The series on digital tax policy issues has touched on various tax measures that target consumers: digital sales tax, Netflix tax, Internet access taxes, and digital device taxes. The series returns with a post examining a business-focused tax proposal, namely lobbying efforts to amend the Income Tax Act to change the rules on advertising deductions in the hope of shifting ad spending to Canadian media organizations.
Articles by: Michael Geist
Making Sense of the Canadian Digital Tax Debate, Part 5: Income Tax Reform to Support the News Media
Taking on the Trolls: Canadian Government To Regulate Patent Demand Letters
The Canadian government’s Bill C-86, its Budget Implementation Act, features several notable provisions designed to curb intellectual property misuse. I posted yesterday on the rejection of “harmonized” statutory damages with the copyright collective system and new limits on the content of notices under the copyright notice-and-notice rules, with the government banning the inclusion of settlement demands or other requests for payment. Internet providers that receive notices that do not comply with the requirements will not be required to forward them to their subscribers. The bill also takes on patent misuse, including rolling out a framework for regulating patent demand letters in an effort to stop patent trolling.
Canadian Government Rejects Access Copyright’s Demand for Statutory Damages
Earlier this year, I wrote about lobbying pressure to “harmonize” statutory damages for copyright collectives. Access Copyright, which supported the measure, argued that the massive escalation in potential damage awards were needed for three reasons: deterrence, promotion of settlement negotiations, and efficient use of court resources. Yet as I argued in this post, none of the arguments rang true.
After months of internal wrangling, the government unveiled its proposed reforms to the Copyright Board yesterday as part of Bill C-86, its Budget Implementation Act. The bill contains many changes requested by copyright stakeholders. With respect to the statutory damages provisions, however, it has rightly left the statutory damages distinction between certain collectives in place, meaning that Access Copyright will not be able to rely on statutory damages for non-payment of tariffs, relying instead on actual damages (if any).
Canadian Government Banning Settlement Demands in Copyright Notice-and-Notice System
The Canadian government has unveiled its long-awaited plan to fix abuses with copyright’s notice-and-notice system as part of Bill C-86, its Budget Implementation Act. Last spring, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains released an IP strategy that promised safeguards against intellectual property abuse, particularly use of copyright notices to send settlement demands to Internet users. The Canadian notice-and-notice system was formalized in 2012 to allow rights holders to forward allegations of online copyright infringement to internet users through their internet service provider. The system was viewed as a win-win approach since it promised to deter infringement through education rather than legal threats. Yet within hours of taking effect, anti-piracy companies began sending notices that included settlement demands backed by threats of litigation.
Making Sense of the Canadian Digital Tax Debate, Part 4: New Taxes or Fees on Digital Devices
The prospect of new fees or taxes on Internet services is not the only digital tax proposal aimed at technology use (previous digital tax policy posts on digital sales tax, Netflix tax, ISP tax). For the past year, the music industry has engaged in a campaign to expand the existing tax on blank CDs to all digital devices, including smart phones. The groups argue that while the government is sorting out the details of its new digital device tax, it should provide a $40 million annual handout to the industry to compensate for consumer copying. It has proposed a four year commitment at a public cost of $160 million.
Recent Posts
When the Drumbeat of Intolerance Becomes Too Loud to Ignore: Reflections on Campus Antisemitism, Academic Freedom and My Global Technology Law Exchange Course 
Solomon’s Choice: Charting the Future of AI Policy in Canada 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 232: What Will Canadian Digital Policy Look Like Under the New Liberal Carney Government? 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 231: Sara Bannerman on How Canadian Political Parties Maximize Voter Data Collection and Minimize Privacy Safeguards 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 230: Aengus Bridgman on the 2025 Federal Election, Social Media Platforms, and Misinformation
