ATLANTA-As President-Elect Barack Obama prepares to take office, his
transition team is turning to Professional Photographers of America
(PPA) and other members of the creator community for advice. The
transition team asked to meet last Friday with the Copyright Alliance’s
seven-member board of directors-among them David Trust, PPA’s chief
executive officer and a founding member of the Alliance.
“We were pleased with the opportunity to express to the new
administration our thoughts and concerns about copyright and
intellectual property issues,” Trust stated after the meeting. “I doubt
the photographic community has ever had an opportunity like this.”
President-Elect Obama’s team wanted to have a clear understanding of
intellectual property issues on the day it receives the keys to the
White House. During the meeting, Trust pointed out that a major portion
of the economy is under siege and that photographers are an important
part of that economic mix. PPA’s written materials also pointed out that
the vast professional photographic network (over 122,000 nationwide)
encompasses every Congressional district…and the impact intellectual
property and its domestic and international enforcement play in their
livelihoods. After all, each of those 122,000 professional photographers
create an estimated 20,000 works each year.
“I think I was most impressed with the genuine interest they displayed
for our collective message,” added Trust. “This was not just a courtesy
meeting-they listened intently and took pages of notes. It feels like we
are doing real good for photography and all creators.”
Building a solid foundation with the incoming administration is key,
especially with the creation of the Intellectual Property Enforcement
Coordinator position at the White House level. That position was created
with the passage of the Pro IP Act this year, a bill which PPA and the
Copyright Alliance worked hard to pass.
“It takes a lot of work to make sure PPA, and the photographic community
as a whole, are heard on Capitol Hill,” said Trust. “And now we are
getting the chance, along with our friends in the Copyright Alliance, to
voice our issues to the next administration. Our Copyright and
Government Affairs Department is the only one of its kind in the entire
photographic world. We see this kind of advocacy as part of our
responsibility as a non-profit defender of photographers’ rights.”
To learn more about the meeting, please read the statement here:
http://www.ppa.com/articles/181/PPA-Meets-with-PresidentElect-Obamas-Tra
nsition-Team.php
The Copyright Alliance , headquartered in Washington, D.C., is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization dedicated to the value of copyright as an agent for creativity, jobs, and growth. For more information, please visit www.copyrightalliance.org
Professional Photographers of America (PPA), a worldwide, non-profit association, exists to assist its more than 22,000 members in achieving their professional, artistic, and fraternal goals; to promote public awareness of the profession; and to advance the making of images in all of its disciplines as an art, a science and a visual recorder of history. PPA is the only professional photographic association with a full-time Copyright & Government Affairs staff. For more information, visit www.ppa.com.
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Posted by seattleppa 
Posted by seattleppa 
Posted by seattleppa 
