Columns

Canada Needs A National Privacy Breach Reporting Law

My latest Law Bytes column  (Canada Needs A National Privacy Breach Reporting Law  Toronto Star version, freely available hyperlinked version) makes the case for a national Canadian privacy and security breach reporting law. Over the past twelve months, there has been a staggering number of reported privacy and security breaches — with […]

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July 4, 2005 Comments are Disabled Columns

Reflecting on Grokster

The Toronto Star features a special edition of my Law Bytes column (HTML backup version, freely available hyperlinked version; Toronto Star reg. version) reflecting on Monday's Grokster decision. I argue that while the highest court in the U.S. unanimously ruled that two file sharing services, Grokster and Streamcast, can be sued for actively encouraging copyright infringement by their users, the decision is not the clear cut win its supporters suggest.

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June 29, 2005 Comments are Disabled Columns

Bill C-60 A Missed Opportunity

My regular Law Bytes column (freely available hyperlinked version, Toronto Star version, homepage version) examines Bill C-60, Canada's new copyright reform bill. I argue that the bill represents a missed opportunity.

While some of provisions strike an admirable balance, those that are ostensibly designed to facilitate technology-based education and the digital delivery of library materials fall far short of their goal by hobbling any new rights with suffocating restrictions that render the provisions practically useless.

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June 27, 2005 Comments are Disabled Columns

Canadian Copyright Bill A Missed Opportunity

Last week Canada’s long awaited digital copyright reform bill, Bill C-60, was unveiled. The government kept its promises – the recording industry and Canada’s Internet service providers emerged as the big winners with each securing a lengthy list of new rights, power, and protections. 

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June 24, 2005 Comments are Disabled Columns

Reconciling Cancon Requirements in the Age of the Internet

My regular Law Bytes column (homepage version, Toronto Star version) provides some further commentary on last week's CRTC pay radio decision. I argue that the Commission made the best of a bad hand and delivered a policy approach that prioritizes Canadian artists by adapting Canadian content requirements to emerging new technologies.

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June 20, 2005 Comments are Disabled Columns