Three things you can do this summer to help fix copyright this fall

Wednesday, August 7, 2024

This fall offers a critical opportunity for the federal government to finally take action and get the job of repairing the Copyright Act done.

The government has acknowledged that the marketplace for published works for the education sector in Canada is broken, and that our copyright regime no longer encourages the continued creation of Canadian published works, particularly as it relates to materials that bring classroom instruction to life.

Canadian creators and publishers have been waiting now for over a decade to be fairly compensated when their published works are copied in educational institutions outside of Quebec.

In 2022, the government committed “to [ensure] that the Copyright Act protects all creators and copyright holders…. [and] ensure a sustainable educational publishing industry, including fair remuneration for creators and copyright holders, as well as a modern and innovative marketplace that can efficiently serve copyright users.”

This summer marks another important time to collectively push Ottawa to keep its promise to Canadian creators and publishers.

We know you’ve added your voice many times before to support the need for copyright reform in Canada. We hope you’ll do so again this summer to help reinforce our collective message to the federal government ahead of the fall legislative session.

Here are three ways to take action.

Write to your MP, the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry: If you only do one thing this summer, please take five minutes to visit the I Value Canadian Stories website to use the site’s letter-writing tool to send a message to your MP as well as Hon. Pascale St-Onge, the Minister of Canadian Heritage, and Hon. François Philippe-Champagne, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, that we are depending on them to put forward meaningful copyright reform this fall.

SEND YOUR LETTER
Ask your MP to get on board: This summer, your MP will likely be spending a lot of time in their riding. If you see your MP out and about in the community, don’t be shy. Strike up a quick conversation. All you need is a minute or so to introduce yourself as a constituent as well as your profession and give a quick elevator pitch on the need for immediate copyright reform. Here’s a sample pitch:

Hi, my name is [your name] and I’m a [writer, visual artist, publishing professional, etc.] who lives in this riding. For over 10 years now, my livelihood has been under threat because of changes to the Copyright Act that have deprived Canadian creators and publishers like me of royalties when their works are copied in educational institutions. Like you, I should be paid for my work. There’s a ready-made fix to restore fair compensation to creators and publishers like me that has all-party support. Can we count on your support this fall to fix our Copyright Act?

The goal of your pitch is to put copyright and fair dealing on your MP’s radar and gauge their support. Offer to follow-up with more information by email and ask for the best email address to send it to or look it up at www.ourcommons.ca. Share a link to https://ivaluecanadianstories.ca/.

Spread the word on social media: If you’re on X, Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn, encourage your followers to amplify the call for copyright reform this fall by posting to social media and tagging your MP as well as Ministers St-Onge and Champagne, and include the hashtags and #cdnpoli and #IValueCdnStories.

SAMPLE SOCIAL MEDIA POST:

We’re running out of time to fix our Copyright Act. Today, I wrote to my MP urging them to support Canadian creators & publishers this fall. Please join me & send your letter too. [tag your MP] @PascaleStOnge @fp_champagne #cdnpoli #IValueCdnStories http://ow.ly/yfCY50LPXRW

Working collectively, we will make sure that Ottawa gets the job done on fixing copyright in Canada this fall.