Methodology for Assessing the Operation of Copyright and Related Rights Systems

The project for establishing a methodology for a systematic assessment of national copyright and related rights systems was conducted at Cupore between 2009 and 2016. The objective of the project was to establish a set of guidelines for the assessment of national copyright systems’ operation in order to support the development of copyright and related rights policies and strategies.

The project resulted in a handbook presenting a comprehensive set of guidelines to assess the operation of national copyright and related rights systems. The handbook describes a structured methodology framework providing instructions for building a detailed presentation of a national copyright system and for assessing its operation from different points of view.

The purpose of the methodology is to support national governments when designing new measures for improving the operation of the copyright system. The assessment of a national copyright system’s operation will serve the formulation of copyright and related rights policies and strategies, increase transparency and provide an information base for public discussion on copyright policy.

The methodology framework consists of relevant key indicators that are useful in recognizing trends and good practices while acknowledging the different contexts in which the national copyright systems operate. The research methods included in the methodology framework are descriptive, quantitative or qualitative in kind. The methodology framework consists of evaluation methods for analyzing

• the context in which the system operates,
• the functioning and performance of the different elements of the copyright system, and
• the operational balance of the copyright system as a whole.

The methodology was also designed to be modular and can be used in parts, for example to answer specific questions or with a focus on certain types of works.

A toolkit of model questionnaires for the assessment of national copyright and related rights systems constitutes supplementary material to the handbook presenting the methodology framework. It provides guidelines for researchers collecting data by the means of interviews, focus group studies or surveys. The questionnaires can be used to gather the personal opinions and experiences of the study subjects, as well as to collect expert views on selected topics.

The methodology was tested in Finland during a pilot phase carried out in 2013-2015. This resulted in 37 published reports. The results of all pilot studies are assembled and analyzed in the publication Evidence for the Future – A Review of the Finnish Copyright System. The framework is also the basis of a project portfolio to produce a broad and continuously updated information base on the operation of the Finnish copyright system.

 As a follow-up to the project, Cupore produced a method for assessing governance in the context of copyright systems. Its purpose is to define good governance in the context of the copyright system, select and describe generally recognized good governance principles particularly applicable to the copyright system, and finally present a list of questions for assessing governance in public institutions and collective management organizations.

The methodology was designed to be applicable in any national copyright system; its implementation in different legal, cultural and economic environments would be useful to document different possible solutions to copyright-related problems that are common around the world, such as improving the efficiency of the markets for rights or limiting copyright infringement. This is why the methodology is available to use by anyone, and Cupore maintains a helpdesk service to support the implementation of the methodology in different contexts and adapt it to the needs of its users (see “Other materials” below).

The following video explains how the methodology can be used by policy-makers. The animation is also available in French, and another video introduces the methodology for anyone interested in copyright (in English and in Finnish).