MOSCOW, December 23 - RAPSI. The Supreme Commercial Court refused to reconsider lower courts' judgments affirming the decision to entitle the Russian Union of Right-Holders to collect a one-percent commission from the sales of blank CDs and CD recording equipment, according to the court's judgment made available to the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com).

The Supreme Commercial Court has dismissed the application filed by the Russian Society for Related Rights to review the case. The applicant sought to cancel the lower courts' decisions.

The federal service for the enforcement of cultural heritage protection laws (Rosokhrankultura) reported on October 26, 2010 that it empowered the Russian Union of Right- Holders headed by renowned film director Nikita Mikhalkov to collect a one-percent commission from CD and recording equipment producers.

Subject to the commission are the sales of DVD-players, PCs and laptops, mobile phones and accessories, video cameras, compact discs, flash memory cards and cinefilm.

The Union will collect the fee every quarter and distribute the collected funds between authors, artists and audiovisual work producers pursuant to its charter, but not less than once a year. Meanwhile, the Union will be obliged to report to the federal copyright protection watchdog on the equipment and media producers and collected funds.