Post Tagged with: "fair dealing"

Fair Dealing Reform a Key Innovation Policy Priority

The Hill Times ran a special section [PDF] on innovation policy this week that featured several interesting articles including an op-ed on net neutrality from MP Charlie Angus and a column I wrote that links fair dealing reform and innovation.  While the substance behind the Government’s copyright plans remains to be seen, fair dealing reform is a critical part of a copyright reform package linked to innovation.  Indeed, the 2006 Gowers Report on Intellectual Property, the leading United Kingdom study on intellectual property reform, concluded that "'fair uses' of copyright can create economic value without damaging the interests of copyright owners."

Similar sentiments have been raised in Canada.  

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April 8, 2008 5 comments Columns

Fair Dealing Reform a Key Innovation Policy Priority

Appeared in the Hill Times on April 7, 2008 as Fair Dealing Reform a Key Innovation Policy Priority As successive Canadian governments have prioritized economic competitiveness and innovation, copyright reform has slowly crept onto the innovation agenda.  The 2007 Speech from the Throne included a promise to "support Canadian researchers […]

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April 8, 2008 1 comment Columns Archive

CMEC On Fair Dealing

The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada has published its third bulletin on copyright reform, this time explaining why it believes fair dealing is insufficient for its needs and that an Internet exception for education is the better approach.  The bulletin highlights again how CMEC and its allies have failed […]

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March 13, 2008 8 comments News

Corporate Giants Call for Copyright Compromise

Appeared in the Toronto Star on February 18, 2008 as Broad Consensus is Building on Copyright Front Under most circumstances, Telus and Rogers Communications fiercely compete in the marketplace.  The same can be said for Google and Yahoo!, the world’s two leading rival Internet search companies.  Yet last week these […]

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February 18, 2008 2 comments Columns Archive

The CCC on Copyright Reform

The Creators' Copyright Coalition is out this morning with its position on copyright reform.  The CCC includes many large creator associations and copyright collectives.  Though there are some notable exceptions – the Canadian Music Creators Coalition, Appropriation Art, and the Documentary Organization of Canada to name three – there are some important voices here.

While the government's focus on copyright reform has centred on new technologies, the CCC's position paper seems to focus primarily on non-digital issues.  Indeed, the CCC is clearly troubled by the growing concern from users (it talks of "the tendency to privilege users") and of the Supreme Court of Canada's emphasis on balancing copyright (it laments that users are "now officially part of an on-going process of striking a 'necessary balance'").  The position paper sets out to scale back user concerns by dropping the SCC's balance objective to one where the "Copyright Act's main objective is to protect the moral and economic rights of creators."  Moreover, it seeks to limit the fair dealing provision, by specifically excluding any commercial purposes from within its ambit.

In addition to shifting away from a copyright balance, the CCC looks at copyright reform primarily as the opportunity to introduce new rights and fees.  In particular:

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January 21, 2008 15 comments News