Copyright Board of Canada begins reform consultations
By Adnews Staff
The Ottawa-based Copyright Board of Canada has opened a public consultation into possible reforms of the organization's decision making process. The board establishes royalties for the use of copyrighted content in areas including music streaming, the public performance of music, educational copying and the retransmission of television signals.
According to the organization, it is pursuing reforms intended to enable creators to receive their proper payments in a more timely fashion and with fewer legal fees. The Government of Canada has issued a discussion paper presenting 13 possible options for legislative and regulatory reforms. The consultation process is intended to permit the submission of additional reform options. The consultations will run from Aug. 9 to Sept. 29.
"The Copyright Board of Canada plays a critical role in our copyright regime," said Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development. "In order to thrive in the digital economy, we need to create a more efficient and effective tariff-setting process to facilitate innovation and business growth. A modern Copyright Board will better support both creators and users of copyrighted content by providing them with an efficient, transparent, stable and predictable regulatory environment."