After a two-week hiatus, my weekly Law Bytes column is back (Toronto Star version, homepage version) with some reflections on Time Magazine's selection of "You" as the person of the year. Starting from the premise that the choice may ultimately be viewed as the tipping point when the remarkable outbreak of Internet participation that encompasses millions of bloggers, music remixers, amateur video creators, citizen journalists, wikipedians, and Flickr photographers broke into the mainstream, I focus on how governments and policy makers might assess how they fit into the world of a participatory Internet and user-generated content. I argue that it can do so by focusing on the three "C’s" – connectivity, content, and copyright.
Latest Posts
French Court Rules Against Sony Music Service
A French court has ruled against Sony in a dispute over its online music service (coverage here and here(paywall) ). In a case launched by a French consumer group, the court ruled that Sony did not sufficiently disclose to consumers that downloaded songs could only be played in a Sony […]
Italy Requires ISPs to Block Child Porn
Italy has reportedly passed a new law that requires ISPs to block access to child pornography sites within six hours of notification.
DRM-Free Music
Billboard has a good article that surveys the move toward DRM-free music from online commercial services. The article supports the view that it is matter of when, not if.
Public Domain Day 2007
Wallace is back with his annual Public Domain Day posting which lists dozens of authors, politicians, and other notable people whose work entered into the public domain on January 1st. The posting also highlights some of the differences in copyright term between Canada, the U.S., and the U.K.
Recent Posts
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 201: Robert Diab on the Billion Dollar Lawsuits Launched By Ontario School Boards Against Social Media Giants 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 200: Colin Bennett on the EU’s Surprising Adequacy Finding on Canadian Privacy Law 
Debating the Online Harms Act: Insights from Two Recent Panels on Bill C-63 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 199: Boris Bytensky on the Criminal Code Reforms in the Online Harms Act 
AI Spending is Not an AI Strategy: Why the Government’s Artificial Intelligence Plan Avoids the Hard Governance Questions
