Canadian iPod ‘tax’ not legal
p2pnet.net News:- Mp3 players may soon cost less in Canada following a Federal Court of Appeal ruling that copyright levies on digital music players aren’t legal.
Exactly a year ago, the Copyright Board of Canada froze private copying levies on recording devices and at the same time, hiked non-removable memory (such as in Apple’s iPod) by $2 per device for up to one gig of memory, $15 for 1-10 and $25 over 10.
Now, the Court has ruled that the board, “properly held that the the zero-rating program has no statutory underpinning and that, accordingly, its impact ought not to be recognized in setting the levy,” says a source, going on:
“The court decided the board couldn’t impose a levy on memory in a device such as an iPod, and set aside the board’s tariff in this respect. Put another way, once incorporated into a device, a recording medium becomes part of the device.”
“While the decision is expected to lower the price of MP3 players, it will erode the stream of revenues to musicians at a time of widespread digital pirating,” says a Globe & Mail report, continuing that a debate on whether or not copying music onto mp3 players now violates the Copyright Act immediately followed the decision.
For example, says the newspaper, Paul Audley, a Canadian Private Copying Collective consultant, maintains the ruling that mp3 players aren’t a recording medium could technically place them into, “a kind of legal purgatory.
“He said the Copyright Act clearly defines media that legally can be used for private duplication of copyrighted material and MP3 players no longer meet that criteria,” the report states.
“The big impact of this is, if you got an iPod for Christmas, on Dec. 13 you were okay copying music on to it; on Dec. 15, you weren’t.”
A lawyer representing makers of mp3 players, “scoffed at Mr. Audley’s interpretation,” says the report, adding:
“If that is true, then all music-copying equipment such as CD players, computers and tape recorders are illegal.”
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See:-
widespread digital pirating – Ottawa’s MP3 fee quashed, Globe & Mail, December 17, 2004
December 17th, 2004 at 4:06 pm
I don’t care anymore what is legal or not with mp3 players and downloading. I will fill my pc with stuff if I want and put it onto something else if I want. The gangsters in the music and film industry can stick it up there —. When I see all these whinning artists in people mag and such with all there money I think it’s about time we rocked there world. Just entertain me and shut up. Make your money from live acts.
December 17th, 2004 at 11:40 pm
Stream of revenues going to artists ????
I just fell over laughing !!!!!!
It is about time the industry opened their books and showed
EXACTLY where that revenue stream really goes.
I assure you … Artists don’t get one .. red .. cent.
December 18th, 2004 at 8:52 am
They had to make their money somehow, and it was via minimug wage jobs!