EU moves closer to upgrading copyright law for digital age

The European Union has moved a step closer to updating its two decade-old copyright laws to cover online publishing and platforms after lawmakers agreed to a starting point at talks this week.

The proposals aim to provide more protection for content creators, and put greater responsibility on sharing platforms to respect copyright and ensure fairer pay for the creators.

Talks had previously been delayed by disagreements over whether the same rules should apply to small companies as well as major players such as Google, and the draft agreement has yet to gain the backing of several EU member states including Poland, Italy and Sweden. But the EU's digital chief Andrus Ansip tweeted that he hoped a deal could be reached soon.