Two links about the today's copyright reform

Government ready to drop copyright bomb (CBC)

Cory Doctorow's blog


Update: If you happen to be in Montreal tonight, a local Fair Copyright for Canada chapter is holding a letter writing party and information session (Facebook event).

As expected, here's the nasty bit of today's proposed Copyright Reform

The government press release for today's copyright reform contains the following "talking point":

The proposed amendments include:

* new exceptions that will allow Canadian consumers to legally record television shows for later viewing and copy legally acquired music onto other devices, such as iPods or cellphones;

However, according to the Globe and Mail's article:

Also, as long as consumers don't attempt to circumvent the digital rights management (DRM) technology, they can transfer media files them from their PC to their portable device without worrying. The new bill would make it illegal to provide market or import tools “designed to enable circumvention.”

Looks like the G&M has it right. Reading the text of Bill C-61, Section 27, subsection (2) of the Copyright Act will be changed to indicate that it is an infringement:

(f) to circumvent or contravene any measure taken in conformity with paragraph 30.01(5)(b), (c) or (d).

So if you legally buy a CD, you're only allowed to copy it to your PC or digital device if the record companies let you. What do you want to bet that every major CD will come with copy protection now? Many of them already do.

I'm waiting to read the bill before commenting on other aspects, but it sounds like the part to which I most objected has been included. Michael Geist has done a quick analysis, and it looks like they're trying hard to spin this as positively as they can without making any changes to the consumer-screwing aspects of the bill.

As Geist says:

The digital lock provisions are worse than the DMCA. Yes - worse. (...) The effect of these provisions will be to make Canadians infringers for a host of activities that are common today including watching out-of-region-coded DVDs, copying and pasting materials from a DRM'd book, or even unlocking a cellphone.  The liability for picking the digital lock is up to $20,000 per infringement.

Letter from Industry Minister Jim Prentice. Mind the spin.

I just received a letter from Industry Minister Jim Prentice explaining the "features" of today's copyright reform. I can't believe the blatantly dishonest statements included within it.

( The letter... )

On a related note, the Canadian Library Association has once again come out against this bill, now that it has been tabled.

My grandmother will be pissed! (Bill C-61)

According to section 29, subsection 23 (d), Bill C-61 would make it legal to record TV shows but only if:

(d) the individual keeps the recording no longer than necessary in order to listen to or watch the program at a more convenient time;

So once you have watched your recorded show once, you must erase the recording immediately.

If this bill passes unchanged, my grandmother will be breaking the law on a daily basis!