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FROM THE OFFICES OF LESLEY ELLEN HARRIS
Copyright, New Media Law & E-Commerce News
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Vol. 7, No. 1, April 1, 2003
ISSN 1489-954X
Contents:
1. Studies, Legislation and Conventions:
WIPO meeting on cultural property
Industry Canada releases e-commerce code of practice
U.S. Copyright Office posts DMCA exemption comments
Copyright amendment bill in force
2. Legal Cases:
Norwegian teenager cleared of DVD piracy case
Chinese Museum Loses Copyright Suit
US court orders ISP to reveal customer identity
Japan arrests 2 over pirated DVDs
Canadian Supreme Court grants leave in Tariff 22 case
3. Of Interest:
British Universities may be sued over music downloads
Canada Book Week copyright contests
4. Publications and Web sites:
Digital licensing course in NYC
Online digital licensing course
Copyright Risk Management
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Copyright, New Media & E-Commerce News is distributed for free by the office
of Lesley Ellen Harris. Information contained herein should not be relied upon
or considered as legal advice. Copyright 2003 Lesley Ellen Harris. This
newsletter may be forwarded, downloaded or reproduced in whole in any print or
electronic format for non-commercial purposes provided that its author is
acknowledged and that you cc: [log in to unmask]
This newsletter is archived with the National Library of Canada at:
http://collection.nlc-bnc.ca/100/202/300/copyright-a/index.html
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1. STUDIES, LEGISLATION AND CONVENTIONS:
WIPO MEETING ON CULTURAL PROPERTY - The World Intellectual Property Office's
intergovernmental committee met in December 2002 to discuss the protection of
folklore and traditional cultural expressions. Papers included an overview of
intellectual property protections for cultural expression, and protection for
aboriginal folklore from Australia. See:
http://www.wipo.int/globalissues/cultural/index.html.
INDUSTRY CANADA RELEASES E-COMMERCE CODE OF PRACTICE - Industry Canada has
released the Canadian Code of Practice for Consumer Protection in Electronic
Commerce. The Code establishes benchmarks and best practices for companies
that sell goods or services to consumers via the Internet. The Code is
undergoing pilot testing in a number of sectors, and the reviewed code will be
available for endorsement from July to September 2003. The revised Code will
be published in the fall of 2003.
The code of practice is at:
http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/SSI/ca/consumerprotection03.pdf.
U.S. COPYRIGHT OFFICE POSTS DMCA EXEMPTION COMMENTS - The U.S. Copyright
Office has posted comments it received on exemptions to the Digital Millennium
Copyright Act ("DMCA"). See:
http://www.copyright.gov/1201/2003/reply/reply1.html.
COPYRIGHT AMENDMENT BILL IN FORCE - On March 21, 2003, Bill C-11, An Act to
Amend the Copyright Act, came into force. The Bill extends copyright
protection in the digital environment, particularly with respect to Internet-
based re-transmission.
For the text of the Bill, see:
http://www.parl.gc.ca/37/2/parlbus/chambus/house/bills/government/C-11/C-
11_4/90174bE.html.
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2. LEGAL CASES:
NORWEGIAN TEENAGER CLEARED OF DVD PIRACY CASE - Jon Johansen, known as "DVD
Jon", has been cleared of criminal charges relating to DVD piracy in a
landmark case. Johansen, then 15 years old, developed and distributed a
software program that enabled users to crack a DVD's anti-copying code and
copy DVDs without authorization. The prosecution was brought after the U.S.-
based Motion Picture Association complained about DeCSS, Johansen's program.
Hackers claim that DeCSS, and software like it, is an act of intellectual
freedom rather than copyright theft.
CHINESE MUSEUM LOSES COPYRIGHT SUIT - The Museum of Chinese Revolution has
been ordered to pay an artist's family US$31,000, after it sold copies of the
artist's portrait of Mao Zedong without the artist's permission.
US COURT ORDERS ISP TO REVEAL CUSTOMER IDENTITY - On January 21, 2003, a US
judge ordered Verizon, an Internet Service Provider, to reveal the identity of
a subscriber who is suspected of making available hundreds of illegally
downloaded songs on his or her Web site. The case was brought under the
Digital Millennium Copyright Act's fast track subpoena process, through which
Internet service providers can be compelled to turn over subscriber
information without requiring a copyright holder to file a lawsuit. Verizon
has said that it will appeal the ruling, stating, "It opens the door for
anyone who makes a mere allegation of copyright infringement to gain complete
access to private subscriber information without the due process protections
afforded by the courts."
JAPAN ARRESTS 2 OVER PIRATED DVDS - An executive and employee of a computer
software retailer in Japan have been arrested on suspicion of selling pirated
music DVDs via an Internet auction site. The arrests mark the first time that
Japanese police have taken action against people suspected of pirating DVDs.
CANADIAN SUPREME COURT GRANTS LEAVE IN TARIFF 22 CASE - The Supreme Court of
Canada has granted leave to appeal in the Tariff 22 case. Tariff 22 was
proposed by the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada
("SOCAN") in 1995, and would require Internet Service Providers ("ISPs") that
cache music files on their servers to pay royalties to SOCAN members. Last
May, the Federal Court of Canada ruled that while ISPs should not be charged
simply for carrying files, they should pay royalties when they cached these
files.
For the Federal Court decision, see http://decisions.fct-
cf.gc.ca/fct/2002/2002fct166.html.
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3. OF INTEREST:
BRITISH UNIVERSITIES MAY BE SUED OVER MUSIC DOWNLOADS - The British music
industry is threatening legal action against British universities, who they
claim are allowing students to illegally download music files from the
Internet via university-provided computer networks. The British Phonographic
Industry sent letters to every British university reminding them that
unlicensed Internet copying is illegal, and that they will face legal action
if they continue to allow students to copy music. Universities argue that they
already have conditions of use in place that forbid students to download music
illegally.
CANADA BOOK WEEK COPYRIGHT CONTESTS - As part of Canada Book Week (April 21-
27, 2003), the Writers' Trust of Canada and Access Copyright is holding
copyright contests with book and cash prizes. High school librarians are
challenged to create an imaginative project on copyright for students at their
school, and high school students can write an original, creative fable or
fairy-tale about Canada's copyright law. To read the interesting winning
poems and essays from 2003, see: http://www.copyrightlawskids.com. For more
about the 2003 competitions, see: http://www.canadabookweek.com/contests.asp.
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4. PUBLICATIONS AND WEB SITES:
DIGITAL LICENSING COURSE IN NYC - Lesley Ellen Harris is teaching a course on
Digital Licensing in NYC on Wednesday May 14, 2003. Full information is at:
http://www.nynma.org.
ONLINE DIGITAL LICENSING COURSE - For those who cannot make the NYC course, or
would prefer to take the course online, Lesley is also teaching an online
version, starting April 14, 2003. Full information is at:
http://www.acteva.com/go/copyright. The course is primarily geared towards
librarians and other licensees but would be appropriate for anyone who needs
to know the basics and beyond re digital licensing. This is a 27 lesson course
and will be more detailed than the 3 hour in-person course, and includes
access to a "private" licensing list serv during the duration of the course.
COPYRIGHT RISK MANAGEMENT - Volume 2002, Issue 4, of The Copyright & New Media
Law Newsletter, included an editorial on copyright risk management. If you
would like a copy of this editorial, please email:
[log in to unmask]
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This newsletter is prepared by Lesley Ellen Harris, a Copyright and New Media
Lawyer and Consultant. Lesley is the author of the books Canadian Copyright
Law (McGrawHill); Digital Licensing: A Practical Guide for Librarians (ALA
Editions); and Digital Property: Currency of the 21st Century (McGrawHill).
Lesley may be reached at [log in to unmask], and at
http://copyrightlaws.com.
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This LEH-Letter issue was prepared with the help of Beth Davies.
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