The Fair Copyright for Canada Facebook group has attracted considerable media attention in recent weeks as its continued growth (over 37,000 members) and impact on the policy debate is a noteworthy part of the Canadian copyright reform story. While the public concern over a Canadian DMCA likely contributed to the […]
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Federal Court of Appeal Upholds Ringtone Decision
The Federal Court of Canada has issued its decision (not yet online) in the judicial review of the Copyright Board of Canada's ringtone decision. The court upheld the decision, marking a big win for SOCAN and a loss for the wireless providers (CWTA, Bell Mobility, Telus) who challenged the Board's decision. The court addressed two primary issues – first, whether the transmission of a ringtone to a cellphone is a "communication" under the Copyright Act and second, whether it is a "communication to the public." While the wireless carriers argued that a communication must only include a transmission that is intended to be heard simultaneously or immediately upon transmission, the court disagreed, ruling that "the wireless transmission of a musical ringtone to a cellphone is a communication, whether the owner of the cellphone accesses it immediately in order to hear the music, or at some later time."
The potentially more important line of reasoning involves whether the transmission of the ringtone is a "communication to the public."
Social Media and Data Portability
Last summer, I wrote a column calling for greater interoperability among social networking sites, thereby enabling users to better control their personal information. Developments yesterday marked an important step in that direction. It started with an exceptionally important guest post by Ottawa's own Alec Saunders on Gigaom. Alec set out […]
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The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 230: Aengus Bridgman on the 2025 Federal Election, Social Media Platforms, and Misinformation 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 229: My Digital Access Day Keynote – Assessing the Canadian Digital Policy Record 
Queen’s University Trustees Reject Divestment Efforts Emphasizing the Importance of Institutional Neutrality 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 228: Kumanan Wilson on Why Canadian Health Data Requires Stronger Privacy Protection in the Trump Era
