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### Viewing cable 09MADRID982, SPAIN: INTERNET PIRACY UPDATE

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
09MADRID982 | 2009-10-06 16:04 | 2010-12-03 21:30 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy Madrid

`

    VZCZCXRO3247
    PP RUEHIK
    DE RUEHMD #0982/01 2791604
    ZNR UUUUU ZZH
    P 061604Z OCT 09
    FM AMEMBASSY MADRID
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1301
    INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
    RUEHLA/AMCONSUL BARCELONA 4140
    RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC

` `

    UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MADRID 000982

    SENSITIVE
    SIPDIS

    STATE FOR EUR/WE, EEB/TPP/IPE, AND EEB/CIP
    STATE PASS USTR FOR D.WEINER AND J.GROVES
    COMMERCE FOR 4212/DON CALVERT

    E.O. 12958: N/A
    TAGS: KIPR ETRD ECPS KCRM SP
    SUBJECT: SPAIN: INTERNET PIRACY UPDATE

    REF: MADRID 417 AND PREVIOUS

    MADRID 00000982 001.3 OF 002

    SUMMARY

    ¶1. (SBU) Secretary of State for Telecommunications and the
    Information Society Francisco Ros told Econoffs at an October
    6 AmCham breakfast that "within a matter of days," the GOS
    will announce a series of measures designed to tackle
    Internet piracy. The President of the Coalition of Creators
    and Content Industries reported separately that the Coalition
    may reach a "de minimis" agreement with the association of
    Internet Service Providers (Redtel) in the next week or two,
    leading to a government initiative. In his formal remarks at
    the breakfast, Ros briefly addressed IPR issues,
    characterizing the assertion by copyright-dependent
    industries that Spain has one of the highest Internet piracy
    rates in the world as an "urban legend." USG officials and
    U.S.-based industry representatives will have an opportunity
    during Ros's October 19-22 visit to Washington to challenge
    this view. End Summary.

    ¶2. (U) On October 6, State Secretary (Under Secretary
    equivalent) Francisco Ros addressed an audience of about 80
    at an AmCham-hosted breakfast, speaking on "The Development
    of the Information Society in Boosting U.S.-Spain relations."
    Following that event, he met with the AmCham's Intellectual
    Property Committee, composed of representatives of the
    software, film, music, and video games industries.

    A DEAL IMMINENT?

    ¶3. (SBU) In a conversation with Econoffs before the event
    began, State Secretary Ros, who is scheduled to visit
    Washington November 19-22, said that the government will
    announce a new initiative related to IPR protection and
    Internet piracy "in a matter of days." Econoffs later spoke
    to Aldo Olcese, President of the Coalition of Creators and
    Content Providers, who confirmed that the government was
    putting considerable pressure on Redtel, the ISP association,
    to agree to what Olcese characterized as a "de minimis"
    anti-piracy agreement. The Coalition is not enthusiastic
    about the proposed agreement but intends to accept it as a
    way to get the government more actively engaged in finding
    and implementing solutions. Olcese estimated that the first
    part of the agreement, establishing a government authority
    that would take action against a number of high-profile
    websites known to make pirated content available, could be
    ready by the end of this week. The second part, on making
    legal content available online, could, if accepted by Redtel,
    be ready by October 16, he said.

    REMARKS

    ¶4. (U) In his formal remarks, State Secretary Ros provided
    statistics on the impressive growth in Internet penetration
    in Spain and as well as the strong performance of the IT
    sector in the face of the economic downturn. A major focus
    of his remarks was promotion of the 3rd International Frum on
    Digital Content (FICOD 2009) to be held in Madrid, November
    17-19. The GOS has invited the U.S. to participate in FICOD
    as the featured country ("invitado de honor") and is seeking
    USG and private-sector participation.

    ¶5. (U) Towards the end of his speech, Ros turned briefly to
    IPR issues, commenting that "there are no objective data
    provided by any entity that shows that Spain has more
    Internet piracy than its neighboring countries." He
    characterized assertions by industry that Spain has one of
    the highest Internet piracy rates in the world as an "urban
    legend." He referred to Eurostat figures that he said show
    that Spanish youth share files at about the same volume as
    their peers in the UK, France, and Germany. Nevertheless, he
    said, Spain takes IPR protection seriously and is among the
    first countries to promote collaborative international
    actions to combat the phenomenon. Ros argued that no country
    can solve the piracy problem on its own and that a global
    approach is needed. Spain hopes to develop such an approach
    during its January-June 2010 Presidency of the European
    Union. Meanwhile, he stressed that "putting into place
    measures that don't work" only serves to create false
    expectations that lead to disappointment and frustration.

    METING WITH AMCHAM IP COMMITTEE

    ¶6. (U) In his subsequent meeting with the AmCham's
    Intellectual Property committee, Ros returned to these

    MADRID 00000982 002.3 OF 002

    themes, averring that Spain's "bad reputation" for piracy
    predates the era of illicit downloads and file-sharing, and
    derives from the street piracy practice known as "top manta,"
    in which infringing goods are sold at informal street
    markets, and hidden under blankets when police appear.
    (Note: "Top manta" is still widespread in Spain, but police
    have been increasingly effective in combating it in recent
    years, though there have been calls to decriminalize the
    practice since it is allegedly practiced by impoverished
    immigrants. End Note.) He insisted that the practices and
    habits of Spanish Internet users are no different than those
    of people in other, similar countries. In this context, he
    insinuated that Spain's placement on the Special 301 Watch
    List in 2008 and 2009 was arbitrary and unfair.

    ¶7. (U) Ros said any attempt to reduce online piracy should
    have three components: repression, education, and the
    exploitation of new models to make content legally available
    online. He added that the Spanish government is seeking
    ways, under existing authority, to pursue and take out of
    commission some 100 websites that are responsible for perhaps
    as much as 80 percent of infringing content. Defending the
    Spanish government's IPR performance, he cited figures
    showing the number of cases of Internet piracy pursued by
    police and prosecutors over the past four years, even while
    recognizing that many judges in Spain are not well equipped
    to understand or dispose correctly of intellectual property
    cases. Ros also mentioned public education campaigns Spain
    has undertaking, while noting that content providers needed
    to offer an alternative to illegal downloading and
    file-sharing, using new forms of distribution to make quality
    products available on the Internet at attractive prices.

    ¶8. (U) Ros told the rights-holders' representatives that
    "very soon," Spain's Council of Ministers will receive for
    its approval a proposal for regulatory reform to address
    digital piracy. While not ruling out new legislation to
    strengthen the government's authority, Ros lamented that
    getting a law through Congress could take years and would
    likely arouse bitter opposition.

    ¶9. (U) AmCham President Jaime Malet and various of those
    present told State Secretary Ros that the important point was
    not whether piracy in Spain was worse than in other
    countries, but rather that it was clearly bad enough to merit
    and require forceful government action. In order for content
    providers to invest more in the Spanish market, there needs
    to be an adequate legal and regulatory framework to support
    quality content and make possible a decent return on
    investment. The film and music industries have seen marked
    declines in sales over the past several years, attributable
    to the growth of Internet piracy. Ros claimed that Spain's
    legal and regulatory framework was on a par with those of
    France, Germany, and the UK.

    COMMENT

    ¶10. (SBU) While not challenging to his face Ros's assertions
    that industry has wrongly stigmatized Spain, a number of
    industry representatives present were clearly incensed with
    his "urban legend" remark and the argument behind it. A
    representative of a local Disney affiliate told Econoff
    afterwards that his company take serious issue with Ros's
    claim that there are no objective data showing Spain's piracy
    problem to be worse than other countries'. Aldo Olcese cited
    the attitude behind Ros's assertions as illustrative of the
    difficulties the Coalition has encountered in trying to get
    the government to act more vigorously against Internet
    piracy. During his visit to Washington, Ros will meet with
    the International Intellectual Proerty Alliance (IIPA) and
    the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), among
    others. These groups will no doubt challenge his denigration
    of their data and his complacent assessment of Spain's
    Internet piracy situation and legal regime. USTR will also
    have the opportunity to help him understand why Spain is on
    the Watch List and what it must do to get off it. The news
    from both Olcese and Ros that an agreement and a government
    initiative are close to fruition is certainly welcome, and
    such an agreement, however modest, would be an important step
    in the right direction.. End Comment.
    CHACON

`