Archive for the ‘Digital Britain’ category

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Reflections on the liberal roundtable on the digital economy

February 17th, 2010

Last week, Liberal Industry critic Marc Garneau and Heritage critic Pablo Rodriguez hosted a roundtable on the digital economy in Ottawa. There were two panels. One was on our modern digital infrastructure. The other one was on copyright, broadcasting and the Internet. I participated in the copyright roundtable along with representatives from the ESAC, ACTRA, Rogers and Prof. Geist.

I commend Messrs. Garneau and Rodriguez for organizing this event. Developing a strategy for Canada’s digital future is a critical component of ensuring prosperity and opportunities for all Canadians.

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, Fair Dealing, Fair Use, Graduated Response, ISP Liability, Piracy, Presentations, TPMs, Three Strikes, WIPO Treaties

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Where is Canada’s plan for the digital age?

February 5th, 2010

Earlier this week, MP Marc Garneau published an op-ed in the National Post asking “Where is Canada’s plan for the digital age?” A good question.

He pointed out that “a renewed vision is required for a digital economy”, that the “digital economy will be a defining part of our economy”, that technology “is changing our world” and that we must “evolve if we hope to prosper”.

Mr. Garneau is clearly right. Technology is changing our world and we either have to adapt or suffer the consequences. Just look at the changes the Internet, search engines, smart phones, iPods, and the myriad other innovative technologies have brought to every segment of our lives. 

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain

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The costs and benefits of graduated response in copyright enforcement

February 1st, 2010

There recently has been a debate over the economic costs and benefits behind graduated response systems aimed at reducing online file sharing. Professor Geist, for example, recently posted a blog estimating the costs of a graduated response system. I believe the topic of the costs and benefits of graduated response mechanisms is an important one. Let us take a closer look at this topic and the assertion that graduated response cannot be justified because of its costs.

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, ISP Liability, Piracy, Three Strikes

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Challenges for Digital Britain: broadband access, copyright and business models

January 25th, 2010

Last week, the UK Minister for Digital Britain, Stephen Timms, gave a speech outlining the main challenges ahead for the government in moving forward with its Digital Britain initiative. He focused on three challenges, broadband; copyright; and new business models.

With respect to broadband, he outlined that the government had two major broadband projects: a commitment that every home in the country should be able to obtain a 2 Mbit/s broadband service – and so be able to use the applications which most people are using broadband for today; and a next-generation fund to support national scale investment in much higher speed services.

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, Piracy

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Graduated response and copyright: an idea that is right for the times

January 20th, 2010

This is a copy of an article published in The Lawyers Weekly (January  2010) by Barry Sookman and Dan Glover.

In mid-2009, the Canadian government launched a nationwide consultation meant to canvass what amendments to the Copyright Act are necessary to support Canada’s participation in the global, digital economy, and to foster innovation, creativity, competition and investment.

There is no doubt that our copyright laws need amending. Amendments are required on a number of fronts. New exceptions are required to meet legitimate user expectations to access and use copyright content without infringement. Amendments are also needed to reduce online piracy and to support making licensed services available to the public.

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Posted in Articles, Copyright, Digital Britain, Graduated Response, ISP Liability, Three Strikes

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UK launches consultations on copyright exceptions

December 13th, 2009

The UK continues to move forward to modernize its copyright legislation. Fresh from tabling its Digital Economy Bill to address online file sharing, the government now plans to tackle the need for expanded copyright exceptions. It has done so with specific proposals for reform in its consultation document, Taking forward the Gowers Review of IP: Second stage consultation on Copyright Exceptions.

The UK consultation proposal is very relevant for Canadians given the consultation and reform process we are engaged in. We could learn much from the UK process. Here are some thoughts.

Process considerations

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, Fair Dealing

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Graduated Response Mapped out in UK Digital Economy Bill

November 22nd, 2009

The UK government continues to speed ahead with modernizing its copyright legislation to bring the UK into the 21st century. The latest development is the introduction the UK Digital Economy Bill.

Earlier this month the government published © the way ahead: A Copyright Strategy for the Digital Age. The report focused on the need to keep copyright consistent with public expectations and explored the desirability of making access to and use of works easier for consumers. It also recommended making orphan works easier to access and suggested extended collective licensing as a means of facilitating making works available to the public.

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, Graduated Response, Three Strikes

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© the way ahead: A Copyright Strategy for the Digital Age

November 12th, 2009

The UK Government continues to explore how to adjust its copyright framework to keep up with technology and consumer behavior. In its latest publication, © the way ahead: A Copyright Strategy for the Digital Age,  the UK Government looks at how copyright can tackle the challenges of the digital age, drawing on previous work including Digital Britain and the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property, on international perspectives including the European Commission’s and on discussions and submissions from stakeholders.

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, Fair Dealing

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Lord Mandelson speech transcript on P2P copyright and creative industries

November 11th, 2009

I recommend you read the speech by Lord Mandelson to the c&binet forum, 28 October 2009. http://bit.ly/1vmHXm

He makes some observations relevant to Canadian copyright reform about the importance of the creative industries and the need to create a proper legal framework to ensure they thrive. He also explains that the graduated response regime the UK is implementing is a carefully nuanced and procedurally fair process.

Why the creative industries matter

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Posted in Copyright, Digital Britain, Graduated Response, Three Strikes

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Copyright Reform in Canada-Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars

September 25th, 2009

Woodrow Copyright Final

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