Category: News

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German court rules against YouTube

Associated Press | Sept 3, 2010

A German court ruled Friday that Google Inc.’s subsidiary YouTube LLC must pay compensation after users uploaded several videos of performances by singer Sarah Brightman in violation of copyright laws.

The Hamburg state court said the standardized question to users about whether they have the necessary rights to publish material is not enough to relieve YouTube of the legal responsibility for the content, especially because the platform can be used anonymously.

For more: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100903/business/eu_germany_youtube

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Pirates Not Liable for Violating Publicity Rights

Patti Millet | Huffington Post | August 25, 2010

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal recently removed a weapon from the arsenal available to artists fighting video pirates.

In Jules Jordan v. 144942 Canada et al., the court reversed a multi-million dollar jury verdict in favor of adult film star Jules Jordan on claims that a distributor selling bootleg copies of Jules Jordan videos violated his right of publicity under California law.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/patti-millett/pirates-not-liable-for-vi_b_692944.html

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New copyright biil C-32 for Canada

The first reading of Bill C-32: An Act to amend the Copyright Act was introduced on June 2, 2010.

The fulltext of the bill is available at: http://www2.parl.gc.ca/content/hoc/Bills/403/Government/C-32/C-32_1/C-32_1.PDF

Industry Canada’s – Balanced Copyright website: http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/crp-prda.nsf/eng/home

Responses to the Bill:
CLA – Canadian Library Association

CAUT – Canadian Association of University Teachers

AUCC – Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

CFS – Canadian Federation of Students

CMEC Copyright Consortium

Articles:
CBC News: http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/06/02/copyright-bill-clement-montreal.html

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Time to transform our laws

National Post | May 31, 2010
Tony Clement and James Moore

Today, digital technologies fuel our economy and create jobs. Worldwide, the digital media sector is expected to grow to $2.2-trillion dollars over the next five years. More than ever, we live in a digital world. Countries around the world are continually promoting and embracing new technologies.

While there is solid proof that Canada is ready to seize the opportunities presented by these technologies, our laws have not kept pace.

For more see: http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=3094804

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India set to introduce Copyright amendments

India has introduced a copyright bill to reform the act.

From Michael Geist: “Of particular note from a Canadian perspective are the approaches to fair dealing and anti-circumvention. On fair dealing, the provision is expanded to cover “private and personal use.” On anti-circumvention, the bill is consistent with implementing the WIPO Internet treaties in a manner that retains equal rights both online and offline. The provision specifically targets circumvention for the purposes of copyright infringement and does not target the distribution or marketing of devices that can be used to circumvent. “

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Copyright bill to be tabled this spring: heritage minister

Andrew Mayeda and Sarah Schmidt | Canwest News Service | April 18, 2010

The federal government will soon unveil its latest version of legislation to modernize Canada’s copyright laws through a series of reforms that will affect everything from what Canadians can play on their iPods to how artists pay their bills.

In an interview ahead of the Juno Awards in St. John’s, Heritage Minister James Moore told Canwest News Service the government plans to introduce a new copyright bill this spring.

“It was a throne speech commitment, and we’re serious about doing it. The cross-country consultations we did last year were very substantive, very helpful,” Mr. Moore said. “We’re looking forward to tabling legislation soon.”

Since taking power in 2006, the Conservatives have tried several times to overhaul the country’s copyright regime, which stakeholders agree is no longer suited to deal with the flow of information in the age of digital content.

Read more: http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=2922248#ixzz0lZxiwfdu

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NDP MP proposes new tax for MP3 players

Sarah Schmidt, Canwest News Service | March 16, 2010

Now that mixed tapes have disappeared from today’s lexicon, it’s time consumers cough up a little cash for a private copying levy for iPods and other MP3 players, according to a private member’s bill tabled in the House of Commons on Tuesday.

The federal government first introduced private copying provisions in Canada’s Copyright Act in 1997 so musicians could be compensated when consumers purchased blank tapes or compact discs to make mixed tapes or CDs.

The levy, set by an independent board, is charged to manufacturers and importers and passed on to retailers and consumers. The money is then distributed to musicians and other copyright holders.

Read more: http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=2689396#ixzz0lZwhxvFg

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Copyright complicates iPad sales in Canada

David Friend | THE CANADIAN PRESS | April 6, 2010

As Apple Inc. celebrated a first weekend of iPad sales in the United States, some analysts suggest the hotly anticipated device will have a tougher challenge when it hits the Canadian market later this month.

Part of the uphill battle comes down to content – because what many American users might find appealing about Apple’s new touch-screen tablet may be exactly what Canadian users will not be able to see – books, television shows and other applications.

… It boils down to domestic licensing and copyright ownership, a crux of technological revolution that has slowed the speed with which many Canadians adopt new devices, whether it’s the iPod or streaming television over the Internet.

Read more: http://www.thestar.com/business/article/790669–copyright-complicates-ipad-sales-here

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Pay up if you play music, stores told

CBC New | April 6, 2010

Some Calgary coffee shops and restaurants have been getting unexpected bills in the mail – for royalties on the music they play in their establishments.

The invoices are being sent by Re:Sound, a Toronto-based, not-for-profit licensing company that claims its mandate is to help musicians get paid when their music recordings are played in public settings.

The group claims that under Canadian copyright law, retail outlets that play recorded music are required to pay licensing fees.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2010/04/06/calgary-music-cafes-royalties-copyright.html#ixzz0kRGNESA9

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Hitting Pause on Class Videos

Inside Higher Ed | January 26, 2010

In the latest clash of copyright law and instructional technology, the University of California at Los Angeles has stopping allowing faculty members to post copyrighted videos on their course Web sites after coming under fire from an educational media trade group.

The policy, enacted earlier this month, has been planned since last fall, when the Association for Information and Media Equipment – a group that protects the copyrights of education media companies – charged the university with violating copyright laws by posting the videos to the password-protected course Web pages without the proper permissions.

So far, UCLA is the only institution the organization has accused of such infractions. However, Allen Dohra, its president, told Inside Higher Ed that it is prepared to take on other colleges if it becomes clear that similar practices are taking place elsewhere. We have leads in terms of other universities, and we do plan to investigate further, said Dohra.

While the university maintains it has violated no laws, it has agreed to temporarily halt the practice while it tries to reach a settlement with the association. We don &t want to litigate an issue that could potentially be resolved outside of the legal system, said a university spokesman.

For more on the story see:http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/01/26/copyright

Article in The Chronicle for Higher Education