What do the tariffs contain? Tariffs contain the prices, rules, and procedures that make it possible to use works and performances protected by copyright in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Without tariffs, one would have to obtain dozens, if not hundreds, of licenses or make purchases. Legally, they are standardized license terms with general applicability. The creation and application of the tariffs are the responsibility of collective management organizations. They pool copyrights in order to manage them collectively – instead of individually. This minimizes the effort for everyone involved.
Which tariffs exist? Most tariffs have existed for decades. Their scope of application reflects the history of copyright over the last 30 years. The tariffs with statutory royalties are numbered and clearly, but also legally correctly, designated. They are best distinguished according to the uses. The structure according to statutory provisions is more complex, but can be traced on the basis of the documents. The tariffs can be found on the websites of the collective management organizations. Other tariffs of individual collective management organizations, for example those in the field of musical works of SUISA, are not mentioned here.
- Communication networks. Tariffs 1 and 2 concern the retransmission of radio and TV programs. Their origin goes back to the days of community antennas and analog cable networks. The revenues amount to over CHF 100 million annually. The lead organization is Suissimage, which also retains the largest share of the revenues, because audiovisual works are primarily affected (film, radio, and television productions).
- Background use and storage media. Tariffs 3 and 4 concern public performance and private storage. Retail and service company sales areas, users of background music outside personal use, and importers of mobile phones and tablets are liable to pay royalties. The revenues amount to nearly CHF 50 million annually. The lead organization is SUISA, which also retains the largest share of the revenues, because musical works are primarily affected (sound carriers, music files, music streaming).
- Libraries and video rental stores. Tariff 5 concerns rental. While the Copyright Act allows free lending without royalties, it requires a royalty and an approved tariff for all cases in which consideration is paid for making works available for use. The revenues amount to around 500,000 annually. The lead organization is ProLitteris, which also retains the largest share of the revenues, because books are primarily affected. Film rental has declined significantly.
- Schools and organizations of all kinds. Tariffs 7 (uses in schools) and 8 (uses in organizations) concern copying royalties in teaching or for internal information. Reproductions represent a core business in copyright, which used to be called reprography and is widespread internationally. Both analog and digital copies are covered. The revenues amount to around CHF 10 million annually in each case. The lead organization is ProLitteris, which also retains the largest share of the revenues, because teaching materials and academic works, media and journalism, non-fiction and fiction are primarily affected.
- Swiss libraries for blind people. Tariff 10 concerns uses by organizations that make works accessible to people with visual impairments. The revenues amount to less than CHF 100,000 annually. The lead organization is ProLitteris, which also retains the largest share of the revenues, because these are primarily texts, for example for the production of audiobooks and other audio files.
- Replay TV. Tariff 12 concerns time-shifted radio and television. Telecommunications companies and internet services enable their consumers to make private recordings in a multimedia application. The lead organization is Suissimage, which also retains the largest share of the revenues, because audiovisual works are primarily affected (film, radio, and television productions).
- Works without clear authorship. Tariff 13 concerns orphan works, that is, objects in collections whose rights holders are not known or cannot be located. The revenues are far below CHF 100,000 annually. Typical users are memory institutions, archives, historians, and private individuals who reproduce catalogued objects or make them accessible on the internet. The lead organization is ProLitteris. The shares of the collective management organizations are determined according to the specific uses.
- Video on demand. Tariff 14 concerns the provision of video streams and video downloads. The law takes a particular approach here by defining not a right of use, but only a right to remuneration of authors and performing artists. The lead organization is SSA, Société suisse des auteurs. The shares of the collective management organizations are determined according to the specific uses.
The missing tariff numbers have historical reasons. ProLitteris simplifies tariffs and combines them where possible. Tariff 6 used to concern Liechtenstein; ProLitteris integrated it into Tariff 5 as a lump sum years ago. Tariff 9 concerned digital copies; ProLitteris merged it with Tariff 8 years ago. Tariff 11 allows broadcasting companies to use archive works: in practice, this takes place outside collective management on a contractual basis.
What are Common Tariffs «CT»? Common Tariffs are shared by several collective management organizations. They make a one-stop shop possible. This reduces the effort and bureaucracy for everyone involved. The participants are the four cooperatives SUISA (music), ProLitteris (text and image), Suissimage (film), and SSA (film and stage), as well as the association SWISSPERFORM (performers’ and producers’ rights). The lead organization is in each case the collective management organization whose repertoire of works is most affected. The other collective management organizations receive agreed shares based on data and estimates, depending on the importance of the categories of works in the respective use of protected works and performances.
Are tariffs binding? The tariffs are generally binding, for two reasons. First, the copyrights are held by the collective management organizations, just as image rights can be held by an agency, media content by a publishing house, and film rights by a distributor. In addition, tariffs for which the law has defined freedoms of use are approved by a state arbitration commission, and the collective management organizations have an authorization from their supervisory authority. Before tariff approval, negotiations with industry associations take place regularly. Almost always, those responsible and the copyright experts on both sides succeed in reaching an agreement. The tariffs and their quality are therefore legitimized in several ways. One example is the copying royalties of companies, which the Swiss Trade Association has approved. Conversely, ProLitteris made concessions in the tariff, for example by waiving royalties for companies with up to 14 full-time positions, provided they operate in trades, industry, or commerce.
Why are tariffs useful? Without tariffs, one would have to laboriously seek permission for specific uses. The Common Tariffs combine the categories of works of several or even all collective management organizations, that is, rights in texts and images, in audio with music and/or speech, in films and videos of all kinds. In this way, persons and organizations entitled to use pay only a single invoice per area of application. Without tariffs, use would be prohibited or associated with legal risks. Individual licenses would have to be obtained and paid for separately from publishing houses and authors, musicians, and filmmakers.
How much revenue do the tariffs generate? The revenues and the shares of the five collective management organizations per tariff are transparent on the website of Swisscopyright, the umbrella organization of the Swiss collective management organizations: https://www.swisscopyright.ch/einnahmen-und-verteilung/geldfluesse/kennzahlen.html. The website of the collective management organizations also contains information on political matters in copyright.
How are the royalties distributed? Each collective management organization distributes its shares to its rights holders, who are affiliated with it through management agreements or cooperate within the network of international organizations. ProLitteris manages the statutory royalties (mandatory collective management) in tariffs related to broadcasting and copying and distributes them to authors, visual artists, photographers, publishing houses, and other rights holders in a large annual main distribution. The main distribution consists of the Print distribution, Online distribution, Broadcast distribution. They differ according to the form in which protected works were published and can be used. The distribution rules, which were approved by the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property and are periodically adjusted, are decisive. 10% of the revenue flows into social benefits and cultural promotion. On a smaller scale, ProLitteris ensures legally secure licenses for the use of texts by broadcasting companies (Audio distribution) and for the reproduction of works of art (Art distribution). The foreign rights corresponding to the uses in the Swiss tariffs are collected through reciprocal representation agreements and likewise distributed to Swiss authors, publishing houses, and artists. ProLitteris operates on a non-profit basis.