Canadian Tech Law in 2005 From A to Z

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Michael Geist <mgeist () pobox com>
Date: December 26, 2005 9:38:29 AM EST
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Canadian Tech Law in 2005 From A to Z

Dave,

Of possible interest to IP - my last weekly Law Bytes column of 2005,  
features my annual A to Z review of the year in Canadian law and  
technology.  From legislative proposals involving copyright, network  
surveillance, and Internet pharmacies to case law focused on popular  
consumer products such as the Apple iPod and the Lego brand of toy  
blocks, there were few dull moments this past year.

Toronto Star version at
http://geist2005yearinreview.notlong.com/

Freely available version at
http://www.michaelgeist.ca/index.php? 
option=com_content&task=view&id=1048

Best wishes for a happy holidays and a great 2006.

MG

CANADIAN TECH LAW IN 2005 FROM A TO Z

As 2005 comes to a close, my annual A to Z review of the year in  
Canadian law and technology reveals a remarkably busy twelve months.   
From legislative proposals involving copyright, network  
surveillance, and Internet pharmacies to case law focused on popular  
consumer products such as the Apple iPod and the Lego brand of toy  
blocks, there were few dull moments this past year.

A is for the Apple iPod, which the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed  
in July would not be subject to the private copying levy when it  
declined to hear an appeal of a case involving copyright levies on  
digital audio players. In response to concerns that the decision  
rendered consumer copying of music from store-bought CDs to iPods  
unlawful, the Canadian Recording Industry Association undertook not  
to launch any lawsuits over such copying.

B is for Paul Bryan, a British Columbia resident who unsuccessfully  
challenged the constitutionality of the Canada Election Act's  
prohibition on Internet disclosures of election results before polls  
close nationwide.  In December, the Supreme Court of Canada agreed to  
hear an appeal of the decision sometime in 2006.

C is for a handful of technology law bills introduced in 2005 in the  
House of Commons including Bill C-60 (digital copyright), Bill C-74  
(lawful access), and Bill C-83 (Internet pharmacies).  All three  
bills died on the order paper with the late November election call.

D is for the do-not-call list, legislation which the Senate passed  
just minutes before closing down for the election.  Critics expressed  
skepticism about the bill's effectiveness after lobby groups  
succeeded in obtaining a broad range of exceptions.

E is for education and copyright, the source of a heated public  
relations battle between education groups and copyright collectives.  
The government had promised a fall public consultation on the issue  
that never materialized.

F is for file sharing litigation, which continued with CRIA's appeal  
of a lower court decision denying a demand to compel five ISPs to  
disclose the identity of 29 alleged file sharers. The Federal Court  
of Appeal affirmed the denial, though it opened the door to future  
lawsuits.

G is for the Gomery Report and the failed publication ban on Jean  
Brault's testimony.  Within hours of his inquiry appearance, details  
on the testimony were posted on the Internet by a U.S. blogger.

H is for Harry Potter and the Raincoast Books injunction that ordered  
13 purchasers to return their copies and prohibited reading the best  
seller before its official distribution date.

I for Internet telephony and the Canadian Radio-television and  
Telecommunications Commission May decision that left software-based  
services such as Skype unregulated, yet determined that incumbent  
telecommunications providers would be subject to regulatory  
oversight.  Several providers asked the government to review the  
decision.

J is for a threatened lawsuit by the Jehovah's Witnesses' Watch Tower  
Society against a Toronto-based website owner who posted excerpts of  
religious texts online. The Society claims copyright and trademark  
infringement, arguing that the postings were meant to embarrass the  
Society.

K is for keystroke logging, an invasive technology that enables  
employers to track their employees' computer use.  In June, Alberta  
Privacy Commissioner Frank established limits on the use of the  
technology after a library employee filed a complaint.

L is Lego, which lost a Supreme Court of Canada decision over whether  
it could use trademark law to stop Mega Blocks, a Canadian toy  
manufacturer, from replicating its toy building blocks.  The Canadian  
high court rejected Lego's arguments, warning against over-protective  
intellectual property laws.

M is for Member of Parliament domain names, several of which were  
scooped up by a group opposed to same sex marriage legislation.  The  
development generated discussion in the House of Commons and also a  
new political awareness of the need to renew domain name registrations.

N is for the New York Post, which found itself on the losing end of a  
legal fight with former Vancouver Canucks General Manager Brian  
Burke.  Burke sued the Post for Internet defamation in the B.C.  
courts, which asserted jurisdiction over the matter despite the  
objections of the paper.

O is for Online Rights Canada, a new grassroots Canadian online civil  
liberties group formed in December by the Canadian Internet Policy  
and Public Interest Clinic and the U.S.-based Electronic Frontier  
Foundation.

P is for Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart, who was stunned to  
find herself on the front cover a national newsmagazine after a  
reporter was able to access her detailed phone and cellphone records  
from a U.S. online data broker.  The matter remains the subject of a  
cross-border investigation.

Q is for Quebec v. Produits Metalliques CMP, a February Quebec court  
case that held a company liable for failing to provide a French  
version of its website. The court ruled that French language laws can  
be broadly interpreted to cover online content and that the company  
had ignored the law for seven years despite repeated requests to comply.

R is for Sony BMG's rootkit, a copy-control technology that was  
inserted into dozens of CDs and then secretly installed in more than  
500,000 computers worldwide.  Sony recalled millions of CDs after a  
security researcher discovered that the technology posed a  
significant security risk.

S is for the Spam Task Force, which released its final report in  
May.  The report called on the government to introduce tough anti- 
spam legislation backed by significant new financial penalties.

T is for the Telecommunications Policy Review Panel, which conducted  
a comprehensive review of Canadian telecommunications law.  The Panel  
is scheduled to release its report early next year.

U is for a University Affairs editorial published by National Science  
Advisor Arthur Carty that promoted a "culture of sharing" within the  
scientific community. Carty urged funding agencies to embrace open  
access models to better ensure that scientific results becomes widely  
disseminated.

V is for the Voices for Change website, which was blocked by Telus  
during a contentious labour dispute.  The Telus blockage also  
eliminated access to more than 600 additional websites that shared  
the same IP address.

W is for the Washington Post, which successfully appealed a lower  
court decision involving a defamation claim over an article first  
published in mid-1990s.  The plaintiff argued that Ontario was a  
suitable jurisdiction to hear the case since the article remained  
available online.

X is for XM Radio, one of three successful bidders for satellite  
radio licenses.  The CRTC decision, including the establishment of  
media-specific Canadian content requirements, led to a flurry of  
lobbying activity as the government briefly contemplated asking the  
Commission to re-consider its decision.

Y is for Yukon as well as other northern Canadian communities that  
stand to benefit from a broadband initiative unveiled in the fall.   
The initiative seeks to provide high-speed Internet access to dozens  
of remote towns and villages.

Z is for Ernst Zundel, who was deported to Germany in February  
following a lengthy battle over Internet hate content.

Michael Geist holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E- 
commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law. He can  
reached at mgeist () uottawa ca or online at www.michaelgeist.ca.

--
**********************************************************************
Professor Michael A. Geist
Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law
University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law
57 Louis Pasteur St., Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 6N5
Tel: 613-562-5800, x3319     Fax: 613-562-5124
mgeist () pobox com              http://www.michaelgeist.ca


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