The EU Council's Working Party on Intellectual Property (Copyright) is scheduled to meet on 4 September 2026 in Brussels to discuss copyright priorities, online piracy, and a study on a registry for text and data mining (TDM) opt-outs. The meeting, open to Member State delegates, will be chaired by the Irish Presidency and will include presentations from industry stakeholders.
According to the provisional agenda published on 24 July 2026, the afternoon session will open with the Irish Presidency presenting its copyright priorities. This will be followed by an exchange of views on a Presidency discussion paper (document 11842/26) on the fight against online piracy, with presentations from the International Confederation of Music Publishers (ICMP) and Stichting BREIN, a Dutch anti-piracy foundation. The final agenda item features a European Commission presentation of a study on the feasibility of a registry for TDM opt-outs expressed by rightholders.
The meeting marks the first formal copyright policy discussion under the Irish Presidency, which took over the Council's rotating chair on 1 July 2026. The focus on online piracy and TDM opt-outs reflects ongoing EU efforts to balance rightholder protection with digital innovation. The study on a TDM opt-out registry, if pursued, could create a centralised mechanism for rightholders to signal that their works should not be used for training AI or other text and data mining purposes, potentially affecting AI developers, research institutions, and content creators.
No decisions are expected at this working party meeting, which serves as a preparatory forum for Member State experts. The outcomes may feed into future Council conclusions or legislative proposals. Stakeholders impacted include rightholders (publishers, music creators), online platforms, AI companies, and consumer groups, depending on whether the registry becomes mandatory or voluntary and how it interacts with existing copyright exceptions.