You obviously grossly misinterpreted what I was trying to say. I never suggested that people are either good or bad nor that we live in a civilized world. In fact, that is a completely different topic and completely irrelevant to the discussion.
What I am saying is that just because it's in writing doesn't automatically make it legal. Obviously murder is illegal and just because you have a contractual obligation do commit it or your employer orders you to do it, it does not protect you nor the corporation from the legal consequences.
If what you're saying is true then a career as a Hitman or mercenary would be a perfectly legitimate career. One could order and carry out assassinations with impunity.
An contract to commit an illegal act is not valid a contract. That is why contracts to kill cannot be enforced and legitimate hit agencies do not exist. The argument that you were simply holding up your end of the deal (even if it is through a limit liability corporation) is not a defense in court. Similarly, if you are ordered to do something illegal you cannot argue that you were obliged to do it unless the company threatened you or your family with physical harm.
It's even worse in the hotter US states like florida, california and texas (which are 3 of the 4 most populous states). AFAIK, AC is significantly more inefficient than heating and with everybody in the aforementioned states running AC full blast in their cars and their homes 24/7 so it seems as though they would be using much energy (per capita) than those in the north. I am not playing the blame game, as it's simply unbearable to go anywhere in these areas without AC. Seems like solar power would help significantly more in places like this where hot, sunny weather affects energy usage to a greater degree.
A month's salary is probably a gross exagerration, at least in the parts of Africa I have been to (Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda). It is more like like 2-3 days salary. Still a lot but not as much as you make it out to be and certainly an extremely small percentage of the total cost of the system.
It's perfectly legal to patent something that relies on one or more other patents to operate. In fact, you can create a patent for your invention but you still may be prohibited from producing said invention before you get licensing permissions from the other patent holders on which your invention is dependant on. For example, one could patent a mp3 player which runs on a powerpc chip. However, you can't produce and sell it until you get permission from Fraunhoff(for mp3) and IBM (powerPC). Similarly one could create a patent for VOIP which relies on TCP/IP (regardless of whether TCP/IP is patented or an open standard)
Anyways, I hope that the court seriously recognizes the new evidence being presented as prior art, throws the case out and awards Vonage reasonable lawyers fees and punitive damages.
Perhaps at the time that is what the judge thought. However, things have obviously changed significantly since then. In light of this new evidence it would be highly irresponsible for a judge not to reconsider his position (or for a judge at the appeals hearing to reconsider the previous ruling).
The problem he was talking about is that if one party does NOT have Mozilla calendar and thunderbird (which is 90% of users). Most users are not going to download Mozilla calendar just for the one or two people who use that for invites AND THEN maintain two separate calendars.
I wouldn't mind the cop getting the slap on the wrist if they slapped it while he was still hospitalized. (ie, actually slapping him his bruised up body).
I don't think it's fair to compare building your own computer to collecting stamps.
Many people build computers out of necessity as opposed to a hobby (although some do it for fun as well). Building a PC from scratch allows you to play with many variables which can be extremely beneficial to you such as: maximize the cost/benefit ratio, bring overall costs down, plan ahead for future upgrades, minimize heat dissipation, minimize power consumption, minimize size, maximize performance (whether it be for games, CAD, scientific computation, etc), choose how the computer looks, minimize noise, minimize boot times (faster hard drives, etc).
There are certainly some advantages to having HDMI over component:
1. Higher audio and video quality. As someone else mentioned, audio quality is significantly better whereas video only offers marginal improvements.
2. HDCP. While it isn't an issue right now, eventually it may become a requirement. If the output protection flag ever gets set then users will be screwed if they don't have a fully compliant video path. This is especially important for STB features for which many of the premium content providers will refuse to offer their content unless you have a protected video path (ex. Cablelabs, HBO and discovery). Whether or not this would actually prevent piracy is another issue altogether, but the fact is the content providers want it.
3. Gives users more options. If you only have one component input but two devices that use component (blu-ray/hd-dvd player, nintendo wii) then you have the OPTION of using HDMI for the 360 instead of constantly swapping the plugs in the back. Giving the user more options isn't a bad thing
4. There is only one input instead of FIVE (3 video and 2 audio). Its a pain in the ass to connect 5 colour coded cables especially if your LCD TV is mounted on a wall, is heavy as hell and you cannot see which input is which in the back because of limited space.
5. Less susceptibility to noise since it's a digital signal (although this is somewhat disputable)
As for the 120GB hard drive there are PLENTY of reasons to have more space:
1. If you download lots of video content from the Live marketplace such as full-length movies, tv shows, music videos, game add-ons, etc, then you need a lot of space. Some games and addons such as episodic content, mods, user created games and casual games are available exclusively for download and of course require a lot of space.
2. Eventually Microsoft will be releasing it's IPTV service which will allow users to use their 360 as a PVR. Obviously this requires plenty of space.
3. More room to store your own music and videos.
So stop spewing garbage like "only idiots would be buy this machine". There are plenty of good reasons for many people to go out and buy it, even if they don't apply to you directly.
Hopefully this means what the author is suggesting: That in the future a shuttle service will become an essential part of the benefits package offered by large employers. Imagine if other major employers such as Microsoft, Boeing, AMD and others implemented such programs in areas with otherwise high traffic like Seattle, Austin, and of course the SF bay area? It would reduce stress for everyone, alleviate traffic, reduce the demand and price for gas, reduce air pollution (and as a result health care costs), and make people realize that mass transit is a viable option for North America.
I don't know why my parent post got modded as a troll as they are all valid points. Perhaps I did not cite my references.
As someone mentioned earlier, here are the patent numbers: 6137869 [billing algorithm for voip], 6104711 [dns for voip],6282574 [dns for voip], 6298062 [conversion of PSTN signals to IP packets and providing PSTN services over IP networks], 6359880 [Wireless VOIP router]. I am not going to link these to the patent office because it's tedious, but you can look them up for yourself.
Net2Phone, launched their VOIP services back in 1997. In order to establish said services they implemented most if not all of the above claimed patents and did so before most of the patent applications were filed. The only two which were filed before the service was launched were the first two patents in the above list and they are certainly not unique and unobvious. Billing for VOIP services? Pretty obvious since they announced their pay service in 1995 which was 2 years prior to the patent application. The second one was simply DNS extended to provide things like caller ID. Not exactly ground breaking but this is perhaps the only leverage they may have IF nobody else was providing VOIP services at the time or prior to. That is a big IF because it is likely many of the telcos were already using something similar for digital cell phone networks such as GSM (which is also a packet network created around 1993).
Of course there is also the Network Voice Protocol which was the first implementation of VOIP invented in 1973 which preceded all the patents. My point is, they really don't have much of a case with these patents.
The patents in question seem to have claim to have invented VOIP in 1999. However, the free world dialup project has been around since 1995. Also, back in 1998-1999 I remember Microsoft was offering free PC-Phone calls to the US using MSN Messenger. Their partner was charging for the same service. I think that would certainly qualify as prior art.
I think there is too much equating Quebec with the rest of Canada. Quebec has some of the highest income taxes and the highest sales taxes in all of Canada. They also happen to have the highest debt in Canada so they cut social services more than anywhere else such as health care, parks and recreation, etc.
By the way, one thing almost everyone is forgetting is that the 52% is a gross exaggeration. Many people tend to forget that there is an automatic tax deduction of approximately $8,000 on which you don't pay taxes on, which reduces your tax obligation significantly. Check this link to see how much your taxes will be in each province (includes federal taxes). Also, don't pretend as though the US does not have huge tax burdens of its own. All gifts are taxable and each state, county and city can apply it's own sales tax to all goods and services. The amount of income tax you pay in BC is very close to the amount you would pay in California for example. Oh and yes, California has sales tax on all goods as well (7.75 in Santa Clara).
As for the US healthcare system, it sucks balls. Everybody is required to pay something like 1.5% of their income towards medicare which only covers people over 65 and a few others. In BC I only paid $60/month in MSP (healthcare premiums) compared to the US where I had to pay medicare AND my private insurance premiums which came to over $350/month. Still, even though I have "great" insurance provided as part of my corporate package, it sucks. Almost no non-essential services are covered and I have to pay 20% out of pocket plus a $20 co-pay to see a doctor and $250 for emergency care. Sounds like very little huh? Wrong!! If you get shot (chances are much higher in the US that you will) or if you get a heart attack, kidney failure or anything else, you can run a bill of $16,000 within a few days. With that you are $3200+$500deductible+$250co-pay out of your own pocket, just like that. Oh and if you have an HMO (the more common type of private insurance) and the ambulance takes you to a hospital which isn't part of their network, you have to pay the whole thing yourself. Insurance doesn't cover shit. Oh and another thing: If you lose your job you lose your benefits. So you're screwed if anything happens to you after that. Also, lets say you have diabetes, require dialysis or have cancer and decide you want to switch jobs? Not so fast! Most healthcare plans have pre-existing condition clauses that exclude coverage for illnesses and treatments which you are already undergoing. So basically, unless you are a millionaire, you have to declare bankruptcy and risk being denied treatment since the costs of these procedures in most US states can be in excess of $200,000.
So yes, you have to wait for your knee surgery or hip surgery or whatever. And yes you have to pay a LITTLE bit more tax. But in Canada, you're taken care of health wise no matter what, there is a MUCH lower crime rate, the streets are cleaner, the girls are hotter (WAY hotter), the roads are better (except in quebec where they are terrible), there are more public parks, there are more public recreational centers, the schools are better, university is less expensive, etc.
Woo hoo. This is exactly the kind of thing that needs to happen more often.
If there was wifi service everywhere there would be no need for cell phone coverage anywhere and hopefully then Rogers will be forced to actually create some competitive and innovative plans or else sell his shitty company for scraps.
The point is that it is BOTH fraud and theft. Just because something is fraud does not automatically exclude it from being theft. This should be obvious, but they are not mutually exclusive.
If you use someone elses credit card it is fraud AND theft. You are pretending to be someone you are not so that you can make a purchase (fraud) which allows you to make purchases at someone else's expense. Then you actually make those purchases and keep it for yourself (theft). This isn't a hard concept.
Similarly, if you present someone else's Vista key to Microsoft as your own, that is fraud. Then if you activate that key, you effectively take that privilege away from someone else who has paid for that priviledge (theft).
Guessing a credit card number then making purchases is fraud just as much as guessing product keys then activating a product of windows constitutes fraud. Either way you are taking something from someone else (funds from the credit card and a software license).
Yes it certainly is bad that these 5 people were held against their will. However, I think they used Security Certificates in this case and not the new anti-terror legislation to hold these foreign nationals. Security certificates have existed since at least the early 90's. IIRC the 5 people currently being held were entering the country and Canada suspected them of something (of what, we don't know because it was secret). Anyways, Canada DID give them the option to return to their own country with no jail time. Had they chosen to stay they would have been held for an indefinate amount of time. This is no different from most other countries which hold terror suspects indefinately except that in many cases they DONT give them the option to return to their home country. So while it is bad that they were held against their will it isn't as bad as what other countries have.
From the article:
"I do not have the audacity to call these ten concepts rules, but I do feel that these ideas are of primal importance to this genre. No amount of flashy graphics, deep story, or sophisticated artificial intelligence can trick the smart gamer for long. I also believe that in the end, those previous three concepts are not memorable; graphics and A.I. will improve, and players want a game, not just a story."
He doesn't say directly that games should not have a plot, but he definately states that it isn't that important and that "smart gamers" won't be tricked by it. This is a highly flammatory statement that many will take offense to as it dismisses very important gameplay elements as irrelevant features. Personally, I think that the story is one of the most important elements in a game and it is most certainly a memorable trait. Additionally AI, graphics and animation are all closely tied to the gameplay for almost all FPSs, so for those players who "want a game", these are extremely important and memorable features (a point the author seems to dismiss).
Or go to canada and you'll have stations that show sex AND violence. During "primetime" they show all the popular american shows unedited where as at night the lineup includes softcore porn and unedited movies.
Although Canada does not require a certain percentage of films to be Canadian, it DOES require that a certain amount of broadcast television be Canadian content. It has worked wonders for Canadian television. With this and the support of federal and provincial funding, we got shows like Trailer Park Boys, Just For Laughs GAGS, Kenny vs Spenny and a bunch of others. Hopefully Canada goes an extra step and requires that all theatres include at least one Canadian film in their lineup.
Add that to the fact that a TON of video games are made in Canada. For example, the world's largest game studio (owned by EA) is in the Vancouver area which makes amongst other things: Need For Speed, NBA Live, FIFA (one of EA's highest grossing games), NHL, and a whole slew of PSP ports.
Vancouver is well known as a game development hub and now Montreal is rising to become a major hub as well with companies like Ubisoft and EA setting up huge offices there.
If these companies thought piracy was a major issue in Canada, how come they aren't lobbying the government?
Slashdot Mirror
You obviously grossly misinterpreted what I was trying to say. I never suggested that people are either good or bad nor that we live in a civilized world. In fact, that is a completely different topic and completely irrelevant to the discussion.
What I am saying is that just because it's in writing doesn't automatically make it legal. Obviously murder is illegal and just because you have a contractual obligation do commit it or your employer orders you to do it, it does not protect you nor the corporation from the legal consequences.
Nazis rode dinosaurs?
I call bullshit!! Care to cite a source?
If what you're saying is true then a career as a Hitman or mercenary would be a perfectly legitimate career. One could order and carry out assassinations with impunity.
An contract to commit an illegal act is not valid a contract. That is why contracts to kill cannot be enforced and legitimate hit agencies do not exist. The argument that you were simply holding up your end of the deal (even if it is through a limit liability corporation) is not a defense in court. Similarly, if you are ordered to do something illegal you cannot argue that you were obliged to do it unless the company threatened you or your family with physical harm.
It's even worse in the hotter US states like florida, california and texas (which are 3 of the 4 most populous states). AFAIK, AC is significantly more inefficient than heating and with everybody in the aforementioned states running AC full blast in their cars and their homes 24/7 so it seems as though they would be using much energy (per capita) than those in the north. I am not playing the blame game, as it's simply unbearable to go anywhere in these areas without AC. Seems like solar power would help significantly more in places like this where hot, sunny weather affects energy usage to a greater degree.
A month's salary is probably a gross exagerration, at least in the parts of Africa I have been to (Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda). It is more like like 2-3 days salary. Still a lot but not as much as you make it out to be and certainly an extremely small percentage of the total cost of the system.
It's perfectly legal to patent something that relies on one or more other patents to operate. In fact, you can create a patent for your invention but you still may be prohibited from producing said invention before you get licensing permissions from the other patent holders on which your invention is dependant on. For example, one could patent a mp3 player which runs on a powerpc chip. However, you can't produce and sell it until you get permission from Fraunhoff(for mp3) and IBM (powerPC). Similarly one could create a patent for VOIP which relies on TCP/IP (regardless of whether TCP/IP is patented or an open standard)
Anyways, I hope that the court seriously recognizes the new evidence being presented as prior art, throws the case out and awards Vonage reasonable lawyers fees and punitive damages.
Perhaps at the time that is what the judge thought. However, things have obviously changed significantly since then. In light of this new evidence it would be highly irresponsible for a judge not to reconsider his position (or for a judge at the appeals hearing to reconsider the previous ruling).
The problem he was talking about is that if one party does NOT have Mozilla calendar and thunderbird (which is 90% of users). Most users are not going to download Mozilla calendar just for the one or two people who use that for invites AND THEN maintain two separate calendars.
I wouldn't mind the cop getting the slap on the wrist if they slapped it while he was still hospitalized. (ie, actually slapping him his bruised up body).
I don't think it's fair to compare building your own computer to collecting stamps.
Many people build computers out of necessity as opposed to a hobby (although some do it for fun as well). Building a PC from scratch allows you to play with many variables which can be extremely beneficial to you such as: maximize the cost/benefit ratio, bring overall costs down, plan ahead for future upgrades, minimize heat dissipation, minimize power consumption, minimize size, maximize performance (whether it be for games, CAD, scientific computation, etc), choose how the computer looks, minimize noise, minimize boot times (faster hard drives, etc).
There are certainly some advantages to having HDMI over component:
1. Higher audio and video quality. As someone else mentioned, audio quality is significantly better whereas video only offers marginal improvements.
2. HDCP. While it isn't an issue right now, eventually it may become a requirement. If the output protection flag ever gets set then users will be screwed if they don't have a fully compliant video path. This is especially important for STB features for which many of the premium content providers will refuse to offer their content unless you have a protected video path (ex. Cablelabs, HBO and discovery). Whether or not this would actually prevent piracy is another issue altogether, but the fact is the content providers want it.
3. Gives users more options. If you only have one component input but two devices that use component (blu-ray/hd-dvd player, nintendo wii) then you have the OPTION of using HDMI for the 360 instead of constantly swapping the plugs in the back. Giving the user more options isn't a bad thing
4. There is only one input instead of FIVE (3 video and 2 audio). Its a pain in the ass to connect 5 colour coded cables especially if your LCD TV is mounted on a wall, is heavy as hell and you cannot see which input is which in the back because of limited space.
5. Less susceptibility to noise since it's a digital signal (although this is somewhat disputable)
As for the 120GB hard drive there are PLENTY of reasons to have more space:
1. If you download lots of video content from the Live marketplace such as full-length movies, tv shows, music videos, game add-ons, etc, then you need a lot of space. Some games and addons such as episodic content, mods, user created games and casual games are available exclusively for download and of course require a lot of space.
2. Eventually Microsoft will be releasing it's IPTV service which will allow users to use their 360 as a PVR. Obviously this requires plenty of space.
3. More room to store your own music and videos.
So stop spewing garbage like "only idiots would be buy this machine". There are plenty of good reasons for many people to go out and buy it, even if they don't apply to you directly.
Bill Gates has already received honorary degrees from several other institutions: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates#Awards_and _recognition
Yawn!!!
Hopefully this means what the author is suggesting: That in the future a shuttle service will become an essential part of the benefits package offered by large employers. Imagine if other major employers such as Microsoft, Boeing, AMD and others implemented such programs in areas with otherwise high traffic like Seattle, Austin, and of course the SF bay area? It would reduce stress for everyone, alleviate traffic, reduce the demand and price for gas, reduce air pollution (and as a result health care costs), and make people realize that mass transit is a viable option for North America.
I don't know why my parent post got modded as a troll as they are all valid points. Perhaps I did not cite my references.
As someone mentioned earlier, here are the patent numbers: 6137869 [billing algorithm for voip], 6104711 [dns for voip],6282574 [dns for voip], 6298062 [conversion of PSTN signals to IP packets and providing PSTN services over IP networks], 6359880 [Wireless VOIP router]. I am not going to link these to the patent office because it's tedious, but you can look them up for yourself.
Net2Phone, launched their VOIP services back in 1997. In order to establish said services they implemented most if not all of the above claimed patents and did so before most of the patent applications were filed. The only two which were filed before the service was launched were the first two patents in the above list and they are certainly not unique and unobvious. Billing for VOIP services? Pretty obvious since they announced their pay service in 1995 which was 2 years prior to the patent application. The second one was simply DNS extended to provide things like caller ID. Not exactly ground breaking but this is perhaps the only leverage they may have IF nobody else was providing VOIP services at the time or prior to. That is a big IF because it is likely many of the telcos were already using something similar for digital cell phone networks such as GSM (which is also a packet network created around 1993).
Of course there is also the Network Voice Protocol which was the first implementation of VOIP invented in 1973 which preceded all the patents. My point is, they really don't have much of a case with these patents.
The patents in question seem to have claim to have invented VOIP in 1999. However, the free world dialup project has been around since 1995. Also, back in 1998-1999 I remember Microsoft was offering free PC-Phone calls to the US using MSN Messenger. Their partner was charging for the same service. I think that would certainly qualify as prior art.
I think there is too much equating Quebec with the rest of Canada. Quebec has some of the highest income taxes and the highest sales taxes in all of Canada. They also happen to have the highest debt in Canada so they cut social services more than anywhere else such as health care, parks and recreation, etc.
By the way, one thing almost everyone is forgetting is that the 52% is a gross exaggeration. Many people tend to forget that there is an automatic tax deduction of approximately $8,000 on which you don't pay taxes on, which reduces your tax obligation significantly. Check this link to see how much your taxes will be in each province (includes federal taxes). Also, don't pretend as though the US does not have huge tax burdens of its own. All gifts are taxable and each state, county and city can apply it's own sales tax to all goods and services. The amount of income tax you pay in BC is very close to the amount you would pay in California for example. Oh and yes, California has sales tax on all goods as well (7.75 in Santa Clara).
As for the US healthcare system, it sucks balls. Everybody is required to pay something like 1.5% of their income towards medicare which only covers people over 65 and a few others. In BC I only paid $60/month in MSP (healthcare premiums) compared to the US where I had to pay medicare AND my private insurance premiums which came to over $350/month. Still, even though I have "great" insurance provided as part of my corporate package, it sucks. Almost no non-essential services are covered and I have to pay 20% out of pocket plus a $20 co-pay to see a doctor and $250 for emergency care. Sounds like very little huh? Wrong!! If you get shot (chances are much higher in the US that you will) or if you get a heart attack, kidney failure or anything else, you can run a bill of $16,000 within a few days. With that you are $3200+$500deductible+$250co-pay out of your own pocket, just like that. Oh and if you have an HMO (the more common type of private insurance) and the ambulance takes you to a hospital which isn't part of their network, you have to pay the whole thing yourself. Insurance doesn't cover shit. Oh and another thing: If you lose your job you lose your benefits. So you're screwed if anything happens to you after that. Also, lets say you have diabetes, require dialysis or have cancer and decide you want to switch jobs? Not so fast! Most healthcare plans have pre-existing condition clauses that exclude coverage for illnesses and treatments which you are already undergoing. So basically, unless you are a millionaire, you have to declare bankruptcy and risk being denied treatment since the costs of these procedures in most US states can be in excess of $200,000.
So yes, you have to wait for your knee surgery or hip surgery or whatever. And yes you have to pay a LITTLE bit more tax. But in Canada, you're taken care of health wise no matter what, there is a MUCH lower crime rate, the streets are cleaner, the girls are hotter (WAY hotter), the roads are better (except in quebec where they are terrible), there are more public parks, there are more public recreational centers, the schools are better, university is less expensive, etc.
Woo hoo. This is exactly the kind of thing that needs to happen more often.
If there was wifi service everywhere there would be no need for cell phone coverage anywhere and hopefully then Rogers will be forced to actually create some competitive and innovative plans or else sell his shitty company for scraps.
The point is that it is BOTH fraud and theft. Just because something is fraud does not automatically exclude it from being theft. This should be obvious, but they are not mutually exclusive.
If you use someone elses credit card it is fraud AND theft. You are pretending to be someone you are not so that you can make a purchase (fraud) which allows you to make purchases at someone else's expense. Then you actually make those purchases and keep it for yourself (theft). This isn't a hard concept.
Similarly, if you present someone else's Vista key to Microsoft as your own, that is fraud. Then if you activate that key, you effectively take that privilege away from someone else who has paid for that priviledge (theft).
I should add, not only are they taking something from someone else, but they are using false pretenses to do so.
Guessing a credit card number then making purchases is fraud just as much as guessing product keys then activating a product of windows constitutes fraud. Either way you are taking something from someone else (funds from the credit card and a software license).
Yes it certainly is bad that these 5 people were held against their will. However, I think they used Security Certificates in this case and not the new anti-terror legislation to hold these foreign nationals. Security certificates have existed since at least the early 90's. IIRC the 5 people currently being held were entering the country and Canada suspected them of something (of what, we don't know because it was secret). Anyways, Canada DID give them the option to return to their own country with no jail time. Had they chosen to stay they would have been held for an indefinate amount of time. This is no different from most other countries which hold terror suspects indefinately except that in many cases they DONT give them the option to return to their home country. So while it is bad that they were held against their will it isn't as bad as what other countries have.
From the article: "I do not have the audacity to call these ten concepts rules, but I do feel that these ideas are of primal importance to this genre. No amount of flashy graphics, deep story, or sophisticated artificial intelligence can trick the smart gamer for long. I also believe that in the end, those previous three concepts are not memorable; graphics and A.I. will improve, and players want a game, not just a story."
He doesn't say directly that games should not have a plot, but he definately states that it isn't that important and that "smart gamers" won't be tricked by it. This is a highly flammatory statement that many will take offense to as it dismisses very important gameplay elements as irrelevant features. Personally, I think that the story is one of the most important elements in a game and it is most certainly a memorable trait. Additionally AI, graphics and animation are all closely tied to the gameplay for almost all FPSs, so for those players who "want a game", these are extremely important and memorable features (a point the author seems to dismiss).
Or go to canada and you'll have stations that show sex AND violence. During "primetime" they show all the popular american shows unedited where as at night the lineup includes softcore porn and unedited movies.
Well said!!!
Although Canada does not require a certain percentage of films to be Canadian, it DOES require that a certain amount of broadcast television be Canadian content. It has worked wonders for Canadian television. With this and the support of federal and provincial funding, we got shows like Trailer Park Boys, Just For Laughs GAGS, Kenny vs Spenny and a bunch of others. Hopefully Canada goes an extra step and requires that all theatres include at least one Canadian film in their lineup.
Add that to the fact that a TON of video games are made in Canada. For example, the world's largest game studio (owned by EA) is in the Vancouver area which makes amongst other things: Need For Speed, NBA Live, FIFA (one of EA's highest grossing games), NHL, and a whole slew of PSP ports.
Vancouver is well known as a game development hub and now Montreal is rising to become a major hub as well with companies like Ubisoft and EA setting up huge offices there.
If these companies thought piracy was a major issue in Canada, how come they aren't lobbying the government?