p2pnet - rss feed: CRIA lobbyist Barry Sookman
p2pnet.net News:- Big Four Organized Music cartel lobbyist Barry Sookman recently wrote an item for The Hill Times, “not as the representant of any particular oraanization [sic],” said the Ottawa publication.
Labelled Copyright reform: let the light shine in, it did anything but, as first professor Michael Geist and then Russell McOrmond emphasised. Now, “For an opinion piece that purports to let the light shine in on copyright, Canadian Recording Industry Association lobbyist Barry Sookman’s response to my article on the growing public concern with copyright clouds over a surprising number of issues,” says Geist in a letter to The Hill Times, which also carries comments from McOrmond.
Geist continues:
In addition to failing to come clean on his CRIA relationship while citing a CRIA-funded survey, Mr. Sookman misleadingly suggests that Canada risks isolation by adopting copyright policies that favour national interests over those originating in Washington and Hollywood. In fact, the majority of Canada’s leading trading partners have yet to ratify the WIPO internet treaties, enabling the government to stand up for Canadians by adopting a “made in Canada” copyright approach.
Moreover, Mr. Sookman’s warning of “fewer jobs and slower economic growth” for failing to amend the Copyright Act does not reflect the experience of Canadian cultural industries. For example, Canadian Heritage recently reported that Canadian music has experienced remarkable growth over the past four years with Canadian music labels taking advantage of the opportunities presented by the internet and new technologies.
That is good news for the many Canadian independent record labels that are responsible for 90 per cent of new Canadian music, though given the fact that CRIA is governed by foreign interests, perhaps a less welcome development for Mr. Sookman’s client.
Among other things, “The internet has indeed transformed many Canadians into creators,” Sookman wrote in let the light shine in, going on:
“Unfortunately, absent modern copyright laws in Canada, the Web has also made it easy to obtain other people’s intellectual property without their consent. The result? According to the OECD, Canada has the highest per capita incidence of online file-swapping in the world.”
CRIA (Canadian Recording Industry Association of America) boss Graham Henderson also frequently makes the same unequivocal statement, but Canada is far from having “the highest per capita online file-swapping in the world”.
Both men improperly draw from the 2004 OECD report which mentions only p2p usage without reaching conclusions as to whether or not file sharing infringes copyrights.
“In fact,” posted p2pnet, “the same report specifically notes that ‘P2P is not simply downloading of MP3 files. In fact, file sharing has already moved to the next level and will be applied for all types of on-line information, data distribution, grid computing and distributed file systems.’ The OECD data captured all of these activites and made no claim that Canada has the highest per capital incidence of unauthorized file swapping in the world.”
Sookman says in his article, “Prof. Geist cites the need for ‘balance’ in copyright law. Yet, he effectively opposes such balance by failing to recognize the needs of creators - authors, film-makers, game designers, musicians and software developers - for laws that will enable them to develop and protect their property, and to earn a modest living in the process. He is right to be concerned about sustaining ‘access to Canadian culture.’ He is wrong, however, to assume that Canadian culture can be sustained by antiquated copyright laws.
“Prof. Geist also routinely cites threats to privacy and free speech. It is a form of scaremongering that conveniently ignores, among other things, the fact that Canada has some of the toughest privacy legislation in the world. It also ignores that fact that in none of the jurisdictions that have implemented laws similar to those being mooted in Canada, has free speech suffered. The proof in this case is in the pudding.”
Sookman also holds up 2005 research conducted by Pollara which, “found that 91 per cent of Canadians agree that the work of musicians, artists, composers, authors and others should be protected by copyright to ensure they get paid for copies of their work.
But the, “Much hay has been made in recent days (Knopf, Geist, Geist again) about CRIA’s latest foray into the world of policy through polling.” said CopyrightWatch.ca at the time, continuing:
“Professor Geist’s basic premise - that CRIA’s own poll results tend to undercut their own copyright maximalist arguments - remains unscathed by Pollara’s wet-noodle rebuttal.”
CopyrightWatch also suggested a number of questions which might indeed have shone a little light on things. Among them were:
Do you agree that Canadian law should be amended so as to allow record companies to sue your teenage children for $150,000 in damages for each song they download onto your home computer?
Do you agree that Canadian copyright law should be identical to American copyright law?
Is it personally important to you that copyright law unduly favour existing technologies by suppressing technological innovation?
Is it personally important to you that copyright law unduly favour existing business models by suppressing marketplace innovation?
Do you agree or disagree with this statement: Recording companies or other media firms should be allowed to place potentially damaging software in my computer, without my consent, using their CDs, DVDs, or other digital entertainment products.
Stay tuned.
Also See:
The Hill Times - Copyright reform: let the light shine in, October 23, 2006
The Hill Times - Sookman clouds over number of issues, October 30, 2006
same unequivocal statement - The CRIA fluffs it. Again., September 21, 2006
made no claim - CRIA / IFPI libel Canada, July 28, 2006
conducted by Pollara - The impertinent Michael Geist, March 22, 2006
CopyrightWatch.ca - Paging Michael Marzolini, March 21, 2006
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