| The Canadian Recording Industry Association vs. Canadian values |
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- Canadian Recording Industry Association president Graham Henderson in his year-end submission to Canadian NEW MEDIA. The values of Canadians are not what is questionable in the copyright revision process, but the values of old-economy intermediaries such as the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). When I strongly oppose the policy recommendations of the CRIA it is because of those values I share with most Canadians, and that the CRIA opposes. Let's start with a respect for private property. There is more than one type of property, with the recording industry claiming there is a conflict between two types of property. In order to stop people from infringing their copyright, they claim there must be a powerful intermediary that takes control over all Information and Communications Technology (ICT). This would turn new media into acting like old broadcast-era media, with all the disadvantages that comes with that. Most people recognize that ownership rights include the right to control what we own for lawful purposes. The purpose of Digital Rights Management (DRM) is to remove the control of ICT from its owners and put that control in the hands of DRM manufacturers. There are many people who have analyzed DRM and consider DRM to be a form of theft. If the recording industry had a respect for private property, they would not only be joining with us in opposing the 1996 WIPO treaties which seek legal protection for DRM, but they would stop insulting potential customers by releasing content encoded in these offensive technologies. New media enhances the ability of creators to build more healthy relationships with their audiences, lowering the possibility that these audiences will infringe their rights. They are able to do this by "skipping the intermediaries", those middle-men which were seen as necessary in the older broadcast era, but which are no longer necessary in many cases now. When you look at the payment structure of the past music business you notice that these legacy intermediaries take the largest cut of the business. When musicians are able to skip these intermediaries, they are able to not only make more money but do so while they are able to lower their price. While skipping the intermediaries is not a great policy if you happen to be one of those outdated intermediaries like the recording industry, it is a good policy for creators and their audiences who are the relevant constituencies in cultural policy. If the recording industry had any respect for one's right to get paid for one's labour, they would discontinue standing in opposition to those creators who wish to become more successful by exploring more modern business models and content delivery methods. The recording industry is using typical political rhetoric: talk about values that their audiences share, and then pretend that they not only share those values but that those who oppose them oppose those values. It is time that Canadians were better informed on who shares their values, and who are only selfishly out to protect their outdated business models and delivery methods at all costs. Source: Digital Copyright Canada Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites          Add your comment
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