Orphaned Works (Digital Economy Bill) (4)

'Kiss the boot of shiny, shiny leather' - Velvet Underground

It's not easy to summarise such all-embracing legislation as this in a few words but essentially an 'orphaned' work is a photograph whose copyright cannot easily be established.

The onus used to be on the copier to establish ownership before using the picture. It will in the future be the other way round.

In practical terms, your photos will need a cast-iron copyright identity - far stronger than the exif info - and this is virtually impossible to achieve.

The irony is that this Bill is held by the government to be actually supporting copyright holders by "making it easier for them to enforce their rights". Unfortunately for still photographers, those parts of the Bill which set out to achieve this are in those clauses relating to video and (to a lesser extent) music, and are to protect commercial interests from film piracy and the like.

Other aspects of the Bill which are of concern to photographers relate to street photography. This Bill is being amended all the time as it goes through the Committee stages but the last I read was that it sought to assert the right of the individual NOT to appear in a photograph. To reconcile the problems which this might cause to the millions of happy snappers, this was only to apply to professional photographers. So how do you define a professional? How does a professional take a picture of a sporting event for instance, if just one person in the crowd says 'no'? Can I object if my face appears on a CCTV picture all of which are taken by professionals?

Finally - before my rant finishes - Clause 11 of the Bill gives the Secretary of State the power by ministerial order to make any ISP take technical measures against any subscriber. Take a second to consider that. Your government can cut cut off your internet. For any reason. At any time.

In an age where anti-terrorism legislation is used by local councils to snoop on dog walkers, this Bill should concern everyone.

British MPs recognise the dangers of Orphan Works legislation and scrap Clause 43 before passing the Digital Economy Bill 189 votes to 47.

There still remains much in the Bill to be concerned about (and many good points, it must be accepted) but the iniquitous Clause 43 has not made it.