Category: Blog

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On Dec 3, I appeared before the House of Common’s Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, as part of the statutory review of the Copyright Act. Here is my written testimony: Good afternoon. My name is Ariel Katz. I am a law professor at the University of Toronto, where I hold the Innovation Chair Electronic Commerce. I am grateful for the opportunity to appear before you today. In my comments today, I would like to focus on dispelling some of the misinformation about the application of copyright law and fair dealing in the educational sector.

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Last year, I wrote the following essay, as part of a collection of essays, “NAFTA and the Knowledge Economy”, published by the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI). The essay discusses what Canada’s approach to intellectual property in the context of the renegotiation of NAFTA should be. Since the issues are back at the table, I thought I’d post it again. You can read it on CIGI’s website, download a pdf version, or simply scroll down.

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Sean Flynn, American University Washington College of Law Michael W. Carroll, American University Washington College of Law Peter Jaszi, American University Washington College of Law Ariel Katz, University of Toronto, Faculty of Law Leandro Mendonça, Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Cultural Production Department Diane Peters, Creative Commons Corporation (HQ) Allan Rocha de Souza, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ) Copyright laws the world over are under massive pressure to reform to fit the digital environment. One key area often in need of reform is in the exceptions to copyright that enable the digital practices. Without exceptions, common practices may be …

South Africa’s Proposed Copyright Fair Use Right Should Be a Model for the World Read more »

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The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) has requested me to prepare a Report in connection with the application by the FairPlay Coalition to the CRTC and its proposed website-blocking mechanism. PIAC asked me to assess the Applicants’ claims in light of the best available theoretical and empirical evidence. More specifically, to determine whether the academic literature and the Application itself substantiate the alleged harms of piracy and the efficacy and benefits of the proposed website blocking remedy. If you’d like to read my Report, here it is. If you’d like to read only the introduction and the conclusion, keep reading.

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It is Fair Dealing Week and I’m happy to share a draft of my new forthcoming chapter “Debunking the Fair Use vs. Fair Dealing Myth: Have We Had Fair Use All Along?“. Here’s the abstract: According to conventional wisdom, a fundamental difference exists between the American fair use doctrine and the Canadian (or Commonwealth) fair dealing doctrine: while American fair use can apply potentially to any purpose, Canadian fair dealing could only apply to those purposes enumerated in the statute. Accordingly, fair dealing cannot apply to dealings for other purposes even if they would otherwise be fair. This conventional wisdom …

Debunking the Fair Use vs. Fair Dealing Myth: Have We Had Fair Use All Along? Read more »