The bill known as the Law of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentinians, also referred to as the Omnibus Law, encompassing economic, tax, energy, criminal, and electoral reforms, which posed a threat to culture as well as to societies managing author’s rights, ultimately failed to garner the necessary support in the Argentine Congress and was withdrawn.
Given the lack of support both from the Chamber of Deputies and Governors of various provinces of Argentina, President Javier Milei withdrew a law that, due to its complexity and intentions - with some measures contradicting the National Constitution - proved decisive for its withdrawal.
It is worth noting that after presenting a Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU) comprising 366 articles aimed at deregulating the economy, the Argentine president immediately sent to Congress the Omnibus Law, which among various measures proposed substantial changes in the management of intellectual property rights.
This modification sought to transition the management of intellectual property rights from mandatory to voluntary and individual, directly affecting entities such as the Argentine Directors (DAC), ARGENTORES, the Argentine Society of Authors and Composers of Music (SADAIC), and the Argentine Society of Management of Performers (SAGAI).
In response to this proposal, various organizations linked to the cultural sector, such as the National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts (INCAA) and the National School of Experimentation and Cinematographic Realization (ENERC), expressed their concern, as the law jeopardized their continued operation. In response to this threat, cultural sector workers staged a national strike on January 24, called by the General Confederation of Labor (CGT), rejecting both the DNU and the Omnibus Law.
In this regard, various figures in the Argentine culture expressed their discontent to lawmakers, highlighting the detrimental nature of these laws. Despite some announced modifications to the original project, provisions that severely affected the author’s rights system were identified, harming directors, screenwriters, actors, and musicians nationwide.
According to Argentine collective management institutions, the bill threatened to "dismantle the social benefits" provided by this type of management and that it does not "evaluate the successful model represented by genre-based collective management in Argentina, a legal, lawful, and longstanding monopoly. A system that finds its parallel in the United States. Indeed, even there, in a country considered one of the most liberal in the world, the importance of safeguarding the interests of creators in a unitary and centralized manner is recognized; hence, under the legal figure known as a "Guild" or union, the creative rights of directors are protected."
Support Proves Vital
In this context of uncertainty, management societies received vital international support, with over 25 institutions worldwide expressing their backing. Among the entities that sent letters of support were the Audiovisual Authors Confederation International (AVACI); the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC); the Federation of Audiovisual Societies of Latin America (FESAAL).
Similarly, various European associations such as the Civil Society of Multimedia Authors of France (LA SCAM); the General Society of Authors and Editors of Spain (SGAE); the Union of Audiovisual Authors and Producers of Poland (ZAPA), the Slovenian AIPA, the British Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society Ltd (ALCS); the Swiss Authors' Society (SSA) and from Oceania, the Australian Screen Directors Authorship Collecting Society (ASDACS).
Among the Latin American supporters were the Panamanian Society of Authors and Composers (SPAC); the Colombian Audiovisual Directors Society of Colombia (DASC), the Collective Management Entity of Audiovisual Producers' Rights in Colombia (EGEDA); the Society of Authors and Composers of Colombia (SAYCO) and the Colombian Network of Audiovisual Writers (REDES); the Uruguayan General Association of Authors of Uruguay (AGADU); the Chilean Society of Audiovisual Directors, Screenwriters, and Playwrights (ATN); the Peruvian Association of Authors and Composers (APDAYC); the Venezuelan Society of Authors and Composers of Venezuela (SACVEN); the Bolivian Society of Authors and Composers of Music (SOBODAYCOM) and the Mexican Society of Authors and Composers of Mexico (SACM).
At this time, the next steps of the Argentine government are unknown, facing a scenario in which the Omnibus Law did not receive the necessary support due to its negative repercussions in various areas and sectors, encountering significant resistance both domestically and internationally. In this context, uncertainty still looms over the future of cultural policies and author’s rights management in Argentina.