The European Composer and Songwriter Alliance (ECSA) highlights the detrimental impact of buyout contracts on audiovisual composers, who are increasingly deprived of fair and proportionate remuneration due to these practices, particularly with the rise of global Video on Demand (VOD) platforms A recent ECSA survey reveals that 53% of members have encountered buyout contracts, with 63% reporting an increase over the past three years and 66% forced to relinquish partial rights such as synchronisation or mechanical rights Buyout contracts, which compensate authors with a lump sum while excluding future royalties regardless of a work’s success, often impose non-EU legal frameworks, undermining European copyright protections The European Commission acknowledges these challenges, as they conflict with the 2019 Copyright Directive and national laws ECSA calls for mandatory implementation of Article 18 (ensuring proportionate remuneration) and Article 19 (requiring transparency on exploitation and revenues) across EU Member States, following France’s precedent in safeguarding composers’ rights Additionally, ECSA urges the European Commission to enable collective bargaining agreements to establish fairer contractual terms and prevent royalty circumvention through jurisdictional loopholes The full paper further examines buyouts’ harmful effects and advocates for policy interventions to protect composers and future generations of creators.

https://composeralliance.org/media/250-ecsas-vision-on-how-europe-can-prevent-buyout-contracts.pdf