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nutshell, developing countries arguing for the benefits ofcertain exceptions, notably to allowing visually impairedpeople to more easily access books, and publishers lobbyingto limit such exceptions to a strict minimum. (Seehere the position of the International Publishers Association,IPA).The debate on copyright has become a mainstream controversyin Europe, and most strongly so in Germany, in thefirst half of 2012. While the German trade association Börsenvereindeclared in June 2012 that copyright legislationneeds to be adapted to requirements of the digital age,other professional organizations of the industry, notablyin France, strictly oppose such action, in the expectationof amendents watering down current policies and legislation.The complex debate revolves around a number of casesand issues, including the right of producing a copy of acopyrighted work for private usage (Privatkopie) in Germany,to introducing US concepts such as fair use to Europeanlaw, or pursuing consumers infringing copyright bybanning them from using the Internet (according to Hadopilaw in France).Also, the huge discrepancy of VAT applied on printed ordigital books (in the extreme case of the UK being 0% onprint against 20% on digital) is a terrain of harsh controversy.While some articulate the concern that too muchlobbying for lowering VAT on ebooks to print levels mayblow up preferential rates for books altogether, others arguein favor of extending the preferential regime to a reducedVAT rate on all cultural spending.The approach by the European Commission is far from univocalat this point. On the one hand, the Commission hasstarted an investigation, notably with French publishers,on pricing agreements that may infringe competitionterms—echoing the actions by the US Department of Justice(DoJ).On the other hand, in early summer 2012, the EuropeanCommissioner for digital, Neelie Kroes, called on decisionmakers in the publishing industry to help her on Europe’sDigital Agenda to bring down trade barriers for a seamlessexchange of digital content such as books, arguing for adjustingthe VAT hurdles, and talking publishers into embracingdigital strategies much more boldly (Digital Agendafor Europe).The Global eBook Report 114