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VK.com social network to sign anti-piracy memo

This will be the first step towards the network’s exclusion from the Special 301 Report of the US Trade Representative

© ITAR-TASS/Dmitry Rogulin

MOSCOW, March 07. /ITAR-TASS/. VK.com social network, previously Vkontakte, can sign the anti-piracy memo of the Russian telecom watchdog Roskomnadzor at St. Petersburg Economic Forum in May, a source familiar with the company’s plans told Itar-Tass.

VK.com Executive Director Dmitry Sergeyev confirmed to Itar-Tass the network can sign the memo and said consultations were underway with Roskomnadzor and copyright owners.

The memo in question regulates pre-trial settlement of disputes between web sites and copyright owners and proposes systems to identify content. Last December the document was signed by Russian Anti-Piracy Organization (RAPO) representing interests of foreign copyright owners, Channel One Russia, VGTRK state broadcasting company, Mosfilm film studio, National Media Group, Mail.ru, Ivi.ru, Zoomby.ru, Rutube.ru and others. Yandex, Google and VK did not sign the memo.

The main condition for VK.com in signing the memo is using a content identification system, which will help track and promptly eliminate copyright materials, said the source.

“This will be the first step towards the network’s exclusion from the Special 301 Report of the US Trade Representative which limits the company’s opportunities to seek financing abroad and to sign agreements with foreign copyright owners,” said the source.

Yet this will not happen until April-May 2015, head of RAPO set up with participation of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) Konstantin Zemchenkov told Itar-Tass, since Special 301 Report comes out annually in April-May, but is always compiled according to last-year data.

“During this year, the industry will be observing what is happening to the sites, including VK.com. If pirate content disappears from the social network, we’ll report to the MPAA, which in turn will report to the IIPA [International Intellectual Property Alliance], which will inform the US authorities,” he said.

Special 301 Report lists enterprises infringing copyright of the US companies. VK.com has been on the list since 2011.

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