Round Table Conference on The Development of Sustainable Business Models of Publishing in The Internet

The UNWE is the only university where a speciality Intellectual Property was opened more than 25 years ago, pointed out the Rector of the university Prof. D.Sc.(Econ.) Statty Stattev at the opening of the Round Table Conference on the Development of Sustainable Business Models of Publishing in the Internet. The Forum was held in the eve of the World Intellectual Property Day - 26 April and it was organized by the Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Department.

At the opening of the event attended Assoc. Prof. D.Sc.(Econ.) Statty Stattev, Rector of UNWE, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vladya Borisova, Head of the Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Department, Marchin Oleander, Head of the Google Public Policy and Central and Eastern Europe Governments Relations, Georgy Damyanov, Director of Copyright and Related Rights Directorate at Ministry of Culture, Mehty Melikov, Director Executive of the Union of Publishers in Bulgaria, Prof. Dr. Stanka Tonkova, Chairwoman of the Managing Board of the Bulgarian Association for Regional Research, Dr. Yuliana Tomova, publisher and Counselor to the Prime Minister Political Office, Stanimir Vaglenov, Director of Online Projects Directorate at Media Group Bulgaria Holding, Lyubomira Nikolova, Chief of Sales Division at Focus Information Agency and Radio, Justine Toms, Business Development Manager of ABC Design & Communication Web Agency, Stoyana Gerogieva, founder and Chief Editor of Mediapool, Stamen Garbelov, Director of Unfair Competition and Abuse of Dominant Position for Negotiating Directorate to the Commission for Protection of Competition, Yavor Kolev, Chief of Cross-Border Crime Division at Chief Directorate for Combating Organized Crime to the Ministry of Interior, Chief Assist. Dr. Nikolay Krushkov, Chief of Office at Ministry of Interior, Expert in Corporative and National Security, Alexander Angelov, co-establisher and Manager of the Center for Creative Training, lecturers from the university, representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations, journalists, etc.

At the opening of the Forum. From the right to the left: Prof. Stanka Tonkova, Mehty Melikov, Assoc. Prof. Vladya Borisova, Prof. Statty Stattev, Marchin Oleander, Georgy Damyanov

Prof. Stattev outlined that for the UNWE it had been a privilege and honour but also a turn of being a host of that Round Table Conference because the university is the largest in the country having more 22 000 students and it is the largest higher business school in the South Eastern Europe. By the Council of Ministers Decision from 22 March 2017 the Institute of Creative Industries and Business was opened, pointed out the Rector and commented that the existing Institute of Intellectual Property wouldn`t lose its importance because “both institutes research issues of present interest.

The Rector expressed his thankfulness to the international participants as well as to the representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations covering at national level all the structures having direct relation to the exceptional problematics of the Conference. Over the last years we see how the publishing industry increases its presence among other industries, pointed out Prof. Stattev. According to him it generates new business models for disseminating the printed and electronic editions in a form unknown so far and their economic importance should be estimated.

In the Large Conference Hall

The Rector expressed his hope that the conversations during the Round Table Conference would give their contribution and would have direct reflection in the work of all represented institutions. New knowledge and ideas of how to interpret the statute of publisher are necessary, should there be only copyrights or related rights, should it stay the statute of only a user, specified Prof. Stattev. According to his words the Round Table Conference will give a scientific vision of what will subsequently be legitimized and statutory legislated.

Prof. Stattev paid a special attention to the role of Prof. Dr. Borislav Borisov, Honorary Rector of UNWE and Honorary Professor of the university for the foundation of the Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Department and speciality Intellectual Property more than quarter of a century ago.   

Prof. Stattev (on the right) is greeting the participants in the Round Table Conference

We follow the direction given by Prof. Borislav Borisov in the field of intellectual property and we hope that we cope well with it, pointed out Assoc. Prof. Vladya Borisova.

The publishing industry is one of the fastest developing ones and it is among those which are involved in the forming of GDP, VAT, employment and royalty transferee through licensing transactions, pointed out Assoc. Prof. Borisova. It is on the third place after the advertising and software industry but it is important because it forms the so called national written cultural heritage of our country.

Assoc. Prof. Borisova (on the left) is commenting the issues of publishing industry

Over the last years there was an exclusively intensive dynamics in the publishing industry which was forced by the technology development, pointed out Assoc. Prof. Borisova. The digital market and digital environment have provoked the formation of new subjects, new platforms of use and dissemination, new business models. These issues have provoked us to organize today`s Round Table Conference. Besides clarifying the statute of publisher it would be useful to discuss also whether the copyright scheme meets the requirements of all new technology, featured the problem issues the Head of the Department.

Participants in the Forum

The topics related to the intellectual property and its reform is not paid enough attention, pointed out Marchin Oleander. According to him the initiative should be taken by the EU West European member states but the Eastern European countries should form their own discussion and should have more impact on that issue in the Union.

On behalf of Sophie Scrive, Executive Director of the European Newspaper Publishers` Association (ENPA), Mehty Melikov expressed thankfulness to the UNWE for the organization of the Round Table Conference. The lack of economic independence has set the publishing sector in an exclusively crippled and humbling position. Lots of dependencies of political character have appeared, pointed out Melikov. He assessed the European Commission suggestion about the additional harmonization of rights in the digital environment concerning also the publishers as more than adequate and a step in the protection of the sector and democracy.

The digital environment and internet addressed a giant challenge to copyright, declared Prof. Dr. Violeta Tsakova, lecturer at the Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Department. According to her words the copyright and publishing rights could not be adapted any more.

The complex economic and legal statute of the publishing house, its legal role as a user and management subject as well as the new challenges in the digital environment were examined by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Maria Markova from the Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Department.

Prof. Tsakova and Assoc. Prof. Markova (from the right to the left)

The opportunities for a digital single market and the European Commission objective of unified legislation was commented by Georgy Damyanov.