Archive for April 20th, 2010

The 2009 Copyright Consultation: Setting the Record Straight

Toronto IP lawyer Richard Owens has posted an analysis of last summer's national copyright consultation in which he concludes that "if the aim of the Consultation was to canvass public opinion and discern trends, it failed." Given that the copyright consultation attracted greater participation than virtually any government consultation effort in recent memory, it is hard to see how it can be deemed a failure from a participation and public opinion perspective.  In fact, the government itself clearly recognizes the exceptional participation last summer.  Last week in the House of Commons, Conservative MP Cheryl Gallant noted:

The participation was unprecedented and we welcomed the comments of rights holders, users, intermediaries and everyday Canadians. We know that Canadians are concerned with copyright and its implications in our increasingly digital environment. This was demonstrated by the thousands of Canadians who took the time to participate in one way or another.

Owens arguments centre on the following four issues:

  1. The majority of the responses were form letters and those should be discounted.
  2. The majority of form letters were generated from a single website – CCER – that had the potential to "game" the system.
  3. Many of the submissions were not well-informed.
  4. The demographics of the consultation participants was not sufficiently representative of the Canadian public.

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April 20, 2010 98 comments News

Privacy Commissioners Warn Google on Privacy Practices

Privacy commissioners from around the world have issued a public letter expressing concern with Google's privacy practices.  The letter is specifically focused on the Google Buzz product.

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April 20, 2010 1 comment News

Canada – EU Trade Agreement Leaks

This week negotiations continue on the Canada – EU Trade Agreement. I've previously posted a copy of the CETA Intellectual Property chapter.  Yesterday, nine other chapters leaked, including the telecommunications chapter.

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April 20, 2010 1 comment News

AP on ACTA

The Associated Press has a story on ACTA and the growing concern from the technology community with the agreement.

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April 20, 2010 Comments are Disabled News

World Trademark Review on ACTA and WIPO

The World Trademark Review has an interesting post on the opportunity for WIPO to re-engage in ACTA, following a request for answers from Members of the European Parliament.

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April 20, 2010 Comments are Disabled News