The leak of Michael Moore's forthcoming documentary Sicko on the Internet has attracted considerable attention. Indeed, when beginning comments on Bill C-59 in the Senate, Conservative Senator Janis G. Johnson opened with: Honourable senators, Bill C-59 will deter unauthorized videotape camcord activities in movie theatres in Canada. The bill amends […]
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Canada Ranked as Hollywood’s Fastest Growing Market
After all the claims about Canada as a movie piracy haven and the threats about delaying the release of films, the MPA has issued a confidential report that casts Canada in a much different light. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the annual MPA report on all-media sales shows Canada as […]
Canada’s Anti-Camcording Bill
As expected, the federal government introduced Bill C-59, its anti-camcording legislation on Friday (coverage from CBC, CTV, Canwest, Toronto Star, Globe). The bill creates two amendments to the Criminal Code:
- The recording of a movie in a movie theatre without the consent of the theatre's manager, punishable by up to two years in jail.
- The recording of a movie in a movie theatre without the consent of the theatre's manager for the purpose of selling, renting, or other commercial distribution of a copy of the recording, punishable by up to five years in jail.
The Globe is reporting that the bill may fast track through the House without any hearings – literally in a matter of minutes – despite a clear need to review the law for potential amendment (for example, I would suggest that there is the need to add the word "knowingly" to the two provisions and suggest adding a reporting mechanism everytime the provision is triggered so that we can get a better handle on the scope of the problem). Everyone would agree that no one credible supports illegal camcording. Indeed, while the economic impact may be subject to debate, there is no doubt that the practice does real harm to the artistic merit of the film and thus harms the creators. That said, this bill troubles me for several reasons.
The Globe on Camcording
Others have noted the Globe and Mail's one-sided coverage of the camcording story, however, there is one paragraph in today's story that requires an additional comment. In its front page story, the Globe reports: Canada – particularly Montreal – is known as one of the world's worst offenders for piracy, […]
U.S. Senators Pressure Prime Minister on Movie Camcording
The dispute over movie camcording in Canada has escalated further with the intervention late last week of two prominent U.S. Senators. Senators Dianne Feinstein and John Cornyn have written to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to urge Canada to enact new anti-camcording legislation. The letter pulls out all the usual suspects […]