Archive for March, 2008

National Post on Music and Piracy

Mike Doherty of the National Post looks at the music industry and the piracy issue.

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March 6, 2008 Comments are Disabled News

The Battle over C-10

I've been rather quiet on the remarkable public outcry over Bill C-10, the legislation currently before the Senate that would give the Minister of Canadian Heritage the power to veto tax credits for films or television productions deemed objectionable.  This afternoon I received an email urging me to "write your Government and support restricting or banning funding from the taxpayers for 'pornography'."  Given this nonsense, it is important to urge everyone to lend their voice to this issue by contacting their elected representatives and the Senate Banking committee to ask them not to pass the legislation with the film provision.  Much like the outcry against DMCA-style copyright reform, there has been a huge online protest with a Facebook group now over 21,000 members.

I believe there is a place for government support for culture.  While that support is not unconditional, neither is it appropriate for government to reserve for itself a veto power over content it finds objectionable (the loss of tax credits could effectively kill some film productions).  After the Prime Minister's Office apparently pulled Canadian Heritage Minister Josee Verner away from the media, late last night she issued a press release claiming that the provision is designed to stop tax credits from being issued to films that include content that may be subject to prosecution under the Criminal Code.  This raises a couple of issues. 

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March 4, 2008 18 comments News

Canadian Leadership at WIPO Copyright Committee?

Sources this afternoon from Geneva indicate that there is talk of Canada putting itself forward for the chair position of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights.  This position is absolutely critical to international copyright policy matters as the broadcast treaty, development agenda, and work on limitations and […]

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March 4, 2008 3 comments News

Bulte Loses Nomination Bid For Don Valley West

Sarmite Bulte has lost her bid to be the Liberal nominee for the Toronto-area riding of Don Valley West to Rob Oliphant.

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March 3, 2008 Comments are Disabled News

Canada Stuck in the Slow Lane on Traffic Shaping Debate

My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) focuses on the slow response of Canadian officials to the issue of traffic shaping.  Last fall, the Associated Press and the Electronic Frontier Foundation reported that Comcast, the largest cable provider in the United States, was actively interfering with network traffic by engaging in traffic shaping.  The practice – largely undisclosed by the company – resulted in reduced bandwidth for peer-to-peer file sharing applications and delayed the delivery of some Internet content. The revelations sparked an immediate outcry from the public and U.S. officials.  Class action lawyers filed lawsuits, members of Congress introduced legislation mandating greater transparency and neutral treatment of Internet content and applications, state law enforcement officials issued subpoenas demanding that Comcast turn over information on its network management practices, and the Federal Communications Commission, the national telecommunications regulator, launched hearings into the matter.

Last week, the FCC devoted a full day to the issue as companies such as Vuze – an online video provider that uses peer-to-peer technology – along with public interest groups argued that the Commission needed to use its regulatory muscle to ensure greater transparency in the broadband market and to preserve an open, non-discriminatory Internet. While the FCC established ten principles for network operators to ensure network neutrality in 2005, there is mounting pressure in the U.S. for it to do more.  Given that many believe that the Comcast’s practices violated the FCC principles, regulatory and legislative responses to the lack of transparency in ISP network management may be on the way.  

While the U.S. appears to be rapidly moving toward legislative and regulatory action, Canadian regulators appear stuck in the slow lane.

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March 3, 2008 12 comments Columns