15, 2016.