Giuseppina D’Agostino is the Founder and Director of IP Osgoode, the Founder and Director of the new IP Intensive Program, and an Associate Professor at Osgoode Hall Law School.

This December copyright is coming to town!  Five historic hearings at the Supreme Court of Canada and a brand new copyright bill in Parliament have the potential to dramatically change Canadian copyright law.

The Supreme Court of Canada will be streaming a live webcast of the proceedings on December 6-7, 2011, in the following five cases:

1.  Entertainment Software Association, et al. v. Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SCC Docket No. 33921) – Appeal of 2010 FCA 221 (A-521-07), in which the Federal Court of Appeal upheld the Copyright Board’s decision that a download of a video game that includes music is a communication of music to the public by telecommunication subject to royalties under the tariff;

2.  Province of Alberta as represented by the Minister of Education, et al. v. Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency, operating as "Access Copyright" (SCC Docket No. 33888) - Appeal of 2010 FCA 198 (A-302-09), in which the Federal Court of Appeal upheld the Copyright Board’s certification of a tariff for the reproduction of materials for use in primary and secondary level educational institutions;

3.  Re:Sound v. Motion Picture Theatre Associations of Canada, et al. (SCC Docket No. 34210) - Appeal of 2011 FCA 70 (A-433-09), in which the Federal Court of Appeal upheld the Copyright Board’s refusal to certify a tariff for music played in movies and on television;

4.  Rogers Communications Inc., et al. v. Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SCC Docket No. 33922) - Appeal of 2010 FCA 220 (A-519-07 & A-520-07), in which the Federal Court of Appeal upheld the Copyright Board’s decision that streaming music to computers or mobile devices is a communication to the public by telecommunication subject to the tariff; and

5.  Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, et al. v. Bell Canada, et al. (SCC Docket No. 33800) - Appeal of 2010 FCA 123 (A-514-07), in which the Federal Court of Appeal upheld the Copyright Board’s decision that online, streamed previews of musical works are communications to the public by telecommunication subject to the tariff.

Best of luck to the parties and to their counsel, including IP Osgoode Advisory Board members, Glen Bloom, Casey Chisick and Barry Sookman, in their representations before the Honourable Mr. Justice Marshall Rothstein, also an IP Osgoode Advisory Board member, and his colleagues on the bench.