Conyers Supports Artists’ Rights to Reclaim Copyrighted Works

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For Immediate Release

Date: Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Contact: Matthew Morgan – 202-226-5543

Conyers Supports Artists’ Rights to Reclaim Copyrighted Works

(Washington) – As recording artists and songwriters begin to petition to reclaim ownership of their recorded and musical works, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) issued the following statement:

“Copyrights are a tool to be used by creators to earn a living from their work,” Conyers said. “I see copyright and intellectual property law as a system that the Framers of the Constitution created in order to preserve fairness and justice for artists and scientists."

“Today, many musicians are beginning to prepare to reclaim control of their works of art which will have been owned for 35 years by record labels and other copyright owners. This is an exciting moment, for it marks an important step in ensuring that all artists earn livable incomes in a fair marketplace. For too long the work of musicians has been used to create enormous profits for record labels, radio stations and others without fairly distributing those profits to the artists. Piracy in the digital age has unfortunately magnified all of these problems, and the ability for artists to equitably control their works has become even more crucial."

“I look forward to the upcoming months as I hope Congress will pass bipartisan legislation – especially a bill to combat online piracy abroad – that will further protect and promote the arts.”

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