Archive for November 17th, 2011

File Sharing Lawsuits Progress in Canada as Dozens Face Payment Demands

Earlier this fall, I wrote about the return of file sharing lawsuits to Canada as the copyright owners of the film the Hurt Locker obtained a court order requiring three major ISPs – Bell, Videotron, and Cogeco – to reveal the identities of dozens of subscribers alleged to have downloaded the movie. I noted that the targeted Canadians would likely face the prospect of demands to pay thousands of dollars in order to settle the case (or spend thousands in legal fees fighting the claims in court).

Several months later, sources advise that the demand letters to alleged file sharers have been sent. Assuming the content of the letters mirrors that found in the U.S. (which it likely does), the subscribers face demands to pay $2900 to settle the case, which increases to $3900 if the target does not accept the offer within three weeks. A copy of a recent U.S. letter can be found here. The system is so automated that there is a website devoted to the settlements with “all major credit cards accepted.”

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November 17, 2011 93 comments News

The Daily Digital Lock Dissenter, Day 32: Canadian Association of University Teachers

The Canadian Association of University Teachers represents 65,000 teachers, librarians, researchers and other academic professionals and general staff. The CAUT has been increasingly outspoken on copyright, releasing guidelines for the use of copyrighted material earlier this year. On the issue of Bill C-32 and digital locks, the CAUT states:

The current proposed prohibition on the circumvention of technological measures and the devices that facilitate that purpose render meaningless not only the rights of the education community but of the rights of access enjoyed by Canadians at large. To avoid this regime of unreasonable owner control, the Act must be amended to allow the circumvention of technological protection measures (TPMs) for non-infringing purposes.

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November 17, 2011 1 comment News

The SCC Copyright Pentalogy

The University of Ottawa’s Centre for Law, Technology and Society will be hosting a free public event on the upcoming Supreme Court of Canada hearings on copyright as five cases will be before the court in early December. The panel includes my colleagues Jeremy deBeer and David Fewer, the Copyright […]

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November 17, 2011 Comments are Disabled News

Clement Sets Target Date for Online ATI Disclosures

Treasury Board President Tony Clement has set a deadline of January 1, 2012 for all government departments to post online disclosures of what they have released under the Access to Information Act. The disclosures are part of the government’s open government initiative. I wrote about the delays associated with the […]

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November 17, 2011 6 comments News

Mexico’s Largest University to Post Nearly All Publications and Course Materials Online

The National Autonomous University of Mexico, the largest university in Mexico, has said it will make virtually all of its publications, databases, and course materials freely available on the online over the next few years.

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November 17, 2011 Comments are Disabled News