The CBC reports that the Maritime band In-Flight Safety has faced multiple false YouTube takedowns by major record label Universal Music. The band has no connection to Universal Music Group, yet the label has ordered the takedown of five of the band’s songs.
News
Australian Parliamentary Committee Warns Against ACTA Ratification (For Now)
The most troubling aspect throughout the development of ACTA has been the opaque nature of the process. Whilst DFAT has stated that a certain level of confidentiality is required for trade negotiations, and while there is ground to enable a certain degree of secrecy where complex issues warrant negotiations in confidence, there is no valid rationale for the level of secrecy that DFAT has maintained for what is essentially a copyright treaty.
Brian Brett Speaks Out: An Open Letter on Access Copyright and the Canadian Copyright Emergency
1. After its expenses (which are high – spending approximately $10 million to collect $23.5 million in distributable income), there is $23.5 million in money for copyright distribution. Over $6 million dollars go to foreign copyright organizations. Very little, if anything, is paid back for usage of Canadian copyright material by these organizations.
2. Access Copyright only acquires this $23.5 million by claiming to represent creators and publishers, and that paying them means supporting creators. Access Copyright then pays more than $13 million to publishers. It only pays $4.2 million to actual creators. Their remaining income, is supposed to be distributed by the publishers to their authors, according to how the publishers read their contracts. There is no evidence of this payment occurring since Access Copyright refuses to allow an independent auditing of this income. Effectively, this money has been ‘disappeared.’
3. Access Copyright refuses to distribute, through its “Payback” program, to creators, income from works older than twenty years, yet it continues to collect that income in their name.
The Missing Copyright Docs, Pt 2: Competition Bureau Warned About Digital Lock Competition Concerns
Yesterday I posted on the government’s internal analysis on the constitutional risks associated with digital lock rules found in Bill C-11 including the constitutional warnings issued by the Department of Justice. The same document obtained under the Access to Information Act also notes that the Competition Bureau raised concerns about […]
Transparency: WIPO vs. TPP & ACTA
The World Intellectual Property Organization has just concluded the Beijing Treaty on Audiovisual Performances. KEI notes that WIPO is now providing webcasts and video on demand of its sessions and diplomatic conferences. Contrast that with the TPP and ACTA, where discussions are shrouded in secrecy. In fact, four U.S. senators […]
Recent Posts
Government Reverses on Privacy and the Charter: Department of Justice Analysis Concludes Political Party Privacy Bill Raises No Charter of Rights Effects 
“Big Brother Tactics”: Why Bill C-2’s New Warrantless Disclosure Demand Powers Extend Far Beyond Internet and Telecom Providers 
Government Seeks To Exempt Political Parties From Privacy Laws Even As CRTC Reports They Are Leading Source of Spam Complaints 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 236: Robert Diab on the Return of Lawful Access 
Government Remains Silent as it Eviscerates Political Party Privacy in Canada By Fast Tracking Bill C-4
