The Association of Canadian Publishers (ACP) welcomes the release of Shifting Paradigms, prepared by the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, which was tabled in the House of Commons yesterday. The report includes several recommendations that respond directly to issues raised by ACP over the course of the Committee’s study on Remuneration Models for Artists and Creative Industries, primarily in relation to educational copying and fair dealing.
In particular, the Committee recommends that the Government of Canada:
- Amend the Act to clarify that fair dealing should not apply to educational institutions when the work is commercially available;
- Promote a return to licensing through collective societies;
- Review, harmonize and improve the enforcement of the statutory damages for infringement for non-commercial use in section 1 (1) of the Copyright Act;
- Harmonize remedies for collective societies under the Copyright Act.
If implemented, these recommendations would contribute to repairing Canada’s damaged copyright framework, and promote a return to a functioning marketplace for educational materials. In turn, Canadian publishers’ ability to invest in the development of high quality, Canadian-specific educational resources will improve.
“Canadian publishers welcome the Committee’s recommendations, and appreciate the time and energy members from all political parties devoted to hearing from a broad range of stakeholders over the course of the review,” said ACP President Glenn Rollans. “The Committee’s recommendations come after many years damage to the livelihoods of professional publishers and authors, so we encourage the next Parliament to act quickly on these recommendations.”