Earlier this month I appeared before the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, which is conducting a study on the e-commerce market in Canada. A transcript of the hearing is available here and audio of the hearing here.  My prepared opening remarks are posted below. The discussion that followed touched a wide range of issues including copyright reform and competitiveness in the wireless and broadband sectors.

Appearance before the Standing Committee on Industry
October 17, 2011

Good afternoon.  My name is Michael Geist. I am a law professor at the University of Ottawa where I hold the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law. 

I appear before this committee today in a personal capacity representing only my own views.

I want to congratulate the committee for launching this study of e-commerce in Canada.  It is a critically important issue deserving of greater attention.  While the committee has identified some excellent questions, I’d boil the issue down to a single one:

Why have Canadian consumers embraced e-commerce, but Canada has failed to produce many significant global e-commerce success stories?

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