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Really Short Introduction to Copyright in Canada
Quite often we are asked "What recordings can I broadcast?" Or "I found a script for a radio play. Can I produce it and play it on our station?" Or "I want to read one chapter of this book each week". Copyright is a complex thing, and many lawyers make
a very good living practicing copyright law. If you need real legal advice,
find a lawyer. This is only intended to be a quick overview, enough information
to keep you from engaging in obvious copyright infringements. In simple terms, if you write a book, create a work
of art, or make some music, you have the right to control how it's reproduced,
and to get paid for it. You have the right to control copying. Every creation is copyrighted automatically. If you
write a novel or a comic strip at 8:00 AM, it's copyrighted at 8:01. The
real challenge is usually proving that you created your work. (and hence
own the copyright). Maybe. Usually. But not always. Often the copyright
on a book or magazine actually belongs to the publisher. Often the copyright
on music belongs to the music company. Regardless of what you might hear, content is still
copyrighted on the Internet, and there have been lawsuits to prove it.
Likewise you can't just take content (including those CDs that you ripped
into MP3) and post it to the Internet without risking a lawsuit. Nearly every country is a signatory to international
Copyright Conventions. They protect each other's copyrights. This is part
of the Berne Convention, which was agreed to in 1886. Music - If the music is on a CD or vinyl you can usually assume you're OK. If the record company mails it to your radio station it's reasonable to assume that they intend for you to broadcast it. As you might know, the people who write the songs that you play get paid by SOCAN. SOCAN issues your radio station a license to broadcast their members' music, and collects royalties on their behalf. Other stuff on CDs, tape, and vinyl - quite often it is NOT available for broadcast. Good examples are talking books and most Caedmon recordings of famous plays. Broadcasting these could get you in trouble. It's also not acceptable to broadcast movies on your radio station, or material recorded from other radio stations. Books, plays, and other printed material - unless it specifically says that it is permissible to broadcast the book or play, you have to assume that it is forbidden. You should first write to the publisher for permission. Canadian radio stations have been caught reading from books without permission. A warning - just because the author says it's OK doesn't mean you shouldn't check with the publisher. Often the author has no clue about copyright. Mix-Tapes and samples - Canadian police have been cracking down on DJ stores selling mix tapes of copyrighted material. Again, just because the musicians don't mind does not make it legal. Their record label sees things differently. MP3 - the songs are still copyrighted and the
same rules apply - it's up to you to make sure that you have permission
to broadcast it. Obviously as book reviewer or movie show will often use an excerpt of a copyrighted work to illustrate a point. This comes under the heading of "Fair Dealing". The Copyright Act provides that any "fair dealing"
with a work for criticism, review or summary in the media is not infringement.
Fair dealing allows you to use short excerpts. Sometimes the copyright
notice will tell you how long. "Reproduce by sole permission of copyright
owners, except that not more than 250 words may be quote for the purposes
of a review of this work." Other times, you just have to guess what
is fair. Not too long would be a good rule here, however. The user is
required to give the source and author's name, if known. Eventually copyright does run out, and works move into
the Public Domain. That means they are no longer copyrighted. The complete
works of William Shakespeare are a good example. This usually happens
50 years after the death of the creator. Or on occasion the copyright
holder simply doesn't renew the copyright and it slips into Public Domain.
Frank Capra's "It's A Wonderful Life" is an example. Again, there are restrictions on "Educational Use".
For many years teachers felt that copyright didn't apply to them. Now
most schools are connected to CanCopy, a licensing scheme that allows
educators a restricted right to copy copyrighted materials. It is not
a license to photocopy whole textbooks. Canadian Intellectual Property Office Guide to Copyright Copyright Board of Canada Web site Bill C-32 (performances, sound recordings and broadcasters) Various Copyright Collectives in Canada Copyright Protection of Multimedia Works Emery Jamieson, Barristers and Solicitors |
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Last Updated July 5, 2003
