Andrus Ansip to keynote Charles Clark Memorial Lecture 2018

12 Jan 2018

Delegates at The London Book Fair will this year hear from Andrus Ansip, Vice-President of the European Commission and European Commissioner for the Digital Single Market, on the copyright reform package, which aims to update the EU’s copyright laws for the digital age.

Ansip was appointed Vice-President of the European Commission with responsibility for the Digital Single Market in November 2014. Before moving to Brussels, he was a member of both the Estonian and European Parliaments as Estonia’s longest-serving Prime Minister, working with both centre-right and centre-left parties to lead three different coalition governments. During this time, he was also chairman of Estonia’s liberal Reform Party.

A chemistry graduate, Ansip started his political career as Mayor of Estonia’s second largest city Tartu for six years before entering national politics in September 2004 as Minister of the Economy.

Ansip will deliver a 30-minute lecture followed by a Q&A chaired by William Bowes, General Counsel and Director of Policy at the Publishers Association. The lecture will end with a drinks reception for attendees.

Since its inception in 2008, the Charles Clark Memorial Lecture has grown to be the largest copyright event at The London Book Fair—the home of global copyright trading in the publishing industry. Supported by representative bodies from across the publishing industry—the Publishers Association, Copyright Licensing Agency, the Federation of European Publishers, the Publishers Licensing Society and the International Publishers Association—the lecture focusses on key developments in the world of copyright.

The event will bring together copyright experts, from academics to practitioners, publishing professionals, rights managers, authors, artists, professionals from the wider creative industries and those interested in the future of copyright for publishing and IP.

The lecture will take place during The London Book Fair on Tuesday 10th April 2018 from 4:00 to 5:00 PM in the Conference Centre at Olympia London.

Notes to Editors

Andrus Ansip

Andrus Ansip was appointed Vice-President of the European Commission with responsibility for the Digital Single Market in November 2014. Before moving to Brussels, he was a member of both the Estonian and European Parliaments. This followed almost nine years in Tallinn spent as Estonia’s longest-serving Prime Minister, when Ansip worked with both centre-right and centre-left parties to lead three different coalition governments. During his time as Prime Minister, he also acted as chairman of Estonia’s liberal Reform Party. Ansip first entered national politics in September 2004 when he became Minister of the Economy. Up to this point, his career was spent in Estonia’s second largest city of Tartu where he was born in 1956. Ansip was Mayor of Tartu for six years after working in banking and business. A chemistry graduate from the city’s university, Andrus Ansip is married with three children.

The Charles Clark Memorial Lecture

The Charles Clark Memorial Lecture is an annual event hosted by the Publishers Association (PA), Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA), the Federation of European Publishers (FEP), the Publishers Licensing Society (PLS), and the International Publishers Association (IPA). Since its inception in 2008, it has grown to be the largest lecture at The London Book Fair—the home of global copyright trading in the publishing industry. Focussing on key developments in the world of copyright, the lecture celebrates the achievements of Charles Clark—a British publisher and lawyer who was an authority on the law of copyright.

Past speakers

The lecture is delivered by world-renowned copyright experts each year: Judge Pierre Leval, Senior Circuit Judge of the US Court of Appeals, and Jon Baumgartern, former General Counsel for the US Copyright Office; Professor Michael Fraser, Professor of Law at the University of Technology, Sydney; Professor Lionel Bently, Herchel Smith Professor of Intellectual Property Law at the University of Cambridge; Shira Perlmutter, Chief Policy Officer, US Patent and Trademark Office; Richard Hooper CBE, Author of ‘Copyright Works’ and lead on the Government’s Copyright Hub; Maria Martin-Pratt, Head of Copyright, European Commission; Dr Francis Gurry, Director General, UN World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO); Mary Beth Peters, Registrar of Copyright, USA; and Jukka Liedes, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Copyright, WIPO.

The Publishers Association (PA)

The Publishers Association represents the interests of book, journal and digital publishers in the UK, spanning fiction and non-fiction, academic and educational publishing. Our members include global companies, such as Elsevier, Wiley, Pearson, Penguin Random House, Hachette and the University presses, as well as many independent publishing houses. As a whole, the industry contributes over £5.1 billion to the to the UK economy with export sales accounting for 57%.

The London Book Fair (LBF)

The London Book Fair (LBF) is the global marketplace for rights negotiation and the sale and distribution of content across print, audio, TV, film and digital channels. Taking place every spring in the world’s premier publishing and cultural capital, it is a unique opportunity to explore, understand and capitalise on the innovations shaping the publishing world of the future. LBF brings you direct access to customers, content and emerging markets. LBF 2018, the 47th Fair, will take place from 10 – 12 April 2018, Olympia London. LBF’s London Book and Screen Week will run for the third year, with the book fair as the pivotal three-day event within a seven-day programme. For further information, please visit: www.londonbookfair.co.uk.