This week's Hill Times reports that intense lobbying may be delaying the introduction of a new copyright bill. The article says that a bill is unlikely to be introduced before the spring budget. It also suggests that a "fair use" provision is under consideration.
News
Digitization Initiatives
The UK's Joint Information Systems Committee commits £12m for national digitization efforts, while the Canadian Council of Archives launches a new round of funding worth slightly more than C$1 million.
von Finckenstein Named CRTC Chair
Mark Goldberg notes that Konrad von Finckenstein, a federal court judge and former head of the Competition Bureau, has been named chair of the CRTC. Notwithstanding the government's bio, many online observers best remember von Finckenstein for his decision [PDF] to block CRIA's attempt to unmask 29 alleged file sharers […]
The Case for Fair Use in Canada
Last week I delivered an invited talk to Canadian Heritage's Copyright Policy Branch on fair use. The talk, which is apparently one of several they have planned on the issue, was in response to the increasing attention being paid to the limitations of fair dealing and the benefits of expanding fair dealing or adopting a U.S. style fair use provision.
There is no podcast version of the talk, though you can view it below.
The talk opens by speculating on why fair use has emerged as a "hot issue." I point to several factors including the emphasis on balance within copyright, the consequences of digitization, and the growing class of creators focused on access. I also note that the emphasis on DRM and anti-circumvention legislation may also play a role since they exacerbate interoperability concerns that some hope can be solved by fair use.
After a brief legal backgrounder and an acknowledgement that fair use is not a panacea, I proceeded to identify seven reasons why Canada should expand the fair dealing provision. My seven are:
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