German Member of the European Parliament Julia Reda (previously) has published an open-letter signed by UK MEP Lucy Anderson, raising alarm at the fact that the W3C is on the brink of finalising a DRM standard for web video, which — thanks to crazy laws protecting DRM — will leave users at risk of unreported security vulnerabilities, and also prevent third parties from adapting browsers for the needs of disabled people, archivists, and the wider public.
Reda served as the European Parliament’s Rapporteur for copyright.
Reda and Anderson address their letter to the European Commission, asking how it will keep Europeans safe and protect their rights once the W3C publishes its DRM standard.
In light of this development, we would ask you:*
What is the Commission’s assessment of the effects of the EME standardization is to the rights of users under the existing copyright rules in the EU and how does the Commission intend to secure these rights?*
Does the Commission currently conduct any investigation or monitoring of this standardization effort with respect to existing EU antitrust legislation? Does the Commission have an assessment yet whether these efforts will pose a barrier for market entry for European companies now or in the future?*
How does the Commission assess the security risks of the EME approach with respect to the overall threat analysis, both for EU institutions as well as for citizens and businesses in the EU?*
In what way is the Commission currently engaging in the standardization effort in order to secure the
interests of EU citizens and business and what does the Commission intend to do?
Open Letter to the European Commission on Encrypted Media Extensions
[Julia Reda]