Canadian Coalition for Electronic Rights
 

George Geczy, co-founder and co-owner of Battlegoat Studios, has just released a thoughtful and eloquently written document entitled: A “Canadian Content Creator’s View” of the Copyright Modernization Act (Bill C-32) (PDF).

While Mr Geczy has not been shy about expressing his and his company’s views regarding copyright, the need to speak out on copyright and the Canadian video game industry, Mr Geczy’s is a seasoned veteran when it comes to copyright and video games, he literally has been involved since ’82:

I think it is important to point out that I have been a digital content creator since 1980 and a business owner since 1982…I have also been involved with digital copyright issues since the early 1980′s, and my first submissions on the “current round” of copyright reform were in September 2001. I have since made submissions to each opportunity for consultation and feedback on copyright, FTAA, and ACTA.

Reflecting on Bill C-32, Mr Geczy arrives at much the same conclusion as distinguished scholars, business coalitions, universities and colleges and federal opposition MP’s. Mr Geczy sums this up succinctly with the following assertion:

Unfortunately, Section (47) of C-32, which adds the new Technological Protection Measures regulations, is so inherently flawed and unbalanced that it not only overshadows the progress in other sections of the bill, but in facts eliminates them by its “over-riding” nature. In recent comments the Minister of Heritage has said that the bill strikes a balance and “everyone got some water in their wine”. However Section (47) is more like arsenic in the wine, it destroys the progressive elements of the bill by invalidating them, and without changes this section makes the bill unacceptable and entirely unbalanced.

Mr Geczy offers a simple solution to the contentious protection for digital locks laid out by Bill C-32 that would satisfy Canada’s WIPO requirements, allow consumers to uphold their Fair Dealing Rights and Expections and protect creators and publishers against supposed large scale infringement. Think Mr Geczy’s solution would entail another lengthy research submission to satisfy all stakeholders as well as meet Canada’s international obligations? Think again, as Bill C-32 can be fixed with 10 words, yes 10 words:

Circumvention of Technical Protection Measures be permitted for non-infringing uses.

The CCER encourages Canadians to read Mr Geczy’s paper in its entirety to see how he rightly arrives at such simple yet effective fix. And to you Mr Geczy, by George, I think you’ve got it!

The Canadian Coalition for Electronic Rights is proud to announce that Canadian video game developer Battlegoat Studios has become a coalition member.

BattleGoat Studios is a Canadian Software Developer committed to developing leading edge “Intelligent Strategy Games” for the PC…the team firmly believes that Strategy Gamers are looking for more sophisticated games that also remain fun to play. BattleGoat insists that their approach to development will always emphasize an accurate, heavily researched environment assuring players an entertaining and immersive gameplay experience.

Founder and lead developer George Geczy has been very open and frank when discussing copyright reform in Canada as evidenced by his Copyright Consultation Submission. As a successful and independent Canadian game developer, Geczy felt it imperative to directly address The Entertainment Software Association of Canada to make it clear that their anti-consumer views on copyright are not representative of BattleGoat Studios’ views or that of many other small and mid-size Canadian developers. Geczy continued:

Your comments and proposals completely disregard the final consumer – the video game purchaser and player – and the fact that they, too, deserve certain rights in a fair system. Rights
such as the ability to continue to play a game after a user’s system has been upgraded or replaced; the ability to backup a PC game to protect from system failure; the ability to continue playing a legally purchased game after a publisher goes out of business and the ‘authentication’ server is taken off line; and so on. Your insistence on anti-circumvention legislation for Canada is a direct assault on the very customers who buy video game products.

The addition of independent game developer, BattleGoat Studios, to the Canadian Coalition for Electronic Rights galvanizes the calls from Canadians for fair and balanced copyright reforms that maintain technologically neutrality. A reformed copyright regime that takes into careful consideration the rights of consumers as well as creators. A framework that will not be trumped by international trade agreements negotiated in complete secrecy without public consultation or consideration.