Latest Posts

Access to Medicines Reform Passes House of Commons

Legislation aimed at reforming access to medicines in Africa passed the House of Commons yesterday, despite the objections  of major pharmaceutical companies and Industry Minister Tony Clement.  The bill must still clear the Senate. I wrote about the issue in 2009.

Read more ›

March 10, 2011 3 comments News

U.S. Government Funding For Open Education Materials a “Game Changer”

The technology community is fond of referring to announcements that fundamentally alter a sector or service as a “game changer”. Recent examples include the debut of the Apple iTunes store in 2003, which demonstrated how a digital music service that responds to consumer demands was possible, and Google’s Gmail, which upended web-based email in 2004 by offering 1 gigabyte of storage when competitors like Microsoft’s Hotmail were providing a paltry 2 megabytes.

My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) recently covered the U.S. government announcement of its own game changer, though it attracted far less attention than iTunes or Gmail. Led by the Departments of Labor and Education, it committed US$2 billion toward a new program to create free online teaching and course materials for post-secondary programs of two years or less.

Read more ›

March 9, 2011 24 comments Columns

Canadian Lawyers on C-32: Fix the Digital Lock Rules

The National Post runs a feature on the legal profession’s views on Bill C-32.  Several lawyers are quoted expressing concern with the digital lock rules.  The article concludes “ultimately, most lawyers suggest that the fair dealing definitions and exceptions should be broadened and consumers should have the right to break […]

Read more ›

March 9, 2011 8 comments News

Conservatives and Bloc Negotiating C-32 Deal?

The Wire Report reports that the Conservatives and the Bloc are negotiating a deal on C-32 that would allow for the bill to pass in return for several reforms including the removal of fair dealing for education and the exception for broadcasters.

Read more ›

March 9, 2011 8 comments News

Canadian Funded Study Provides New Insights Into Global Piracy Claims

The Social Science Research Council has released its much-anticipated study on media piracy in emerging economies. The 440 page report, which received funding from Canada’s International Development Research Centre, provides an exceptionally detailed and insightful examination of global piracy claims with specific analysis of several middle income economies including South Africa, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Bolivia, and India. The report also features a detailed discussion of industry-sponsored piracy research, the shortcomings of the enforcement agenda, the lack of evidence that “organized crime” is heavily involved in piracy, and the ongoing failure of “education” programs.

The entire report is a must-read but key findings include:

Read more ›

March 8, 2011 8 comments News