The Public’s Domain: CIPPIC Submission on Copyright Term Extension

CIPPIC’s submission (The Public's Domain [1]) to the government consultation on copyright term extension [2] places the public domain at the heart of Canada’s copyright system.  Given the costs of term extension to Canada’s copyright ecosystem, CIPPIC argues for a form of term extension that offers something back in the form of a registry of works.  Copyright is rare among forms of intellectual property in that protection arises automatically without the need to declare one’s rights.  This means that copyright lacks a functional registry akin to the Patent Registry or the Trademarks Registry.  A Copyright Registry would provide Canadians with greater notice of both protected content and content soon to join the public domain.

CIPPIC articling student Bo Kruk co-authored the submission with David Fewer and with research assistance from CIPPIC interne Nadine Eltawdy.