The start of the activities of the first international conference for copying rights in the Emirates

Sharjah, February 19/ WAM/ Sheikha Badour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, the honorary president of the Emirates Copy Rights Association “Erra” today, opened the work of the first international conference for copying rights management in the UAE, which the association organizes for two days in the Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Complex in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy The International Federation of Rights Rights Organizations “IFFRO”.

The opening ceremony of the conference was attended by His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al -Marri, Minister of Economy and His Excellency Sheikh Salem bin Khaled Al Qasimi, Minister of Culture and His Excellency Noura Al Kaabi, Minister of State, along with a group of officials and international experts specializing in the field of collective management for copying rights, intellectual property and creative industries, and a constellation of writers, publishers and business owners Creative and academics.

Sheikha Badour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi stressed that the UAE with its ambitious vision and its economy based on creativity and knowledge realizes that the protection of copying rights is not just a legal commitment but rather an imperative necessity for the prosperity of the creative economy and the promotion of innovation, noting that intellectual property rights constitute the basic pillar that enables creators to transform their ideas into Sustainable projects that enrich the cultural and economic scene alike.

She said that in a world in which ideas and knowledge are a form of capital, the protection of creators’ rights is not just a legal commitment but rather a strategic necessity and intellectual property is the basic pillar of the prosperous creative economy that enables people and enhances industries and supports sustainable innovation and through this first international conference on copy rights in a state The UAE renews our commitment to setting frameworks that achieve a balance between access to access and fairness in rights to ensure the continuation of a contribution Authors, publishers and creators enriching societies around the world, so that creativity remains a driving force for cultural and economic progress.

His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al -Marri appreciated the efforts made by Sheikha Badour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi in strengthening the publishing sector and creative industries in the UAE and its leadership role in pushing the wheel of international cooperation to protect and empower the rights of creators.

He said that the UAE hosting the first international conference for copy rights reflects its commitment and effective role in enhancing discussion and dialogue at the local and global levels to provide all the possibilities and ways that support the protection of intellectual property rights, especially copying rights, indicating that the UAE thanks to its rational leadership directives made wide strides in developing an environment Advanced legislative for the intellectual property sector based on best practices in particular Decree of the Federal Law 38 of 2021 regarding the rights of the author and the neighboring rights, which the Ministry of Economy worked in cooperation with its partners to develop in order to create a competitive and strong legislative climate for authors and creative business owners to establish the UAE’s position as a leading global destination for creative industries.

He added that strengthening international cooperation in protecting copying and cooperation with the relevant international institutions is necessary to exchange the latest experiences, practices and trends in this regard, so the UAE has been keen to preact to join international treaties and conclude fruitful partnerships that would enhance the protection of intellectual property rights and support the growth of sectors and activities of the sectors Creative, such as culture, arts, music and literature.

Ibn Touq reviewed a set of numbers achieved by the intellectual property sector in the country by the end of 2024, the most prominent of which is the presence of more than 370 thousand national and international brands registered in the Emirati markets and more than 21,000 intellectual works registered in the country, while approximately 24500 thousand requests were received for registration in the works Intellectual and the total patents registered in the country have reached more than 6100 thousand The patent and 9500 total registered industrial models, indicating that the “Piracy Anti -Poor Laboratory”, which was launched by the Ministry last year to block the websites that violate intellectual property rights and copyright and publishing succeeded in blocking 4076,000 violating sites.

On its first day, the conference schedule included discussion sessions that focused on pivotal issues in the conference, where it held a session entitled “Unauthorized use and its impact on the return of creative works” with the participation of Dr. Abdul Rahman Al -Muaini, Assistant Undersecretary for the Intellectual Property Sector at the Ministry of Economy and Jim Alexander, Director of the Publishing Rights Agency “Ifrro” and Dr. Sharon Wong of the Hong Kong Copyright Licensing Association And Dr. Muhammad Al -Kamali from “Erra”.

The second session, entitled “Collective Administration as a solution”, witnessed the participation of both Michael Haley, the executive director of international rights and relations in “CCC”, Sarah Tran from “IFRRO” and James Bennet Publishing in Argentina.

A third session entitled “Artificial Intelligence and Libraries in the Digital Age” dealt with the impact of technological developments on the future of libraries and the role of artificial intelligence in promoting access to knowledge and protecting copying rights with the participation of Fatima Al -Hosani from the Ministry of Economy and Michael Heili from “CCC”, Nadia Masoud from the University of Sharjah and Sheikha Al -Mutairi From the Emirates Library and Information Association.

The session “The Impact of Technological and Social Changes on Rights” highlighted how creators and institutions are adapting to digital and societal transformations that affect intellectual property rights with the participation of the writer and journalist Mohammed bin Dukun The secret and member of the association’s board of directors, writer Nadia Al -Najjar, and Ahmed Hussein, CEO of the Center Malaysia for copy rights “Marc”.

The activities of the first day included a ceremony honoring Sheikha Badour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, appreciation awards for strategic partners represented by His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al -Marri and Sarah Tran from “IFRRO” as well as speakers at the conference.

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