A motion was made in the House of Commons on Dec. 13 to launch the much-anticipated parliamentary review of the Copyright Act. The mandated review will be led by the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, under the direction of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains, in association with Canadian Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly.

Access Copyright posted a statement in response: “This important review heralds a critical opportunity to re-examine the role that copyright plays for both creators and users and addresses the Value Gap caused by 2012 amendments to the Act to ensure continued access to outstanding Canadian content for our classrooms.”

Although law professor and activist Michael Geist has a very different take on the reform, it’s hard to disagree with his conclusion: “Most Canadians do not follow the day-to-day policy battles over copyright, but the law has a significant impact on many aspects of their daily lives. The copyright review of 2018 will help shape future reforms creating a critical need for individual Canadians to ensure their voices are heard.”