Search Results for "c-11" : 383

Penske File No More? The Canadian Digital Economy Strategy Inches Forward

The lack of progress on the Canadian digital economy strategy has been a source of frustration for many as the still-unreleased strategy has been largely missing in action. Late last year I dubbed it the government’s Penske File, a reference to the Seinfeld episode involving a non-existent work project. While Canada is still without a comprehensive strategy, elements have begun to emerge in recent weeks.

On the legislative and policy front, Bill C-11 has passed the committee stage and seems likely to race toward royal assent by the summer, last week’s unveiling of the telecom policy (including policies on the forthcoming spectrum auction and foreign ownership) puts to rest a major issue associated with the digital economy strategy, the CRTC recently published its final anti-spam regulations with Industry Canada expected to follow with theirs shortly, the open government initiative has been making considerable progress, and Government House Leader Peter Van Loan told the House of Commons on Thursday that Bill C-12 (the PIPEDA reform bill) may finally move forward next week.

Industry Minister Christian Paradis yesterday took another positive step by convening a federal – provincial ministerial meeting on the digital economy.

March 20, 2012 — 2 comments — News

Copyright Bill Hits the Home Stretch

Appeared in the Toronto Star on March 11, 2012 as Copyright Bill Hits the Home Stretch Days after the Conservative government introduced its copyright reform bill in June 2010, Canadian Heritage Minister James Moore spoke out in support of the legislative package by notoriously labeling critics as “radical extremists” who […]

March 12, 2012 — Comments are Disabled — Columns Archive

CBA Responds to Smear Campaign: Not a Secret Committee, No Plagiarism

The Chair of the Canadian Bar Association’s IP Committee, Torys lawyer Andrew Bernstein, has sent a public letter to the thousands of IP Committee members responding to the media reports of pressure to withdraw a CBA copyright submission. The CBA letter not only debunks claims of secrecy and plagiarism, but […]

March 9, 2012 — 5 comments — News

Dear Parliament: Say No to the Internet Lockdown

Open Media has launched a campaign to encourage Canadians to speak out before Monday’s Bill C-11 meeting. The group makes it easy to speak out against SOPA style reforms, harms to fair dealing, and unduly restrictive digital lock rules. Postmedia’s Sarah Schmidt covers the upcoming amendments here.

March 9, 2012 — 1 comment — News

Setting the Record Straight on the Copyright Lobby’s Latest Smear Campaign

The National Post ran a story yesterday (picked up today by Terence Corcoran) focused on the efforts of a series of IP lawyers who represent the music, movie, and software industries (including copyright collectives) to pressure the Canadian Bar Association to withdraw its submission on Bill C-32 (now C-11). The submission isn’t particularly damaging to their clients’ interests, but it does demonstrate the deep divisions that exist within the legal profession about the government’s copyright reform bill, particularly the misgivings over the digital lock rules. Given the ongoing effort of these industries and their representatives to inaccurately paint Canada as a piracy haven and of the need to follow the U.S. approach on digital locks, it would seem that any crack in that armour is viewed as a threat. With false claims of plagiarism and insinuations of policy laundering, this post sets the record straight.

March 8, 2012 — 14 comments — News