More information on the “anti-podcasting” treaty
I was a bit disappointed in Cory Doctorow’s September 9th post, URGENT: Podcasters act now to stop anti-podcasting UN treaty! While he provided a quick explanation of the problem and links to some of the efforts to stop the treaty, there was a noticeable absence of links to the source material. This is one example of how citizen journalism can fail in the “attention to detail” department.
University of Ottawa law professor Michael Geist has blogged about the treaty with a Canadian eye. His post, The Most Dangerous Treaty You’ve Never Heard About, presents a more thoughtful explanation of why we should be concerned. His second paragraph provides the following summary:
The impact of the treaty on individuals and creators could be dramatic, potentially making it more difficult to record television shows for viewing at a later time, locking up content that is otherwise in the public domain, and necessitating that film makers obtain twice as many consents for the re-use of broadcast clips.
After explaining the impact of the treaty, Professor Geist expresses concern over the secretive process that has led to this treaty and offers a summary of the apparently VERY FEW and VERY SMALL public consultations.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office conducted an open afternoon session last Tuesday in Washington that enabled approximately 40 supporters and critics to air their views…
The Canadian approach has been even more secretive.
Canada has not conducted any public consultations on the treaty nor issued any public statements articulating a definitive Canadian position
Michael Geist writes a weekly column for the Toronto Star. His September 11th column is entitled Leaders weirdly silent on sweeping broadcast treaty.
