Pretoria: The Copyright Review Commission (CRC) Report is to be released soon.

Cabinet made the announcement following its regular meeting in Cape Town.

In May, the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) said the Copyright Review Commission, appointed to review concerns raised by the music industry regarding the collection and distribution of royalties to artists, had completed and presented its report to Minister Rob Davies.

Appointed in November 2010, the commission originated from the Anti-Piracy Campaign launched by Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Thandi Tobias-Pokolo in September 2010 after the creative industry, in particular musicians, met with President Jacob Zuma to highlight their plight.

Soon after its establishment, the six-member commission published its Terms of Reference and made a call for the public to comment.

Chaired by retired Judge Ian Farlam, it started operating in February 2011, where public hearings were held in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein, Kimberley, Potchefstroom, Johannesburg and Durban.

“Cabinet approved the establishment of the Inter- Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Intellectual property (IP) led by the Minister of Trade and Industry,” noted Cabinet.

The IMC will oversee issues related to IP particularly the implementation of the CRC recommendations to assess the effectiveness of the structure of collecting societies in South Africa, including those that belong to authors, composers, recording companies, musicians/artists and others.

Additionally, Cabinet also approved an Inter-Departmental Committee to oversee the implementation of the CRC recommendations at the level of Directors-General and Deputy Directors-General.

Meanwhile, it was also noted that the amendments to the Copyright Act will take place in the next financial year.