EQUIFLASH [CREATORS CONTINUE PUSH FOR COPYRIGHT REFORM]

[CAEA e-drive]

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CREATORS CONTINUE PUSH FOR COPYRIGHT REFORM
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The Creators' Copyright Coalition is an alliance of national associations, unions and collectives representing individual artists working primarily in the English language media in Canada. The CCC membership includes Canadian Actors' Equity Association, and the following media statement was released earlier today.

December 6, 2010 - Proposed reforms to Canada's copyright law will turn core principles of copyright on their head and gut protections that for decades helped ensure the economic survival of Canadian artists, writers, photographers, visual artists, directors, composers, musicians and performers, a group representing more than 100,000 professional creators said in a paper released today.

"As MPs scrutinize C-32 in Committee they have to bear in mind that modernization of copyright for the digital age must not be allowed to shut creators out," said Bill Freeman, Chair of The Creators' Copyright Coalition (CCC), which prepared the statement. "But that's exactly what C-32 will do."

"It's rare for arts groups to be unanimous in their views and to speak with a united voice," Marvin Dolgay, a music composer and President of the Screen Composers Guild of Canada, said. "We are 16 major arts groups representing a massive number of professionals in virtually every sector. To come together on this issue like this shows we mean business. We mean business, because our business is at risk."

Canada needs stronger collective licensing, not the weakening of protections for creators that C-32 proposes, the CCC paper argues. (The full CCC paper is below.)

The Creators' Copyright Coalition supports the modernization of copyright and the encouragement of greater access to creators' works - but access for use and re-use of creative works must be compensated. The introduction of numerous broad exceptions for education and private purposes, and the refusal to adapt the private copying regime to a technology-neutral system that strengthens collective licensing, will shut Canadian artists out of the digital economy.

"Creators depend on a range of revenue streams for their economic survival," Mr. Freeman said, "and C-32 would eliminate a number of those revenue streams. Fair copyright legislation should give the public access to the works of creators in exchange for fair compensation. That principle is even more important in the evolving digital economy so creators can develop new business models that ensure that they are fairly compensated when their works are used - vital to them continuing to create," Mr. Freeman added.

The CCC proposes six changes to proposed reforms that disadvantage Canadian creators. These include the Bill's provisions for reproduction for 'private purposes,' user-generated content, exceptions for education, statutory damages, Internet Service Provider (ISP) liability and the weakening of collective licensing mechanisms.

"Parliament must change these legislative plans," actor Wendy Crewson said. "It must encourage - not discourage - the essential investments that Canadian musicians, composers, authors, poets, playwrights, artists, screenwriters and performers make and that will keep our digital economy healthy and productive. C-32 is flawed by a poor understanding of the structure of Canada's creative industries," continued Crewson.

The Creators' Copyright Coalition Position Paper is available at EQUITYONLINE (http://www.caea.com).
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