Canada Introduces DMCA-Style Copyright Law

P Starrson writes "The Canadian government this afternoon kept one promise many could live without. It introduced new copyright legislation that will bring DMCA-style legislation to Canada (backgrounder and FAQ here but bill still not online). Professor Michael Geist has apparently seen a copy and points out on his blog that while the bill does not go as far as the United States, the proposal is full of new rights for the music industry with precious little for users."

Comments

is the toothpaste out of the tube yet?

[yagu]

It seems like there's a new story on this a couple of times a week. I remember the very first time I heard anything at all (some Senator was pushing some nefarious bill that alledgedly was going to give some "rights" to the music manufactures to help them "control" music as it became more and more digital...). I laughed out loud to myself (is that possible?). Anyway, fast forward to today, and I'm amazed at the progress the music industry has made.

I watched in amazement as unexpected shills stepped forward to support the music industry in their quest to strip consumers' rights, most notably (or at least the one I can remember) Motley Crue. Further thought brought the logical conculusion these shills were entrenched in the music machine and stood to defend their obscene incomes... The bands that are popular are mostly (not all) there by serendipity. There are tons of excellent musicians out there waiting for their turn. So, Crue, et. al., dig in!

And now? Canada? Blame United States!

Regardless, I wish I wish a cohesive movement could arise and say, "no more", though I don't have a clue how to start that. Any good organizers in slashdot land? I don't know how a movement would manifest, but it seems groups have been able to pressure networks to not show shows, why can't the consuming music public apply similar pressure? I for one would be willing to commit to ZERO purchases of any media (dvd, sacd, cd, etc.) for one calendar year. Others? Other ideas?

Re:is the toothpaste out of the tube yet?

[xMilkmanDanx]

I would suggest a modification of your idea: a boycott of those artists that have SUPPORTED this kind of legislation. To that end, a website listing musicians that support the DMCA and maybe also those that oppose it.

Personally, I won't purchase anything from Metallica ever since the whole napster event (well, their stuff since then has sucked but that's besides the point). And no, I won't download it either.

It's the users, stupid!

[Nom du Keyboard]

of new rights for the music industry with precious little for users.

When will "the users" realize that they elect the politicians?

Money can buy influence, but in the end it is each "user" in that voting booth that should be throwing out those elected officials that don't respect them!

Re:It's the users, stupid!

[wishus]

Money can buy influence, but in the end it is each "user" in that voting booth that should be throwing out those elected officials that don't respect them!

I don't think any of my elected officials even have copyright/IP issues on their platform. Even if I do vote against them because of their stand on that issue, they don't know it was because of that issue. They probably assume it was their stance on Iraq, or some other headline issue.

There are so few candidates that it's impossible to find one that I agree with on all issues. As for the states that elected the congressmen who introduce DMCA-like bills, I doubt it was because they wanted new copyright law.

Inaccurate Headline

[Anonymous Coward]

They didn't introduce a new law, they introduced a new bill. It's not a law yet, and hopefully won't be.

Please don't make such misleading headlines.

Re:Inaccurate Headline

[Drakonian]

Correct. So please - write, call or email your MPs! (Writing probably best.)

List of Canadian MPs

In other news...

[jd]

...The Canadian Government was sued today by the RIAA, for copyright infringement, over its DMCA act. "Mine, mine, mine! Precioussss!" squeeled the head of the RIAA, on the One Law being returned.

Acceptance of facts

[ProfaneBaby]

I went to a talk last year given by legal counsel for the EFF about the DMCA, efforts to remove it, and very limited success, and I realized that even the lawyer made one fundamental mistake: they refused to acknowledge that people really do steal significant quantities of music/movies simply because they don't want to pay.

Until the anti-DMCA crowd accepts and acknowledges that, even though they produce crappy music, people are actively stealing significant quantities of music/movies, they will NEVER gain traction against the well organized lobbying groups.

The DMCA contains WAY TOO MANY horrible provisions, but the fact that it's defended so harshly by the RIAA/MPAA is indicative of the fact that they are quite desperate. Yes, the recent music sucks, but no, that's still no excuse to steal it. Until the anti-DMCA side is willing to accept a law that reinforces the standard copyright laws in a REASONABLE manner, there's very little chance that the DMCA is going away.

Re:Acceptance of facts

[Baricom]

Until the anti-DMCA crowd accepts and acknowledges that, even though they produce crappy music, people are actively stealing significant quantities of music/movies, they will NEVER gain traction against the well organized lobbying groups.

It seems that if the anti-DMCA crowd (disclaimer: I'm one of them) were to admit that, then the recording industry would simply say, "See? Those criminals even admit that they're stealing our work! We can't stop at just the DMCA. We have to add DRM, harsher civil and criminal penalties for stealing, and everything else we can possibly do. If we don't, we'll go bankrupt because the pirates are cutting into our revenue stream."

Obviously, locking us in isn't working. I propose an alternative business method: quality service. It works something like this:

1. Stop suing your customers. I postulate that the vast majority of people being sued for trading have purchased at least a few CDs. Suing them is just going to irritate them and cause them not to make any other purchasers. It also irritates people who are totally legit, like me.
2. Stop forcing DRM on customers. It adds to the cost of the product, is easily bypassed by whomever wants to, and makes paying customers feel like they're criminals that can't be trusted.
3. Sell cheaper, and make up the difference on volume. More people would buy an album for $7.99 than they would at $21.99.

Those are the facts. It's a shame the RIAA (and the Canuck equivilent) won't accept them.

Re:Acceptance of facts

[suitepotato]

Until the anti-DMCA side is willing to accept a law that reinforces the standard copyright laws in a REASONABLE manner, there's very little chance that the DMCA is going away.

Not to Godwin this, or to put too fine a point on it, but this is like the Nazis saying they'll be reasonable if only their targets will wear little stars.

YOU CANNOT BE REASONABLE WITH UNREASONABLE PEOPLE

The RIAA and MPAA are exactly that: intractably unreasonable. We have DECADES of evidence right from their leaders' mouths documenting this clearly. These are people who believe the advent of the 8-track and then casette recorders were very very bad and dangerous ideas that played into mankind's original sin and gave him tools that he might be a thief. The VCR was a tool of bad nasty people who would steal money from the mouth of Steven Spielberg.

You cannot begin to overestimate or overstate their lunatic idiocy. There is NO such thing as fair use for these people, they have NO concept of technology as it applies to demographics of adoption and usage and methods of applying technology to making proft, despite Apple's runaway success at putting iTunes to the public, and they have NO interest in listening to reason.

Compromise? When they agree publicly that copyright was not ever intended and should not ever be used as a tool of permanent monopoly over ideas and expression of same by any organization, when they publicly apologize for suing CHILDREN for piracy, when they admit publicly that THERE IS such a thing as FAIR USE. I put this at the same chance of happening as flying pig racing becoming the newest prime time sport show.

Personally, I say anyone who shills for them should have their entire catalog of publicly availible IP pirated and spread around to as many places as possible in a show of defiance. They need to learn that they WILL lose this war with the public and that we WILL defy them until they wave the white flag, smell the coffee, grow up, and get with the present day.

Notice I didn't say that their IP needed to be exprienced, just copied. I wouldn't listen to Motley Crue or Metallica if you paid me and I've never had the slightest interest in downloading one of their songs. But I would do it just to send a message.

Until then, they give no quarter, we give them none. They aren't desperate. They're greedy and stupid. If I was a pop musician relying on these people to keep me in the money, I'd get my head checked, fire these fools, and adopt a strategy that was in sync with the year 2005 and not 1955.

Interesting bit

[grub]

FTA (emphasis mine) This does not alter the right to make a personal copy (including a P2P download) but does set some tough limits on what users are entitled to do with those copies.

That will be next on the entertainment cartel's radar.

Thanks a lot, neighbours...

[breon.halling]

I place the blame squarely on you, America. This was a great place to live, to go to school, to pirate music and raise kids until you moved in across the border.

Sincerely,
Canada.

Re:So, the obvious next question

[Beardo the Bearded]

Here's what we do:

First, don't panic.

Once a bill is introduced, the following must happen. You should know this if you're a Canadian.

1. It is read for the first time in the House of Commons (which has apparently been done.)

2. The bill goes to the Senate, which will set up a committee to go over the bill and modify / approve it.

3. The modified bill will go to the HoC again for a second reading. If passed again, it returns to the Senate for further editing.

4. After the Senate looks over it again, it goes back to the HoC for a third reading and announcement. Once the law has been announced, then it goes into the Copyright Act.

Note that many laws have been passed but never announced, making them unenforceable.

To prevent this bill from being passed, do this:

1. Call and write and email your MP. It's free to do so in Canada. Go to their office and tell them that you want to talk about the bill. (Know the number before you go down.) Don't expect to meet with them. You just want the staff to know that someone was there about Bill C-X and who doesn't support it. Remember that they have their faxes full with US fundie groups complaining about gay marriage.

2. Tell them that you vote and your friends vote. This shouldn't be a lie. (I think that if someone says they don't vote, it's okay to hit them since it's self-defence.)

3. Tell them that if this passes, it's enough to get you to vote for a party that doesn't support it.

4. Remind them that free distribution of Canadian content keeps Canadian culture alive. (Hint: Tragically Hip >> Nickelback.)

5. Talk about the levy placed on blank media that compensates the recording industry.

Two other things of vital note:

1. In Canada, the loser pays the court costs. It's not like in the US where you can bankrupt someone by suing them. If you get in trouble, lawyer up. If your ISP calls, get them to forward all communication to your lawyer.

2. The ISP can charge for providing the information to the industry. I use Shaw, and I can't possibly see them passing up free money. I mean, come on, it's Shaw.

3. Set up a neighbourhood network. Get a good router and let your neighbours in on it. Keep the network open. Keep no records of who has what IP address. Then they have no idea who's doing the infriging since you don't know either!

My humble suggestion

[zaxios]

Enforcing and Amalgamating Trustworthy Copyright Regulations, Assurances and Protections -- Countering the Onerous, Nefarious and Stupid Underming of Many Elites' Riches

Re:My plan...

[KillerBob]

Did you read the blog at all?

His analysis says pretty clearly that downloading through p2p is still considered legal. It always will be as long as there's still a levy on every blank media purchase.

According to TFA, the real concern is that this *bill* (still hasn't been passed into law) would make it illegal to circumvent anti-piracy mechanisms on CDs and such. In other words, if there's garbling to prevent playing a CD on a computer (and likely old CD players too), it'd be illegal to hook up your CD player's line out to your computer's line in and record the songs directly. Likewise, it'd become illegal to circumvent some proprietary copy protection that collects your name and vitals when you rip a recording for personal use.

The only conclusion I can make is that they really don't want people buying their crap, which is an objective I'm more than happy to help with. If it happens, then I guess my solution would be to switch back to cassettes... for all of one album every couple of years.

They lie right in the FAQ

[nuggz]

Q7 "Legitimate access as authorized by the Copyright Act, will not be altered.
Circumvention for the purposes of making private copies of sound recordings will not be permitted, however.

See the Copyright act section 80
http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/C-42/39673.html#rid-3 9796

At the very least they shouldn't lie in the FAQ describing a new law.
Time to contact your MP, remember it is free to snail mail them.

Boycott? What boycott?

[XStylus]

Boycott the RIAA and they'll just blame the decreased sales on piracy. That's their universal excuse for everything.

Q: "How come you're not selling as many CDs?"
A: "Because of piracy."

Q: "Are you sure it isn't because your music sucks?"
A: "Nope. Our research and focus groups have carefully developed a special style and formula that will generate hits as easy as using a cookie cutter. Each one is a guaranteed chart buster. The only reason they aren't is because of piracy."

Q: "What about the people boycotting sales of your CDs? Is that affecting your sales?"
A: "Boycott? Why would anyone boycott us? No, it's only a justification to pirate more music."

Q: "How come you haven't been able to establish a strong market in China?"
A: "Piracy. Duh!"

Q: "What about Antarctica?"
A: "Yup, piracy there too. Damn polar bears."

Q: "I hear that there's a new artist out that's selling really well. Is it because they're finally making fresh music that people enjoy?"
A: "Nope, it's because we've stepped up our efforts to fight piracy."

Q: "So I guess your shit don't stink, huh?"
A: "Pirates keep stealing it, so it doesn't linger long enough for the odor to fester."

Q: "Is there anything good that has come out of piracy?"
A: "Heck yeah! We're reaching incredible profit milestones thanks to our lawsuit business model. I strongly recommend it for any business, but don't follow SCO's example though."

Q: "Is there anything pirates are NOT to blame for?"
A: "Bush getting elected."