17/09/2002

The entire Belgian film industry, from Marion Hänsel to André Delvaux, the brothers Dardenne, , Jaco Van Dormael, and producers Dominique Jeanne and Eric Van Beuren Alain Berenboom. He has accused Belgian’s cable Tv companies of having “stolen from filmmakers for the last six years and of having neglected to pay their rights whilst continuing to air their films.” Since 1996, Belgian’s cable suppliers, a service that 92 per cent of Belgian viewers subscribe to, have only paid some 75 per cent of authors’ rights. The fall-short is reported to be Euros 20 million annually, or a total of Euros 100 million for the six-year period.
In response, the cable companies feel they are being unfairly persecuted by M. Berenboom and put the matter before the Brussels court with the counter-accusation that the increase the authors are asking for is too high. Two associations, Sabam (specialised in music rights) and Agicoa (cable broadcast rights) are said to be on the verge of signing an agreement with the cable companies. Nevertheless, all of Belgium’s film and audiovisual industry operators believe that the cable suppliers are guilty of witholding funds and “forgery”.
“The cable companies have been broadcasting our films for the last six years without our permission”. According to FERA (the European Audiovisual Directors’ Federation), “the cable companies’ time-taking tactics are aimed at putting off the moment when they will have to face up to their obligations and this behaviour only encourages central Europe’s cable companies to ignore and fail to integrate into their respective legislation, laws regarding authors rights”.