Comments on: Access Copyright – Copyright Debate Will Rob You Of Your Livelihood

By: 2009 – A ZeroPaid Year in Review – Part 2 of 3

2009 – A ZeroPaid Year in Review – Part 2 of 3 — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 09:36:41 +0000

[...] Things in Canada got interesting when The Pirate Party of Canada landed on Canadian shores and began to establish themselves. Meanwhile, as BNN took heat for censoring the copyright debate, BNN responded to criticism saying that the videos were part of a broader round of takedowns and wasn’t targeting the copyright debate in particular. A little bit of a political turf war was seen in Canada on the news that the Pirate Party were entering the political stage. The Green Party said that there was no need for a Pirate Party given that there was already a Green Party willing to take the issues to task. The Pirate Party responded to those comments. It was then that things really turned around in Canada when the governing party held a copyright consultation. Some were sceptical, but most embraced the government initiative (how often does that happen on issues like this?) with open arms – the consultation wound up being the most successful consultation ever in terms of number of responses. During the month though, the consultation seemed to be the talk of the town with many talking about copyright in and outside the consultation. Access Copyright hit the panic button and said that the entire copyright debate will rob creators of their livelihoods. [...]

By: DrewWilson

DrewWilson — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:59:34 +0000

Sorry, I did misread your comment.

By: norm1515

norm1515 — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 16:40:21 +0000

Forgive me if I was unclear in my comment. I think you may have misunderstood me. I think people *should* send their comments to the consultation. Those on the side of copyright reform cannot afford to miss an opportunity like this to make their views known to those in power. All I meant to express was that we should take additional steps outside the consultation to publicize the need for reform.

Don’t give up on the consultation! Send your comments now. But don’t just stop there!

By: DrewWilson

DrewWilson — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:52:44 +0000

While I certainly share your views on the reach of Access Copyright through its financial resources, I fail to see why not sending your comments to the consultation would be beneficial.

I’ve been observing the copyright debate for a very long time and I haven’t seen a consultation on copyright happen. Taking a vow of silence in the consultation would likely give the copyright industry more ammunition to ramrod destructive copyright legislation through the government on the excuse that the consultation just reaffirms their narrow viewpoint.

I do, however, agree that spreading your views elsewhere is beneficial for the greater debate however as it is beneficial for the other side to do so.

If a majority of people partaking in the consultation agrees that there is a better way than suing thousands of teens in their dorms and the government simply ignores that call, they’ll ignore the wishes of the Canadian public at their own peril. If the Canadian side refuses to partake in the consultation, I can only see that the damage will be much more self-inflicting.

By: norm1515

norm1515 — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 04:09:27 +0000

In theory, everybody has a voice in the Canadian copyright consultation, because every citizen can voice their opinion. But some voices are louder than others. Access Copyright, and other big copyright groups can take their message out to the street, since they have lots of money to spend on public relations. If copyright reformers want any chance at all of reaching the government, they have to beat these thugs at their own game. Don’t just send your thoughts to the consultation: publish your views about copyright on your personal blogs. Send editorials to newspapers. Make youtube videos demonstrating the need for reform. A letter will reach the government, but essays, videos, and editorials can sway public opinion.