Monday, November 19, 2007

Canada moves to reform copyright protection | Reuters.ca

Canada moves to reform copyright protection | Reuters.ca

 

Part 2

Canada moves to reform copyright protection

Fri Nov 16, 2007 10:54 PM EST137

 

The proposed new legislation has been broadly welcomed by the Canadian industry, but musician lobby group the Canadian Music Creators Coalition, whose members include Sarah McLachlan and Avril Lavigne, warned the CRIA not to use the new law to launch RIAA-style lawsuits.

"When the CRIA said 'copyright reform,' what they really mean is 'give a free hand to sue fans who download,"' CMCC spokesman and Barenaked Ladies frontman Steven Page said in a statement. "We hope the government has a better solution in mind."

But Henderson claimed his organization has no such plans.

"Canadians are law-abiding, and when this is made clear, I'm confident they will follow the law," he said.

Still, Mark Hayes, a copyright lawyer at Blake, Cassels & Graydon in Toronto, warned that the proposed changes may not be the panacea the music industry is counting on.

"We're way behind on this and just starting to deal with things we should have resolved years ago," Hayes said. "By focusing on WIPO, we're overshadowing issues about online rights and business models that are changing by the hour."

Reuters/Billboard

Canada moves to reform copyright protection | Reuters.ca

No comments: