Librarian Of Congress Names Maria Strong As Acting Register of Copyrights. The Re:Create Coalition issued a statement in support of Maria Strong after Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden named her as Acting Register of Copyrights and Director of Copyright Policy On December 18. “Maria brings to this position a decade of service at the U.S. Copyright Office, and we look forward to serving as a resource on behalf of the full copyright community, which brings with it diverse and informed perspectives on important copyright policy issues that will impact the public,” said Re:Create Executive Director Joshua Lamel. The announcement follows news of the departure of Karyn Temple.

South Africa Copyright Bill Modeled on U.S. Law Facing Entertainment Industry Pushback. South Africa’s Copyright Amendment Bill, which includes a fair use clause based on U.S. law, could jeopardize South Africa’s trade status with the U.S. A blog post by American University Washington College of Law Professor Sean Flynn and the Library Copyright Alliance’s Jonathan Band explains why USTR is reviewing South Africa’s eligibility for extra tariff reductions following a petition by the International Intellectual Property Alliance, which represents large entertainment companies. “Behind the scenes, the trade representative is likely to threaten South Africa’s benefits if the president doesn’t agree to send the copyright bill back to parliament and adopt changes that the US entertainment industry is demanding,” wrote Flynn and Band. “The primary complaint about the bill involves its fair use clause – which is modeled on US law. That and rights to use excerpts in education – which exist in nearly every developing country.”

France Copyright Directive Laws Ignores User Protections, As Expected. As the first country to propose an implementation law following the EU’s controversial Copyright Directive, France is leading with a content filtering proposal that ignores requirements for user protections. Techdirt’s Mike Masnick details the developments and features strong criticism from former MEP Julia Reda who wrote that France’s implementation proposal is important to follow “because it likely marks the worst-case scenario of how Article 17 could unfold if rightsholders get their way.”  Reda also explained, “Smaller countries often tend to copy the national implementations of EU law proposed by the larger countries, so there is a significant danger that France could set the standard for copyright enforcement in the entire EU.”

CCIA Paper Finds Internet Boosts Growth Of Legacy Music Industry. Despite consistent claims to the contrary by members of the music and entertainment industry, a new white paper by the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) shows digital distribution helped grow profits and has provided value to artists, music labels and consumers. Senior Manager for CCIA Europe Victoria de Posson who authored the study said of its findings: “It is often heard that the Internet is killing the music industry. However, the evidence shows that internet services and online distribution create continued growth for legacy music players and more music choice than ever for consumers.”