[kwlug-disc] Backing up DVDs in Canada

[Russell McOrmond]

On 11-09-16 05:10 PM, unsolicited wrote:
> Russell's response below seems to me to be addressing the current
> situation. But might be addressing the proposed situation.

   The infringing nature of backing up DVD's is the current situation.

   Bill C-32 (and whatever the new number will be in new session) 
touched on the issue two opposite ways.  Many of these truly private 
activities would have been carved out of copyright, except where there 
is a digital lock.   So, backing up VHS tapes (if you can find some) and 
other common uses of VHS such as time shifting would have finally become 
non-infringing in Canada, but the backup of DVD's would remain 
infringing due to the digital lock.

Also on time/format shifting:
http://BillC32.ca/faq#timeformat

> [And ... if various things are not permitted before/after, what was with
> the whole VCR thing for off-line recording, that, at least, the cable
> companies encouraged / showed in their hookup diagrams. Published BY the
> cable company, itself, even.]

   This was clarified as non-infringing in the USA under their robust 
Fair Use regime, but was never declared non-infringing in Canada.  I 
believe it was politics that made copyright holders never sue in Canada: 
  if Canadians realised just how much more tilted in favour of copyright 
holders that Canadian law is, they wouldn't be able to dupe them into 
falsely believing that Canadian law is weaker.

   Note that the recording industry didn't launch new lawsuits against 
P2P filesharers after being given a blueprint by two courts on how to do 
this.   The BMG-vs-Doe case did *NOT* claim that P2P was non-infringing 
in Canada -- it simply said that a minimum level of evidence was needed 
to get past our federal privacy legislation.


   And don't get me started on how the phone/cable companies have their 
fingers in all aspects of the debate --- encouraging people do do things 
with one arm of the company that they then go to the government to ask 
for changes in the law to stop by another arm.  Probably the only worse 
type of company is Sony for this type of mixed messaging.  I wish Sony 
would just sue Sony into the ground, and leave the rest of us and our 
domestic legislation alone :-)

-- 
  Russell McOrmond, Internet Consultant: <http://www.flora.ca/>
  Please help us tell the Canadian Parliament to protect our property
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  http://creform.ca/petition/ict/

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   portable media player from my cold dead hands!"