Archive for September 24th, 2012

Copyright Lobby Demands Rollback of Recent Canadian Reforms in Secretive Trade Deal

More than ten years of contentious debate over Canadian copyright law appeared to come to a conclusion in late June when Bill C-11 passed its final legislative hurdle and received royal assent. Yet despite characterizing the bill as a “vital building block”, the copyright lobby that pressured the government to impose restrictive rules on digital locks and tougher penalties for copyright infringement is already demanding further reforms that include rolling back many key aspects of the original bill.

Unlike the last round of copyright reform that featured national consultations and open committee hearings, my weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes this time the lobby groups are hoping to use secretive trade negotiations to forge legislative change. Later this week, the International Intellectual Property Alliance, an umbrella organization that represents movie, music, and software associations, will urge the U.S. government to pressure Canada to enact further reforms as part of the Trans Pacific Partnership trade negotiations.

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September 24, 2012 17 comments Columns

Copyright Lobby Demands Rollback of Recent Canadian Reforms in Secretive Trade Deal

Appeared in the Toronto Star on September 23, 2012 as Copyright Lobby Demands Rollback of Recent Canadian Reforms in Secretive Trade Deal More than ten years of contentious debate over Canadian copyright law appeared to come to a conclusion in late June when Bill C-11 passed its final legislative hurdle […]

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September 24, 2012 2 comments Columns Archive

Warman v. Fournier Copyright Case Appealed

An appeal has been filed in the Warman v. Fournier, a notable federal court copyright case that addressed liability for linking and insubstantial copying. I wrote about the earlier decision here.

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September 24, 2012 1 comment News