Citizen Bane

I don’t know how many of you are following the plight of Canadian copyright reform.  I am.  I’m not sure why; I have no stake per se.  I do not produce content on which I rely on copyright enforcement for remuneration.  As far as I’m concerned the material I produce at least with respect to my writing on this blog is Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives,  meaning pass it around as much as you want for free, but mention my name, don’t charge money for it and don’t alter it or add to it.  It is what it is.  I suppose my interest in copyright and copyright laws stem from the implications it has on us in everyday life, especially the implication to those of us who contribute content to the internet.

I am deeply concerned about the direction the powers that be in Canada are taking our copyright policy.  For a long time Canada has been in need of new copyright legislation.  Our current laws are archaic and in need of an overhaul.  As a result, the last few governments have had on their collective agendas the idea of overhauling copyright in Canada.  Unfortunately and unsurprisingly this was the catalyst for just about every anti-piracy pro-copyright lobbyist and organization in North America to start sinking their hooks in the Canadian law makers and asserting their influence.  In the end, what should have become an opportunity for Canada to present the world with a model for copyright reform that faces forward and revolutionizes the concept, instead has become a farce.

As I reflect on the last few years that Canadian copyright reform has been in the media, I am very discouraged.  What started as an opportunity for something good has gradually begun to become more and more disturbing and deeply concerning.  Most recently in the news has been coverage of the secret closed door negotiations on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).  With these negotiations of which Canada is a participant, our country is moving closer to a heavily American influenced quasi-DMCA type of copyright law.

What would this mean for Canadians?  To be honest, I don’t know.  But concepts are being thrown around similar to the three strikes policy already in place in countries such as France (and soon the United Kingdom).  This concept being when internet users are assumed to be infringing on copyrights or conducting internet piracy, offenders will be given two warnings, then after their third get disconnected from the Internet for one year, three strikes and you’re out.

The ACTA treaty would dissolve the “Safe Harbour” principal currently enjoyed by internet service providers.  Meaning ISP’s are not responsible for the actions of their subscribers.  ACTA will remove this “Safe Harbour” and ultimately force ISP’s to police their subscribers for illegal activity. If you life in a household that gets disconnected, it’s not just the perpetrator that suffers, it’s everyone in the family. We live in a society that is so “connected” to have our internet access cut for one year would be “massively scary shit”.

Outright internet piracy aside, the current path copyright is going down with do nothing but restrict creativity and free thought for fear of inadvertently infringing on someone’s copyright.  The ultimate effect will be the dissolution of the internet as we know it.  With the penalty being so severe, so much open communication will come grinding to a halt.  It’s very sad.  The internet will turn into one big commercial machine with the giant media enterprises pumping paid content out to the sheep, er… subscribers.  Instead of moving to a progressive model for copyright, we’re moving back to a 1970’s fear mongering approach that clamps down on any freedoms and punishes customers.

An excellent resource for all things Canadian copyright is Dr. Michael Geist’s blog.  Michael is a law professor at the University of Ottawa where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law. He has obtained a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree from Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, Master of Laws (LL.M.) degrees from Cambridge University in the UK and Columbia Law School in New York, and a Doctorate in Law (J.S.D.) from Columbia Law School.  Michael Geist is in my opinion without equal the foremost expert on copyright law in Canada.

Go to his site www.MichaelGeist.ca and read it! I urge everyone to start educating yourself as to how this is unfolding.  If you value your freedom of expression and you feel that the Internet is as sacred as I do, make your voice heard.  Ask your Member of Parliment about copyright reform.  Voice your disapproval to the ACTA.  Voice your disapproval of a DMCA look-a-like in Canada.  Support Creative Commons, it works.  Make yourself heard.