A couple of weeks ago, I noted the international trend toward user concerns in copyright reform. Add another UK initiative to the list. The UK government has launched the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property. In addition to consulting widely and providing ample time for comment, consider the issues being examined: […]

Fair Dealing by Giulia Forsythe (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) https://flic.kr/p/dRkXwP
Copyright
Two From Yahoo
While much of the tech world's attention is focused on RIM (with the judge reserving his decision this afternoon), there are two Yahoo stories worth noting. First, add Yahoo to the list of companies that are coming out against DRM. Yahoo Music chief Dave Goldberg raised eyebrows Thursday at the […]
Oda on Copyright Reform
The Globe has an article today on new Canadian Heritage Minister Bev Oda's plans for culture and copyright policy. The copyright comments:
"As a veteran educator – Oda spent six years teaching theatre arts and art to children in Mississauga, Ont. – she also has some caveats about the last government's proposed copyright legislation. 'Last session, our party stood up and said we'd like to look at digital access for learning materials. So we're still looking at copyright legislation overall.' Those who had hoped for the new government to automatically push through the Liberals' bill should not hold their breath."
The Sony Rootkit Effect
While the blogosphere is understandably focused on the revelation that the RIAA now says that "creating a back-up copy of a music CD is not a non-infringing use" (after telling the U.S. Supreme Court in the Grokster hearing that "it's perfectly lawful to take a CD that you've purchased, upload it onto your computer, put it onto your iPod."), I think two other stories out today merit attention.
CCTA To Shut Down
The Canadian Cable Telecommunications Association, Canada's leading cable association, announced today that it plans to shut down after 50 years of operations. The CCTA had been hit by several major defections in recent years (Shaw and Videotron being the most prominent) as the key industry players seemingly agreed on less […]