Introducing the “European Alliance for Research Excellence”

• The European Alliance for Research Excellence (EARE) calls on Europe to create modern copyright rules that enable a fair and effective use of TDM.
• EARE is a coalition of companies and startups who are committed to ensuring Europe’s competitiveness and future prosperity through cutting-edge innovation and Research.
• EARE aims at unifying and amplifying the voice of all TDM users, from researchers to startups, to call on the EU to exempt TDM from European copyright law for all users, for both commercial and non-commercial purposes.

Brussels, 14 February 2017 - A diverse group of innovative companies and startups announced today the creation of the European Alliance for Research Excellence, a new coalition that will focus on educating the public about the exciting potential of text and data mining (“TDM”) and advocating for the EU to establish a policy framework that will allow cutting-edge research to flourish.

The coalition, which is supported by BSA | The Software Alliance (“BSA”) and Allied for Startups, will bring together a wide range of sectors and communities that want the EU to live up to its innovation potential in the digital economy. The coalition therefore calls on the EU to include a full TDM exception in its current copyright reform. This is needed to enable successful research, which is often the result of effective public-private partnerships.

“Many of Europe’s brightest ideas are born in universities, and are often brought to life as startups, delivering benefits to users and society as a whole. Clarifying the exception will create legal certainty for startups, their investors and helps us increase the EU's competitiveness and knowledge leadership”, said Lenard Koschwitz from Allied for Startups. “We see great stories built on TDM every day and allowing these businesses to flourish in Europe rather than elsewhere would send an encouraging sign to our communities”.

EARE hopes that EU institutions will keep TDM high on the copyright policy agenda, and continue engaging with the wider research, technology and innovation community throughout the EU copyright reform process.

“We believe that the EU has the opportunity to fully break down the barriers to research excellence in Europe, and in the process support jobs, growth and knowledge. Doing so requires ensuring that the benefits of TDM are available to all European organizations, businesses, researchers, and entrepreneurs”, said Thomas Boué, BSA Director General, Policy - EMEA.

For questions please contact:

Amelie Coulet - [email protected] – www.eare.eu  - +32 2 645 9808