I'm a citizen of the United States living temporarily in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada. Are there any members at this site who could point me in the right direction for determining whether or not IN CANADA that I may make one copy of a music CD for backup purposes? I am having trouble finding the relevant site(s). ~ Mark
Hi Mark, As far as I am aware, it is legal to make backups of music cds. If you have ever bought blank cds at London Drugs, you will be charged a $.21/disc levy, which supposedly goes to the artists. I don't believe the law has been changed. However, I doubt if you would be allowed to take said items back into the USA. Anyone can correct me if I'm wrong. http://www.cippic.ca/en/faqs-resources/copyright-law/#levies
There's so many laws on this it's ridiculous. No one follows them as their plain stupid. You are allowed to make a backup copy of anything you want (CD's, DVD's etc.) even if you don't own the original. Millions of people swap music and DVD's with their friends, family etc. The only thing that is gonna get you in trouble is selling stuff on the streets.
@weazel2000, I don't believe what you said is entirely true. You will notice the link I provided indicated "music" only. Ever wonder why cd media is so much more expensive than dvd? London Drugs will inform you BEFORE you make a purchase of the added levies. Other stores, I believe the levy is incorporated into the selling price. What is "private copying"? "Private copying" refers to the copying of pre-recorded music by a person for their own personal use. In Canada, the private copying regime applies only to music, not to other works. The Copyright Board has a good explanation of the private copying regime on its website." The copyright issue has been a focus of the upcoming Federal Election. In fact, there was recently a poll done across Canada. A close friend was surveyed (out of 1204). This person lives in a very small community of under 3000. Doesn't even own a computer. When they asked what the household income ........was told.....none of your business. Likely most of the people surveyed are not well informed, and "1204" DO NOT MAKE A RELIABLE SURVEY. My $.02. http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/December2005/28/c3916.html
BTW.........I thought it was very coincidental that a close friend was surveyed......hmmmmmmm (1204 out of 32,378,122 ........what are the odds?) @Mark, I was jolted out of bed this morning 4:28 PST....3.9 Earthquake (20 kms Nw of Victoria)according to initial news reports. Did you feel it? Welcome to the WestCoast! LOL
Hi mackdl: Thank you for responding. I used the link that you posted, and that site contains another link to the Copyright Board of Canada. They have a "contact us" link, so I will put my question directly to the authorities. (Most of the information on these two sites deals with the levy, not the law.) ~ Mark PS: I was not jolted yesterday morning. I never heard anything about an earthquake.
Hi Mark, Here is the report. If you are familiar with Vancouver Island, it was centered near Bamberton, north of the Malahat. http://www.pgc.nrcan.gc.ca/seismo/table.htm Btw. Please report back. I find the copyright laws in Canada very confusing. I would hope that they will respond in terms that the average citizen can understand.