Canadian Lawyer

October 2011

The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers

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"But we are absolutely not intending to license the Internet, as some have said." Many schools that have opted out say they did so based on the potential increase in cost, but also because they realized they were using materials differently than when the tariff was first created. Gregory Juliano is director and general counsel with the University of Manitoba's office of fair practices and legal affairs. He says U of M approached it from the worst-case scenario. If Access Copyright's proposed tariff was approved without modification, it would cost the university almost $1.2 million annually. "By contrast, we had paid approximately $300,000 per year to Access Copyright under our [now expired] licence agreement," says Juliano. "Almost two-thirds of this amount was actually paid by students who ordered course packs, so the real cost to the insti- tution was closer to $100,000. In other words, the proposed tariff might result in a tenfold increase in costs to the institution." Finlay says the proposed tariff is just that, and the Copyright Board may settle on something less. So why are some uni- versities and colleges opting out? Julia- no says the University of Manitoba did so primarily because of the "decreasing value and relevancy of our relationship with Access Copyright. Our libraries have steadily built a large collection of electronic resources which are licensed directly from publishers, rather than through a collective such as Access Copyright," he says. "We had become substantially less reliant on the type of paper copies and course pack production which were permitted through our Access Copyright licence." One school that is still part of the agree- ment with Access Copyright is the Uni- versity of Toronto. Steven Moate, senior legal counsel, says, "For the time being, the University of Toronto has decided that it is in its best interests to operate under the interim tariff ordered by the Copyright Board, while continuing its opposition, via the AUCC, to the tariff application itself." Ryerson University, too, is paying the interim tariff. Ryerson's new general coun- sel, Julia Shin Doi, says the school is also working with the Association of Univer- sities and Colleges. "Ryerson University is working closely with other universities across Canada in supporting the Associa- tion of Universities and Colleges of Canada in its legal challenge to the increased tariff application made by Access Copyright." Wills says institutions have been migrating to digital copying and digital site licences with academic journals, signed through a regional consortia — the Cana- dian Research Knowledge Network, which licenses electronic books and journals and can be accessed across Canada. "It's some- what ironic that they should be trying to preserve their market but instead they file this aggressive tariff. Essentially they want to charge more than double for the horse and buggy when institutions have access to the automobile," says Wills. "What Access Copyright has proposed is a $45 per stu- dent one-size-fits-all fee that is irrespective of its level of copying." THE COMPLEX MINEFIELD OF IP AND TECHNOLOGY LAW REQUIRES EXPERT NAVIGATION. IP SMART & BIGGAR'S internationally recognized professionals have the technical and legal experience to help you navigate the complex, high-stakes world of IP & technology law. With offices across the country, we are able to work with you to provide and leverage the right skills, knowledge and resources to create unparalleled IP solutions tailored to your clients' unique needs. smart-biggar.ca | Ottawa | Toronto | Montreal | Vancouver SmartBiggar_CL_Oct_11.indd 1 www.CANADIAN Lawyermag.com OCTO BER 2011 47 11-09-14 11:10 AM UNPARALLELED

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