Canadian officials were asked whether there was a timeline for completion. Officials responded that they could not confirm that the treaty would be completed by the end of 2009, noting that negotiations were delayed to start the year by a new incoming administration in the United States. The next round […]
Latest Posts
Canada’s ACTA Briefing, Part Three: The Official Summary Document
Canadian officials confirmed that they favour a more transparent approach to ACTA. They indicated that there are ongoing discussions among negotiating partners about how to address transparency concerns. During the meeting, officials released a document that will apparently be made available by all ACTA negotiating partners. The document – which […]
Canada’s ACTA Briefing, Part Two: The Treaty Provisions
The ACTA briefing included a look at the treaty to date that effectively confirmed the substance of many of the leaks online. They plan to post the powerpoint slides used for the presentation, but the key points on substance:
Canada’s ACTA Briefing, Part One: ACTA Is A Response to WIPO Gridlock
The Canadian government provided its first major briefing on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement this morning. There were attendees from all sides of the issue as well as an (unlisted) representative from the U.S. Embassy. The meeting started with a bang as Don Stephenson, an Assistant Deputy Minister at DFAIT, noted […]
CIRA At The Crossroads
My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) picks up on a recent post that reflected on the growing commercial focus of CIRA, the dot-ca authority. I begin by noting that the ten-year anniversary of Government of Canada's letter to CIRA establishing the terms under which the new not-for-profit organization would manage the dot-ca domain name space passed last month without any notice. The Government articulated a vision of the dot-ca domain as a "key public resource" and called on CIRA to act in an open and transparent manner.
More than a million domain name registrations later, many Canadians take the dot-ca for granted. The system works and this bottoms-up creation – it was the (far smaller) Canadian Internet community that worked with the government to develop CIRA – is widely viewed as a success. CIRA has held multiple elections, hosted meetings from coast to coast, eased the prices and complexity of registering domain names, and generally worked to maintain public trust by treating its administration of the dot-ca as a public trust.
While there is much to celebrate, in recent months the organization has shown a troubling yet unmistakable shift toward prioritizing commercial gain over the public interest.
Recent Posts
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 232: What Will Canadian Digital Policy Look Like Under the New Liberal Carney Government? 
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 231: Sara Bannerman on How Canadian Political Parties Maximize Voter Data Collection and Minimize Privacy Safeguards 
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
