In the context of the topics addressed during the Press Conference organized today, August 4, 2026, by the National Association “COPYRIGHT” and the National Association of Phonogram Producers and Performers (NAPPP), the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI) considers it necessary to provide clarifications on the issues addressed in order not to generate erroneous interpretations in the public space regarding the activity of AGEPI in the field of copyright and related rights, especially with reference to the settlement transaction concluded between AGEPI, the Ministry of Justice and P.A. “MORA”, the designation of the collector, and also other issues related to the collective management of copyright and related rights in the Republic of Moldova.

Thus, with regard to the settlement transaction concluded between the Ministry of Justice, the State Agency on Intellectual Property and the Public Association Association of Copyright Holders of Moldova “MORA”, AGEPI would like to mention the following:

The settlement transaction represents a legal mechanism for resolving a dispute, regulated by the Administrative Code of the Republic of Moldova. Thus, it is important to specify that this transaction was concluded within the legal framework provided for by the legislation of the Republic of Moldova, confirmed by the court and has the effect of terminating the process in the administrative litigation file No 3-1001/2026 having as parties AGEPI, the Ministry of Justice and PA “MORA” as a result of the AGEPI Decision to reject the application of PA “MORA” for approval as a collective management organization.

Information and documents were presented in the dispute that were not at the disposal of AGEPI at the time of issuing the rejection decision. Under these circumstances, the parties agreed to resolve the dispute through a settlement transaction, under the conditions provided by law.

The transaction does not produce the effect of the approval of PA “MORA” and does not confer on it the status of a collective management organization. No decision was adopted by that transaction that would violate the provisions of Law No 230/2022 on Copyright and Related Rights and it does not have a direct impact on the collective management system of copyright and related rights, does not affect the activity of the approved collective management organizations and, respectively, does not distort the collective management system or the collection and distribution of author’s remuneration.

The commitment assumed by AGEPI by virtue of this transaction consists exclusively in resuming the procedure for examining the application for approval submitted by PA “MORA”, under the conditions provided by law.

In turn, PA “MORA” has undertaken to submit the updated set of the application for approval, accompanied by all the necessary documents, records and information applicable to the approval procedure provided for by Law No 230/2022.

Therefore, the transaction represents a legal mechanism for resolving a dispute and does not produce effects on the organization’s approval. The decision on the application for approval will be adopted only after the completion of the examination and verification procedure of the fulfillment of all the conditions provided for by law.

Regarding the designation of the collector of remunerations, AGEPI specifies the following:

Law No 230/2022 clearly establishes that the collection of remuneration due to authors and rightholders for rights under mandatory collective management of rights or through extended collective management shall be carried out by the collective management organization designated as collector or common collection structure, by decision of the Director of AGEPI, published in the Official Gazette.

We note that the Collector Designation Decisions issued in 2023 ceased to have effect on March 5, 2026. Detailed information regarding the AGEPI collector designation decisions that ceased to have effect was published on the AGEPI page and can be accessed here [1]. Thus, as of March 6, 2026, for the rights covered by these decisions, there is no longer a designated collector until a new designation procedure is completed.

This situation is the result of the application of legal provisions and does not represent a blockage of the collective management system.

The designation of a new collector is not a formality, but a procedure provided for by law, which involves verifying the capacity of organizations to collect, administer and distribute remuneration transparently and fairly to authors and other rightholders.

The procedure involves the objective assessment of all interested organizations, based on the criteria established by law. To carry out this assessment, AGEPI has set up a working group that examines all relevant information, so that the final decision is based on objective criteria and in full compliance with the law.

We reiterate that AGEPI treats all collective management organizations equally and does not favor any entity. All AGEPI decisions are adopted exclusively on the basis of legal provisions and the results of the verifications carried out.

At the same time, in order to ensure the protection of the interests of authors and rightholders, AGEPI will finalize the procedure for designating the collector in accordance with the requirements of Law No 230/2022, ensuring the continuity of the remuneration collection system.

As regards the allegations that the procedures for approving collective management organizations or designating the collector would be equivalent to “legalizing piracy”, they are unfounded. These procedures have the sole purpose of regulating the collective management of copyright and do not affect the legal mechanisms for combating piracy, which are regulated by the legislation on the enforcement of intellectual property rights, the legal framework in this regard being harmonised with the legislation of the European Union, in particular Directive 2004/48/EC on the enforcement of intellectual property rights.

AGEPI reaffirms its commitment to applying the law impartially, transparently and in the interest of authors, rightholders and the proper functioning of the collective management system. AGEPI remains open to dialogue with all interested parties, in the spirit of respect for the law and communication based on facts.