More Analysis of Canada's Proposed Copyright Amendments

Last week, the federal government introduced Bill C-32, An Act to Amend the Copyright Act.

Reactions continue:

• Grassroots Advocacy: Fix C-32 (Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic): "We've looked at Bill C-32, the Copyright Modernization Act, and concluded that it's a case of Jekyll and Hyde: it's not all bad, but it certainly isn't all good. CIPPIC is prepared to support the Bill provided that Parliament fixes its worst, most unbalanced aspects - such as those dealing with digital locks."
• Copyright bill restricts user rights, research and innovation (Canadian Association of University Teachers): "(...) CAUT and many other participants emphasized that fair dealing — the right to reproduce copyrighted work without permission or payment in certain circumstances such as research, private study, criticism, review or news reporting – needed to be expanded and protected in the digital age (...) the bill prohibits the circumvention of digital encryption — any device or technology that prevents copying. This means material that is in a paper format and can be legally copied now under fair dealing, cannot be copied for any reason, including educational or research purposes, if it is in electronic format and digitally encrypted. "
• CMEC Copyright Consortium Pleased with New Federal Copyright Legislation (Council of Ministers of Education): " Ministers of education across Canada responded positively to the tabling of new federal copyright legislation in Ottawa yesterday. The Copyright Consortium of the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC), supports the copyright legislation because it allows students and educators in elementary and secondary schools, colleges, and universities to have fair and reasonable access to publicly available Internet materials in their educational pursuits. "
• Setting the Record Straight: 32 Questions and Answers on C-32's Digital Lock Provisions, Part One (Michael Geist, University of Ottawa, June 7, 2010): "The digital lock provisions have quickly emerged as the most contentious part of Bill C-32, the new copyright bill (...) The mounting public concern with the digital lock provisions (many supporters of the bill have expressed serious misgivings about the digital lock component) has led to many questions as well as attempts to characterize public concerns as myths. In effort to set the record straight, I have compiled 32 questions and answers about the digital lock provisions found in C-32. The result is quite lengthy, so I will divide the issues into five separate posts over the next five days: (1) general questions about the C-32 approach; (2) the exceptions in C-32; (3) the missing exceptions; (4) the consumer provisions; and (5) the business provisions. "
• Setting the Record Straight: 32 Questions and Answers on C-32's Digital Lock Provisions, Part Two (Michael Geist, June 9, 2010)

Earlier Library Boy posts on the topic of Bill C-32:

• Information on Canada's Proposed Copyright Modernization Act (June 3, 2010)
• Canadian Library Association Reaction to New Copyright Bill (June 6, 2010)