Supreme Court of Canada Begins Hearing Arguments on Tariff 22

On December 3, 2003, the Supreme Court of Canada began hearing arguments on the question of whether domestic and international Internet Service Providers (ISPs) should pay a tariff for music downloaded by Canadians. In 1995, Tariff 22 was first proposed by the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN), the body which administers the performing and communication rights of its members. The aim was to compensate copyright holders of musical works for lost royalties as a result of the Internet transmission and downloading activities of ISP subscribers - by charging ISPs a royalty fee. For an extended discussion of the SOCAN/Tariff 44 case and several relevant links, see http://dww.local/?page_id=1017. Summary by: Colin Adams If you have any questions as to how this case might affect you, contact Michael Erdle (merdle@dww.com).