Slashdot Mirror
US Group Wants Canada Blacklisted Over Piracy
An anonymous reader writes "Following up on an earlier story, the IIAA wants to add Canada to a blacklist of the worst intellectual property offenders. A powerful coalition of U.S. software, movie and music producers is urging the Bush administration to put Canada on an infamous blacklist of intellectual property villains, alongside China, Russia and Belize. 'Canada's chronic failure to modernize its copyright regime has made it a global hub for bootleg movies, pirated software and tiny microchips that allow video-game users to bypass copyright protections', the International Intellectual Property Alliance complains in a submission to the U.S. government."
You mean the industry that rakes in more than the movie and music industries ... COMBINED?
You mean the one that rakes in more and more profits each year?
Yeah, piracy is just SUCH a problem, crippling that industry...
And Canada doesn't need any new policy since it's already a civil offence to violate the copyright of another.
Someday, I'll have a real sig.
Canada isn't the only nation with slack copyright laws. What about, say Romania, which publically declared that they built their country on piracy. Or for example Sweden which hasn't been cracking down on piracy either?
But that is besides the point. This is just yet another attempt by a US lobby to try to use the US government to boss Canada around.
Well then, make sure your MP knows that you do not support the actions of the current heritage minister Bev Oda. As the person who sets policy for copyright in Canada she has been cught accepting large sums of money ('campaign funding') from American entertainment companies. At the same time, she has refused to meet with almost any groups who represent actual Canadaian artists. Michael Geist has some great reporting on the issue. Check out http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/1564/ and http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/1529/ to start, but there is much more there.
The last article was completely overblown, and this is even worse.
Once put on notice, failure to address U.S. concerns could result in trade challenges at the World Trade Organization, plus possible sanctions.Need I even go into the many ways the US has violated our free trade agreement. How are different copyright laws even a violation?
...and tiny microchips that allow video-game users to bypass copyright protections...Maybe because the copyright protections violate our basic copyright freedoms? There's no DMCA here.
The industry paints a grim picture of Canada as a country where copyright pirates operate with impunity because of lax laws, poor enforcement and a laissez-faire attitude.In case you haven't noticed, we're lax in all areas of law. How has incarceration helped to reduce US crime rates? Why should copyright violation be a criminal offense? The last article was even so bold to say:
Frith says government bureaucrats try to placate him by saying that under the Copyright Act exhibitors have the ability to charge someone criminally. "But here's the catch. Under the Copyright Act, you have to prove that an individual camcording in the theatre is doing it for distribution purposes. That's almost impossible."So camcording is a criminal offense, you just have to, shock, prove your case rather than assume guilt. I guess this article is *technically* right when it says:
Unlike in the United States and most other developed countries, videotaping movies in theatres is not illegal in Canada.What else did they complain about proving?
We don't want to have to prove the economic loss from distribution. We want it to be a Criminal Code activity to be caught camcording. Period.Is that 15th century thinking I hear? Are they going to blacklist every liberal country?
"Highly organized international-crime groups have rushed into the gap left by Canada's outmoded copyright law and now use the country as a springboard from which to undermine legitimate markets in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and elsewhere," the group said.Please, the UK and Australia wouldn't even have these type of laws if the US and *AA and friends hadn't strong armed them into it. Are these the only shinning examples they can find?
Actually one of the first things Harper did was settle the softwood lumber dispute. Basically he agreed to settle for 80% or so of the money the US illegally took. For one overview see http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/softwood_lumber/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
Settle?
Bah, he caved in and gave it all away as a transparent gesture of being neighborly. In reality this was an example of "how high?". In the end, you (U.S.) are paying more for your products due to protectionism from your cartels.
Can't wait to see this government defeated this spring.
"The avalanche has already started. It's too late for the pebbles to vote." - Kosh
Then maybe you would like to explain the US totally ignoring softwood lumber rulings from WTO. When will you Americans learn you cannot have it both ways.
If VISTA is the answer, you didn't understand the question
It is illegal for Canadian political parties and their members to accept donations greater than a $1000CDN. Also, they must be from individuals. Yes, you could try and get a whole family to each donate a grand each but that is still on average $4200(two parents and two point two children). And that has been done. But nothing I would call huge.
Still, she has been very pro Big Media in her speeches.
---- aut viam inveniam aut faciam
I travel to Canada quite a bit, and one thing I find there is a general respect for the law. But, respect works both ways and fair use is fair use.
Just because the US was pressured into these silly ideas of Intellectual Property Owners can rule your mind, doest make them right.
I think what the Riaa and Mpaa are worried about is that Canadians are still customers to be sold, not consumers to be culled.
There are very few places on earth that are as fair and law abiding as Canada, but when we ask them to enact silly DMCA like laws, they might just not agree they want them.
Remember, there is no such thing as Intellectual Property ownership, just a limited monopoly on the rights of distribution, excepting fair use.
The whole world could learn from Canada on this.
Cheers
* Carthago Delenda Est *
Dr. Geist has a blog entry on the IIPA report here.
Heres a good bit: "The U.S. approach is quite clearly one of "do what I say, not what I do" (fair use is good for the U.S., but no one else), advising country after country that it does not meet international TPM standards (perhaps it is the U.S. that is not meeting emerging international standards), and criticizing national attempts to improve education or culture through exceptions or funding programs. Moreover, it is very clear that the U.S. lobby groups are never satisfied as even those countries that have ratified the WIPO treaties or entered into detailed free trade agreements with the U.S. that include IP provisions still find themselves criticized for not doing enough.
Canadians should not be deceived into thinking that our laws are failing to meet an international standard, no matter what U.S. lobby groups or the Globe and Mail say. Rather, Canadians should know that our approach - and the criticism that it inevitably brings from the U.S. - places us in very good company."
All Inuit are Eskimos; but not all Eskimos are Inuit. Some Eskimos are Yupik. As for being an insensitive term, apparently it depends on where you live.
Actually, it's like this:
1: Canada
2: Mexico
3: Middle East
4: Argentina
I just read this the other day (cnn.com). Personally I was surprised that Mexico exported so much oil, but I'm not surprised about Canada. Funny thing is much of that oil gets sent to the States for refinement and then is sent back to Canada.
Willy