[d@DCC] Bill C-36: Copyright term extension

From: Matthew Skala <mskala _-at-_ ansuz.sooke.bc.ca>
To: discuss (at) digital-copyright.ca
Date: Fri, 9 May 2003 11:14:14 -0400 (EDT)

Today's ILN highlights Bill C-36, introduced yesterday in the House of
Commons.  Some very brief comments, with links, here:
   http://ansuz.sooke.bc.ca/lw/?id=2003050901

This Bill extends copyright for unpublished works.  It also apparently
extends the copyright for some published works that were published
posthumously.  It doesn't have the sweeping application to almost
everything that the US Sonny Bono Act has.

I'm surprised I haven't heard anything about this Bill before today.
There was apparently an Industry Canada comment process about copyright on
unpublished works, but I don't remember hearing about that either until
today, and the deadline for comments was March 7.  I don't think this was
ever posted to this list before now.  Are other participants aware of it?

Before we get too upset about Bill C-36, I think we should analyse it
carefully, because it contains a bunch of other terms that may be
significant too.  On balance, Bill C-36 might even be one I'd support.
For instance, in my quick skim of it just now (I won't have much time
until Sunday to take a close look), I see that it has terms for requiring
the holders of an old recording to give a maximum-quality copy to the
National Archives, so that it can be kept available to the public.  That
sounds like a Very Good Thing as far as I'm concerned.

I'd love to hear other people's analysis of this Bill.
-- 
Matthew Skala, CS PhD student, University of Waterloo
mskala@math.uwaterloo.ca  <-- school
mskala@ansuz.sooke.bc.ca  <-- home
http://ansuz.sooke.bc.ca/   http://www.edifyingfellowship.org/

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