MADRID – Spain wants to increase the digital canon. That is the amount consumers pay more for electronic devices and media that can make copies of all kinds of content. Think of videos music and books. The digital canon has been in effect since 2017.
It is levied only on copyrighted works. The rates of the digital canon have remained unchanged since its introduction in 2017. However, the levy has become an important source of revenue for collecting societies. Since the introduction of the canon, they have collected a total of €211.2 million.
However, now rates will be increased in most cases. The Spanish cabinet wants to adapt them to the new reality. That is why it is currently working on a Royal Decree setting new rates for the digital canon, also known as the “fair compensation scheme for home copies”. This increases the price of devices with internal storage.
The reason for applying the price increase is to compensate for the possible use given to the storage of private copies of books, movies, series, discs and all kinds of digital content. People only have the right to copy protected works that they have previously legally purchased for private use.
Rates up more than 200% on some devices
The new digital reimbursement rates could be discussed at the Council of Ministers by the end of the month at the latest. If the plans go through, it means that the rate for mobile phones will increase by 200%. That writes ADSLZone.net, which relies on sources from The Objective.
Less used devices scrapped
One of the major changes from the original 2017 list is that it’s going from 104 products to just 40 items. This is an update to the current times where people use certain types of storage devices much less in these almost six years of the tax’s existence. For example, the payment for the use of minidisc, USB keys, fax and televisions disappear.
Commonly used devices get higher digital canon
On the other hand, the rate is increased for products that are used more and more. For example, with mobile phones, the rate goes from €1.10 to €3.25, with tablets from €3.15 to €3.75, and some devices have also been added that have increased enormously in popularity and use during this period, such as smartwatches with a tax of €2.50. Some other devices will have to deal with an increase of more than €5.00. Amongst these is an external hard disk HDD with a capacity of more than 6.01 TB: €6.45 or a desktop PC and laptop with more than 6.01 TB.
