Response to Provincial and Territorial Government Tariff Decision
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
(May 27, 2015) The value of flexible content use is without question, however copyright must work for everyone—the users, creators and publishers of content—or it won't work for anyone.
The Copyright Board of Canada’s decision, May 22, in the Access Copyright Provincial and Territorial Governments Tariff, 2005-2009 and 2010-2014, does not achieve that goal.
If the decision stands, those who rely on timely, accurate, high-quality Canadian content will suffer along with the creators and publishers of that content. The published material that is used without compensation today will not be replaced tomorrow.
In its decision, we believe the Copyright Board incorrectly assessed “insubstantial copying” and “fair dealing” and applied significant discounts to the royalty rate as a result. However, the Board also reiterated that “fair dealing” is a matter of impression based on the facts of the case before it.
The facts assessed for the Provincial and Territorial Governments Tariff differ from those that will be assessed for pending or subsequent proceedings in other sectors. The copyright and content needs of educators, for example, are unlike those of government employees—the dissemination of readings being a more integral part of teaching and learning.
Continued access to valued Canadian content can only be sustained if our system combines flexible content use with fair rewards for creators and publishers. For these reasons, Access Copyright is assessing all options for appeal.
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For nearly 30 years Access Copyright has been helping people remix and share published content while ensuring that the original creators and publishers are also rewarded, so that they can continue creating new and innovative works.
We understand that good content is further enriched when people can use it interactively. The parts we select and share—as educators, students, colleagues or friends—reveal our unique perspective about what’s important, interesting, even beautiful. That’s why Access Copyright is dedicated to finding new and innovative ways to serve our customers’ content and copyright needs.
Media Enquiries to:
Robert Gilbert
Access Copyright
416-868-1620 x 283
media@accesscopyright.ca