**Update** - I expressed disdain in this post that the other parties had not yet responded to my queries.  The NDP did, albeit much later.  At least they didn’t send a vague form letter that they just sent to everyone with an inquiry, like the Conservatives did.  This is proof that they don’t care what the public has to say and are just going to try to push through with the bill anyway.

In a previous post, I posted the answers from my own MP, David Sweet, and a clerk at the Liberal party to my inquiries to their parties about the Copyright Act.

I asked for further clarification on some points from Msr. Sweet and received an answer from the Minister of Canadian Heritage, Josée Verner and the Minister of Industry, Jim Prentice.

Here was my original e-mail:

Dear Mr. Sweet:

Thank you for your response.  The bill does say that it will limit the damages per infraction.  However, isn’t each song an infraction?  If one is sharing 1000 songs, doesn’t that add up to $500,000 dollars?  You don’t have to respond to this if you don’t have time, but you should pass on to your party that the one point is very unclear to the public; I and I suspect many others have been looking for clarification on this point.  $500.00 per infraction is still a lot of money when you take into account that most people who download music or rip it to their computer from CD have 200-1000 songs on their computer, and I think that is what most Canadians are up in arms about.

Thank you once again for your timely response.

Sincere Regards,

Angela West

Here is their answer:

 Ms. West,

The Government of Canada has introduced Bill C-61 (An Act to Amend the Copyright Act).  The proposed legislation is a made-in-Canada approach that balances the needs of Canadian consumers and copyright owners, promoting culture, innovation and competition in the digital age.

What does Bill C-61 mean to Canadians?
Specifically, it includes measures that would:

*       expressly allow you to record TV shows for later viewing; copy legally purchased music onto other devices, such as MP3 players or cell phones; make back-up copies of legally purchased books, newspapers, videocassettes and photographs onto devices you own; and limit the “statutory damages” a court could award for all private use copyright infringements;

*       implement new rights and protections for copyright holders, tailored to the Internet, to encourage participation in the online economy, as well as stronger legal remedies to address Internet piracy

*       clarify the roles and responsibilities of Internet Service Providers related to the copyright content flowing over their network facilities

*       provide photographers with the same rights as other creators

What Bill C-61 does not do:

*       it would not empower border agents to seize your iPod or laptop at border crossings, contrary to recent public speculation

What this Bill is not:

*       it is not a mirror image of U.S. copyright laws. Our Bill is made-in-Canada with different exceptions for educators, consumers and others and brings us into line with more than 60 countries including Japan, France, Germany and Australia

Bill C-61 was introduced in the Commons on June 12, 2008 by Industry Minister Jim Prentice and Heritage Minister Josée Verner.

For more information, please visit the Copyright Reform Process website at www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/crp-prda.nsf/en/home

Thank you for sharing your views on this important matter.

The Honourable Josée Verner
Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages and Minister for La Francophonie

The Honourable Jim Prentice
Minister of Industry

While it doesn’t immediately answer my question, I did follow the link given and found this page, which effectively does answer my question:

http://www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/crp-prda.nsf/en/rp01162e.html

Basically I read this as saying that one lawsuit may only have 500.00 worth of damages for copying, 20 000 for DRM  cracking.  It could be argued that the tenuous recording industry may bring 1000 lawsuits in cases where 1000 songs are found on a computer, but I think we just have to pray that the fact that we live in Canada would get all but one of those lawsuits thrown out of court.

While this doesn’t make me any happier with the bill, I have to admit that the Conservative response to my questions and the clarification of the issues has been much more proactive than that of any other party.  While that does stick in my craw a bit as an avid NDP supporter, one has to give credit where credit is due.  As of press time, neither the NDP or the Liberals have anything on their websites to do with the Copyright Act.  Where are their parties going to position themselves on this issue?  I think we need to know.

Meanwhile, the best site for up-to-date news and educated opinion about the Copyright Act continues to be michaelgeist.ca - I encourage anyone who hasn’t been there to check it out.