European film on line charter

Important milestone for the film distribution sector reached in Cannes (France) during the Cannes Film Festival. Under the EU Commission support, 18 companies (including European and US telecom service providers and producers) signed what is called the "European Charter for Film Online". Production companies and broadband infrastructure providers decided common rules for online film distribution: no new film releases online before they are released as DVDs; producers agreed to recognize "peer-to-peer technology as positive development for the legitimate online distribution of properly secured content."; cooperation on development of technologies to protect copyrighted material; and more control on ads inducing piracy.

The deal is the first of its type in the world.