Given the Prentice sellout to the United States, it is entirely appropriate that one of the hubs for the fight against the Canadian DMCA will be Copyright for Canadians. Created by Online Rights Canada, the site features information and the tools you need to have your voice heard.
Post Tagged with: "Copyright Microsite – Canadian Copyright"
Debunking the “Outdated” Copyright Act Myth
CopyrightWatch debunks claims that the Copyright Act is old and outdated, likely to be a regular theme from Canadian DMCA supporters today. The posting notes that the legislation has been amended 41 times since 1921 (once every two years and two months). The current Act (not including changes from the […]
Prentice’s Moment
In the past 24 hours, Industry Minister Jim Prentice has delayed introduction of the Canadian DMCA, faced questions about the lack of broad consultation during Question Period in the House of Comments (transcript, video), and the media has picked up the growing interest of thousands of Canadians in fair copyright […]
The Canadian DMCA’s Talking Points
While some attendees were disappointed that Industry Minister Jim Prentice was not more responsive to the copyright questions posed at this weekend's open house, I found the comments very insightful since they provide a roadmap for how Prentice is likely to justify tomorrow's introduction of a Canadian DMCA. I expect that the launch will include some well co-ordinated laudatory comments from groups like CRIA and the CMPDA, yet the Minister is likely to focus on four points to justify his "framework legislation":
1. Canada Needs This Legislation To Meet Its International Treaty Obligations. This is a reference to the World Intellectual Property Organization's Internet Treaties that Canada signed in 1997 but has not yet implemented or ratified. While this is a bit rich coming from a government that has ratified Kyoto but not done much of anything to meet its obligations, there are two points worth making in response. First, signing a treaty is not the same as ratifying (just ask the U.S. which is one of only two countries in the world to have signed the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child but not ratified it) – Canada is not offside on its international obligations on copyright because it has yet to act on the WIPO Treaties. Second, there is great flexibility on how a country chooses to implement those treaties. It is simply not enough to claim that Canada has no choice. We do. We can meet the treaty standards and still protect fair dealing, privacy, consumer, and education interests. It is Prentice's choice not to do so.
The SPP on IP
The Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, which brings together the leaders of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, concluded this afternoon with a series of new agreements and strategies. Given the U.S. involvement, it should come as no surprise to find that an Intellectual Property Action Strategy forms a core part of the summit's final documentation. The document, which focuses on counterfeiting and piracy, includes three broad action items:
- "Detect and Deter Trade in Pirated and Counterfeit Goods," including developing best practices for enforcement, creating an enforcement network, increase collaboration on IP enforcement, and increased attention on border enforcement. Note that "digital piracy" is specifically identified as an issue for future work.
- "Public Awareness and Outreach," which includes greater co-operation between government and industry with increased information sharing. Lobby groups such as the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network will conduct joint seminars with its US and Mexican counterparts on best practices and enforcement. The strategy also envisions policy roundtables and public awareness campaigns. The three countries will combine on a new website that will post articles about IP enforcement around the world, while industry has promised to develop a code of ethics for online transactions as well as a database on the benefits of IP and the dangers of counterfeiting and piracy.
- "Measuring Piracy and Counterfeiting," which includes developing baseline data on these issues, highlighting the effects of IP in each country's economy, and facilitating the collection of counterfeiting and piracy data.
All of these measures were entirely predictable, given that they are precisely what the North American Competitiveness Council recommended earlier this year. With that in mind, it bears noting what else the NACC recommended for completion by 2008, since it telegraphs what is on the horizon.
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