[IP] Canadian ruling on P2P downloading
So they get $ added to equipment and still want to make everything illegal.
Interesting approach of the Canadian music industry
Dave
Delivered-To: dfarber+@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
So they get # added to Date: Fri, 12 Dec 2003 20:08:02 -0500
From: Rick Fulmer <esquire007@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Canadian ruling on P2P downloading
To: "Dave Farber (E-mail)" <farber@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
http://news.com.com/2100-1025-5121479.html?part=dht&tag=ntop
Canada deems P2P downloading legal
By <mailto:jborland@xxxxxxxx?subject=FEEDBACK:Canada deems P2P downloading
legal>John Borland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
<http://news.com.com//2100-1025_3-5121479.html?tag=prntfr>http://news.com.com/2100-1025-5121479.html
Story last modified December 12, 2003, 2:20 PM PST
Downloading copyrighted music from peer-to-peer networks is legal in
Canada, although uploading files is not, Canadian copyright regulators said
in a ruling released Friday.
In the same
<http://dw.com.com/redir?destUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cb-cda.gc.ca%2Fnew-e.html&siteId=3&oId=2102-1025-5121479&ontId=1023&lop=nl_ex>decision,
the Copyright Board of Canada imposed a government fee of as much as $25 on
iPod-like MP3 players, putting the devices in the same category as audio
tapes and blank CDs. The money collected from levies on "recording mediums"
goes into a fund to pay musicians and songwriters for revenues lost from
consumers' personal copying. Manufacturers are responsible for paying the
fees and often pass the cost on to consumers.
The peer-to-peer component of the decision was prompted by questions from
consumer and entertainment groups about ambiguous elements of Canadian law.
Previously, most analysts had said uploading was illegal but that
<http://news.com.com//2008-1028-5097180.html?tag=nl>downloading for
personal use might be allowed.
"As far as computer hard drives are concerned, we say that for the time
being, it is still legal," said Claude Majeau, secretary general of the
Copyright Board.
The decision is likely to ruffle feathers on many sides, from
consumer-electronics sellers worried about declining sales to international
entertainment companies worried about the spread of peer-to-peer networks.
Copyright holder groups such as the Recording Industry Association of
America (<http://news.com.com//2100-1027-5113188.html?tag=nl>RIAA) had
already been critical of Canada's copyright laws, in large part because the
country has not instituted provisions similar to those found in the
<http://news.com.com//2008-1025-5101389.html?tag=nl>U.S. Digital Millennium
Copyright Act. One portion of that law makes it illegal to break, or to
distribute tools for breaking, digital copy protection mechanisms, such as
the technology used to protect DVDs from piracy.
A lawyer for the Canadian record industry's trade association said the
group still believed downloading was illegal, despite the decision.
"Our position is that under Canadian law, downloading is also prohibited,"
said Richard Pfohl, general counsel for the Canadian Recording Industry
Association. "This is the opinion of the Copyright Board, but Canadian
courts will decide this issue."
In its decision Friday, the Copyright Board said uploading or distributing
copyrighted works online appeared to be prohibited under current Canadian law.
However, the country's copyright law does allow making a copy for personal
use and does not address the source of that copy or whether the original
has to be an authorized or noninfringing version, the board said.
Under those laws, certain media are designated as appropriate for making
personal copies of music, and producers pay a per-unit fee into a pool
designed to compensate musicians and songwriters. Most audio tapes and CDs,
and now MP3 players, are included in that category. Other mediums, such as
DVDs, are not deemed appropriate for personal copying.
Computer hard drives have never been reviewed under that provision,
however. In its decision Friday, the board decided to allow personal copies
on a hard drive until a fee ruling is made specifically on that medium or
until the courts or legislature tell regulators to rule otherwise.
"Until such time, as a decision is made on hard drives, for the time being,
(we are ruling) in favor of consumers," Majeau said.
Legal analysts said that courts would likely rule on the file-swapping
issue later, despite Friday's opinion.
"I think it is pretty significant," Michael Geist, a law professor at the
University of Ottawa, said. "It's not that the issue is resolved...I think
that sooner or later, courts will sound off on the issue. But one thing
they will take into consideration is the Copyright Board ruling."
Friday's decision will also impose a substantial surcharge on hard
drive-based music players such as
<http://news.com.com//2100-1027-5112066.html?tag=nl>Apple Computer's iPod
or the new Samsung Napster player for the first time. MP3 players with up
to 10GB of memory will have an added levy of $15 added to their price,
while larger players will see $25 added on top of the wholesale price.
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