The state of copyright law in Canada
This is a brief run down of some recent developments in the area of copyright law. These developments, particularly the first two, are set to change our Canadian copyright system fundamentally. They are:
- New copyright bill. Late last month, the government introduced a new copyright bill, Bill C-11, in an attempt to modernize the legislation and deal with the new issues in relation to digital copying. Personal non-commercial infringement is to be capped at $5,000 per individual. Copyright owners’ rights are set to expand with new making-available rights, distribution rights, moral rights for performers, presumptive ownership for photographers, support for digital locks, and tools to pursue online pirate sites.
- Pentalogy of cases before the Supreme Court of Canada. Five appeals from the Copyright Board are set to be heard by the highest court on December 6 and 7, 2011. The Copyright Board cases deal with 1) whether listening to a music preview is just “research”; 2) whether downloading a video game with background music is a communication to the public; 3) whether downloading a song is a communication to the public; 4) whether k-12 schools can make free copies for the purpose of instruction; and 5) whether film and tv soundtracks are subject to sound recording tariffs. The Court is expected to re-shape the common law defence of “fair dealing” and may provide its own stamp on the pending legislation discussed above.
- John Does in “The Hurt Locker”. Mr. Justice Shore of the Federal Court recently ordered that three Internet Service Providers (Bell, Cogeco and Videotron) must turn over the identities of a handful of account holders suspected of illegally downloading, copying and distributing the Oscar-winning film “The Hurt Locker” using a torrent sharing program. The decision is available here: Voltage Pictures LLC c. Untel, 2011 CF 1024 (English via machine translation). Led by Greg Moore, the well-regarded IP firm of Goudreau Gage Dubuc is acting for Voltage, the copyright owner. According to the Court file, Voltage is to file a timetable for the next steps in the proceeding by November 4, 2011.
The state of copyright law in Canada will be reshaped following these developments noted above. It will be interesting to note the dialogue between Parliament and the Supreme Court as the digital copying marketplace continues to grow and evolve.
