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SA Policy Space

Copyright Amendment Bill — Fair Use and Digital Access Reform

Regulatory BurdenProposedMedium TermRaised 3× in committeeTrade, Industry and Competition

Theme: Intellectual property

First raisedNov 2021Last discussedFeb 2024No committee discussion in 12+ months3 meetings on the record ↓
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Reform at a glance

What changes
Copyright Amendment Bill — Fair Use and Digital Access Reform
Responsible actor (recorded)
Department of Trade, Industry and Competition / CIPC
Recorded status
Proposed — editorial assessment.
Milestone described by this status
Status scope has not yet been independently documented; it may cover only part of this reform.
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Next milestone not yet documented
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Description

The Copyright Amendment Bill (CAB), passed by Parliament in 2022 but returned unsigned after President Ramaphosa declined assent citing AGOA-related IP concerns raised by the US USTR, is South Africa's most contested intellectual property reform in two decades. The bill introduces a flexible fair use doctrine (replacing the closed fair dealing provisions of the Copyright Act 98 of 1978), creates a digital copyright framework for online platforms, and establishes exceptions for education, research, and persons with disabilities in line with the Marrakesh Treaty. The AGOA complication: the USTR identified the CAB's fair use provisions as potentially inconsistent with the TRIPS Agreement three-step test, threatening preferential market access if signed. The PC on Trade BRRRs 2022–2024 document the tension between educational access advocates requiring fair use for digital learning and creative industry stakeholders (SAMRO, publishers) concerned about revenue loss. A revised CAB must satisfy TRIPS Article 13 while preserving meaningful educational fair use and implementing Marrakesh disability access commitments. The DTI and DIRCO are managing the diplomatic and legislative tracks in parallel.

Assessment

Growth Impact3/5

Responsible: Department of Trade, Industry and Competition / CIPC

Feasibility Assessment

Low-medium: Bill twice returned by President; constitutional and WIPO compliance concerns unresolved. Political will exists but legal redrafting is slow. No fiscal cost.

Stakeholder Landscape

Who backs this reform, who needs convincing, and which interests or red lines shape political feasibility.

Backers

7

1 stakeholder

Negotiation weight

0

0 conditional actors

Opposition weight

0

0 opposing actors

Coalition Read

AI-drafted stances · 0 reviewed

1 of 38 actors mapped — not scored

A coalition score needs at least 3 mapped stances, or actors carrying 25% of the map's influence. The stances below are the evidence; the average over this few of them would not be.

Anchor: Competition Commission.

Political Tractability

—Needs reviewed signals

No reviewed signals · 0% of mapped influence has been reviewed.

Backers1 stakeholder
Competition CommissionOperational backerInfluence 7/10

Copyright reform and fair use provisions align with the Commission's digital competition objectives.

Interest: Reducing market concentration and promoting effective competition across freight, telecoms, financial services, food retail, and healthcare. Statutory…

Concern: SOE concessioning that creates private monopolies rather than competitive markets; spectrum concentration in telecoms post-auction; banking sector bar…

Engagement path: Already actively engaging across sectors. Needs reform designs to address market structure, not just ownership change — concessioning must include com…

OECD

Referenced in OECD Economic Surveys: South Africa

OECD SA Survey (2022, 2025). Digital transformation and broadband connectivity improvement recommended in 2022 and 2025.

Access to knowledge is not a luxury — the Copyright Amendment Bill is central to building a knowledge economy that includes rather than excludes. — DTIC Portfolio Committee, BRRR 2024

Implementation Roadmap

The Presidency and DTIC commission a revised legal opinion addressing USTR TRIPS-compatibility concerns, then reintroduce an amended Copyright Amendment Bill with a narrowed fair use clause and explicit Marrakesh Treaty exceptions. DCDT leads bilateral IP negotiations with the USTR, decoupling CAB concerns from AGOA renewal within a Q2 2025–Q4 2026 dialogue timeline. Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Trade holds public hearings before second reading to build a durable stakeholder record. Success is presidential assent to an amended CAB by end-2027 and AGOA benefit retention through the post-2025 extension period.

Evidence & Research

No linked research evidence yet. Coverage is incomplete.

Policy documents

No linked official-document evidence yet. Coverage is incomplete.

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Status History

tracked since Mar 2026
  1. Recorded as Proposed when status tracking began — held since at least Mar 2026.
    Mar 2026

Data as of 2026-10-10 · latest PMG meeting 2026-10-02