The U.K. has a strong copyright regime but it’s too...

modern to deal better with challenges of current and future technologies; and robust in ensuring there are appropriate incentives for creators and rights holders to keep investing in the U.K., it said. Following the May 2011 Hargreaves Review of Intellectual Property and Growth and extensive consultation, officials said some laws get in the way of reasonable use of copyrighted works and must be changed. People should be allowed to make wider use of such works as long as rights owners are protected, the document said. The government will propose legislation next year to, among other things: (1) Allow people to copy content they've bought onto any medium or device they own, strictly for personal use. Content can’t be shared with others, but consumers will be able to copy to and from private online cloud services. (2) Make it easier for the education sector to use interactive whiteboards and similar technologies in classrooms to improve distance learning. (3) Create a general permission for quotation in news reporting of copyrighted works for any purposes as long as use of the particular quote is “fair dealing” and its source acknowledged. (4) Allow sound recordings, films and broadcasts to be copied for non-commercial research and private study purposes without permission from the copyright owner. The new laws are intended to become effective in October, the government said. Record labels are digital businesses and want consumers to be free to enjoy their music legally on all their devices, said British Phonographic Industry Chief Executive Geoff Taylor. BPI already licenses a range of online storage services, from Apple, Google, Amazon and others, he said. BPI backs a “sensible updating of copyright for the digital age” and will review the details of the legislative proposals when they emerge to ensure that they support licensing of new services and don’t hurt the country’s creative sector, he said.