Who are we?
The Union of Phonogram Producers in Romania is the first non-profit professional association established by the music producers in 1996 with the scope to protect and promote the professional, cultural and moral interests of its members based on the mandate awarded for managing their related rights and participating at the anti-piracy activity.
The Union of Phonogram Producers in Romania was approved to operate as a collecting society based on the O.R.D.A – CEO decision nr.5/1997, that was published in Romanian’s Official Gazette, part I no. 121/23.03.1998.
UPFR is a collecting society appointed by the Romanian Copyright Office as the collector for remunerations owed to recording companies for the use of phonograms. As of 2005, UPFR is the sole collector for the levy (compensating remuneration) afferent to the private copying of works reproduced after sound or audiovisual recordings.
UPFR is an afiiliated member of IFPI (International Federation of Phonographic Industry).
As of 2006, UPFR is exclusively accredited for Romania, as a National ISRC Agency, according to the ISO 3901:2001 system. UPFR guarantees and manages the data base of the music catalogues declared by the recording companies, by implementing the ISRC coding system.
.Until now, UPFR has signed bilateral agreements with: MAHASZ (Hungary), PROPHON (Bulgary), GVL (Germany), ZPAV (Polonia) and PPL(UK).
UPFR collects remuneration due to phonogram producers for Radio, TV, Internet, Cable, Private Copy and Public Communication collection sources. UPFR also collects the remuneration owed for the reproduction of phonograms for the members who have given a mandate in this regard.
Starting with 2016, UPFR also collects remuneration for Public Communication due to the authors of cinematographic works and other audiovisual works on behalf of DACIN-SARA by protocol no. 455/12.01.2016.
UPFR collects through the UPFAR-ARGOA body, based on the tripartite protocol signed between UPFR, UPFAR ARGOA and UPVR, on 04.12.2019, remunerations due to the holders they represent for the exploitation of the videograms, as follows:
- Remuneration for cable retransmission of videograms
- Compensatory remuneration private copy of video programs collected by UPFR as a sole collector.
UPFR, as a representative body in the field of phonogram producers in Romania, also collects for the holders of rights represented by the body the Association for the Rights of Phonogram Producers in Romania (A.D.P.F.R), for the following remunerations from:
- Public communication of phonograms (environmental and lucrative)
- Public communication of phonograms via online or mobile services
- Use of phonograms published for commercial purposes or their reproductions by broadcasting by broadcasting and television organizations
- Cable retransmission of phonograms
- Compensatory remuneration private copy of phonograms
We collect as a MLC designated as the sole collector and the compensatory remuneration for the Private Copy provided by law for works that can be reproduced by sound or audiovisual recordings on any type of support.
The modalities by which UPFR collects these remunerations are:
- Through Licensing Consultants for Radio, TV, Internet, Cable and Private Copy, and through Field Inspectors, Debt Recovery Inspectors, Special Accounts Inspector and Regional Coordinators in the case of Public Communication – see the complete list in contact section.
- Direct information on site and on the facebook page.
- The ability to quickly manage each user’s account in our Online Platform a UPFR.
- Notifications sent by email and mail post.
- Through protocols signed with the Romanian Police and a part of the Local Police for informing users.
UPFR ensures the transparency of the information regarding the amounts collected from remuneration data communication in the Annual Report – see Annual Reports.
The main objective of the Union is the collective management of the patrimonial rights resulted from exploiting the phonograms, based on and within the limits of the mandate awarded by the rights holders or based on the agreements concluded with their representatives in the country or abroad, within the terms of the law and of the UPFR statute.
For this purpose, UPFR:
(I) Assures the accreditation in conformity with the provisions of the Copyright and the related rights Law (Law no. 8/ 1996 amended and addended);
(II) Authorizes by issuing non-exclusive licenses or bans the use of phonograms according to the granted mandate;
(III) Enacts distribution rules based on the decisions adopted by the General Assembly or the decisions of the Board of Directors, rules in accordance with the national legal dispositions and with the obligations resulted from the international treaties to which Romania has participated;
(IV) Frames methodological and payment rules on regard to the obligations of phonogram users, in accordance with the legal procedures in force;
(V) Collects and distributes based on fair treatment, the patrimonial rights resulted from private copying, radio broadcasting (radio and TV transmission), public performance, make publicly available, lease and loan, cable retransmission, reproduction for broadcasting purpose, or any other susceptible method that according to the law can be submitted for collection of the producer’s rights as well as the sources appointed through special mandate by the right holders.
(VI) Requests the users to submit information and essential documents for establishing the quantum of the remuneration, as well as documents that represent the basis for distribution on incomes, also carrying out monitoring activities for public performances or broadcasting of phonograms;
(VII) Can operate in the name of other rights holders whose rights are the object of the same exploitations as those of the UPFR members, based on the regulations in force or based and within the express limits of the mandate granted by the rights holders in question or by their lawful representatives.
