Heritage Committee Copyright Hearing,
Posted by: Jason Young on
The questions to the Minister focused
mainly on the WIPO treaties and why the Government still has not ratified. The
Minister expressed regret and blamed the slow process on the “machinery of
government”. The minister is a strong proponent of the treaty and promised to
do everything in her powers to push through with ratification....
Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage Meeting No. 57
Room 308, West Block
Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC)
Student Correspondent: Michael Yang
Members of parliament present:
Clifford Lincoln (Chair, Lib), Paul Bonwick (Lib),
Carole-Marie Allard (Lib),
Liza Frulla (Lib), Alex
Shepherd (Lib), Jim Abbott (CA),
Christiane Gagnon (BQ).
Orders of the day:
Statutory review of the Copyright Act, Section 92.
Witnesses:
1. Department of Canadian Heritage, Hon. Sheila Copps,
Minister
2. Neighbouring Rights Collective of
3. Canadian Recording Industry Association
4. Association québécoise de l’industrie du disque, du spectacle et de la vidéo
(ADISQ)
5. Société professionnelle des auteurs et des compositeurs du Québec et Société
du droit de reproduction des auteurs, compositeurs et éditeurs au Canada
6. Copyright Consortium
of the Council of Ministers of Education,
Commentary:
The room was packed with people because Minister Copps
made an unscheduled appearance and was available to take questions from MPs and
witnesses.
The questions to the Minister focused mainly on the WIPO treaties and why the
Government still has not ratified. The Minister expressed regret and blamed the
slow process on the “machinery of government”. The minister is a strong
proponent of the treaty and promised to do everything in her powers to push
through with ratification.
The Councils of Ministers of Education was the only party present who took an
opposing view towards ratification of WIPO treaties. It advocated a
“wait-and-see” approach citing an article written by Professor Michael Geist for support. The committee rebuked their position by
asking how long should the copyright holders suffer before the government took
action to protect their rights?
The focus of the hearing was diverted somewhat by Paul Bonwick,
who talked about the illegal black market satellite situation that is currently
plaguing the Canadian Broadcasting Industry.
In all, the Minister spoke with the various MPs and witness for about an hour
before departing. This left only one hour for the witnesses to speak. The Chair
decided to extend the hearing by 30 minutes to allow for questions by the MPs.
Due to the time constraints, each witness spoke very quickly, most reading
directly off their notes. The interpreters sometimes had problems keeping up.
Surprisingly each party appeared to be fairly disinterested in each other’s
position. For example, Mr. Robertson, President of the Canadian Recording
Industry Association, after addressing the committee for about 15 minutes
played with his Blackberry for the rest of the hearing.
I also sensed some distrust amongst various groups. For example, when the
committee asked if anyone had a problem with the Music Industry representatives
who volunteered to submit a draft legislation to help the process along, the
Council of Ministers of Education objected and asked to submit their own draft.
Questions and Answers:
Abbott (CA): to Minister Copps
· Regarding fees, you recommend more governmental
analysis and consultation. I find it astounding that you would recommend this
after all the work that has already been done.
Ans: The problem is that two positions conflict: the
position of the Heritage Department and the one of Industry
Bonwick (Lib): to Minister Copps
· You didn’t address the issue of black market
satellite reception.
Ans: Satellites are under Industry’s purview. I can’t
take the legislation forward for that reason, but if this committee was to
“pack the snowballs, I could throw them”. As for the World Intellectual
Property Organization Treaty, it would be the happiest day in my life if it
were to be ratified.
Frulla (Lib): to the Canadian Recording Industry
Association
· We can’t seem to get a draft document together to
work on, would it be possible for you to put together such a document for us to
consider?
Ans: Absolutely. We could bring it forward in two
weeks.
Bonwick (Lib):
· Concerning the black market of satellite signals and the “machinery of
government” problem that the Minister has raised, would the Chair of this
committee consider sending a letter to the PMO in order to make things move
forward?
· Since we don’t have quorum at this moment, I can’t decide without consulting
with the other members of this committee. I will however write to the other
members to see what they think.
Bonwick (Lib): to the Copyright Consortium of the
council of Ministers of Education, Canada
· You keep saying that we are fast-tracking the process on the ratification of
the WIPO Treaty, but this has been a 6 year process and the way things are
going now, this could be dealt with in the Fall of 2005. I don’t consider this
fast-tracking the process at all. This is the reason why we have asked interest
groups to help us get the process kick started by providing us with a draft legislation.
Ans: The problem is that M. Robinson’s (representing
the Canadian Recording Industry) draft legislation will deal with rights
without balancing fair use. We feel that our point of view will not be
represented.
Lincold (Lib):
· You can also provide a draft if you like. We will consider
M. Robinson’s draft recommendation but it will not be adopted as such without
review.
Ans: Thank you, in that case we will also provide a
draft.
Note: Source: CIPPIC. Special thanks to Christian Villeneuve
for his assistance.