Music Industry Loses In Canadian Downloading Case 736
pref writes "'Canada's music industry can't force Internet service providers to identify online music sharers, a Federal Court judge has ruled.' They wanted the Internet service companies like Sympatico, Rogers and Shaw to give them the real identities of the individuals so they could sue them for copyright infringement. They were seeking a court order requiring the companies to provide the information. But they didn't get it, so the Internet companies don't have to identify their clients and the music companies can't proceed with their lawsuits.""
Actually, the ruling means a bit more (Score:4, Informative)
This ruling not only means that the CIRA can't get user information from the ISPs, but that file swapping in Canada does not even infringe on copyright - it's completely legal.
If you're Canadian, that means a big weight off your shoulders, for now.
Error in Title (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Don't even think it (Score:5, Informative)
Specifically, from the Judge's ruling: "No evidence was presented that the alleged infringers either distributed or authorized the reproduction of sound recordings. They merely placed personal copies into their shared directories which were accessible by other computer users via a P2P service."
Here's the CBC's take on it... (Score:3, Informative)
Contains a few links to older information about the story and whatnot.
~jaraxle
Good judges (Score:5, Informative)
So this is what happens when you have tech-literate judges! Where can we get some from?
Judge: File swapping not illegal (Score:3, Informative)
Other newsfeeds (Score:5, Informative)
IANAL, but I believe this comes from the quirk in Canadian law that you may make copies of something for yourself quite legally, just not for others. Since the people sharing aren't making the copies, it's legal.
Legal in Canada, always, to download. (Score:1, Informative)
So the Canadian law has been changed to make it legal to download music, since we're paying for it.
Uploading (sharing) is illegal here, but now its probably a lot harder to find someone.
Smegma.
Re:Other newsfeeds (Score:2, Informative)
http://www.cippic.ca/ for more information,
like all the court documents ( http://www.cippic.ca/file-sharing-lawsuit-docs ) or the full text of the decision itself ( http://www.cippic.ca/uploads/images/59/Court_Orde
How to apply as a skilled worker immigrant (Score:5, Informative)
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/skilled/how-1.html [cic.gc.ca]
It seemed relavant
Re:Legality? (Score:5, Informative)
Still, this doesn't mean Canadians will be able to get off scott free when it comes to downloading music and other media. The storage media levies that get put in place may be quite substantial, and I wouldn't be surprised to see a "study" result in a claim that people that use greater than X amount of bandwidth a month are more likely to be pirating and therefore should incur additional levies.
On the plus side, Canadians are less likely to be robbed at gunpoint for their iPod full of tunes.
Open share is not Distribution (Score:4, Informative)
I've been saying for a while in comments here on /. [slashdot.org] that leaving an open share (what the CRIA would refer to as uploading) would not necessarily constitute copyright infringement.
According to the Globe and Mail [globeandmail.com], the judge stated ""The mere fact of placing a copy on a shared directory in a computer where that copy can be accessed via a P2P service does not amount to distribution"
This is a huge win for the Canadian public if it stands on appeal as Canadians will be legally able to download, and to have music available in shared directories, allowing both uploading and downloading.
Re:Favourite qoute from a similar article (Score:4, Informative)
Re:OH Canada. (Score:4, Informative)
I'm sorry
Canadian broadcasting law includes Canadian content restrictions. Fully 35% of all music broadcast on Canadian radio must be CanCon [media-awareness.ca], meaning at least two of the composer, performer, recording venue, and lyric writer must be Canadian. For television the fraction is 50%.
Sounds pretty benign, until you realize that it is therefore illegal for US stations to broacast in Canada, which includes satellite broadcasts. It is illegal to receive US-based satellite signals in Canada, and doing so could result in a visit from the RCMP and confiscation of your satellite equipment [www.efc.ca]. All this for simply watching HBO, MTV, or even the Superbowl commercials (local stations rebroadcasting the Superbowl in Canada substitute their own ads).
In spite of this, Canadian television has yet to produce a domestic hit television series, and virtually all our recording artists flee to the states.
Re:Don't celebrate yet. (Score:5, Informative)
Judge declares file sharing legal (Score:4, Informative)
see here [globeandmail.com] where it is stated: "As part of his ruling, the judge found that simply downloading a song or having a file available on peer-to-peer software such as Kazaa doesn't constitute copyright infringement."
What's next in Canada? Free ponies?
Re:Legality? (Score:3, Informative)
Canoe's coverage of the story has the judge quoted as saying:
"I cannot see a real difference between a library that places a photocopy machine in a room full of copyrighted material and a computer user that places a personal copy on a shared directory linked to a P2P service," he said.
Furthermore he said that downloading a song or making files available in shared directories, like those on Kazaa, does not constitute copyright infringement under the current Canadian law.
http://www.canoe.ca/JamMusic/mar31_cria-cp.html
Forget P2P, I just use StationRipper (Score:2, Informative)
Well I, for one, just use a good ripper [stationripper.com] to get all my music. Looks like WinAmp on the network, isn't traceable, is legal (at least from a fair use perspective) and I get up to 2k new songs a day. Screw the RIAA.
Re:How to apply as a skilled worker immigrant (Score:5, Informative)
2 Weeks for HRDC [hrsdc.gc.ca]
6 Weeks for CIC [cic.gc.ca]
2 Weeks for CPC [canadapost.ca]
M.
Re:Canadians Are Evil (Score:5, Informative)
See dear AC, there's this little thing called sarcasm.. I'd look into getting your sarcasm detector fixed
The great-grandparent post is not (only?) an example of sarcasm, it's (mainly?) an example of irony. Irony [reference.com] means saying the opposite of what you mean, whereas sarcasm [reference.com] just means using a cutting tone designed to taunt or hurt. They very often go hand in hand: you'll utter an ironic statement in a sarcastic tone, but knowing and understanding the difference *absoluetely* guarantees you the distinction of most anal pedant in the room (prepending statements with "It's interesting to note that..." also helps).
Damn you Sound and Sense, damn you to hell!
i'll just get my coat now...
Re:obligatory **Colin Mochrie** apology (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Canadians Are Evil (Score:3, Informative)
Full decision now online! (Score:3, Informative)
read it here [in pdf]:
http://www.fct-cf.gc.ca/bulletins/whatsnew/T-292-
Re:OH Canada. (Score:3, Informative)
- Stargate SG1
- Due South
- Degrassi Junior High
- Relic Hunter
- PSI Factor
- Reboot (Be proud!)
- SCTV
- Andromeda
And of course, if you mean "made it past two seasons" as being a domestic hit, there is always:You get the picture. OH wait, maybe a couple of musicicans too then, There are tons of them,but the short list off the top of my head:
There's tons of great Canadian stuff out there. Spend a bit of time on Google before you spew out idiotic comments like that.
Re:So Warez is legal in Canada? (Score:2, Informative)
the text of the ruling (Score:3, Informative)
Re:So Warez is legal in Canada? (Score:3, Informative)
No!!
The personal copying rules which make this legal only apply to music. See Section 80 of the Copyright Act [justice.gc.ca].
Re:Half-truths (Score:1, Informative)
Man, what the fuck do your american text books teach you navel gazers anyway?
1812 Napolean was peaking [pbs.org], the French was the world's biggets supper power, and america was poorer than Canada (we had the fur trade). Most of britan's army was on the other side of the pond preparing for a real war, not trying to defend a second rate rogue colony of free masons and at the same time the FRENCH CANADIANS.
Sorry, your nation is great, but you over estimates (and rewrite) your importance in history.
Oh yeah! (Score:2, Informative)
That's *so* good! Its just sad that Videotron [videotron.ca] are such a jerk company, which are probably still willing to collaborate with the CRIA [www.cria.ca].
Videotron is the cable / ISP division of Quebecor [quebecor.com], which sales music records through Archambault [archambault.ca] and also produce records for its "artistic" reality show, Star Academie [staracademie.ca]. That's why they are so eager to give names to the cria.
Re:Don't celebrate yet. (Score:2, Informative)
People who install Kazaa on their machine are in control of their machine, and are knowingly installing software that creates copies of files for anonymous transmission across the net. The uploader, then, is the one making the copy.
But this takes that view and turns it upside down. So they're saying that, because Kazaa shares downloaded files by default, an ignorant user can be legitimately unaware that copyright infringement is happening on their box, and that makes them innocent?
This is bizaare...
After some consideration, this sounds more like a case of not being liable for what others do with your stuff. If you leave a case of CDs in an unlocked car, you're not responsible for the infringement if some thief breaks in and copies them all.
Re:Canadians already pay royalties to musicians! (Score:3, Informative)
Its 77 cents (canadian) for a normal cd-r.
Its also not a tax, its a levy (there is a difference).
Also, the levy is NOT to compensate for pirates, it is to compensate for the legal copying of music in canada. As I and many others have mentioned many times, copying your friends cd's and downloading music from P2P services is 100% legal in canada.
A nice FAQ on the levy and and legalities of copies and stuff is available here. [neil.eton.ca]
Danhm, You're quoted in The Toronto Star (Score:5, Informative)
Thestar.com - Court rejects music lawsuit [thestar.com]
Enjoy your 15 minutes!
Re:Canadians Are Evil (Score:2, Informative)
read decision itself, not just commentary (Score:2, Informative)
http://www.fct-cf.gc.ca/bulletins/whatsnew/whatsn
docket number: T-292-04
on SLOPPINESS: at para [19] the judge wrote that having the president of the company as a witness was not good enough because he had not *personally* matched the uploaders with specific infringing files, so all his testimony was hearsay.
on COPYRIGHT: at para [27] the judge follows the precedent set by the Supreme Court in that the availability of a tool that can be used to infringe copyright is not enough to trigger infringement, because the element of AUTHORIZATION was not evident. the judge also cites a WIPO treaty which is not yet in force in Canada, that if it is enacted, would make this activity illegal.
SCC case cited can be found online at: http://www.canlii.org/ca/cas/scc/2004/2004scc13.h
on PRIVACY: due to the system of dynamically assigned IP addresses, the log info that can be used to identify individual account holders with infringing activity is time-sensitive. at para [42], the judge wrote that IN THIS CASE, the privacy privacy concerns outweigh the public interest concerns in favour of disclosure.
GOOGLE DOES NOT TRUMP AN EXPERIENCED LIBRARIAN