Michael Geist

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PIPEDA Hearings – Day 01 (Industry Canada)

Given the delay between parliamentary committee hearings and the release of transcripts, several of my research students have graciously agreed to sit in on the hearings and take notes. Yesterday's hearings featured four representatives from Industry Canada who were asked to provide a "PIPEDA 101" review. From the notes, it is clear that many committees members expected more, as several requests for recommended amendments were refused with the Industry Canada representatives deferring to the Minister. While it is not clear that Industry Minister Maxime Bernier expected to appear at these hearings, the Committee Chair indicated that he would be called.

The hearings also provided an update in the Quebec constitutional challenge to PIPEDA. The most recent development is apparently Quebec's filing of an affidavit in July 2006, so the case is still alive. Some committee members expressed surprise at the fact that the case has been outstanding for three years.

The key comments and questions, thanks to Natalie Senst, are posted below:

November 21, 2006 — Comments are Disabled — News

Page Responds to Oda Communications Director

Steven Page of the Barenaked Ladies has responded to Canadian Heritage Minister Bev Oda's Communication Director Chishom Pothier, who cited a meeting with Page as evidence that the Oda is open to meeting with all stakeholder interests. Responds Page: We welcomed the opportunity to work with this current government on […]

November 20, 2006 — 2 comments — News

PIPEDA Review Underway Today

My weekly Law Bytes column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) examines the PIPEDA review which begins today. Representatives from Industry Canada will lead off, followed over the next week by privacy experts and the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. With the hearings expected to extend into mid-December, I argue that it […]

November 20, 2006 — Comments are Disabled — Columns

CRTC Chair Candidates Canvassed

CTV reporter David Akin provides an inside perspective on the current round of interviews for the next chair of the CRTC.

November 17, 2006 — Comments are Disabled — News

Quebec and Copyright

Today's Le Devoir features a noteworthy op-ed on copyright from many of Quebec's leading publishers. The gist of the op-ed is that copyright is crucial to Quebec culture, the educational exception proposed by Canadian Ministers of Education would have a devastating effect on that culture, and the Conservatives seem ready to support the education exception without any public debate.

Given the transparent efforts of the minority Conservatives to court the Quebec vote – this week alone Industry Minister Bernier gave two speeches in Montreal on economic development and the environment, while Heritage Minister Bev Oda opened an OAS conference on culture – it is worth considering how copyright reform will play in Quebec.

The working assumption is generally that culture is major issue in Quebec, that copyright is viewed as an integral part of cultural policy, and that therefore stronger copyright laws are an election winner in the province. Yet if the rumours about the contents of the forthcoming copyright bill are accurate, the Conservatives are about to fundamentally misread where the support for copyright reform lies. The bill is likely to contain two pillars – anti-circumvention legislation and the education exception (there will obviously be other provisions but these are the two issues designed to address the loudest lobby groups, namely CRIA and CMEC). Both issues are losers in Quebec.

November 17, 2006 — 6 comments — News