Canadian public domain

[ottdmk]

I was "ego-surfing", refreshing my memory of discussions I've taken part in here on MobileRead when I came across a post I did in the Amazon/Hachette discussion.

At the time, I mentioned how I didn't like the Amazon walled garden combined with their publishing interests. I have a Kobo. Having certain authors available only on Amazon is annoying. An example I gave was Ian Fleming's works.

Funny thing is though, I'm Canadian. While there are some downsides to being a Canadian e-book reader (Amazon treats the market as an afterthought for example) there are some upsides.

Until the federal government messes it up through some trade agreement or another, Canadian copyright for written work lasts life of the author + fifty years.

Ian Fleming died in 1964. As of January 1st, 2015, all of his work is public domain in Canada. Goldfinger is already on gutenberg.ca, and some self-publishers have started publishing Fleming material on kobobooks.com.

Funny how things work out.

[Barcey]

For now but probably not for long.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04...n_7116454.html

[Byrdie]

Unfortunately, it looks like Harper has already caved when it comes to sound recordings, though. So we can kiss any new entries into Public Domain music here in Canada goodbye for at least another 20-plus years. :-(

And of course since the "Record Mafiaa" has gotten their way with that, you can expect the "Movie Mafiaa" to be clamouring any minute now for the same thing. All in the name of "Free Trade" and "Protecting Intellectual Property Rights".

(Damn, where's that eye roll smiley? Never can find it when I need it.)

[ottdmk]

Well, audio recordings is quite different from written works. Audio recordings have a flat 50 years (until the current budget gets passed, which will bump it to 70.) Written works have a life of the author + formula. (Currently life + fifty, although I'm quite sure gov't will roll over on that at some point and duplicate the life + seventy of the US and elsewhere.)

If I thought that Cohen would get much from extending the copyright of the actual recordings, I'd be more sympathetic. Given the shelf life of an artist, I can imagine the thought of outliving your revenue stream is frightening. But as I doubt he gets much from the sale of any particular recording, it doesn't quite work for me.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by Barcey

For now but probably not for long.

Wow. Your link is quite an eye-opener for me.

-- Criminal penalties for small-time unauthorized downloading. Canadian law currently allows copyright holders to sue non-commercial downloaders for up to $5,000, but there are no criminal penalties under current law.

If true, US presidential candidates are going to line up against it, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership is going to be voted down in the US Congress. Don't these people remember how SOPA flamed out?

-- Tougher rules for “fair use.” Canadian law allows the copying of portions of copyrighted materials, for instance for educational purposes or for citing in news articles, but a proposed “three-step test” for fair use in the TPP could make it more difficult to use copyrighted materials this way.

Again, if true, I think it's another nail in the grave as far as the US Congressional approval is concerned.

However, the anti-publisher, anti-New York Times crowd on Mobileread may love this provision. We'll see.

The copyright change matches what has been reportedly a demand of U.S. negotiators in talks over the Trans-Pacific Partnership . . .

If true, US negotiators have no clue about how the balance of power between Disney and the netizens has shifted over the last five years or so, in favor of the latter.

[Greg Anos]

I wonder what the Mouse House is going to do in 2018, when things start falling back into the public domain in the US...

It's less than 3 years away...

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward

I wonder what the Mouse House is going to do in 2018...

Nothing in Disney's backlist prior to 1937 (Snow White) is worth all that much, and their Mickey Mouse trademark is forever. So January 1, 2019 is no big deal for them.

Getting Japan and Canada to adopt US copyright standards through the Trans-Pacific Partnership is much more important for them.

[Ghitulescu]

There are several types of copyright, and what was discussed in the that article refers to ancillary rights (which start from the first public performance, not from the death of the author).

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by SteveEisenberg

Nothing in Disney's backlist prior to 1937 (Snow White) is worth all that much, and their Mickey Mouse trademark is forever. So January 1, 2019 is no big deal for them.

Getting Japan and Canada to adopt US copyright standards through the Trans-Pacific Partnership is much more important for them.

I beg to differ. They pushed the 1998 copyright extension, and got mad because Congress didn't act on it quick enough, and a year actually slipped into the public domain (1922).

Steamboat Willie was 1928. The Mouse House has been the most vocefirous about never losing <any> of their copyrights...

(Besides, I have a 1/2 ounce of gold riding on them attempting to do something by 2022....)