First IMR event in Asia

The seventh annual gathering of All that Matters Asia (including Music Matters and Digital Matters) took place in Singapore from May 22 to 27, and first up was a symposium on Wednesday, May 23, 2012 by WIPO-invited panelists to introduce to Asia for the first time the concepts and possibilities of an International Music Registry.

Participants from around the world joined distinguished panelists from Republic of Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong-China, India and throughout Asia. There was expressed general agreement that a predicate for progress surrounding respect for music rights requires a comprehensive enumeration that includes music identification and universal access to the information that makes it easier to license and pay for music.

Three panels addressed music identifiers in Asia, Asian rights registries (with key information on copyright infrastructure and documentation in the region) and recommended ways forward to achieve these important tasks. PRS for Music joined WIPO in sponsoring a lunch for the delegates that filled the room on the conferences first day. After opening remarks from Ms. Danielle Yeow, Deputy Chief Executive, Intellectual Property Office of Singapore, a compelling key note speech of Mr. Won Sun Lim, Director General, Korea Copyright Office, Seoul opened the discussions followed by presentations on the current status of the IMR initiative by Mr. Victor Vázquez, and alternative dispute resolution for content identifiers by Mr. Leandro Toscano, both from WIPO. Also WIPO' s Singapore-based Mr. Candra N. Darusman moderated the final panel, and the group heard important addresses from other speakers.

While no formal conclusions were intended to be adopted a general realization on the need to take action to tackle the challenges of identification of rights in music in the digital environment and that WIPO would be able to act as a coordinating agency, was generally expressed by both speakers and the audience.