Archive for April 28th, 2010

Why Is CRIA Reluctant To Provide Public Specifics About Copyright Reform?

Last week, the Canadian Recording Industry Association appeared before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage with discussion that focused largely on copyright reform (media coverage of the appearance here).  While copyright was the key issue, what was striking was CRIA's reluctance to actually specify what reforms it supports.  That may sound unusual, but a review of recent public statements suggests that it is actually quite typical.  In recent years, CRIA has become very reluctant to provide specific views on reforms, seemingly relying instead on the sort of backdoor, lobbyist-inspired meetings that are the talk of Ottawa due to the Rahim Jaffer situation.

The transcript has not been posted yet, however, a review of the unofficial transcript shows that CRIA President Graham Henderson provided no legal specifics in his opening statement.  During questioning, he was repeatedly asked what his organization wants.  First Liberal MP Pablo Rodriguez asked, eliciting the following response:

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April 28, 2010 63 comments News

Study Finds Fair Use Industry Worth Trillions

The CCIA has released a new study on the economic contributions of the fair use industries.  Using the same metrics as WIPO uses to calculate the contributions of the copyright industries, the study finds that the sectors relying on fair use generate trillions in revenue in the U.S., are growing […]

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April 28, 2010 1 comment News

European Copyright Code Unveiled

A group of exceptional European IP scholars have published a European Copyright Code, with the goal of promoting transparency and consistency across European copyright law.

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April 28, 2010 Comments are Disabled News