Must Reads

• Government To Review Apple's iBookstore Investment

  The Governor-in-Council has ordered an Investment Canada Act section 15 review of Apple Canada's iBookstore. The review of the cultural investment may help explain the delay in the full launch of Apple online bookstore for the iPad. Sep.07/10Comments (3)

• U.S. Court Sides With Artist in Royalty Dispute, Record Label Vows To Fight

  The WSJ reports on a legal battle between Eminem and Universal Records over royalties due for downloads from iTunes.  The court sided with the artist, which would result in a significantly higher royalty rate.  The music label has vowed to fight the decision. Sep.07/10Comments (2)

• Federal Court Decision Raises Questions About Need for New Making Available Right

  Howard Knopf posts on new decisions from the Federal Court of Appeal which suggest that there is effectively a making available right in the case of musical works in Canadian copyright law and no need for further reform on the issue.
  Sep.07/10Comments (2)

• CIRA and the Public Interest

  Zak Muscovitch, a Toronto domain name lawyer running for the CIRA board, has an interesting article on the dot-ca administrator and the public interest. Sep.07/10Comments (1)

• EU-Backed Study Finds Counterfeits Pro-Consumer, Rejects Company Complaints

  A new report funded by the European Union has concluded that counterfeits have pro-consumer effects while rejecting claims of losses by established companies.  The report concludes that most counterfeit purchases are not substitute for the genuine article and actually help promote the brand.  The report finds that the real cost could be one-fifth of previously calculated figures. Aug.31/10Comments (3)

• CRTC Mandates Wholesale Access for ISPs

  The CRTC yesterday affirmed an earlier decision requiring incumbents to grant wholesale access to faster speeds to independent ISPs.  The government could still overrule the decision within the next 90 days. Aug.31/10Comments (4)

• James Moore on the Private Copying Levy

  "As technology changes, the levy is not an effective mechanism to compensate copyright creators for possible theft of their work. For that reason, our Government has not included an expansion of the private copying regime to iPods and other devices in our recently proposed amendments to copyright. Instead, we have included strong measures to deter and prevent all forms of piracy in order that creators can be rightly compensated for their work through market mechanisms."  Full letter here. Aug.30/10Comments (21)

• Google, Yahoo Concerned About Bill C-32's Enabler Provision

  The Wire Report reports (sub required) that Google and Yahoo are concerned with the "enabler" provision in Bill C-32.  The provision is designed to target sites that facilitate but the search engines fear it could have unintended consequences. Aug.30/10Comments (1)

• CRA Cracks Down on eBay Seller

  The Canada Revenue Agency has fined a B.C. man $68,000 for failing to report sales on eBay. Aug.30/10Comments (0)

• Next ACTA Round To Be Vice-Ministerial Level Meeting

  The Japanese media is reporting that the next round of ACTA negotations in Tokyo will be a Vice-Ministerial level meeting, providing further confirmation that countries expect to conclude the agreement at the late September meeting. Aug.27/10Comments (3)