Canadian ruling on P2P downloading

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

So they get $ added to equipment and still want to make everything illegal. 
Interesting approach of the Canadian music industry

Dave


Delivered-To: dfarber+ () ux13 sp cs cmu edu
So they get # added to Date: Fri, 12 Dec 2003 20:08:02 -0500
From: Rick Fulmer <esquire007 () bellsouth net>
Subject: Canadian ruling on P2P downloading
To: "Dave Farber (E-mail)" <farber () cis upenn edu>

http://news.com.com/2100-1025-5121479.html?part=dht&tag=ntop


Canada deems P2P downloading legal


By <mailto:jborland () cnet com?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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