Tag: WIPO Treaties

Canada ratifying WIPO Internet TreatiesCanada ratifying WIPO Internet Treaties

May 24, 2014May 24, 2014 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 0 Comments

The Canadian Government has now deposited instruments of ratification as the final steps to ratifying the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) and the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT). Most of the amendments to implement the treaty provisions went into effect in November 2012 when The Copyright Modernization Act was proclaimed into force. Some of the provisions pertaining to the WPPT including the making available right for sound recordings will only come into effect when the treaty ratification process is final. This will occur on August 13, 2014, 90 days after the deposit of the WPPT instruments of ratification with WIPO.…

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Copyright Board to construe the making available rightCopyright Board to construe the making available right

December 7, 2012December 7, 2012 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 0 Comments

In the ESA v. SOCAN, 2012 SCC 34 case, the Supreme Court decided by a 5 to 4 majority that the transmission of a copy of a musical work to members of the public is not a communication to the public within the meaning of Section 3(1)(f) of the Copyright Act. When the Copyright Modernization Act was enacted the communication to the public right was expanded to expressly confer on copyright holders making available rights required by the WIPO Treaties.…

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My remarks to the Senate Committee studying Bill C-11My remarks to the Senate Committee studying Bill C-11

June 22, 2012June 22, 2012 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 7 Comments

The following are my opening remarks to the Senate Committee studying Bill C-11 earlier today. The link to the webcast can be found here.

I would like to thank the committee for inviting me to appear today to provide input on Bill C-11.

Before starting my remarks, I would like to give you some background about myself.

  • I am a senior partner with the law firm McCarthy Tétrault.
  • I am an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School where I teach IP law.
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Reining in the rhetoric on copyright reformReining in the rhetoric on copyright reform

February 8, 2012February 8, 2012 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 4 Comments

This blog post is a longer version of the article entitled This Bill is no SOPA published in the Financial Post  today.

While recent attempts by the usual suspects making hysterical predictions about copyright reform in Canada have been ratcheted up yet again, this time the claims are so outrageous that they can perhaps best be described as having “jumped the shark”. Canadians are being told that Bill C-11, an act to amend Canada’s outdated copyright law, could be used to shut down popular web sites like YouTube, fundamentally change the Internet, sabotage online freedoms, and hog-tie innovators.…

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Some observations on Bill C-11: The Copyright Modernization ActSome observations on Bill C-11: The Copyright Modernization Act

October 3, 2011October 3, 2011 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 6 Comments

Last Thursday the Government of Canada introduced into the House of Commons Bill C-11, an Act to Amend the Copyright Act. In a press release describing the Bill, Heritage Minister James Moore and Industry Minister Christian Paradis, stated that the Bill will ensure that Canada’s copyright laws “are modern, flexible, and in line with current international standards” and will “protect and help create jobs, promote innovation, and attract new investment to Canada.”

In the press conference announcing the Bill at the Ottawa office of software producer bitHeads Inc.,…

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An FAQ on TPMs, Copyright and Bill C-32An FAQ on TPMs, Copyright and Bill C-32

December 14, 2010December 14, 2010 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 0 Comments

This blog post is based on a transcription of the talk I gave last week at the Insight Conference on Rights and Copyright: Bringing Canada into the 21st Century. * I was on a panel with Michael Geist in which we both presented on the topic of “Bill C-32: Legal Protection for TPMs”. The slides I used with my presentation have already been posted here. For convenience they are also at the end of my remarks.

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Welcome. I hope everyone is having a good day so far.…

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Key issues on the legal protection for TPMs under Bill C-32Key issues on the legal protection for TPMs under Bill C-32

December 8, 2010December 8, 2010 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 2 Comments

There has been considerable debate about the appropriate scope for legal protection of TPMs under Bill C-32. I dealt with this issue in a speech I gave today at the Insight Conference:  RIGHTS and COPYRIGHT, Bringing Canada into the 21st Century.

The questions I discussed were the following:

  • Does Bill C-32 properly implement the WIPO Treaties consistent with approaches used by Canada’s trading partners?
  • Does Bill C-32 permit circumvention of TPMs to permit copying for fair dealing, educational and other purposes?
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Separating copyright fiction from facts about C-32’s TPM provisionsSeparating copyright fiction from facts about C-32’s TPM provisions

November 24, 2010November 24, 2010 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 4 Comments

Earlier this week Prof. Geist wrote an opinion piece in the Toronto Star in which he purported to separate “copyright facts from fiction”. His opinion piece, Separating copyright facts from fiction, followed by another blog post this week, The False Link Between Locks and Levies, are two in a series of blog posts and opinion pieces written by him recently that purport to expose as inaccurate statements made about Bill C-32 by various individuals and organizations. See: Responding to ACTRA: Group Calls C-32 a “Disaster” and Proposes Six Part Fix; Copyright Fear Mongering Hits a New High: Writers Groups Post Their C-32 Brief; In Search of A Compromise on Copyright; EU: ACTA Digital Lock Rules Don’t Cover Access Controls.…

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ACTA and TPMsACTA and TPMs

July 20, 2010July 20, 2010 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 0 Comments

The latest draft of the ACTA is publically available. It has undergone significant development since the last publically available version including to one of its most important chapters, the chapter on Special Measures Related to Technological Enforcement of Intellectual Property in the Digital Environment. This is the chapter that includes the obligation of the contracting parties to provide legal protection for TPMs. Despite the changes made to these provisions, it is clear that the countries negotiating the treaty still intend that the contracting parties provide adequate legal protection and effective legal remedies against circumvention related activities that could undermine new and exciting business models that rely on TPMs.…

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Minister Moore’s Speech on C-32Minister Moore’s Speech on C-32

June 23, 2010June 23, 2010 Barry SookmanBarry Sookman 8 Comments

Heritage Minister Moore gave a speech yesterday at a meeting of the The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). His focus was on Bill c-32, the Copyright Modernization Act. He made a number of important remarks about the goals behind the Bill. He also used the occasion to comment on some of the Bill’s main critics Here are some highlights of his speech.

Minister Moore stressed the contribution that the copyright industries make to Canada’s economy noting that they “cannot be underestimated, both in terms of stimulating investment and creating jobs”.…

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