Copyright
Reform
On 20 June 2005
, Minister of Canadian Heritage Liza Frulla and Minister of
Industry David Emerson introduced a bill to amend the Copyright
Act. If passed, Bill C-60 will (1) implement the provisions
of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) Copyright
Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, (2)
clarify the liability of network service providers, (3) facilitate
technology-enhanced learning and interlibrary loans, and (4)
update certain other provisions of the Act.
The Government proposes
that the Act be amended as follows:
WIPO
Treaties Issues
Bill C-60 amends
the Copyright Act to implement
the copyright protections required by two World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO) treaties: the WIPO Copyright
Treaty (WCT) and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty
(WPPT). Amendments in this regard are as follows:
• the
existing exclusive communication right of authors are clarified
to include control over the making available of their material
on the Internet;
• sound
recording makers and performers are provided the right to
control the making available of their sound recordings and
performances on the Internet;
• the
circumvention for infringing purposes of technological measures
(TMs) applied to copyright material constitutes an infringement
of copyright;
• the
alteration or removal of rights management information (
RMI ) embedded in copyright material, when done to further
or conceal infringement, constitutes an infringement of
copyright;
• rights
holders are provided with the ability to control the first
distribution of their material in tangible form;
• the
term of protection in photographs will always be the life
of the photographer plus 50 years;
• a
full reproduction right for performers in sound recordings
is introduced;
• the
term of protection provided to sound recording makers in
respect of their sound recordings is modified so as to extend
to 50 years from the publication of the sound recording
(the term of protection provided to performers in respect
of their recorded performances is modified in consequence);
and
• performers
are provided with moral rights in their fixed and live performances.
Educational
and Research Access Issues
The
current exception that permits the performance or display
of copyright material for educational purposes within the
classroom is modified to enable students in remote locations
to view a lecture using network technology, either live or
at a more convenient time.
Material
that may be photocopied and provided to students pursuant
to an educational institution's blanket license with a collective
society is permitted to be delivered to the students electronically
without additional copyright liability. Provisions in this
regard apply until such time as the collective societies'
blanket licenses authorize such electronic delivery.
In
the above instances, educational institutions are required
to adopt safeguards to prevent misuse of the
copyright
material.
The
electronic interlibrary desktop delivery of certain copyright
material, notably academic articles, directly to library patrons
is permitted, provided effective safeguards are in place to
prevent misuse of the material.
Internet
Service Provider Liability Issues
ISPs
are exempt from copyright liability in relation to their activities
when they are acting merely as intermediaries.
A "notice and
notice" regime in relation to the hosting and file-sharing
activities of an ISP 's subscribers is provided. When an ISP
receives notice from a rights holder that one of its subscribers
is allegedly hosting or sharing infringing material, the ISP
is required to forward the notice to the subscriber, and to
keep a record of relevant information for a specified time.
Photography
Issues
Treatment
of photographers is harmonized with other creators with respect
to authorship and copyright ownership. At the same time, the
interests of consumers in the use of photographs commissioned
for domestic purposes would be protected.
Private
Copying
Even as the bill
addressing the short-term issues identified in the Section
92 Report is readied for introduction, the Government is preparing
to consult on certain priority medium-term issues. Foremost
among these is private copying. The Act's private copying
regime provides for an exception to copyright that permits
the making of a copy of a sound recording for private use.
It also provides for a levy to be paid by manufacturers and
importers of blank audio recording media. Questions have been
raised regarding Canada 's ability to ratify the WPPT in the
absence of changes to the private copying regime. In this
context and in light of Internet-related developments which
have challenged the private copying regime since its introduction
in 1997 (including in the courts), the Government proposes
to release a consultation paper on this issue as soon as possible
after introducing the bill. Work on other medium-term issues
identified in the Section 92 Report, including the matter
of reproductions made by broadcasters ("transfer of medium"),
will also intensify with a view to later consultations.
Educational
Use of Publicly Available Internet Material
The
Government will initiate a public consultation process on
the issue of the educational use of publicly available Internet
material as soon as possible.
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