COPYRIGHT REGULATIONS

Limitation of the Right to Equitable Remuneration of Certain Rome Convention Countries Statement

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REGULATIONS
Copyright Act

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23 March, 1999

Whereas the Minister of Industry is of the opinion that the Rome Convention countries referred to in the annexed statement do not grant a right of remuneration similar in scope and duration to that provided by section 19^a of the Copyright Act for the performance in public or the communication to the public by telecommunication of a sound recording whose maker, at the date of its first fixation, was a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada within the meaning of the Immigration Act or, if a corporation, had its headquarters in Canada;

Therefore, the Minister of Industry, pursuant to subsection 20(2)^a of the Copyright Act, hereby makes the annexed Limitation of the Right to Equitable Remuneration of Certain Rome Convention Countries Statement.

Ottawa, Ontario, March 19, 1999

John Manley
Minister of Industry

^a S.C. 1997, c. 24, s. 14

1. A right to equitable remuneration applies only for a duration of 20 years for the performance in public or the communication to the public by telecommunication of a sound recording whose maker, at the date of its first fixation, was a citizen, or permanent resident of, or, if a corporation, had its headquarters in, one of the following countries:

a) Bolivia;
b) Honduras;
c) Lesotho; or
d) Uruguay.

2. A right to equitable remuneration applies only to the communication to the public by telecommunication of a sound recording whose maker, at the date of its first fixation, was a citizen or permanent resident of, or, if a corporation, had its headquarters in, one of the following countries:

a) Japan; or
b) Norway.

3. A right to equitable remuneration applies only to the performance in public of a sound recording whose maker, at the date of its first fixation, was a citizen or permanent resident of Lebanon, or, if a corporation, had its headquarters in Lebanon.

4. A right to equitable remuneration does not apply to the performance in public or the communication to the public by telecommunication of a sound recording whose maker, at the date of its first fixation, was a citizen or permanent resident of, or, if a corporation, had its headquarters in, one of the following countries:

a) Barbados;
b) Burkina Faso;
c) Cape Verde;
d) Congo;
e) Czech Republic;
f) El Salvador;
g) Fiji;
h) Guatemala;
i) Ireland;
j) Monaco;
k) Nigeria;
l) Paraguay; or
m) Saint Lucia.

5. This Statement comes into force on the day on which it is registered.

Description

Under recent amendment, new rights have been introduced into the Copyright Act. One such right is the right to remuneration for producers and performers of sound recordings. The Act provides that this right to remuneration applies to the performance in public (for example, the playing of sound recordings in a bar or restaurant) or the communication to the public by telecommunication (for example, radio broadcasts) of sound recordings.

This right is granted to sound recordings originating from Rome Convention countries if it is first fixed by a national of such countries, or if all fixations done for the recording are done in these countries. The Act defines a Rome Convention country as a country that is a party to the International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations, commonly referred to as the "Rome Convention". Canada acceded to the Rome Convention on March 4, 1998, and was formally recognized as a Contracting State on June 4, 1998.

In accordance with the Rome Convention, subsection 20(2) of the revised Copyright Act, gives discretion to the Minister of Industry to limit the scope and duration of protection of the right to remuneration in sound recordings originating from a Rome Convention country, if that country does not offer a right similar in scope and duration to that granted in Canada.

Following the study of the copyright regimes of the 55 Rome Convention countries, the Government has decided to limit the remuneration right in sound recordings originating from twenty of these countries.

The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) will act as a depository for this Statement and any subsequent amendments.

Benefits and Costs

By limiting the scope and duration of this remuneration right, in accordance with subparagraph 16(1)(a)(iv) of the Rome Convention, the Government is ensuring that the protection granted to foreign nationals of certain Rome Convention countries is similar to that extended by these countries to Canadians.

There will be no additional costs to the sound recording industry nor to the user community due to this Statement.

There will be no associated costs to the Government due to this Statement.

Consultation

Given the nature of this Statement, consultations were not necessary.

Compliance and Enforcement

Compliance and enforcement mechanisms are not applicable.