Canadian copyright reform bill to lock down digital content

A sweeping copyright reform bill officially introduced in the Canadian Parliament yesterday would impose stiff penalties on individuals circumventing DRM protection, including on TV programming, and would illegalize DRM-breaking tools.

Canada's Industry Minister Jim Prentice (Con. - Alberta) and Heritage Minister Josee Verner (Con. - Quebec) have introduced a copyright reform bill that updates regulations on digital rights management, file sharing, and penalties associated with trading copyrighted materials.

If Parliament passes bill C-61, it will amend the Copyright Act which has remained unchanged since 1997. Contained within C-61 are clauses which allow citizens to copy legally-acquired materials (music, books, newspapers, videocassettes, photographs) onto various devices and make backups.

"Time shifted" television programs received their own set of rules, disallowing them to be kept indefinitely. Any digital "content locks," including DRM on music files or flags on DVR-recorded television programs will be final and attempts to circumvent them will be made illegal. There is also a ban proposed upon tools that break any of these locks.

Downloaders of illegal content under the reform will be charged no more than $500, but those who distribute content over peer-to-peer services, or post content on sites such as YouTube or Facebook, could be fined up to $20,000 per copyrighted song/video shared. Those wishing to distribute their own content through P2P services still have that right.

In a mass e-mailing where Mr. Prentice explained some aspects of what the bill is and is not, it includes the quite humorous passage: "What Bill C-61 does not do: it would not empower border agents to seize your iPod or laptop at border crossings, contrary to recent public speculation."

It also goes on to clarify that the proposed legislation is a "Made in Canada" document, and not a mirror image of US copyright laws.

The final passage is meant to address critics of the bill, which includes the Canadian Music Creators Coalition of nearly 200 Canadian musicians and artists who proclaim "It's a new world for the music business, and this is an old approach."

Brandon Canning, a member of the Canadian rock band Broken Social Scene, said, "The question is, who gains from this bill? It's not musicians.  Musicians don't need lawsuits, we don't need DRM protection.  These aren't the things that help us or our careers.  What we do need is a government that is willing to sit down with all the stakeholders and craft a balanced copyright policy for Canada that will not repeat the mistakes made in the United States."