Copyright and Trademark Laws

This post was posted originally on Prof. Katz's blog.

Access Copyright and the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) announced yesterday that they had negotiated a Model Licence that would allow universities to reproduce copyright protected materials in both print and digital formats. In a joint media release issued by Access Copyright and the AUCC, Paul Davidson, president of the AUCC, was quoted as saying "We believe that this negotiated agreement provides the best possible outcome for universities, their students and faculty." Really, Mr. Davidson, Really?

First posted on Prof. Katz's blog.

In addition to serious copyright, privacy, and academic freedom problems arising from the Agreement signed last week between UofT and Access Copyright, the way it has been handled so far raises some questions about whether it is consistent with UofT’s governance procedures.

No serious consultation or discussion has taken place before the Agreement was signed, although, interestingly, s. 22 of the Agreement does contemplate it being conditional upon “applicable Governance approval”. It seems only natural that an agreement with wide, deep, and long-term implication such as this one would be subject to governance approval, yet it is less clear that UofT's Administration is going to seek the appropriate approval. The Administration has not done it yet, and in fact, there are worrying signs that the Agreement will not get the scrutiny that it deserves. I hope I'm misinterpreting these signs.