ARCHIVED — Patterson

COPYRIGHT REFORM PROCESS

SUBMISSIONS RECEIVED REGARDING THE CONSULTATION PAPERS

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Documents received have been posted in the official language in which they were submitted. All are posted as received by the departments, however all address information has been removed.

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Submission from Patrick Patterson received on September 8, 2001 1:30 PM via e-mail

Subject: Comment on: CONSULTATION PAPER ON DIGITAL COPYRIGHT ISSUES

To whom it may concern:

It is with great interest that I watch the current debate within my government on the establishment of new, modern copyright materials. As an author of numerous publications within my field, I agree with the sentiment that materials should be protected from un-authorised use and dissemination. I would however caution you against adopting measures that would promote the interests of only the business community. In the adoption of the United States DMCA, I feel that the definition of "copyright circumvention" tools to be to vague. The DMCA has been used to effectively stop the discussion of both flaws in a given technology (US vs. Skylarov : re: Adobe e-Books), as well as place excessive burdens on the US Fair Use provisions (not being a lawyer, I am unsure as to the extent that Fair Use exists in current Canadian Law). The Fair use should mean that I should be able to purchase a right to view or listen to a work (in the form of a CD or DVD), and then listen or watch it on a device of my own choosing (PC, Player, Car Stereo, or, if I am of a sufficient level of technologist, a device of my own creation). However, under some of the proposed and enacted laws in the US and elsewhere, I would be prohibitted from developing this last (a device of my own creation), due to the fact that I cannot either create a method to circumvent the encryption (in the case of the DVD-CCS encoding scheme), or benefit from the work of other hobbyists and researchers, due to the fact that the publication of details of the encryption scheme (which would allow some one to circumvent it for personal use covered under Fair Use) is illegal. The Additional point that all laws fail to take into account, is that de-cryption of DVD and other digital media is not necessary for it's widespread reproduction... it is only necessary for the playback. DVD, Software, and CD pirates can make bit-by-bit copies of these works (which does not require decryption), and then sell them to ordinary people who have purchased "authorised" players from the media companies. This serves no protection to the artist or author of the work, and only benefits the producers of players of digital content... which, I think that most would agree, is not where we should be according protection.

We need to protect the works themselves, not the means to play them back.

To that end, I would propose that "technological measures" to protect copyright materials be offered no more protection than that accorded to current paper manufacturers, or the manufacturers of plastics for the creation of CD's and DVD's, and that we look to other measures (such as facilitating "direct to home from the performer or author delivery") for the protection of copyright works. Since the biggest factor currently promoting the piracy of copyright works is cost, and since most authors and performers are poorly paid, and since the media companies are currently recording their largest profits ever, a simple way would be for a mandated maximum price for a work (12.00-15.00 for a CD for example), with 50% of that being split between the author/performer, and the canada arts council, and the other going to the recording company. This will result in an approximatly 200% increase in the per/CD royalty that most performers/authors receive, enhance the Canada Arts Council for the promotion of new Canadian Cultural Content, and reduce the number of copies of pirated works that is in circulation. The only net looser in this idea are the media companies who would suffer a reduction in their profit margins. (this is a radical idea, and is unworkable due to the fact that should these measures be enacted, the media companies would leave the country, but with Authors and performers receiving less than 3% on average of the sale price of each commercially produced CD, measures must be taken to increase the incentive for Artists and performers)

Thank you,

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Patrick Patterson
Chief Security Architect
Carillon Information Security Inc.
[Address, e-mail address and fax number removed]