VZCZCXRO6593
PP RUEHGA RUEHHA RUEHMT RUEHQU RUEHVC
DE RUEHOT #0945 1961747
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 141747Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY OTTAWA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8187
INFO RUCNCAN/ALL CANADIAN POSTS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS OTTAWA 000945 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/CAN AND EEB/TPP/IPE 
STATE PLEASE PASS USTR FOR SULLIVAN AND MELLE 
COMMERCE FOR E BARRAGAN, S WRIGHT, AND J BOGER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON KIPR ETRD CA
SUBJECT: A ROCKY PATH FOR CANADA'S COPYRIGHT BILL 
 
REF: OTTAWA 794 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Although stakeholders are generally pleased 
with Canada,s recently introduced copyright bill, critics 
are working against it at a grassroots level and the 
opposition parties have thus far been critical.  The bill 
will likely require several months of Parliamentary hearings, 
and it is still unclear whether the Government has enough 
votes to pass the legislation.  The copyright bill's future 
could also be impacted if the Prime Minister clears the 
legislative agenda by proroguing Parliament or if the 
Government were to fall.  End summary. 
 
Legislative Process 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) On June 12, the Government of Canada introduced bill 
C61, An Act to Amend the Copyright Act (reftel).  If all 
proceeds normally, after the House of Commons returns on 
September 15, the bill will be given a second reading, voted 
on in principle, and referred to the Industry Committee. 
After a bill receives a second reading, parliamentary 
procedures prevent amendments that would alter the 
"principle" of the bill.  According to senior Industry Canada 
officials, the Industry Committee will likely hold several 
months of hearings.  If the committee ultimately approves the 
legislation, it will be reported back to the House of Commons 
for votes on any Committee amendments, followed by third 
reading and a final vote.  If passed by the House, the bill 
would be sent to the Senate, where it would go through a 
similar Parliamentary process.  However, a decision by the 
Prime Minister to prorogue Parliament over the summer or an 
election triggered by the fall of the Government -- both 
rumored possibilities -- would clear all legislation 
currently before the Parliament, including bill C61. 
 
Public Reaction 
-------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The opposition Bloc Quebecois and Liberal parties, 
while critical of bill C61, have not indicated how they will 
vote on the legislation.  Some Bloc members of Parliament 
have suggested in constituent letters that the Bloc, while 
concerned about some aspects of the legislation, will support 
the bill in principle at second reading.  Citing the 2007 
unanimous Industry Committee and the Public Safety Committee 
reports calling for stronger IPR protection, many Canadian 
stakeholders believe that both the Liberals and the Bloc will 
ultimately support the bill.  Either Party,s support -- 
coupled with the ruling Conservative party -- would be enough 
to pass the legislation. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Bill C61 was met with enthusiastic praise from the 
Canadian Chamber of Commerce, The Canadian Motion Picture 
Distributors Association, the Canadian Recording Industry 
Association, and other stakeholders.  The Chamber, in 
particular, is actively supporting the bill.  In addition to 
press releases and op-eds, Chamber leadership is urging local 
chapters to raise the merits of the bill in their communities 
and with their elected representatives. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Media coverage of bill C61, particularly in the 
blogosphere, has generally been negative.  While Minister of 
Industry Jim Prentice asserts that the copyright reform is a 
"made in Canada solution," grassroots opposition, including 
an 85,000-member Facebook group (Fair Copyright for Canada), 
has labeled C61 the "Canadian Digital Millennium Copyright 
Act (DMCA)" claiming that the bill was introduced largely due 
to U.S. pressure and is a close copy of the U.S. DMCA. 
 
Visit Canada,s Economy and Environment Forum at 
http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/can ada 
Qhttp://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/ca nada 
 
WILKINS